It’s time to cook something great this winter season
Cooking and winter blend so well together! The cold weather always gives us a perfect excuse to create something warm and delicious and satisfying. Plus all the spices and flavors of winter create the coziest sensation. We curated a list of some of our favorite winter recipes for you to have on repeat all season long. These recipes are perfect for any level. So whether you are a master in the kitchen or simply have some baking curiosity, you are in the right place to create something tasty.
Easy Candied Pecans:
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup light or dark brown sugar, packed
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 pound pecans, halved
- 1 egg white, room temperature, and lightly beaten
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 325°F. Prepare a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.In a large bowl, whisk together brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon and salt.
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In a separate large bowl, combine pecans and egg white and toss until pecans are evenly coated.
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Add sugar mixture to bowl with pecans and stir/toss to combine.
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Pour pecan mixture onto a prepared baking sheet and bake for about 25 minutes, stirring them after the first 15 minutes. Keep in mind everyone’s oven is a little different, so you may need more or less time.
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Remove from oven and let the pecans cool on the baking sheet until cooled. Transfer to an airtight container to store until ready to serve. Enjoy!
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Vegan Nutmeg:
Ingredients
- 3 cups non-dairy milk (soy, almond or oat)
- 1 (14 oz) can full-fat coconut milk
- ½ cup maple syrup, or to taste
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, plus more to garnish
- 1 pinch salt
- Whipped topping, for serving
- Cinnamon sticks, for serving
Instructions
Add milk, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg & salt to a blender.
Blend on high until creamy, about 1 minute.
Serve over ice with a dollop of dairy-free whipped topping.
Garnish with a pinch of nutmeg & cinnamon stick.
Refrigerate leftovers for up to 2 weeks
Cinnamon Rolls
Ingredients
For the yeast
- ½ cup warm water, 110°
- 1 (¼-ounce) package active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon cane sugar
Dough
- ⅓ cup melted coconut oil, plus more for brushing
- ½ cup Almond Breeze Almondmilk, at room temperature
- ⅓ cup cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 2¾ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
Filling
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1½ tablespoons cinnamon
Glaze
- 1½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 3 to 4 tablespoons Almond Breeze Almondmilk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
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Grease an 8×11 or 9×13-inch baking dish.
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In a small bowl, stir together the water, yeast, and sugar. Set aside for 5 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy.
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Make the dough: In a medium bowl, combine the coconut oil, almond milk, sugar, and salt. Stir in the yeast mixture. Place the flour in a large bowl, then add the yeast mixture and stir until combined. The mixture will be sticky. Use your hands to roughly knead the mixture, then turn it out onto a floured surface. Knead 3 to 4 minutes until smooth, sprinkle with more flour if needed, and form into a ball.
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Brush a large bowl with coconut oil and place the dough inside. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
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Make the filling: In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar and cinnamon.
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Punch down dough and roll out on a floured surface into a 20×14-inch rectangle. Brush with 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar to within ½ inch of the edges.
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Starting at one of the short 14-inch ends, roll tightly into a log, then slice into 12 rolls. Place the rolls into the baking dish cut-side up, cover, and let rise for 1 hour.
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Preheat the oven to 350°F.
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Make the glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons almond milk, and vanilla until smooth. If it’s too thick, add more almond milk.
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Bake the rolls for 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly golden on top. Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes, then drizzle the glaze on top and serve.
Creamy Butternut Squash with Sausage and Spinach
Ingredients:
Squash:
- 2 cups butternut squash peeled seeded and cubed
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
Sausage:
- 1 Tablespoon Olive oil
- 1/2 lb sausage without casing
Creamy Sauce: Pasta:
- ½ cup butter softened
- ⅓ cup cane sugar
- Zest of 1 medium lemon
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped
- 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 6 oz spinach
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese shredded
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 8 oz farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
Instructions
Roast Butternut Squash
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Preheat oven to 400 F.
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In a large bowl, toss cubed butternut squash with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
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Spread the squash on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet in one layer, without overcrowding.
Cook Sausage
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In a medium skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil on medium heat.
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Add crumbled sausage and cook for about 10 minutes, regularly stirring, until the sausage is cooked through. Remove from heat and set aside.
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Tip: Cook the sausage while the butternut squash is being roasted.
Make Creamy Sauce
- In a separate, large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil together with minced garlic and spinach over medium heat. Cook, occasionally stirring, for about 5 or 7 minutes until spinach starts to wilt.
- Add heavy cream. Bring to a brief boil, then immediately reduce to simmer (boiling but not intensely). Add shredded Parmesan cheese. Keep stirring the sauce with the Parmesan cheese on low to medium boil (simmer) until the cheese melts. Remove from heat.
- Season with salt to taste, about ¼ teaspoon of salt. No salt might be necessary if the sausage is very salty.
- Tip: Use your judgment about whether to add salt or not based on how salty the sausage is. Make the cream sauce while the butternut squash is being roasted.
Cook Pasta and Assemble
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Cook pasta al dente in boiling water according to package instructions. That usually means cooking pasta in boiling water for about 7 to 11 minutes. Drain.
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To a large skillet with the creamy spinach sauce, add drained cooked pasta and cooked sausage. Stir. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.
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Top the pasta with roasted butternut squash. Stir the squash in, or leave it on top
Gingerbread Scones
INGREDIENTS
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ cup butter, frozen*
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup heavy cream, plus 1 Tablespoon for brushing over scones prior to baking
- ⅓ cup molasses
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- Coarse Sugar (optional)
- 3 tablespoons Biscoff Cookie Butter
INSTRUCTIONS
- Prepare a baking pan with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper and set it aside.
- Whisk flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves in a medium to a large bowl. Place the bowl in the refrigerator while you grate the butter.
- Grate frozen butter* and add to flour mixture. Use a pastry cutter or fork to combine until it looks like a coarse meal.
- Whisk egg, heavy cream, molasses, and maple syrup together and add to flour/butter mixture. The dough is quite wet and sticky.
- Flour your hands and nudge dough into an 8” circle onto a prepared baking sheet. Place scones in the freezer for 30 minutes while the oven preheats to 400°F.
- Using a bench scraper or sharp knife, cut the slightly frozen dough into 8 equal scones. Brush tops of scones with more heavy cream (approximately 1 tablespoon) and sprinkle with coarse sugar, if using.
- Separate and bake for 20-25 minutes.
- Make glaze while scones cool by warming the cookie butter (stirring constantly) until it reaches a drippy consistency. I melted mine in a small saucepan over low heat for less than one minute. If the cookie butter gets too runny, you can let it cool a bit, which should thicken it up.
- Drizzle glaze over cooled scones and enjoy.
