Chickpea-Brown Rice Burgers

Well, it's certainly been a while since I have posted anything here.  Gotta say, even though I make most of my recipes from scratch, it is certainly difficult to do that, raise a toddler, work part time, and keep a reasonably clean house...so, the blog gets left on the back burner.  Oh, and I'm expecting baby Cashew in July...so I've been more than a little tired lately!

Now that Peanut is getting to be a little more independent, and I've hit the 2nd trimester (read: more energy), I may be able to post more often...we'll see.  I'm trying to get Peanut more involved in cooking with me, to varying degrees of success.  Tonight she helped me make a salad - I chopped up the ingredients, and she put them in the bowl.  She loved it, and it was something we could do together.

I got this new cookbook for Christmas, so tonight we are trying out a new recipe from it, with a few changes.

Chickpea-Brown Rice Burgers

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked chickpeas (you can used canned if you want.  I cooked mine from dry, and added celery, garlic, onion and salt to the cooking water)

1 cup cooked brown rice (you could cook this in veggie broth if you wanted)

1/2 small onion

1 garlic clove, minced

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (if you don't like cilantro, use whatever herbs you do like...the original recipe calls for parsley)

Coarse salt and pepper, freshly ground

1 large egg

2 tbsp olive oil

Burger toppings (such as tomato, lettuce, onion, grainy mustard, cheese, etc)

Burger buns (if you want...you can eat them without too)

Directions:

1) Put the first 7 ingredients into a food processor and blend on low until a thick paste forms (I got Peanut to push the button...but it scared her, so she wanted me to do it).

2) Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high.  Add patties and cook until golden brown, about 4 minutes per side.

3) To serve, put the burgers on a bun (or not), and add whatever toppings you want.

We served the burgers with this salad:

Greens and Cranberry Salad

Ingredients:

Mixed Lettuce

Sliced Mushrooms

Diced tomatoes

Dried Cranberries

Sliced Cucumber

Slivered Almonds

Parmesean Cheese

Salad Dressing

Directions:

Put lettuce in a bowl.  Top lettuce with other ingredients.  Toss with whatever salad dressing you like (I enjoy balsamic).

Crock-pot Vegetarian Chili

Ahhhh, fall.  My favourite season.  Now that I can feel the crispness in the air, I can pull out my cozy sweaters and beautiful fall scarves.  It is also the perfect time of year to make chili.

Vegetarian Chili

I love that I can throw the ingredients into my CrockPot the night before, and I have lunch for the next day.  And the smell when I walk into the kitchen is amazing.

I got the original recipe from "The Yummy Mummy Kitchen" cookbook, which I picked up from the library last week.

Vegetarian Chili

Ingredients:

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 carrots, chopped

1 sweet potato, peeled and diced

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp Epicure Louisiana Hot n Spicy (or you could use chili powder)

1 tsp cumin (this is important...it really improves the flavour!)

1 red bell pepper, diced

2 tbsl tomato paste

28 ounces canned diced tomatoes with herbs & spices in juice

3 cups vegetable broth (I used my homemade stuff using vegetable scraps)

1.5 C cooked kidney beans, drained and rinsed (or use 1 can)

1.5 C cooked black beans, drained and rinsed (or use 1 can)

Directions:

Put all ingredients into a crock-pot.  Cook for 8-12 hours on low.

Meal Plan for the Week:
Sunday: Vegetarian Chili
Monday: Chili Leftovers
Tuesday: Honey Curried Vegetables over brown rice
Wednesday: Stirfry over leftover brown rice
Thursday: Spaghetti with tomato sauce w/ veg and black beans
Friday: Shepherd's Pie (made with sweet potatoes)
Saturday: Leftovers

Shrimp Pesto Pasta

Typically, my family eats vegetarian at home, but I will occasionally make a dish with seafood or fish.  I got this recipe while I was staying with my sister-in-law.  When she said she was making Shrimp Pesto, I thought "there's no way Peanut is going to like this"...but to my surprise, it was a BIG hit!  Shrimp was on sale last week, so I bought a big bag and thought I'd give it a try.

Shrimp Pesto Pasta

Shrimp Pesto Pasta

Ingredients:

1 pkg whole wheat pasta (I used rotini, but penne would be great too)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 large tomato, diced, liquid drained

20-25 shrimp: raw, peeled

4-5 tbsp pesto sauce (I used Classico brand, but you could use the store brand or make your own)

salt and pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese, to taste

Directions:

Cook the pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a frying pan.  Add onion, and cook until soft.

