This evening I almost threw in the apron and let the fact that my life is crazy, I’ve over extended myself (yet again), I didn’t have a back up plan for J (who knew jackfruit in brine & not syrup would be so hard to find with Asian markets all over the place?) and I have company coming in from out-of-town tomorrow, get in the way of my commitment to Vegan MOFO (and myself). My other option was to just not sleep for the next 72 hours but unfortunately I am not in my twenties anymore and no amount of caffeine would allow me to do that. I then came up with a practical solution that the perfectionist in me hates but the side of me that doesn’t see things in black in white, and prefers shades of grey could deal with…I decided to go out-of-order with the alphabet.

Ouch…I can feel the evil looks, the disappointment and the books hitting me in the back of the head that my sixth grade librarian is throwing at me out of pure disgust. I swear I know how important alphabetical order is, this is simply the only way for me to survive the next few days of MOFO. It could be more exciting this way because you won’t know what letter is coming next (I’m smiling, I hope you are too.) Despite my failure at order I promise the recipes will not disappoint. Thankfully I had made a few recipes ahead of time.

With autumn in the air and pumpkins everywhere how could P be for anything but pumpkin? I’ve decided to not make pumpkin into a dessert though and instead use it for a slightly more savory dish or dip as it were.  I have made a pumpkin dip that goes wonderfully with a veggie tray, crackers, bread or corn chips. I served it at my last get together and people fell in love.

Okay, so I love Trader Joe’s but on Don’t Fear The Vegan I have been very careful about not using products specific to the store because as unfortunate as it is not everyone has access to one but for this dip I have to.  The product is the Red Pepper Spread with Eggplant and Garlic, the most underrated product at Trader Joe’s. Don’t let the neon color scare you. It is amazing. You can add it to vegan mayo for sandwiches, add a dollop to your favorite tomato soup or add to cream cheese for an easy spread. Many keep it in their fridge as a condiment. If you shop at Trader Joe’s try it out. If you can’t get this product you could puree red bell pepper with garlic and have fairly similar results.

Savory Pumpkin Dip
8 oz vegan cream cheese
15 oz canned pumpkin
12 oz jar of Red Pepper Spread
3 tbsp chili powder/taco seasoning
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
pepitas
A hallowed out sugar pumpkin (optional, I bought one to serve it in but ran out of time to clean it out.)

In a food processor or blender mix ingredients from cream cheese to pumpkin pie spice until completely blended. Pour into container and cover for a minimum of two hours (it was even better the next day. Serve with pepitas and chili powder sprinkled on top. Would look beautiful in a pumpkin but not necessary.