White bean spinach soup

This is the fastest, easiest soup, and it is SO DELICIOUS.  I had it tonight.  It was finished in less than 30 minutes.  If you have fresh spinach and a few cans of white beans, you have a meal.  I had it with blueberry muffins on the side.  Without the sprinkling of cheese on the top, it is completely vegan!  The creaminess of the soup comes from pureeing some of the white beans and adding them back into the soup.

Italian white bean soup with spinach  (adapted from "Good Housekeeping Vegetarian Meals")

1 TBSP vegetable oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 cans cannelini beans or other white beans
2 cups of vegetable broth
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
1/8 tsp dried thyme
2 cups of water
10 oz baby spinach (if you use normal spinach, just chop it first)
1 TBSP fresh lemon juice
freshly grated parmesan cheese (optional, but so so good!)

In large saucepan, heal oil over medium heat.  Add onion and celery and cook until tender, stirring occasionally.  Add garlic and cook another minute.  Add beans, broth, pepper, thyme, and water.  Heat to boiling and then reduce heat so that the soup simmers, uncovered for 15 minutes.  With slotted spoon, remove two cups of the bean/vegetable mixture into a separate bowl.  Puree the remaining soup in the saucepan with either an immersion blender or by blending it in parts in a blender or food processor.  Return soup and reserved bean mixture back into the saucepan and heat to boiling, stirring occasionally. Stir in spinach and cook until wilted (about another minute or two).  Stir in lemon juice and remove from heat.  Serve with Parmesan cheese if you choose.

Coconut dal

This meal is better than it looks.  Please don't judge these lentils from the poor lighting or amateur status of the photographer.  I take all my photos with my iphone.  You are lucky I even took a photo at all.  Most of the time I remember halfway through the meal and then my plate doesn't look appetizing at all.  Also, I used the "wrong" kind of lentils.  I just used plain old greenish brown lentils.  When you use yellow or red lentils the dish looks like sunshine on a plate. This coconut lentil dish is superb and simple and hearty and inexpensive-- all the things you can ask for in a meal.  And its also easy and doesn't require finesse or weird ingredients-- bonus!

Coconut dal (adapted from Yummy Supper)

1 1/2 cups of dried lentils (yellow lentils look prettiest, but if you don't mind the color, just use brown)

4 1/2 cups veggie stock or water

2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp salt

2 TBS olive or vegetable oil

2 cups diced onions

1 garlic clove minced

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground pepper

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes or cayenne, or a 1 small fresh chili, minced

1 cup coconut milk1

Cook lentil is water or stock with salt and 1 tsp turmeric.  When the lentils are tender, drain, but keep some of the cooking liquid.  In a separate pan, saute the onions with vegetable oil, garlic, cumin, 1 tsp of turmeric, and chilis or red pepper until the onions are golden, stirring constantly.  Add a little bit of the coconut milk to the onion mixture to get all the good bits off the bottom of the pan. 

Mix onions with cooked lentil and reheat slowly.  Then add the rest of the coconut milk.  continue heating a few minutes more.  You may add more coconut milk or some of the reserved liquid if the dal is too dry or thick.

Hummus, the cheater way

 

Hummus is one of my favorite dips.  I am a serious late-night snacker, so it is important to have good snacks on hand or else I go crazy and just carry around a bag of chocolate chips and an open cereal box (preferably those sugary ones that portray themselves as being part of a balanced breakfast).  For the past few months we have been gorging on Costco hummus, but we can go through a carton of that in about two days, so I decided I would start making hummus again to save money, and because its nice to act on a craving of hummus at 11 pm without having to go to the store.  Hummus is intimidating for a lot of people because of a little ingredient called "tahini" which is exotic and expensive.  But what to do if you have no tahini?  I have found a near perfect cheater ingredient that I always have on hand and that makes fabulous hummus-- peanut butter.  Since tahini is just sesame seed butter, a good natural peanut butter makes a remarkable substitute, especially in this recipe which calls for garlic, lemon, and cumin (nice strong flavors).

Cheater Hummus

1 15 oz. can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
2 TBSP natural peanut butter
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp cumin
1/4- 1/2 tsp salt (to taste)
2 TBSP lemon juice
2 TBSP olive oil

throw all ingredients in a food processor and whirl away until nice and smooth.  You can adjust the ingredients to taste or add more or less olive oil to control the fat count.  If it is too thick, stream in a little water and puree for a few more seconds.

The Best Chili (Vegan or not!)

I have been reading this awesome book "Eat and Run" written by Scott Jurek an ultrarunner.  It is the story of his path to greatness in both food and feet.  He intersperses his personal account with vegan recipes and running tips.  I highly recommend it.  I have just started testing his recipes out, and this first one completely "bowled" me over.  In his book he cites this recipe as the one that convinced him that he could be a happy vegan.  It is a vegan chili made with a myriad of chunky vegetables, three kinds of beans, bulgar wheat (which makes it feel especially "meaty"), and lots of warm spices.  It tastes fantastic.  I dare you to take it to your next chili cook-off.  I bet it could beat the pants off of any of those plain jane chilis.

Minnesota Winter Chili

2 TBSP olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup chopped onion
8-10 mushrooms, finely chopped
1 cup finely chopped bell pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped carrots
1 jalapeno seeded and minced
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 TBSP chili powder
2 tsp sea salt, plus more to taste
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
1 15 oz can tomato puree
1 15 oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can red beans, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup dry bulgar wheat
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro

Add the oil to a large pot and saute the vegetables until tender (about 10 minutes).  Add the spices and saute for another minute or so.  Add the remaining ingredients except the cilantro and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer over medium-low heat, covered, for about 30 minutes.  Stir and simmer for an additional 30 minutes.  Season with salt to taste.  Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.  Watch it disappear!

