Nacho Dinner

Seriously - these are VEGAN and GLUTEN FREE.   And, oh sooo good.  Thanks to my friend Amy, who suggested putting lentils on nachos, and to the amazing Nacho Cheese Dip by Happy Herbivore I made an incredible dinner this evening.

I made the Nacho Cheese Dip, leaving out cayenne pepper, salt and pepper.  Then put Trader Joe reduced guilt tortilla chips on a baking sheet, crumbled Trader Joe's steamed lentils on top, and poured the hot nacho cheese dip over all of it.  I put it in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for about 5 minutes.  They could have gone another 5 minutes, but I was too anxious to try them.  I served these with broccoli and Ry's favorite roasted cabbage.  Delicious.

Nacho Cheese Dip Ingredients - EASY

What to do with a bag of potatoes

I get a little OCD about wasting food.  I hate to throw out food that has gone bad before we have had a chance to eat it.  This week I delayed making my favorite butternut squash and apple soup because I did not have enough apples.  Finally yesterday I got the apples, to quickly find out my butternut squash was BAD.  Really bad.  I had to throw out 2 pounds of butternut squash.  It killed me.

I went into overdrive looking at all our food to make sure there was not anything else that was going to go to waste.  And, I saw a big bag of sweet potatoes.  I cleaned them ALL and put them in the oven to bake.  (350 degrees, for about 30 minutes).   But what to do now with a bag of baked sweet potatoes?  

Sweet Potato Soup

2 cups of baked sweet potatoes (about 2 potatoes)

1 cup of low sodium veggie broth

1/2 of a chopped, sauted, onion (I sauted mine with a little veggie broth until they turned translucent)

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (this makes it VERY spicy) - I loved it, but beware

1/4 cup unsweetened soy milk or other plant based milk

And, you guessed it - put it ALL in the vitamix (or similar) and blend away!

Voila - a tasty, filling soup.  This is a great base, you could really add any spices, ginger, garlic, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc. I was craving something spicy.

Saute half of an onion in a little veggie broth

Yum

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The soup took care of two potatoes.  I put two more baked sweet potatoes in the refrigerator for lunch this week.

And with the rest of the potatoes I made sweet potato chips with cinnamon and a little salt. (350 degrees, lightly spray with olive oil add spices) Bake for about 20 minutes, then broil for a couple of minutes.

Last summer I was obsessed with pumpkin seeds.  I roasted some while I was baking all my sweet potatoes.  I put them on a baking sheet in my toaster oven at 325 degrees for 10 minutes.  Sprinkled with a little salt.  What a great topping for the soup and a handy snack.  Pumpkin seeds rock.  They are a great source of protein, iron, magnesium, zinc, copper, and have a ton of great health benefits.  Read more here.

Leaning Tower of Dips

Well, it isn't really leaning, but it is a fantastic tower of amazing dips that I made today.

From top to bottom:

Cashew Cream - I have made this and written about it several times, but it is so good it is worth writing about again.  I got the original recipe from Hungry Hippie.  Here is what I did:

Creamy Dijon Cashew Sauce

Ingredients

3/4 cup raw cashews, soaked (at least 30 minutes)
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 tbsp stone ground mustard
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp tamari

Put all ingredients in Vitamix, blend away.

Artichoke Hearts and Roasted Red Pepper Dip from Fat Free Vegan

Ingredients

1 14-ounce can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
1/4 cup roasted red peppers (from a jar)
1 tbsp. tahini
1/8 tbsp. white pepper (I used black)
salt to taste

Put all ingredients in Vitamix, blend away.

Easy Black Bean Dip

Ingredients

1 can drained black beans
1 can drained pinto beans
1 handful of cilantro
1 jar of Trader Joe's Salsa Verde

 Put all ingredients in Vitamix, blend away.

All three of these are delicious.  You can use these as appetizers with veggies, crackers and chips.  You can put any of the dips on romaine lettuce and roll up like a burrito. Use as a sandwich spread.  Options are endless.  They are all super healthy, filling, and down right good.