When onion is soft, add chopped tomato and shrimp.  Cook, stirring frequently, until shrimp is opaque (about 5-6 min).  Don't overcook the shrimp, or else it can get rubbery.

Once the shrimp is cooked, add the pesto, and the salt and pepper to taste. Stir it around to warm it up.

Toss the shrimp pesto with the noodles, and serve immediately.  Top with grated Parmesan cheese if you'd like.  

Pumpkin Carrot Muffins

I just made THE BEST MUFFINS EVER.  They turned out so nicely - moist, flavourful, fluffy :)  I got the recipe here.  The original recipe only makes 6 muffins, so I doubled it, but kept all of the ingredients the same.  Oh, and I increased the cooking time (mine were definitely not done after 14 minutes).  Next time I might consider using applesauce instead of oil, and possibly throwing in some flax seed (or using a "flax egg" instead of eggs).  But then again, maybe I should just not mess with a good thing!

Pumpkin Carrot Muffins

Here's the recipe:

Pumpkin Carrot Muffins

Ingredients:

1 cup pumpkin
2/3 cup brown sugar
4 tbsp oil
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup grated carrots
1.5 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder

Directions:

Beat together pumpkin, brown sugar, oil and egg. 

Add in carrots. 

In a separate bowl, blend together flour, salt, soda, baking powder and cinnamon. 

Add to the pumpkin mixture. 

Fill muffin tins about 2/3 full. 

Bake at 375 degrees for 18-20 minutes. Makes 12 muffins.

Breaded Lime Tilapia

I actually remembered to thaw my fish in advance this week, so that I could try a new recipe! (you can't do this if they are frozen).  I wanted something simple and light tasting, and something that Peanut would like.  I came across a recipe for "Lemon Sole" in my current favourite recipe book, "Healthy in a Hurry", and adapted it for the ingredients I had at home.  Aside from thawing the fish, it took about 8 minutes to prep, and about 8 minutes to cook.

Here's the recipe:

Breaded Lime Tilapia

Ingredients:

1 C bread crumbs (I made my own by putting a few slices of slightly stale bread in the food processor)

Zest of 1 lime (or less if you don't want it to "limey")

Sprinkle of salt\

Sprinkle of pepper

1 large egg

6 tilapia filets, thawed (or fresh)

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 400F.  Grease a cookie sheet.

2) Mix the first four ingredients together in a shallow bowl.

3) Whisk the egg in a separate shallow bowl.

4) Dip each filet (one at a time) into the egg, then into the bread mixture (ensuring that both sides get covered).  Lay each filet on the greased cookie sheet.\

5) Bake for 5-10 minutes (check at 5, then add time if needed - you will know they are done if the fish is white and flaky).

6) EAT!

I served this with quinoa and some roasted peppers and apples.  I really liked the flavour, and it was so easy!  WAY better than buying the gross breaded fish from the store.

100 Days of Real Food

My friend, "Mo", got me interested in this food plan: 100 Days of Real Food, so I've decided to give it a go, starting today.  I will be blogging about it, but I'm not very good at blogging regularly, so don't expect a daily thing, but I will try to do weekly at least.  In addition to this, I am also going to try to incorporate a "salad-a-day" challenge for the 100 days as well.

Here are the RULES.

However, I've decided that I am not going to be as strict as the family from this blog.  If I am going to someone's place for a meal, I will happily eat what they serve, because I think it is more important to be polite and enjoy good company than it is to strictly follow a food plan.  Also, if we are going out for dinner I will choose healthy meals, but if the salad dressing has a bit of sugar in it, who cares?  At home, however, I will strictly follow the rules!

What I like about the plan is that it's not a "diet" about losing weight!  It's simply about eating healthier.  I am not trying to lose weight at all, though cutting out sweets may result in a bit of weight loss.  I am hoping to gain more energy, and generally feel good all around.  Also, I would like to point out that this is not a "new years resolution"...it's something I do most of the time anyway, and it's a realistic, specific and achievable goal.  If doing the 100 days is too much of a sudden change for you and your family, try the 10-day-pledge or consider doing some mini-pledges.  Whatever works for you.

Along the way, I will share some recipes, photos, ideas, and thoughts.  To start, here's my breakfast today:

Plain greek yogurt, with frozen berries (thawed), and a small drizzle of maple syrup.  I also had two fried eggs (just enough olive oil to lightly coat the pan), and some herbal tea.  It was really easy AND delicious!

Tonight's dinner will be mixed whole-grain rice, with a salmon-fillet (with lemon and dill), a garden salad, and steamed veggies.  I may enjoy some fruit for dessert.  Again, EASY and delicious!

Dinner!

