Lightly Steamed Veggies over Peanuty Brown Rice

Folks, this is by far the easiest recipe to make. When you need something hearty, quick, super veggie-filled, this is it. You can totally serve this to your non vegan/vegetarian friends and they won't think twice. If you must have meat or tofu, add cooked chicken or baked tofu to the bowl with the rice when you add the peanut sauce.

PHOTO COMING SOON!

INGREDIENTS:

Make peanut sauce - taken from the Weight Watchers Cookbook (my favorite version of peanut sauce)

- 4 tablespoons NATURAL no added sugar peanut butter

- 4 cloves of minced garlic

- 4 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

- 4 tablespoon sugar

- 2 tablespoon water

- 2 1/2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar

- 2 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS:

1 -Combine first 4 ingredients into a processor. Puree it. Add water, vinegar, cilantro. Puree. Set aside. 

2- Cook brown rice - 2 cups, per the directions.

3 - Chop up cauliflower, broccoli, carrots and place in a large pot with a colander at the bottom to STEAM the veggies for about 5-7 minutes. Make sure they're still crisp.

4 - Combine rice and peanut sauce in a large mixing bowl until fully incorporated. Spoon into a bowl (holds the heat better than a plate), and load veggies on top.

That's it! Enjoy:)

Chickpea-Lentil Salsa Over Couscous

This is my "i don't know what to make and don't have much time" recipe. I love it, which is a plus but it's sooooo easy and I always have these ingredients on-hand, which makes it my go-to for last minute dinners. 

PHOTO COMING SOON

INGREDIENTS:

- 1 cup lentils, picked over and rinsed

- 2 3/4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth, divided

- 1 cup whole-wheat couscous OR brown rice

- 1 12-oz. jar chunky medium salsa 

- 1 cup chopped cilantro

- 3 Tbsp tomato paste

- 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

- 1 Tbsp olive oil

- 1 small onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

- 1 large carrot, diced (about 1/2 cup)

- 1 15.5-oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

- 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (OPTIONAL) 

DIRECTIONS:

1 - Bring lentils and 6 cups water to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered 15 minutes, or until lentils are just tender.

2 - Bring 1 1/4 cups broth and raisins to a boil. Stir in couscous, cover, and remove from heat.

3 - Place salsa, cilantro, tomato paste and cumin in food processor, and purée until smooth.

4 - Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and carrot, and season with salt and pepper. Cook 5 to 6 minutes, or until slightly browned, stirring frequently. Add salsa mixture, remaining 1 1/2 cups broth and chickpeas. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

5 - Drain lentils and add to chickpea sauce. Thin with additional broth if sauce is too thick.

6 - Place couscous in 6 bowls and top with sauce. Sprinkle each serving with mint and pine nuts, and serve.

Butternut Squash and Spinach Risotto

This has quickly become my favorite dish for entertaining. Everyone loves it, it's *almost* fool proof, and presents beautifully!

PHOTO COMING SOON

INGREDIENTS:

3 lb butternut squash (or 3 lbs of precut butternut squash)

6 cups Veggie broth

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tablespoon soy butter

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice (9 oz)

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage

6 cups baby spinach, stems discarded and leaves very coarsely chopped

DIRECTIONS:
Roast squash:

1 - Preheat oven to 450°F.

2 - Cut away the skin, slice in half long ways, seed, and proceed to slice and dice the squash into 1/2 inch cubes. If you purchased precut, dice the squash pieces into 1/2 inch cubes. Place on a baking sheet, season with salt and pop in the middle rack of the oven for roughly 30-40 minutes. Check on them at the 30 minute mark. Honestly, even if you overcook the squash a bit, it will still taste perfect in this dish. The  very first time i made it, i was adapting the original recipe i found and burned the tops of all the squash pieces. I actually think it tasted a little better:) Not as pretty, though!

3 - Remove from the oven when the are cooked through, and are soft, similar to a hash brown.

Start risotto after squash has been roasting 20 minutes:

4 - Bring broth to a simmer and keep at a bare simmer, covered.

5 - Meanwhile, cook onion in soy butter in a 4-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring, until softened, about 6 minutes. Add rice, garlic, and cumin and cook, stirring, 3 minutes.

6 - Stir in 1/2 cup simmering broth and cook at a strong simmer, stirring frequently, until broth is absorbed. Continue simmering and adding broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and letting each addition be absorbed before adding the next, until rice is creamy-looking but still al dente (it should be the consistency of thick soup), about 18 minutes total. (There will be leftover broth.)

7 - Stir in squash pieces, salt, sage, and spinach and simmer, stirring, 1 minute. (If necessary, thin risotto with some leftover broth.)

Serve risotto immediately.

*Also GREAT as a leftover/reheat next day!

Roasted Sweet Potato and Corn Chowder

INGREDIENTS:

2 medium sweet potatoes (about 2 pound), peeled and cut into 1/2 in dice

2 tbsp corn oil (spectrum natural has a good corn taste)

salt and freshly ground pepper

1 pound bag of frozen corn

1 cup water

1 1/2 cups finely diced celery

1 cup diced red onion

1/4 cup diced shallots

1 Tbsp tomato paste

1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves

3 cups veggie broth

1 bay leaf

1 russet (baking) potato (about 8 oz)

2 tbsp minced parsley

DIRECTIONS:
1 - set the oven rack in the center and preheat the oven to 425F. Oil a large roasting pan

2 - scatter sweet potatoes in on e layer in the roasting pan and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Season well with salt and pepper. Roast until tender, tossing once or twice, 15-20 minutes. If you'd like to brown the sweet potatoes more deeply, set them about 5 inches below the broiling element for a minute or two. Set aside. 