AND SO EASY TO MAKE!!

Go get your dip on....

To finish off my marathon vitamix day I also made my afternoon snack:

Please Add Oil...

Chad and I deliberated over the menu for a dinner we were having at our house with two other couples.  Do we order food, do we grill out, or do we trust my cooking?  I decided that I wanted to cook, so Chad's one request: "please, if the recipe calls for oil, USE it."  Well, unfortunately, this was a request I could not fulfill but I did come up with a compromise.

Appetizers

• bean dip and salsa with veggies and GF/ VG chips and crackers
• Trader Joe's puff pastry margarita pizza

Dinner

• steak
• grilled portobello mushrooms and asparagus
• quinoa and corn salad
• roasted red potatoes and purple potatoes with cashew cream sauce

Dessert

• GF/ VG chocolate ganache tart from Southern Sweets 

Compromise - I had Chad friendly steak, puff pastry pizza and  we each made our own roasted potatoes.  He did one tray of red potatoes with oil and the seasoning he liked.  I had my own tray of purple potatoes, no oil and sea salt (I did use a light coat of spray oil, so they would not stick to the tray).  Result - Chad was happy, I was happy with a GF/ VG, no oil dinner AND - everyone had seconds!

Recipes

Bean Dip

• 1 can of drained black beans
• 1 can of drained pinto beans
• 3/4 of a jar of Trader Joe's Salsa Verde
• handful of chopped cilantro
• 1 roasted, seeded jalepeno pepper

Put all ingredients in Vitamix, blend and serve

Veggies
Grilled portobello mushrooms and asparagus were grilled with  GF Tamari

Quinoa and Corn Salad with Pumpkin Seeds
For this recipe, I left out the oil and garlic that it called for.  I did not serve with sliced avocado, lime or lettuce.
And, I created a new dressing, as you will see the recipe does not tell you how much lemon juice to use in the dressing. I was stumped, so I made up my own.  And, of course, omitted the oil.  My dressing was:
1 avocado
2 TB lemon juice
4 TB water
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp chili powder
salt and pepper to taste.
The avocado was ripe enough so I was able to whisk all this together in a bowl.  I did sprinkle more chili powder, salt and pepper on the salad once it was done. 

Roasted Potatoes
Chopped up two trays of potatoes, for mine, I sprayed lightly with olive oil (very light) and sprinkled sea salt on top.  We baked these trays at 350 for about an hour.  Every 15 minutes we would check on them, stir the potatoes and rotate the pans.

Dessert - You must check out Southern Sweets - the gluten free, vegan chocolate tart was out of this world.   Although most of the dinner guest said it was too rich, I was in heaven, not having had a dessert I could eat in a long time!

Cauliflower Rice

Last summer I was hooked on a raw cauliflower salad that Arden's Gardens had in their prepared section.  It seemed pretty simple to make but I never motivated.  I had a huge head of cauliflower sitting in my refrigerator so I decided to be adventurous.  It was really simple, I chopped up the head into pieces that would fit into my food processor (sorry Vitamix), and pulsed away.  I added a drop or two of sesame seed oil (I knew this was an ingredient in AG's) and about a teaspoon of Braggs Amino Acids.  It made a raw "rice".    You could get creative with this base, using different spices.  Add grilled veggies or beans on top.  You could make it a more sweet dish using teriyaki sauce, or spice it up with salsa.  Ry said she liked it, Si and Chad would not try it.  Just another lunch item for me this week.

Cauliflower is a member of the cruciferous family (the same family as broccoli and cabbage).  It is very low in calories and fat but packed with nutrients.   Including several anti- cancer phyto-chemicals like sulforaphane and plant sterols such as indole-3-carbinol which appears to function as an anti-estrogen agent. Together these compounds have proven benefits against prostate, breast, cervical, colon, ovarian cancers by virtue of their cancer cell growth inhibition, cytotoxic effects on cancer cells.