Update: Above is a picture of what I had for dinner.  The salad is romaine lettuce, mushrooms, tomato, and Monterrey Jack cheese with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette.  The main course is mixed grains with lemon-dill salmon and steamed broccoli.  Here's proof that eating "real food" doens't have to be labour intensive: the rice was cooked in a rice cooker, the salmon was sprinkled with dill and lemon juice and baked, and the broccoli was frozen, so all I had to do was throw it in the steamer.  The most work was chopping up the veggies for the salad.

Tomato Barley Soup

I just made this delicious soup in my crock-pot.  Matt liked it so much that he didn't even add hot sauce to it, and he adds hot sauce to EVERYTHING.  Peanut loved it too!  I just blended it up and gave it to her for lunch today, and it was a big hit.

Tomato Barley Soup

When I make soup, I almost never use a recipe - I just throw in whatever ingredients I have in my house, or happened to be a good price in the grocery store.  So, I didn't use a recipe for this either, but I'm really happy with how it turned out, so I'm going to kind of make it up right now.

Tomato Barley Soup (or Stew)

Ingredients:

1 can of no salt added crushed tomatoes

6 or 7 cups of low sodium vegetable broth (I use epicure)

2 or 3 carrots, peeled and chopped

4 stalks celery, chopped

2 or 3 potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 small onion, chopped

1 cup pot barley (or pearl barley, but pot barley is less refined)

salt and spices to taste (I used a few tbsp of Epicure Herb and Garlic Dip Mix)

(other suggestions - add some red lentils, sweet potato, or pasta [at the end] to change it up a bit)

Directions:

Put everything into a crockpot.  Cook on low for 8 hours (or overnight), or on high for 4 or 5 hours.

EASY!

Make Ahead Vegetarian Lasagna

I'm a big fan of easy recipes, and also a big fan of making things ahead so that all I have to do is pop them in the oven!  So, here is an easy AND make-ahead vegetarian lasagna!  (found on a milk ad in the November 2012 issue of Canadian Living magazine).  Prep time is about 20-25 minutes (including cooking the cream sauce), then you need to let it sit in the fridge for 8-24 hours.  I got all of the prep, dishes washed, and typed this blog while my 8 month old had her nap :)

Make Ahead Vegetarian Lasagna

Ingredients:

¼ C all purpose flour

2 tsp dried Italian herb seasoning

½ tsp pepper

2 C half-and-half cream

2 C low-sodium tomato pasta sauce (1 1/2 C, then 1/2 C later)

1 C water (1/2 C, then 1/2 C later)

12 Lasagne noodles

2 pkg frozen Mediterranean vegetables

1 ½ C shredded mozzarella (or provolone) cheese (3 x 1/2 C)

Directions:

1) In a saucepan, whisk together flour, herbs, and pepper.  Gradually whisk in cream.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking often.  Reduce heat and simmer, whisking, for 2 minutes or until thick.  Remove from heat; whisk in 1 1/2 C pasta sauce and 1/2 C water.

2) Pour 1/2 C pasta sauce and 1/2 C water into a buttered 9x13 glass baking dish; stir and spread evenly.  *Arrange 4 uncooked lasagna noodles on top of sauce, breaking to fit.  Spread 1/3 of the tomato cream sauce on top of noodles.  Sprinkle 1 pkg vegetables on top of sauce.  Sprinkle 1/2 C shredded cheese.  Repeat from * once.  Top with a layer of noodles, then the rest of the sauce, then the rest of the cheese.

3) Cover with foil and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, or up to 24 hours.

4) Bake lasagna, covered, in 375F oven for about 40 min, or until hot, bubbling and noodles are tender.  Uncover; bake for 10 min, or until topping is browned.  Let stand 10 min before serving.

Meatless Monday - Lentil Kale Soup

I did a bunch of batch cooking on the weekend: shepherd's pie, stuffed zucchini, cheesy "beef" noodles, stuffed pasta shells, and today's feature recipe...Lentil Kale Soup!  Look forward to enjoying some of the other recipes in future posts!

This soup is hearty, flavourful, and packed with protein and vitamins!  And it's easy to make!

Unfortunately, in all of my excitement over this delicous soup, I forgot to take a picture.  So, instead, here's a picture of my empty bowl (proof that I enjoyed it!).

