My older sister is a much better cook than I. In fact, if I look through my own recipe book, the lion’s share of recipes are either “Nance Originals,” or, “Nance Riffs,” based on some other amazing recipe she found somewhere.

Back in the day, the day meaning a day when we still ate stuff like dry rubbed rib-eye steaks and my aunt’s patented “Crack and Cheese” (oh God, that was good stuff!), Nance (and my mom) taught me the cooking basics—meatballs, chicken soup, German potato salad and hazelnut tortes.

Now that my sister and I are a wee bit more enlightened, embracing all things vegan (With a Vengeance; thanks Isa Chandra Moskowitz, best vegan cookbook author on planet Earth), Nance still teaches me the best stuff I know.

And so, from our kitchen to yours, the best of the best, I bring you…

Nance’s Shrooms with Almond Au Jus

Serves 4

For marinade you will need:

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup tamari or soy sauce

1/2 cup water

2 tbl balsamic vinegar

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp dried rosemary

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 cup almonds, ground

course sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

Combine all thoroughly.

For mushrooms you will need:

1 onion, sliced

6 portobello mushrooms, thickly sliced lengthwise

1 cup fresh Italian parsley

Preheat oven to 400. Place shrooms in baking pan gills side up, pour half the marinade over them. Place onions on top, pour over the rest of the marinade. Allow to sit for at least 20 minutes. Reserve parsley for garnish. Bake 30-35 minutes.

Saute’d Swiss Chard

Serves 4

For the swiss chard you will need;

1 big bunch swiss chard, any color, rinsed and cut in 1/4 inch ribbons

1 red onion, chopped

1 tbl balsamic vinaigrette

1 tbl olive oil

course sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste

Saute onions with salt and pepper in olive oil until they are caramelized but not burned, between 5 and 10 minutes. Add chard, sauté for 8 more minutes. Add balsamic, cook one more minute.

Serve shrooms and chard over any grain; quinoa would be a great voice to soak up the savory juices and a hunk of nice crusty bread wouldn’t hurt either. Garnish with fresh Italian parsley.

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Editor: Travis May

Photo: Anna Birch/Pixoto