The Earthling Co.'s Favorite Holiday Recipes

There’s something about being in the kitchen that brings us joy, especially during this time of year. Having friends or family over for a cozy meal, connecting with them over food, and then sending them off feeling nourished is such a treat. So if you’re looking to host for the holidays, here are a few of our team's favorite recipes, from crispy egg rolls to loaded mashed potatoes to savory stuffed mushrooms.

Jocelyn’s Vegetarian Egg Rolls

Ingredients

• 500 g firm tofu
• 3-4 carrots, julienned
• 50 g dried shiitake mushrooms (about 7-8)
• 50 g beanthread noodles
• 2 tbsp dried woodear mushrooms
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1.5 tsp salt (+/- to taste)
• 1 tsp sugar
• ¼ tsp ground black pepper
• 2 tsp potato starch
• 25-30 spring roll wrappers
• 1 egg, beaten

Directions

Prepare Filling

In separate bowls, soak the shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, and bean thread noodles in warm water until softened. Slice the shiitake mushrooms after rinsing and draining them. Rinse the wood ear mushrooms and drain them as well as the bean thread noodles. Then cut them into smaller pieces.

Thoroughly drain the tofu of its soaking liquid and place in a large bowl. Break the tofu up into smaller pieces, like crumbled feta. Then, place the tofu in a cheesecloth and squeeze out any excess liquid (similar to how you would prepare the tofu for this dish). Return the tofu to the bowl, add the julienned carrots, sliced onions, shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, and bean thread noodles. Add the potato starch and season the filling with salt, sugar, and ground pepper. Mix thoroughly to ensure that the seasoning is evenly distributed. After mixing the ingredients with chopsticks, I then switch to mixing with my hands, gently squeezing the filling as I mix to soften the carrots a bit.

Rolling the Egg Rolls

Carefully peel a spring roll wrapper sheet from the stack and place it before you so that one of the ends is pointed towards you, like a rhombus. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the filling onto the sheet 2-3 centimeters from the corner pointing towards you. Fold the corner over the filling and tightly roll it one full rotation. Then fold each side over so that it looks like an elongated envelope. Continue to roll, being sure to roll it tight enough that it won’t fall apart. Seal the egg roll by brushing some of the beaten egg with your finger along the edges of the remaining corner.

Frying

The best way to fry these egg rolls is in a deep fryer, but I hate cleaning the fryer afterwards. So, I usually fry mine in batches over medium-high heat in a pot filled with at least 4-5 cm of cooking oil (enough oil so that the egg rolls are fully submerged when frying). To gauge if the oil is hot enough, insert a wooden chopstick and if the oil starts to bubble rapidly, then it’s ready. When putting the egg rolls into the pot, don’t overcrowd them. Allow them to cook until they they reach a light, golden color. Immediately, transfer the egg rolls into a fine-meshed sieve to cool.

Serving

The egg rolls are best served over vermicelli rice noodles and a bed of Vietnamese aromatic herbs with a drizzle of nước mắm sauce. Or if served as an appetizer, they can be eaten by wrapping them in lettuce and aromatic herbs and dipped in nước mắm sauce. For those who would like a truly animal-free version, my nước mắm sauce can be made with soy sauce instead of fish sauce.

Felicia’s Loaded Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients

• 8 ounces bacon or more to taste
• 3 pounds russet potatoes peeled and cut into 1" cubes
• 1 stick butter
• 1 container (16 oz) sour cream
• 4 teaspoons Kosher salt divided
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
• 8 ounces shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup green onions sliced

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Put the potatoes into a large pot and cover with water and 2 teaspoons of the salt.
3. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.
4. Drain the potatoes and put them back into the pot with the butter and sour cream.
5. Mash them well and add in the remaining salt and the pepper.
6. Scoop the potatoes into a 9x13 casserole dish and top with the cheese and bacon.
7. Cook the potatoes for 5-10 minutes covered with foil, or until the cheese is fully melted.
8. Garnish with green onions before serving.