Lentil Kale Soup (adapted from Today's Parent Magazine Sept 2012)
Ingredients:
1 small onion (chopped)
2 carrots (peeled and chopped)
2 stalks celery (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1/2 tbsp paprika
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 1/2 C green lentils (dry)
8 C low sodium vegetable stock (I used epicure) (could use chicken stock)
1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
4 C chopped kale (stems and mid-ribs removed)
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp chopped parsley (optional for garnish)

Directions:
1) Heat oil in a large pot over medium.  Add onion, carrot and celery and saute for 5 min or until vegetables begin to soften.  Add garlic and paprika and saute for 1 min.
2) Stir in tomato paste.  Add lentils, stock, thyme and bay leaf and bring to a boil.
3) Cover pot, turn heat to low and simmer gently for 15 min.
4) Add kale and salt and simmer for 15 min longer or until lentils and vegetables are cooked through.
5) Sprinkle with parsley just before serving.

Meatless Monday - Egg and Potato Skillet

Ahhhh - I missed Monday again!  I need to get on the ball here.

Anyway, here's your recipe for the week!

Egg and Potato Skillet

This was one of those meals where I was hungry and the fridge was getting bare, so I just looked around and made something up with whatever I had.

A great thing about this meal, is it can be made with mostly food out of your garden, and if you live in a rural area, you can probably find a local farmer to get your eggs from too!  Also, you only need one pan!

Ingredients: (makes 2 servings)

vegetable oil

2 potatoes

1 onion

1 green pepper

1 tomato, chopped - drain off some of the liquid

4 eggs

herbs (I used the epicure herb and garlic mix - you could use oregano, basil, rosemary...whatever you like!)

shredded cheese (a few tbsp) - I used parmesean, but any kind of cheese would be good!

As you can see here, I added the tomatoes before the egg, but I would recommend doing eggs first.  The tomatoes really don't need to cook that long.

Directions:

1) Chop up all of your veggies, but don't mix them together.

2) Heat the oil in a skillet (medium heat).

3) Add the potatoes to the skillet.  Fry them until they start to get soft (about 10 minutes), stirring frequently.

4) Add the onions and peppers to the potatoes.  Stir fry until the onions start to get soft.

5) Meanwhile, crack the eggs into a bowl, mix in the herbs, and whisk the eggs.  You may want to add some milk in as well, but I generally don't.

6) Add the eggs to the pan, and stir them up as they cook (making scrambled eggs).

7) When the eggs are mostly cooked, add in the tomatoes.  Keep frying until the eggs are all firm and there is no eggy liquid left.

8) Put the mixture onto a plate or bowl, then top with shredded cheese.  If you used a cast iron skillet you could just eat it right out of the pan, but I find that the pan is a little hot, so I didn't do that.

ENJOY!

Meatless Monday: Udon Noodle Stir-fry

First, I will apologize to those of you who have been following this blog and looking forward to a post last Monday.  I went to visit my mom for a week, and totally forgot to post a recipe!

But no worries, I am back :)

This weeks recipe was inspired by my mother-in-law, who introduced me to the deliciousness of Udon Noodles.  These Asian noodles are kind of like thick spaghetti, but softer.  I like to use them in stir-fries, so this week I am featuring a REALLY EASY stir-fry that ANYONE could make.  And it's really inexpensive too!  A great meal for those of you who will be going to college or university next month!

Here it is!

I know it may not LOOK that amazing, but it's really yummy.

Udon Noodle Stir-Fry (this recipe makes 1 serving)

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil

Extra-Firm Tofu, cut into 1 inch cubes - about 1/4 of a pack)

Chopped veggies of your choice (I used 1/4 red pepper, 1/4 yellow pepper, 1 thick slice eggplant, 1/4 onion, and 1 portabella mushroom)

Udon Noodles (I got these from Zehrs for about $0.35)

Asian Sesame salad dressing (I like Renee's) - 1 to 2 tbsp

Directions:

1) Heat the olive oil in a wok or frying pan (medium heat).

2) Add the onion and cook until it starts to soften.  Then add the rest of the veggies and the tofu.  Cook until the veggies are tender-crisp.

3) Add the noodles and the dressing.  Cook until the noodles and dressing are heated through.

4) That's IT!  You're done!  Eat!

Meatless Monday - Tortellini Salsa Rosa and Detox Salad

It's Meatless Monday!  Today's recipe is Tortellini Salsa Rosa.

This recipe was inspired by a menu item at "The Cajun Pepper" restaurant in Chatham, ON.  It's a twist on a standard Rosé sauce, using salsa instead of tomato sauce - a great addition to a mexican themed family night!

So, here's the recipe:

TORTELLINI SALSA ROSA

Ingredients:

Tortellini (or cappelletti...same thing)

Alfredo Sauce (I used a dry mix - need to add milk and margarine.  Or you could buy a can of sauce, or make your own)

Salsa (I made my own using tomato, pepper, onion, lime juice, and epicure mix...but you could just buy a can)

Directions:

1) Make tortellini according to package.

