Cabbage Stew for a Stormy Day

I have been loving the weather lately. There is something so comforting about thunderstorms, the sound of rain pelting against the window. I find it so relaxing and peaceful, it's like everything starts new again after a storm. The flip side of course is being stuck in extra traffic on the way home from class because everyone suddenly forgets how to drive when it's raining. But once I got home I was greeted by my lovely box of organic produce from my local co-op which consisted of a huge head of green cabbage. I took this and turned it into such a deliciously wholesome stew that couldn't have been better suited for a rainy day.

1 onion, diced
3 ribs celery, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 head large green cabbage, chopped into long thin strips
4 carrots, sliced into thin rounds
1 lb potatoes, cut into cubes
1/3 cup pearled barley (or substitute with GF grain)
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon ground thyme (I used 1/2 tsp ground thyme and 1 tsp fresh thyme from the garden)
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
1/2 teaspoon rosemary, crushed (I used 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary from the garden)
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
8 cups vegetable broth
3 cups cooked great northern or cannellini beans (or 2 cans, drained- make sure it's BPA free!)
1-14 ounce can diced tomatoes (I used a box of cherry tomatoes that I had from the co-op, I just made sure to take the skins off first- grueling process but it was worth it)

For serving:
Parsley, chopped
Good quality olive oil, I really like Bragg's unfiltered unrefined cold pressed extra virgin
Coarse salt

This seriously couldn't be easier. In a large stockpot combine the vegetables, seasonings, barley, broth, beans, and tomatoes- cover and bring to a boil, then reduce to a high simmer for 45 minutes, the last five minutes remove the lid. Spoon into bowls and garnish with parsley, a drizzle of olive oil, and coarse salt.

*Makes 6-8 portions, freezes excellently
*This can also be made in a crockpot, cook on how heat for 7 hours

Recipe adapted from Susan Voisin

Spring Penne

This pasta... oh my. So delicious! How? I can't even tell you, there's only a handful of ingredients in it and it took 15 minutes to throw together. Seriously though, this is phenomenal...and classy. That's right- this is classy pasta, the kind that deserves to be served for a luncheon with the girlfriends... or for a spring picnic in the park (except it's way too hot in South Florida to have a Spring picnic in the park)...sigh. I'm dreaming again, aren't I? 

1 12-ounce box gluten-free brown rice penne (this is my favorite penne, even though I'm not gluten-free)
1 pound bunch super thin asparagus, trimmed and cut into bite sized pieces 
2 teaspoons dried marjoram
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 purple garlic clove, minced (purple garlic has a bit of a kick, but if you don't have it just use regular)
1 large lemon
1/2 cup veganaise (I know what you're thinking- it's okay to indulge once in a while!)
2 tablespoons fresh mint leaves, diced
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, diced
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary leaves, diced
Freshly ground black pepper

In a bowl add the zest of the entire lemon along with the juice of the zested lemon. Toss in your vegan mayo, garlic, mint, rosemary, and thyme along with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Whisk until completely combined, then set aside to allow flavors to marry. 

Put up your (salted) water on the stove to boil, while you're waiting grab a medium pan and place it over medium-low heat. Add the remaining olive oil to the pan, once hot add in the asparagus pieces and the marjoram, cook until tender-crisp- you still want a bit of a bite to them. Throw in your pasta to the boiling water- my pasta was ready the same time my asparagus were done, roughly nine minutes, but it depends on your pasta obviously, and on how thick/thin your asparagus are. Once the pasta is drained add it back to the pot, along with the asparagus and the bowl of sauce that you made earlier, toss to incorporate. I drizzled a bit of olive oil over each bowl of pasta, along with a few grinds of black pepper and a bit of the vegan Parmesan cheese before serving. 

Vegan Parmesan cheese: equal measurements of raw walnuts to nutritional yeast- pulse in food processor until it comes together to resemble powdered Parmesan, store in airtight container in the cabinet for up to a couple months. I like to add extra nutritional yeast to make it more cheesy, just taste and adjust to your liking.   

Makes 3 large bowls of pasta

Recipe adapted from Gluten-Free Goddess

For the Love of Butter!