It is an excellent source of Vitamin C, Vitamin K and several of the Vitamin Bs.   And, it is good source of minerals such as manganese, copper, iron, calcium and potassium.

Why not try some cauliflower today??

Salad Dressing that Chad Liked!

Sunday afternoon Chad suggested we grill out veggies for dinner. Yes, he did grill out meat as well, but it was exciting to have his input on a veggie dinner.  I bought asparagus, zucchini, onions, mushrooms and peppers for dinner.  I chopped them up  and tossed them with a little gluten free teriyaki sauce.  Chad has one of those grill baskets for the veggies, so it was super easy.  I made a salad with romaine lettuce, carrots, cucumbers and black-eyed peas.

Salad dressings are always a challenge.  Very rarely do I find one that both Chad and I like.  Or should I say, that meets my dietary requirements (no oil) and that Chad likes.  I saw a recipe in my Everyday Happy Herbivore and adapted it.  We both liked it!

Ingredients:
2 TB Stone Ground Mustard
1 TB Trader Joe's White Balsamic Vinegar
1 TB Red Wine Vinegar
3 TB Water
a touch of honey, agave syrup or brown rice syrup

Whisk and ingredients and enjoy.

Sweet Potato Hummus

Sweet Potato Hummus?
I feel like I was cheating on my Vitamix yesterday when I pulled out my very old food processor.  But I am learning with large quantities of food, it is sometimes easier to use the food processor.  We had just returned  from watching the half marathon that went by our house.
(Congratulations to all my friends who completed the half and the whole marathon yesterday! - I hope to join you next year!)
The girls were happily playing outside with friends, so I had a few minutes to myself.    I looked at my email and read a recipe for sweet potato hummus.  Sitting right there in my kitchen were two big sweet potatoes calling out for me to do something with them.

Original Recipe

What I did:
Ingredients:

2 large sweet potatoes (baked, peeled and cubed)
2 TB water
1 can of drained garbanzo beans
2 TB tahini
1 TB lemon juice
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground coriander
sea salt and pepper to taste

Put all ingredients in the food processor and blend away.  You can add more water if needed.  I took half the batch out for the girls, then I added 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper to the remaining hummus to spice it up for myself.

Outcome - Chad does not like sweet potatoes, so he was out, the girls were not interested.  Well, of course I loved it, so I will be eating a lot of hummus this week.  It is sweet and savory, hearty and healthy.  What more could I want?!

So over dinner...

I hate to start off negative, but I am so over dinner time drama.  I get excited to try a new recipe, work hard at making it just right and then no one (besides me) enjoys it.  Here is the dilemma- Chad and I like a lot of flavor, spices, etc. but the girls do not.  Chad does not like "sweet" tasting things, ie sweet potatoes, butternut squash, etc, but the girls and I love a sweet flavor. Or I find a dinner that the girls do like, I fix it again, and their taste has changed so they no longer will eat it.  Usually I can motivate through this in my excitement to try new recipes, but last week I threw in the towel.

Tuesday night I came home from work and had no desire to cook.  I walked down to Trader Joes and picked up regular pasta (not gluten free) and regular marinara sauce.  The problem with cooking regular pasta in our house is that gluten can be left behind in the pot.  Gluten is very sticky, so it requires a lot more scrubbing and cleaning of everything it touches so that no cross contamination happens.  But I bucked up and decided the extra cleaning was worth an easy dinner.  I told everyone I did not want to hear any whining about dinner, that they were getting pasta (with gluten) and red sauce.  The dinner took as long as it takes to boil pasta and everyone ATE without complaint.  Yes, that means I had to fix another meal for myself, but so be it.  Everyone was happy.