2) While tortellini is cooking, make alfredo sauce according to package.

3) When sauce is cooked, add salsa and stir it in.

4) Pour the Salsa Rosa sauce over the tortellini!  Yup, it's that easy!!!

DETOX SALAD

Now, I won't claim to have come up with this on my own.  I was inspired by this recipe: Oh She Glows Detox Salad

Ingredients:

Broccoli (1/2 bunch)

Cauliflower (1/2 head)

Carrot (1 large)

Yellow Pepper (1/2)

Parsley (a small handful)

Raisins (handful)

Sunflower Seeds (handful)

Honey (drizzle)

Lemon Juice (1 to 2 tbsp)

Directions:

Chop up all of the veggies and parsley (I used my handy tupperware chopper)

Throw in the sunflower seeds and raisins.

Pour in honey and lemon juice.

Stir and serve.  Best if cold.

Meatless Monday - Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie

This is a delicious, hearty meal.  It's a good one to try if you do not eat a lot of vegetarian meals, or if you are not familiar with lentils.  It's also a nice meal to make if you are having non-vegetarian company for dinner because it is still a "meat-and-potatoes" kind of dish.  You can make it in a large casserole dish, but sometimes we like to make individual mini-dishes for something "fancy".

...this is just a picture of shepherd's pie, not MY recipe (I forgot to take a picture).  I will replace the picture when I make this again.

Ingredients:

• 8-10 large or medium potatoes (I prefer red or yellow)
• 2 tbsp margarine
• 1/2 C milk (I use soy milk, but any kind will do)
• Salt to taste
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• about 10 cremini or white mushrooms
• 2 15-oz cans of lentils, drained (not rinsed), or 3 1/2 C cooked green lentils with a bit of liquid reserved*
• 1 or 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp seasoning blend (e.g. a ClubHouse mix, Epicure, Mrs. Dash, etc)
• black pepper to taste
• 3 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 1/2 C frozen peas or corn, thawed

Directions:

• Peel and dice the potatoes. Place in a large saucepan with enough water to cover. Bring to a simmer, then cover and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and transfer to a small mixing bowl
• Stir the margarine into the potatoes until melted, then add the milk and mash until fluffy. Cover and set aside until needed. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• While the potatoes are cooking, heat the oil in a medium skillet. Add the onion and sauté over medium heat until translucent. Add the garlic and mushrooms and continue to sauté until the onion is golden.
• Add the lentils and their liquid and bring to a gentle simmer. Stir in the optional soy sauce, seasoning blend and pepper. Cook gently for 5 minutes. Combine the cornstarch with just enough water to dissolve in a small container. Stir into the lentil mixture.
• Mix the frozen peas or corn into the lentil mixture.
• Lightly oil a casserole dish.  Pour in the lentil mixture, then spread the potatoes evenly on top.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes (or until the potatoes start to turn slightly golden and crusty).
• Take out of the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes.
• Cut into squares or wedges and serve!  Enjoy!

*Cooking lentils is EASY.  You can cook them in your rice cooker or a pot, just like rice.  No need to pre-soak or anything.

Homemade Almond Butter - EASY!

Who knew that making homemade nut butters could be SO EASY?!?!

All you need is a food processor and whatever kind of nut or seed you want (I do not, however, recommend using a person who IS nuts...*).

That's IT.  Oh, and something to keep it in.  And an appetite.

So, here's what you do.

Measure out the nuts you want to use.  I used 1 Cup - it made 1/2 of a small mason jar of butter.  I made almond butter with raw, unsalted almonds.  You could use salted, roasted, seasoned, etc.  You could mix a bunch of nuts together.  Whatever.

Then, put the nuts into the food processor and turn it on.

As the oil is released from the nuts, it may start to stick to the sides.  I had to stop the food processor every minute or so to scrape the sides.

Ooooohhhh, look at that food processor go!

Eventually, the nuts will start sticking together and form a ball, like this:

Then, ALL OF A SUDDEN, the ball will release itself into a creamy, delicious BUTTER.

When it is to the consistency you like, put it into a jar!

Then eat the delicious goodness :)  Enjoy!

If you keep it in the cupboard, it will separate, but you can still use it - you just have to stir it together.  If you don't want it to separate, then keep it in the fridge. MMMmmmMMMmmmMMMmmm.

Note:  I am not brilliant.  I got this idea from pinterest, from this site: http://www.loveveggiesandyoga.com/2012/07/homemade-peanut-butter.html

*Matt did not marry me for my sense of humor!