Fat-Free Garden Vegetable and Bean Soup

I found this recipe on one of my favorite blogs and thought I would share it on here. It is a quick, yummy way to throw a delicious one-dish meal together for dinner. Even though it is full of veggies and nutrients, apparently it goes over well with the kids. I guess I will find out tonight!

*It is also listed as a “zero point” meal for those of you on Weight Watchers and is vegetarian and vegan-friendly  😉

Garden Vegetable and Bean Soup

Ingredients

• 6 cups fat-free vegetable broth (but I used Imagine Un-Chicken broth)
• 2 carrots, peeled and diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 4 teaspoons garlic or four cloves minced garlic
• 1/2 cabbage, chopped
• 1/2 pound frozen green beans
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• generous grinding of black pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 large zucchini, diced
• 1 19-ounce can (2 cups) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (may substitute Great Northern Beans or any white beans)

Instructions

1. Saute’ the carrots, onion and garlic in a large non-stick pot for about 5 minutes. Add all the remaining ingredients EXCEPT the zucchini and cannellini beans and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for about 15 minutes or until the beans are tender.
2. Add the zucchini and cannellini and cook until the zucchini are tender.

Preparation time: 10 minute(s) | Cooking time: 25 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 8

Each serving provides 86 Calories; trace Total Fat; (4% calories from fat); 4g Protein; 17g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 448mg Sodium; 5g fiber.

For more awesome recipes like this, please visit: http://blog.fatfreevegan.com

Spicy Thai Chicken Pizza With Peanut Sauce (So yummy!)

I had almost forgotten about this crazy-delicious pizza until I was thinking of making peanut sauce. I used to love a similar pizza at Boston Pizza restaurant, but once they changed the peanut sauce (and doubled the price) I didn’t care for it. So, I spent time perfecting it at home. It is a bit of work, but it is so worth it! A great combination of Thai and Italian food, it covers almost every craving at once! This peanut sauce is very versatile, as well. It can be used in stir-fries, pasta, and chilled over salad or veggie wraps.

Spicy Thai Chicken Pizza With Peanut Sauce

 

Ingredients

• 1 pre-baked pizza crust (thin or regular work fine)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon ginger, minced
• 5 tablespoons peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons honey or brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar or 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (adjust according to desired spiciness)
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/2 orange bell peppers or 1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 cup pre cooked chicken breast, chopped (veggie chicken strips work great, too!)
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1/2 carrot, finely chopped
• 1 cup bean sprouts, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup peanuts, chopped
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425°F; do not bake the crust yet.
2. In a microwave safe bowl, add garlic, ginger, peanut butter, honey, vinegar, soy sauce and pepper flakes. Microwave until peanut butter is melted (about 1 minute). Mix well with a whisk. *If you have the time, it is nice to slowly sautee these ingredients.
3. Take pre-baked pizza crust out of the package and top with peanut sauce, cheese, bell pepper and cooked chicken. Bake for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
4. Meanwhile, prepare other vegetables.
5. Remove crust from oven and top with remaining vegetables, peanuts and cilantro.
6. Cut and serve immediately while the crust is still hot! Enjoy!

*In a pinch, I have bought a jar of peanut sauce at the grocery store-not bad!

Mango Blueberry Quinoa Salad

 

 

 

 

I can’t imagine a more tasty way to boost your nutritional intake than this salad that I made last night. I substituted nectarines for mango because it is really hard to find nice, fresh ones out here, but that worked lovely as well. I also added roasted, slivered almonds for more texture. It was so fresh and lovely (and easy!). This salad will be a regular staple  in our home.

Courtesy of Sala Kannan at veggiebelly

 

Blueberry Mango Quinoa Salad with Lemon Basil Dressing Recipe

Serves about 2

 

For the quinoa
1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup water

For the fruits and veggies
½ cup fresh blueberries
½ cup cubed ripe mangoes
½ cup cubed cucumbers
1/2 tablespoon dried cranberries

For the lemon basil dressing

 

1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
10 Basil leaves, chopped finely
Salt and pepper

 

Place the quinoa and water in a medium skillet and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat, and simmer covered for about 15 minutes or till the quinoa is cooked. Remove the lid, and fluff the quinoa with a fork. Let it cool to room temperature.

While the quinoa is cooking, combine the fruits in a bowl and refrigerate till you are ready to serve the salad.

Whisk together all the dressing ingredients, except the chopped basil. Refrigerate till you are ready to serve. Chop and add the basil to the dressing just before serving. If you add it earlier, it will go black.

Add half the dressing to the quinoa and mix gently.

Assemble the salad just before serving – toss the quinoa, fruits and cucumbers together. Serve other half of the dressing on the side. Serve  immediately.