Wednesday I was looking at recipes and then got my friendly, daily email from Metrofresh.  They usually have at least one vegan / gluten free option, but this day they had 2 soups and 3 sides that were vegan / gluten free.  I felt obligated to support them.  So, the girls and I walked down to Metrofresh and I let them each pick out their dinner.  I brought a big bag of food home.  Everyone was happy.

Thursday- black beans, rice, frozen roasted peppers from TJs and tortillas.  Oh, and I broke down, I made a new recipe.  But this time it was a HIT.  Low Fat Vegan Nacho Cheese from the Happy Herbivore.
It was OUTSTANDING, so yummy.  I drizzled it over my bowl of black beans, rice and peppers.  Both girls enjoyed it and Chad said it was not bad.  I think I would just call it Mexican sauce or something, because "cheese" will throw you.  It did not taste like cheese to me, but it did taste delicious.  Try out that recipe!

Making a successful recipe got me back into the groove of cooking again.  Sorry girls, no take out next week.

Running

This week I have been busy starting a new blog.  I am trying to tie these two blogs together.  But for now you can find the link under the tab Plant Runner on the home page of Veggin Around or go here:

http://plantrunner.blogspot.com/

Be sure to start at the first post, Running - Background. 

It will give you the background to what I was up to last week seen here on YouTube:

Born 2 Run

Enjoy!

Third Veggin Around Dinner

The topic this month was boasting your immunity through incorporating a variety of healthy foods into your diet.  This is based off of Dr. Fuhrman's Super Immunity book.  He recommends eating more greens, onions, mushrooms, berries, beans, nuts and seeds.  The research on the health benefits and immunity boasting properties of these foods is overwhelming.  So much so, that I ate mushrooms for the first time in 15 years! I highly recommend this book if you are interested in the powers food has to heal and protect.

On to the menu:

Quinoa Garden Salad

Mary McDougall

Forks over Knives page110

Ingredients

2 cups water

1 cup quinoa, rinsed well

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

2 tomatoes, chopped – I used one box of Pomi diced tomatoes, drained

1 bunch green onions, chopped

1 can drained garbanzo beans

½ cup chopped fresh parsley (I used with chopped spinach)

¼ cup chopped fresh mint

½ cup fresh lemon juice (I used ¼ cup of lemon juice)

1 TB soy sauce (I use GF Tamari) (I used about half a TB)

Tabasco sauce

Ground black pepper

Directions-

Put water and quinoa into a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and cook for 15 minutes, until water is absorbed.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Combine the bell peppers, tomatoes, green onions, beans, parsley and mint in a large bowl.  Add the cooked quinoa and mix well.  Add the lemon juice, soy sauce, and several dashes of Tabasco sauce and toss well to mix.  Add black pepper to taste.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

Teriyaki Spinach

One bag of organic spinach

Water

GF Teriyaki Sauce

Hemp Seeds

Directions –

Heat pan with a little water, add 1 TB GF Teriyaki sauce, then add spinach.  With tongs, toss spinach in sauce until it is bright green and slightly wilted.  2 – 3 minutes.  Place in bowl, sprinkle seeds on top and serve.

Sweet Potato Fries with Cashew Cream Dipping Sauce

Baked sweet potatoes at 400 for 35 minutes

After they have cooled remove the skins, slice and put on a baking sheet, lightly sprayed with oil bake at 350 degrees for another 15 – 20 minutes.  Then broil for 2 -3 minutes.  Watch carefully.

Cashew Cream

From Happy Happy Hippie

¾ cup raw cashews soaked 30 min

½ cup water

¼ cup nutritional yeast

1 TB Stone ground mustard

1 TB Dijon mustard

1 TB apple cider vinegar

1 TB lemon juice

1 tsp braggs amino acids (or GF tamari)

Blend all ingredients in Vitamix

Black bean, Mango Salsa with Chips

1 can drained black beans

1 mango diced

1 red pepper diced

½ cup chopped cilantro

¾ of a jar of Trader Joes’ Salsa Verde

Sugar Coated Radical Vegan Chocolates – for dessert