Roasted Garlic Cauliflower

This is an adapted recipe I found at allrecipes.com. The high oven heat really brings out the sweetness of the vegetable. Vegans can also cut out the Parmesan cheese and still have tons of flavor. This recipe works well with brussels sprouts as well.

Ingredients

1 head cauliflower
1T. mixed garlic
1T + 1t. oil of your choice
1/2 t. salt
1 pinch black pepper
2 T. Parmesan cheese
2 t. chopped parsley

Procedure

1. Heat oven to 450 (I have a convection roasting setting on my oven that works well)

2. Wash can cut cauliflower into florets. In a bowl toss cauliflower with garlic, oil, salt and pepper.

3. Bake cauliflower on sheet pan or roasting pan for about 25 minutes or until lightly golden brown (you will need to stir or toss it half way through the cooking process). It usually only takes about 23 minutes in my oven.

 

4. After the cauliflower has the desired color, sprinkle on parmesan cheese and cook for an additional 2-5 minutes on a broil setting or until cheese is melted and crispy. When adding cheese I find it helpful to put some parchment paper down on your pan for easy clean up. Also a good tip: Spread the cauliflower out. Don't over crowd the pan. If you do the florets will steam cook rather than roast and you will not achieve that nice color and texture.
 

Turkey Meatballs

I know what you are thinking.... Turkey meatballs? But those carnivore cravings can creep up on you with no warning! If you must give in to the meat gods then try these meatballs that are jam packed with flavor. They are made using the traditional braising technique which uses both moist and dry heat.

Ingredients

28 oz. ground turkey (this is usually the package size when I buy the turkey from Costco)
1 C. Cooked mushroom duxelle (look this recipe up under quinoa and spinach casserole)
1 heaping T. chopped rosemary (I cut a couple of sprigs from my garden)
2 T chopped parsley
1 t. granulated garlic
1 t. kosar salt
1/2 t. fresh ground black pepper 
1 egg: beaten (I prefer Egg-Land's Best brand)
1/2 C. bread crumbs (you may need to add more if mixture is too sticky)

2 T. canola oil

1/2 C chopped onion
1 C. red wine
2 T. tomato paste
2 C. chicken stock
2 C. beef stock
1 t. Kitchen Bouquet (brand of browning and seasoning sauce) 
2 bay leaves

1 1/2 C. sliced white or baby bella mushrooms
2 t. canola oil

2T. corn starch
4 T. water

Procedure

1. In a mixing bowl add ground turkey, duxelle, herbs, garlic, salt, pepper, egg and bread crumbs.  Mix together until just combined.  You may need more bread crumbs if mixture is too sticky.

2. Form into meat balls (about 2in). I usually get 14 big balls out of this recipe.

3. In a big braising pan using the 2 T. canola oil brown meatballs until golden on all sides.  I usually do this in 2 stages as to not over crowd the pan.  After they are brown, remove them from pan and set aside on paper towel to absorb extra oil.

4. After all meatballs have been browned pour off excess oil from pan.  Add onions to pan and deglaze pan with red wind. Reduce the wine until about 1/4 cup is left in the pan. 

5. Add the tomato paste. Sauce will start to thicken slightly.

6. Add chicken stock, beef stock, Kitchen bouquet and bay leaves. Bring this mixture to a boil.

7. Add meatballs back to pan in single layer, put lid on pan and bake in oven at 325 degrees for 1 hour 30 minutes.

8. As meat balls are cooking saute the sliced mushrooms in canola oil until done. Set aside.

8. When meatballs are done, remove pan from the oven and take meatballs out of liquid with tongs. 

9.  Strain out onions and bay leaves out of liquid. I like to take the liquid and pour it though a fat separator before I put it back into the saute pan.

10. Turn on the heat and bring the liquid back to a boil. Add the sauteed mushrooms.  Mix the corn starch and water together and pour slowly into boiling liquid whisking as you pour. 

11.  Cook 1 minute and taste for correct salt and pepper seasoning.


 12.  Pour sauce back over meatballs and enjoy. You can garnish with a pinch of chopped parsely.

Veggie Chili

Chili has got to be the best cold weather food. It reminds me of football and tailgating. This chili recipe has layers of flavor with the use of chili powders and dried chili. Eat it as is or crumble on some Queso Fresco. I like to kick mine up with some Cholula Hot Sauce.