3 - Reserve 1 cup of corn kernels. In a blender, puree the remaining corn with the water until very smooth, about 2 mins. (if the corn kernel skin refuses to break down, and they look unsightly to you, pas the mixture through a sieve.) Set. Aside. 

4 - IN a heavy soup pot, heat the remaining tbsp of oil. Cook the celery, onion and shallots over med-high heat, stirring frequently, until the onions are slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Add the tom paste and thyme and cook another minute, stirring frequently. Add the broth, pureed corn, bayleaf, 1 tsp salt, and pepper to taste. 

5 - while bringing the chowder to a boil, peel the potato, cut it into 1/2-inch dice, add it to the pot. Cover the pot and simmer until potato is tender, 25-35 minutes. 

6 - remove the bay leaf. Add the reserved corn kernels, roasted sweet potatoes, and parsley. 

Dining in the Airport

Im passing through the Atlanta airport right now and was surprised how easy it was to find a simple and healthy vegan meal.
My mid-morning snack was a cup of fresh fruit and a bottled water from Starbucks.
Lunch was a garden salad at Friday's. I ordered the side salad and had them add cranberries, pecans, celery, and green onion. I asked them to bring out a lemon and squeezed the lemon over my salad, added a dash of salt and pepper and there you have it! A yummy, low cal vegan dressing:)

Other great options include:
Baked potato with salt, pepper, and green onion.
Steamed broccoli And brown rice
Mixed nuts and whole fruit from a concession
There are so many other options but the goal here is to keep it heathy and as close to whole-food as possible!

The key is to eat a hearty breakfast and drink lots of water. You'll feel so much better if you take care if yourself during a day of flying!

This Week's Meals and Shopping List

SHOPPING LIST:

2 medium sweet potatoes

a 3 lb butternut squash

1 russet (baking) potato (about 8 oz)

6 cups baby spinach
Corn oil (you'll only be using 2 tablespoons for now)

1 pound bag of frozen corn

2 stalks celery

1 red onion

2 medium yellow onions

4 diced shallots

1 small jar tomato paste

Earth Balance Soy Butter - http://www.earthbalancenatural.com/

dried thyme leaves

Parsley

Fresh Cilantro

1 container of fresh bay leaves
1 container of fresh sage
Cumin

Sugar

4 containers of veggie broth

1 container Unflavored soymilk

1 1/2 cups Arborio rice (9 oz)

1 cup lentils 

Brown Rice - 1 large bag

a 12 oz jar of chunky medium salsa - as natural as you can find

Bag of carrots - fresh - NOT THE LITTLE PRECUT ONES

a 15 oz can of chickpeas

IF YOU STILL NEED PINE NUTS, buy a small bag

NATURAL no added sugar peanut butter - fresh ground is best

3 bulbs of garlic

low sodium soy sauce

rice wine vinegar

2 Plastic boxes of spring mix 

1 bag of natural unsweetened nuts and dried fruit

apples

pears

oranges

bananas

ezekiel bread

steel cut oats

MEALS: (recipes to be posted this week)
1 - Roasted Sweet Potato and Corn Chowder

2 - Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto

3 - Peanuty Rice and Steamed Veggies

4 - Chickpea, Lentils and Salsa

Dining out: Northstar

Dining out has become close to non-existent compared to our restaurant visits before going vegan. We probably go out once a week? Instead, we invite friends over to eat with us, or we meet up at non-meal times. BUT, in our lives, dining out is unavoidable. Thankfully its not hard living in clintonville...most restaurants have something vegan-friendly.

EATING VEGAN AT NORTHSTAR:
1) The Buddha Bowl - request less rice and double the veggies, no meat or tofu and with the peanut sauce on the side. Use it sparingly!
2) The Chopped Salad: without the cheese, bacon, and ham. Request oil on the side and toss it with the oil a little salt. Pass on the bread wedge. That's where you'll pack in the calories!
3) The Square Meal: No sour cream or cheese. This is a good meal to split. You'll fill up fast!

Most of the items on the menu can be vegan but remember, eating plant-based vegan is the healthiest way to go! Northstar burger is amazing...even with just the pattie, but the bun... not so healthy.

Pesto, Tomato & "Mozzarella" Sandwich

INGREDIENTS:
- 4 slices of a hearty bread (we used Omega Artisan french bread - it's vegan)
- 2-3 tablespoons pesto (great vegan recipe here: http://vegetarian.about.com/od/
morerecipes/r/Veganpestorec.htm)
- 1 clove garlic, sliced
- 1 tablespoon EVOO
- 1 vine-ripened tomato, cut into 4 thin slices
- 1 8oz pkg of Almond Vegan Mozzarella-style cheese










DIRECTIONS:
1 - heat oil and garlic slices over medium heat in a small saute pan - about 2 minutes
2 - place tomatoes in the pan. Heat for 1 minute each side, coating with the garlic oil
3 - slice the cheese into 4 long, 1/4 inch thick slices, then cut those in half
4 - heat up the panini grill. Place one side of one piece of bread on the grill, with 4 half-strips of the cheese, staggered to cover the bread. Place 2 of the tomato slices on the cheese.
5 - cover a second slice of bread with 1.5 tablespoons of pesto. You may need more or less depending on your bread size and your taste for pesto:) Place the pesto bread slice face down on the tomatoes and cheese slice. Close the panini press and cook 3-5 minutes. Check on this to be sure it doesn't burn!
6 - repeat for second sandwich!

I like to serve this with the spicy tomato soup!
Recipe for the soup is here: http://foodiebylaurynbyrdy.blogspot.com/2011/12/spicy-tomato-chickpea-soup.html