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Raspberry Muffins

And you thought that the only recipes you would get on my blog would be savory.....

well, here is my sweet (albeit mostly healthy) side!  When you have freezer bags full of handpicked raspberries, you find a way to put them in everything!  This was originally a recipe for chocolate chip muffins, but I decided to jazz it up and replace most of the butter with plain yogurt (my favorite secret muffin ingredient), substitute whole wheat flour for white, decrease the sugar, and add in whole raspberries and dark chocolate chunks.  Its like a healthy smooch.  And the kind of muffins that you secretly hope your daughter won't like because its more for you! Here you go:

whole wheat chocolate chip raspberry muffins

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup white sugar

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 TBSP butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla

1 egg

1 cup plain yogurt

1/3 dark chocolate chips

1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries

Cream butter and sugar. Beat in egg until combined.  Beat in yogurt and vanilla.  In separate bowl mix flour, salt, and baking powder. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix gently.  Fold in chocolate chips and raspberries.  Fills about 12 muffin cups.  Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.

My award winning "you won't feel awful" Falafel burger

That is right-- this is an award winning burger (though it is not shown with its bun counterpart in this picture). Last Saturday night Richard and I went to a "build a better burger" contest and I brought a falafel burger to represent the vegetarians of the world and because, well, I haven't bought ground meat in almost three years.  I knew I couldn't just bring out the same awesome burger I made last year.  I really wasn't expecting this mediterranean spiced patty to be able to compete with a thick juicy sirloin burger topped with cheese and chipotle mayo (mmmm, I got to admit, sometimes I really just want a nice juicy burger), but everyone really loved it and it came away with second prize!  I recommend serving the "burgers" in pita bread with a large dollop of the cucumber yogurt sauce.    They are another super cheap way to eat well and eat healthy!

And did I say award winning....

Falafel and cucumber sauce (adapted from allrecipes.com)

2 (15 oz) cans garbanzo beans, drained
1 large onion  coarsely chopped
1 cup fresh parsley
4 cloves garlic
2 eggs
4 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp baking powder
2 TBSP olive oil
2 cups dry panko bread crumbs

1 cup plain yogurt (preferrably greek)
1/2 large cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
1 tsp dried dill
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Pulse garbanzo beans in a food processor until coarsely ground.  Empty into a large bowl.  In the same food processor, blend the onion, parsley and garlic until smooth.  Add to the garbanzo beans.  Add in remaining ingredients except for the bread crumbs and mix well.   Slowly add the bread crumbs to the bean mixture until the mixture is no longer sticky but will hold together.  Add more or less crumbs as needed.  Shape mixture into 8 patties and roll in some extra panko bread crumbs.  Set aside on a baking sheet until ready to fry.

Heat a couple of TBS olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat.  Fry the patties until crispy and brown on both sides and cooked through (4-5 minutes each side?).

For the cucumber sauce, just combine the yogurt, cucumber, dill, and salt and pepper.  Chill until ready to use.

Serve your falafels hot with pita bread and cool cucumber sauce!

Ridiculously easy green enchiladas

These enchiladas are easy and versatile.  I made them with imitation crab, but you could substitute cooked chicken, shrimp, beef, or heartier vegetables like sauteed zucchini, red pepper, and spinach (I think I would just omit the sherry/apple juice). We used imitation crab because 1) we like the taste of crab, 2) we can't afford the real stuff.  Imitation crab really lends itself well to cooked entrees like this with other strong flavors.   Richard ate it three times in a row.  I actually made two pans of it, but left the second pan in the oven overnight by accident.  But Richard had liked it so much, that he still ate one of the overnight enchiladas before I threw out the rest of the pan.  He did not get sick by the way.
These are, as the title suggests, ridiculously easy.  So easy, that even with a harrowing day with my toddler and newborn, I was able to literally throw these together and get them in the oven in about 15 minutes.  I am guessing at the amounts, since most of the time I just eyeball it!  Add more or less of any of the ingredients to suit your preferences. Enjoy!!

Green crab enchiladas

Filling:
1/2  cup of chopped onions
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 cup chopped cilantro
4 oz of chopped green chilies
1/4 cup cooking sherry (or the real thing) or apple juice
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded cheese

1 lb imitation crab, roughly chopped (you can certainly substitute the real thing, or 1lb of any other kind of cooked meat or vegetable)

Sauce:
14 oz of green enchilada sauce, canned or home made
1 cup of sour cream
4 oz. chopped green chiles

12-16 corn tortillas

Preheat oven to 375.  Spray a 9 x 13 pan with non-stick spray.

For the sauce, just heat all the ingredients in a pan on the stove until they are thoroughly combined and nicely warm.

For the filling, just saute the onion until softened, then add the corn, cilantro, chilies, sherry, and crab and cook for a few more minutes.  Add in the sour cream and cheese and stir to combine.  Feel free to add salt and pepper if you like.  I found mine flavorful enough.

To assemble, just microwave the corn tortillas for about 30 seconds to a minute to soften them.  Then, one at a time, dip both sides of each tortilla lightly in the sauce mixture.  Lay the sauced up tortilla in the pan and add some of the filling, roll and lay seam side down in the pan.  Repeat with the remaining tortillas and filling.  If there is any leftover sauce, spoon it over the top.  Cover the enchiladas with as much cheese as you want and bake for about 25 minutes.  Garnish with chopped cilantro and green onions if desired!