Quick and Easy Tofu with Ramen Noodles

I found this quick and easy, yet nutritious recipe on a Blog titled “Olives for Dinner” There are so many other recipes on this site that I am looking forward to trying. Even if you have not excluded meat from your diet, most people are taking the focus off meat in the name of health. Recipes like this make that happen seamlessly!

Serves 2

Time: about 30 minutes

My favorite way to prepare tofu is also the quickest and easiest. It requires no pressing or marinating and is virtually foolproof, yet involves a little danger. Let me explain: to achieve this level of caramelization on the outside while retaining a succulent texture inside, you’ll need lots of heat and moisture, which causes little explosions and angry pops inside a covered pan throughout the cooking time. However, once these mini blasts calm down, you’ll be left with perfect tofu in front of you in minutes. Here I’ve served it with some simple ramen and wilted kale to make a quick and easy weeknight dinner.

INGREDIENTS
1 TB olive oil
1 package firm tofu
ramen noodles
1/3 cup of Everything Sauce
1 heaping tsp cornstarch, dissolved in 1 TB cold water
2-3 cups of fresh kale, washed, destemmed and ripped into bite-sized pieces
handful of raw cashews
1 TB toasted sesame oil
black and white sesame seeds
sriracha sauce

METHOD
Cut the tofu into 4 thick slabs, then cut each slab in half to make 8 squares.

Place a large circular non-stick, flat bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Drizzle the oil into the pan, then fan the tofu around the edges of the pan in a single layer (like the petals on a daisy), leaving the center area open. Place a lid over the top and allow the tofu to caramelize for about 10 minutes, undisturbed. It will pop and sputter due to the high heat and moisture in the tofu.

While your tofu is caramelizing, bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil. Add in the noodles and cook according to package instructions. Rinse under cool water and set aside once done.

Return to your tofu. After the initial 10 minute caramelization is complete, lift the lid straight up carefully (if you tilt the lid, the collected condensation in the lip will drip into the pan, causing more sputtering, so use caution.) Carefully flip the tofu (it will pop and sizzle), cover and allow to caramelize on the other side undisturbed for about 3 minutes. Remove the lid again by pulling it straight up. By this time, most of the water should be expressed/absorbed, so you can now leave the lid off. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to monitor the tofu and remove it from the pan once the level of caramelization is achieved on both sides. Place the tofu pieces onto a plate to cool while you prepare the rest of the dish.

Throw the kale into the same pan you cooked the tofu in. It may also initially sputter, so use caution. Saute for just a few minutes, stirring occasionally.

While your kale is sauteeing, divide the cooked ramen into two bowls. When your kale is done, divide that into the two bowls.

Now increase the heat in the same saute pan to medium high. Add in the Everything Sauce and heat until it bubbles, stirring with a rubber spatula. Add in the cornstarch/water mixture and stir until thick. Now throw the cooked tofu back into the pan and stir and toss to coat. Turn off the heat and divide the tofu and sauce between the two bowls.

Top the tofu and noodles with the black and white sesame seeds and sriracha, and toss some raw cashews over the top. Drizzle the toasted sesame oil over the noodles and serve immediately.

Vegetable Jalousie

This dish takes a little time, but is it ever worth it! It makes a great main dish and I use fresh oregano out of my garden, which really gives it punch. If you like spice, it can benefit from some as I have had it turn out a bit bland-especially when the veggies are out of season. Trade up veggies to use your  favorites, but keep the cooking time in mind as some can become soggy. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

Bright, fresh veggies in a flaky crust with cream sauce!

• 1 pound 2 ounces puff pastry
• 1 egg, beaten
• Filling:
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 leek, shredded
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and sliced
• 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
• 2 ounces small asparagus spears
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 6 tablespoons vegetable stock
• 6 tablespoons milk
• 4 tablespoons dry white wine
• 1 tablespoon chopped oregano
• Salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

• Melt the butter or margarine in a skillet and saute the leek and garlic for 2 minutes. Add the remaining vegetables and cook, stirring for 4 minutes.
• Add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vegetable stock, milk and white wine. Return the pan to the heat and bring to a boil, until thickened. Stir in the oregano and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Roll out half of the pastry on a lightly floured work counter to form rectangle 15 X 6 inches.
• Roll out the other half of the pastry to the same shape, but a little larger all round. Put the smaller rectangle on a cookie sheet lined with dampened baking parchment.
• Spoon the filling evenly on top of the smaller rectangle, leaving a 1/2 inch clear margin around the edges.
• Using a sharp knife, cut parallel diagonal slits across the larger rectangle to within 1 inch of each of the long edges.
• Brush the edges of the smaller rectangle with beaten egg and place the large rectangle on top, pressing the edges firmly together to seal.
• Brush the whole jalousie with egg to glaze and bake in an oven at 400 F for 35 minutes. Transfer to a warmed serving dish and serve immediately.