Leslie’s Taiwanese Sticky Rice

Ingredients

• 2 cups sticky rice (aka sweet short grain, mochigome, or glutinous rice)
• 1 cup regular white rice
• Dried shiitake mushrooms
• Fried shallots (we use an Asian style one, but a perfect sub is the fried onion pieces that go on green bean casserole)
• Soy sauce
• Sesame oil
• Vegetable oil
• Cilantro

Optional add-ins:

• Salted turnip
• Chinese sausage
• Dried shrimp

Directions

1. Combine sticky rice and white rice, rinse, and cook in rice cooker with 2.5 cups water. This can be done ahead of time but it is easiest to finish assembling the dish if the rice is at least lukewarm.
2. If using dried salted turnip: quickly rinse the turnip pieces under cold water to remove some of the excess salt.
3. If using Chinese sausage: toast or saute until warmed through and crispy, then chop into bite sized pieces.
4. Pour boiling water over the dried shiitake mushrooms. Cover the bowl with a plate and allow to soak for at least 15min
5. Once mushrooms are soft, remove from water and chop into ribbons. Save the mushroom soaking water, don't throw it out
6. Heat a large frying pan over medium-low heat. Pour in ~2 tsp vegetable oil, make sure pan is evenly coated, and dump in the cooked rice. Add in your mix-ins (shiitake mushrooms, and dried turnip, dried shrimp, and Chinese sausage pieces, if using) and a splash of the mushroom soaking water. Add in a healthy bit of sesame oil and soy sauce, and start mixing!
7. At this point you're really just mixing and heating everything through together so the flavors meld. Taste as you go and add more soy sauce and sesame oil as needed.
8. Once you've got it in a good spot, add in the fried shallot / onion, do one final mix and taste test, and plate it up.
9. Top with lots of cilantro & enjoy

Emelia’s Vegan Stuffed Mushrooms

Ingredients

• 12 medium cremini mushrooms, stems removed (about 12 ounces / 340g)
• 2 tablespoons low-sodium tamari, divided
• 1/2 cup (55 g) raw walnuts
• 1/2 cup (75 g) pine nuts
• 1/2 small yellow onion, quartered
• 1 rib celery, cut in fourths
• 3–5 cloves of garlic
• 1 1/2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary (or 2 tsp dried)
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried)
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon ground sage
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste
• 1 tablespoon vegan butter (optional; or sub oil or water)
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) dry red wine

Directions

Prep

Preheat the oven to 400F and set a 9×9″ baking dish aside.

Marinate the Mushrooms

Place the mushroom caps in a large glass bowl and drizzle 1 tbsp of tamari over them; use a spatula to gently toss them in the mixture, until evenly coated. Set aside and let marinate while you prepare the filling, tossing occasionally.

Toast the Nuts

Bring a medium pan to medium-high heat; Add pine nuts and walnuts and toast for 5 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent burning. The nuts should be fragrant and slightly golden when finished; set aside.

Process the Filling

Add onion and celery to a food processor and process until they are very finely chopped, almost at a chunky paste. Remove from the food processor and set aside. Add the toasted nuts, garlic, nutritional yeast, rosemary, thyme, paprika, sage, and black pepper to the food processor. Pulse until the nuts are very finely chopped, almost resembling coarse breadcrumbs. Reserve 3 tablespoons of this mixture to top the mushrooms; place the rest in a separate bowl apart from the onions/celery.

Cook the Filling

Heat the vegan butter (or oil or 3 tablespoons water) in a nonstick pan over medium high heat. Once warm, add the onion and celery mixture. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, until the onion is translucent and slightly golden. Deglaze the pan with the remaining 1 tablespoon of tamari. Then, add the ground nut & spice mixture to the pan; cook for 1 minute, to allow the nuts and spices to toast. Add the red wine to the pan and stir well into the mixture; it should begin to stick together and form a thicker “paste.” Sauté for an additional 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and additional pepper to taste, if necessary.

Fill the Mushrooms

Place each mushroom cap into the baking dish with the hollow side (where the stem used to be) facing up. Fill each mushroom with approximately 1 tablespoon of the cooked filling, using your fingers to press it in firmly (though some will remain on top). Sprinkle the reserved nut & spice “breadcrumbs” over each mushroom.

Bake

Bake in the top rack of the oven for 27-29 minutes, until the mushrooms have fully cooked and the topping is golden brown. Remove from the oven and transfer to a serving tray; serve warm, or as desired. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days and are best served warm.

Kevin’s Apple Crumble Pie

Ingredients

• ⅔ C sugar
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
• 6-8 tart apples, pared, cored, and sliced (6 cups)
• 1 9-inch unbaked pastry shell
• ½ C all purpose flour
• ¼ C sugar
• ¼ C butter

Directions

Combine sugar, flour, and cinnamon; stir into apples. Turn into pastry shell. Combine remaining flour and sugar; cut in butter till crumbly. Sprinkle over apples. Bake at 400 degrees for 45-50 minutes or till done. If pie browns too quickly, cover edge with foil.

We hope you enjoy sharing these recipes with your loved ones. We’d love to see what you cook up, so feel free to tag us in your yummy dishes on Instagram!