Ingredients

1 oz. vegetable oil of your choice
1 diced green bell pepper
1 diced red bell pepper
1 large diced yellow onion
2T. minced garlic

2T. chili powder
2t. ground cumin
1t. paprika
1t. cocoa powder
1/4t. cayenne pepper
1/4t. ancho chili powder
1t. salt
1t. black pepper

heaping 1/2c. pearled barley
heaping 1/2c. green or brown lentils (wash well and check for rocks)
2 cans of diced tomatoes (14.5oz cans)
1.5 quart vegetarian stock

1 10oz box soy crumbles (faux meat)
2 each rehydrate pureed chili peppers of your choice (I used Anaheim and ancho in this recipe)
2 T. tomato paste
2 can kidney bean
1 can black beans
1 C. fresh or frozen corn kernels
2 t. salt

Procedure

1.  In a big pot sweat vegetables and garlic in oil until onions begin to look translucent.

2.  Add spices to vegetable mixture and cook about 5 minutes to active spices.

3.  Add raw barley, lentils, tomatoes and vegetable stock. Bring to boil, turn to low, cover and cook about 30 minutes at low heat.

4.  Rehydrate chili peppers in hot water while lentils and barley are cooking.  Remove seeds and stems and puree. Set aside.

5.  Add chili puree and remaining ingredients to pot. Cook covered on low heat for another 30-40 minutes. 

6.  Add salt and pepper to taste if needed. You can serve with queso fresco, queso blanco and or monterey jack cheese if desired

Black Bean Oatmeal Burgers

These burgers have good flavor and hold up really well to reheating. The ground oatmeal makes a good glue for holding together any combination of ingredients you want to change up. I have not cooked them on the grill yet, but if I was going to, I would still cook them in the oven to firm them up. This recipe quantity will make 12 burgers on 2 1/2 sheet pans. 

Ingredients

2 1/2 C. oatmeal (for use in step 1)
1/4 C. ground flax seed

5 peeled carrots
2 cloves garlic
1/4 C. chopped cilantro leaves
1 can Rotel
1/2 cups salsa (I usually skip the salsa or reduce the amount and add a big handful of spinach to make up the 1/2 cup of liquid needed)
1t. onion powder
1t. garlic powder or granulated garlic
1/2 t. cumin
1T. salt
1t. black pepper

3 cans rinsed black beans
1 can rinsed lentils

1 C. unprocessed oatmeal
1 C. corn kernels (optional)

Procedure


1. Grind oatmeal and flax seed in a food processor until fine flour. Set aside in a big bowl for later use.









2.  Add carrots, garlic, cilantro, Rotel with liquid, salsa and spices to food processor. Let it run until everything is very fine puree.





3.  Add black beans and lentils to processor and puree. If you want more texture, don't puree beans so much.

4.  Mix vegetable puree with ground oatmeal/flax mixture. Taste mixture for salt and pepper.

5.  Add unprocessed oats and corn to mixture. It should tighten up a little.

6.  Heat oven to 400 degrees. With wet hands form burgers into patties on parchment covered sheet pans.

7.  Bake 12 minutes. Finish in broiler or on grill 2 minutes to develop a little crust.

Blueberry Banana Bread

My Mom originally gave me this recipe. I am not sure where she got it from, but I like it because there is not much oil in it and it tastes great. I have not tried making it with an egg substitute yet but I have made some changes for ease and extra nutrition. I look forward to your comments on what substitutes or additions work best for you.

 

 

Ingredients

 



 2/3 cup oatmeal

1/2 cup pecan or walnuts

1 +1/2 cup white whole wheat flour

2 T. chia seed or hemp seed

1 +1/4 t. baking soda

1/4 t. salt

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. nutmeg

3T. canola/coconut or neutral flavored oil

1T. ground flax seed

1/2 cup brown sugar or "Florida Crystals" organic brown sugar (certified vegan)

1+1/2 cup mashed banana

2 eggs (I use "Egg Lands Best" b/c vegetarian fed hens and they have 25% less saturated fat than regular eggs)

1t. pure vanilla extract

1 cup blueberries fresh or frozen (I use frozen)

 

Procedure

 

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees and prepare your loaf pan by greasing and lining with parchement paper.

