Cooking Mexican with Nina Hayes

Last Thursday night I had the great pleasure of taking a cooking class with Nina Hayes, whom I've mentioned on the blog before—she took Main Street Vegan Academy last year, we connected on Facebook after I moved to Boston, and now I take her Jivamukti class fairly regularly. I'd taken yoga with her that morning, so it felt like an all-day veganfest! There were four of us in the group, and everyone was very relaxed and friendly—a perfect environment for learning.  I know my way around the kitchen and don't feel too intimidated by new techniques, but not being intimidated is not the same thing as being enterprising enough to learn something new. Most of the time I fall back on the same recipes just out of a lack of time or planning. So a class like this is worthwhile not just for the veg-curious—it's useful for someone more confident and established in her veganhood, too.Here's the menu—all recipes Nina developed herself:

• spiced squash and bean tamales
• chipotle sour "cream" (made with cashews)
• seasoned kale chips with fresh guacamole
• Aztec chocolate mousse pie with coconut cream

Notice how she managed to put this meal together without any processed faux dairy products! Daiya and Tofutti are great for special occasions or when you're short on time, but ideally you'd whip up a healthier version from scratch, and Nina made it feel totally doable.        We used Nina's Vitamix for both the chipotle sauce and chocolate mousse, which got me REALLY excited to have one of my very own. My mom and sis—generous souls!—are buying me one for a birthday/Christmas present. Granted, I still don't have a kitchen of my own, but it'll be great even just to take it out of the box and use it once a week. As much as we love juicing, making smoothies with a high-powered blender is even healthier because you keep the fiber! I'm also looking forward to making coconut cream using Nina's recipe and tricks for my Thanksgiving desserts (an upside-down pear gingerbread cake and pumpkin pudding).If you're in the Boston area, you can subscribe to Nina's email newsletter on her website to find out when she's offering her next class. Highly recommended!