I can feel it, it's happening...I'm becoming that person who makes everything from scratch. This wasn't my intention but I was left with no choice, honestly. After reading the ingredients in Earth Balance's soy-free plant based butter and seeing palm oil, I couldn't go back, there was no way to un-know that information. I'm disappointed in them as a company- they know as well as I do that there is truly no such thing as sustainable palm oil. I know they have the ability to create a delicious soy-free, palm oil-free butter because I made a delicious soy-free, palm oil-free butter (in under 15 minutes... and I'm no professional)!!

Last time I made some I gave a little container of it to a friend who texted me after saying 'this butter is so good I just ate a tablespoon of it straight from the container', later she emailed me asking 'How do you make it, exactly? I want it to taste just like yours'. She insists it tastes better than Earth Balance. The best part about this is it is made with coconut oil, which has a huge list of amazing health benefits, and most impressively slows the progression of, and can even prevent, Alzheimer's disease.

1/4 cup + 2 teaspoons almond milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/4 + 1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon refined coconut oil
1 tablespoon canola, safflower, or sunflower oil
1 teaspoon liquid sunflower lecithin*
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

Place the almond milk, apple cider vinegar and salt in a small cup and whisk together with a fork. Let it sit for 10 minutes (this is very important, don't skip this!)

You want the coconut oil to be borderline pourable. Since I live in South Florida where it's always hot, my coconut oil is always on the verge of liquid. If you live in an area that's colder you may have to run the jar under hot water for a minute or two until it becomes borderline pourable, barely melted. Add it, along with the oil, to a food processor and pulse it a couple times until it's combined. Next add in the almond milk mixture from above, along with the lecithin and xanthan gum. Process for 2 minutes, scraping down the sides halfway through. Pour into a small container or a cleaned left over jam jar and place it in the refrigerator to solidify, within an hour the butter will be ready to use. Store in the refirgerator for up to 1 month or in the freezer for up to 1 year.

This makes roughly 1 cup of butter; recipe adapted from here.

I usually quadruple this recipe, divide it into little glass containers and freeze them, this way when I use up the one in the fridge I always have backup.

*For the lecithin, I use this and just cut the capsules open and squeeze out the lecithin into the measuring spoon. You can buy liquid through amazon, which I'm sure would be easier.

What is sunflower lecithin and what are the nutritional benefits of it?
Why use sunflower lecithin instead of soy lecithin?

No Hurry Vegetable Curry

I quickly threw this together in the crock pot, ran some errands and came back to dinner waiting for me. Why can't it always be that easy? Simple and delicious, a friend mentioned this recipe was 'just as good as restaurant curry!'

1 tablespoon peanut oil
2 large carrots, sliced on a diagonal
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons curry powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced
8 oz green beans, ends trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 BPA-free 15.5 ounce can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 BPA-free 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained (I used 3 medium tomatoes from the garden and diced them)
2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/2 cup BPA-free canned unsweetened coconut milk

In a skillet over medium heat add the peanut oil, once hot add the carrots and onions, cook until softened- about five minutes. Add the garlic, curry powder, coriander, and cayenne- stir to coat, cook another thirty seconds. Transfer the mixture to the slow cooker along with the potatoes, green beans, chickpeas, tomatoes and stock, cover and cook on low for 7 hours. Just before serving stir in the peas and coconut milk, lastly season with salt and serve over basmati rice.

Makes roughly 5-6 large portions. Recipe from Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker

Lemon Garlic Broccolini

There is something so light about this recipe, the broccolini is slightly floral and sweet, and the lemon zest adds a bit of freshness. Oh, it was yummy!

 

1 large bunch broccolini
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 lemon, zested

1/2 lemon, juiced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Get a large pot of water boiling on the stove top, meanwhile, prepare a bowl with ice water and leave it to the side. Wash your broccolini and cut it into 2-inch pieces, toss into the boiling water to blanch for 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon remove the greens from the water and immediately place them into the prepared ice bath. Meanwhile grab a pan and add the olive oil, cooking over medium heat, once hot add the garlic and lemon zest, saute for one minute. Next drain the blanched broccolini and add it into the pan, continue to saute for another two minutes, you want all the excess water to cook out. Right before removing from the heat toss in the lemon juice and pepper (and salt to taste) and saute for another 30 seconds. 