2. In a food processor pulse oats and pecans until slightly broken down. When I make it for my kids I usually grind them pretty small so they don't choke on the nuts. You can leave them bigger for more texture if you desire.

 

3. Combine the nut and oat mixture, flour, chia seeds, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg into a mixing bowl.

4. In the food processor cream oil, flax seed and brown sugar for a minute or so. Add bananas and vanilla and process for another minute. With motor running add eggs through feed tub one at a time and process another minute. It should look airy.

 

5. Pour the contents of the food processor into the bowl with the dry ingredients just until combined. Do not over mix. Fold in blueberries.

6. Bake in prepared bread pan for about 50 minutes or check doneness by poking bread with a skewer until it comes out clean.



Whole Grain Summer Salad

 

This is a great salad for those warmer months when you crave fresh chilled ingredients.  It has a ton of texture. The lemon and vinegar help the flavors in this salad pop. 

 

Ingredients

 

1c. Uncooked TruRoots Sprouted Rice and Quinoa Blend- follow recipe on package. (You can substitute the Tru Roots grain blend with other grains, but if you are looking for a variety of textures, this is the best I found)

1/2c. Uncooked Kashi 7 whole grain Pilaf or Farro- follow recipe on package

1 can lentils drained and rinsed

2 diced red bell peppers

2 diced cucumbers - peeled and seeded

1/2 red onion - diced

4 minced garlic cloves

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1/4 cup chopped parsley

2 T. olive oil or oil of your choice

1 juiced lemon

2T. & 1t. red wine vinegar

1 1/2 t. Kosher or sea salt

1/2 t. fresh ground black pepper

 

 

Procedure

 

1. Cook grains following recipe on package. Cool in fridge.

 

 

 

2. Mix the rest of the ingredients together and season to taste. Add in the chilled grains. Depending on the tartness of the lemon, you may need to add more vinegar to get enough acidity.

 

 

 

 



Quinoa and Spinach Casserole

I have made this dish many times for my son. He loves it and it is the only way I can get him to eat his spinach. When I make it for him I use low fat cottage cheese and Egg-Land's Best eggs. I feel at his young age the extra protein will be beneficial to his growth.



Ingredients

1 c. dried quinoa
2 c. water
pinch salt

1T. olive oil
10 oz. diced crimini mushroom (more nutritious than white button)
1 diced white onion
2 cloves garlic
1t. Italian seasoning
1 t. sea or Kosher salt
1/2 t. black pepper

1 lb. Spinach
1 C. cottage cheese or vegan cottage cheese
2 eggs or "flax egg" mixture (2.5T flax seed and 5 T. water which has been sitting for 10 minutes)

Procedure

1. Bring quinoa, water and salt to a boil and cook covered on low heat for 15 minutes. Let rest in the pot covered for an additional 10 minutes to let water absorb. Put in the fridge to cool. Can be made a day ahead of time.

 

 

 

2. In a large saute pan heat olive oil and add diced mushroom, diced onions,  minced garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes stirring occasionally until a paste-like consistency is reached and all liquid is gone. (This is called a mushroom "duxelle" mixture which adds a concentrated mushroom flavor to dishes). Place the mushroom duxelle in fridge to cool. This mushroom duxelle mixture can be used in other things like veggie burgers, pasta sauces ect. This can be made a day ahead of time. Sometimes I make a big batch and freeze it for use in a variety of different dishes.


3. Blanch spinach in lightly salted water. Chill in ice bath to stop cooking and preserve nice bright green color.

 

4. In a food processor add egg or "flax egg"... then add in cooled mushroom duxelle mixture and cottage cheese or vegan cottage cheese. Squeeze out water from spinach as best as possible and add to the processor as well. You can also squeeze out water from spinach by wringing out in a towel. Pulse ingredients together in food processor until combined. (You can leave the mushrooms whole if you want more texture or add in other vegetables of your choice). I put everything in the food processor so I can sneak in spinach for my son!
 

 

 

 

5. Pour spinach mushroom duxelle mixture from the food processor into bowl and mix with quinoa.

 

                        6. Prepare pan with oil and                           a light coating of bread crumbs.
 
 






 
 
 





 
 
 
7.  Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes.  The top will pick up a little brown color.

 



  

note: I usually make a double batch and freeze one