This made about 3 side dishes, it really depends on how big your bundle of broccolini is, it does shrink down a bit. 

Recipe adapted from Ina Garten

Beet Burgers

I had to make these after I heard my friends rave about them, and they did not let me down! These are so delicious and they have the texture of meat so even my omnivore brother really enjoyed them. I dressed some down, fast food style with the toppings, and dressed some up with some fancy toppings, both were absolutely delicious!

1 1/4 cups cooked brown rice, cooled
1 cup cooked brown or green lentils, cooled
1 cup raw shredded beets
1/2 teaspoon salt
Black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground fennel or finely crushed fennel seed
1 teaspoon mustard powder
3 tablespoons onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons almond butter
1/2 cup fine breadcrumbs

In a food processor pulse together the brown rice, shredded beats, and lentils, about 15-20 times until the mixture looks like ground beef (it should still have texture). Transfer to a large mixing bowl and add the remaining ingredients, use your hands to incorporate, this should take a minute or two. Place the mixture in the fridge to chill for half an hour.

To Bake: Preheat the oven to 375°F. Form the patties in your hand, roughly 1/2 a cup of mixture per patty. Lightly spray a cookie sheet and place the patties on it, baking 8-10 minutes per side, then stick them under the broiler for a minute to get a nice crust.

To Pan Fry: Add a little olive oil in a pan, once hot add the burgers and cook until the edges become charred, flip the burgers and repeat, making sure they are warmed through. 

Half of these were prepared fast food style with diced onions, pickles, shredded lettuce, mustard and ketchup. The other half I spread some leftover vegan Feta Cheese on top, added some arugula, a piece of sliced pear, and a drizzle of aged balsamic. Both were divine!

*These would be awesome if they were finished on the grill too!

Next time I plan on doubling the recipe to freeze for future last-minute dinners. Recipe from The PPK

Divine Skinny Green Bean Casserole

I didn't grow up in a home where casseroles were common. I had my first casserole my sophomore year of college when my friend Indigo brought one over for girls night. Now, years later, I've had my second casserole, the green bean casserole. My friend Anna came up with this recipe, and oh my god it may be the most heavenly thing I've eaten. It is so good that I was contemplating eating the entire thing in one sitting. My family couldn't stop talking about it, my mother even got on the phone to call her sister to brag. This is definitely a keeper, and will be at our thanksgiving dinner this year.

2 tablespoons plant-based butter
2 tablespoons flour (it was also very successful with 1 1/2 tablespoons chickpea flour)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup onion, diced
8 ounces sliced mushrooms
Roughly 3/4 cup raw cashews
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 large bag of green beans, trimmed and torn into bite sized pieces
1/2 cup french fried onions or crumbled buttery crackers, like Ritz

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Steam your green beans, while they're streaming make the cashew cream. In a high power blender or vitamix add the raw cashews and equal amounts of water. Blend. The consistency should be the same as heavy cream. Adjust water until you reach the perfect consistency, then add the apple cider vinegar and blend. This will give it that tartness that sour cream would have. You will need a cup, to a cup and a quarter, of cream for this recipe.

In a small pan saute your onions until they become translucent, set aside. Once the green beans are tender but still have a little bit of a bite to them, take them out of the steamer and set aside.

In a large skillet over medium low heat melt the butter, once melted add the flour and stir until completely smooth, cook for one minute, this helps take out the 'flour' taste. Add in the salt, translucent onions, sliced mushrooms, the one cup of cashew cream, and the steamed green beans, mix until everything is incorporated. If your bag of green beans was on the bigger side, as more cashew cream, you want everything to be well coated. Pour into a greased casserole dish and bake for 15 minutes. Pull the casserole out and top it with the crumbled crackers or the fried onions, put back in the oven and continue to bake for another 15 minutes. Serve immediately. 

This can be prepared in advance, just leave off the topping. Once it is heated through in the oven, add the topping and allow the top to toast before serving.

Recipe slightly adapted from Anna Bailey