Healthful, Creamy Pesto: The Only Dish My Whole Family Loves

 Got this on a camping trip for my mom's club 15 years ago. Thank you, Lisa Cowert Reich! As healthful as pesto can get and so, so good on pasta, crackers, veggies, even by itself! I often double this recipe and we eat it all week. 

In a food processor, blend:

- 1 cup nuts (walnuts, pine nuts or a combination) 

- 1 cup yogurt (nonfat greek works well)

- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese 

- 2 large cloves of garlic 

- Two big handfuls of fresh basil leaves, stems off

- 1/2 cup olive oil (add more as needed) 

Done! 

Creamy Cheddar broccoli soup (no cheese, no cream)

Best soup I’ve ever made and it’s my own recipe! So creamy and healthful! Everyone loved it! FYI, I've also swapped in carrots or mixed vegetables instead of broccoli--the key is the cashew nuts and beans for creaminess and protein. 

- Sautée 1 large onion, 4 large cloves garlic, 3 stalks chopped celery 

Add, boil, and blend:

- 2 boxes chicken or veggie stock 

- 2 cans white beans 

- lots and lots of broccoli (fresh or frozen)—

- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt (optional) 

- 1 cup cashew nuts 

- 1 tbsp nutmeg 

-salt and pepper to taste 

- serve with Parmesan croutons 

 

• Amazing Cheesy Bean & Kale Dipper
• Lifted directly from the NYT. One of the most delicious things I've ever made! 
• ¼cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3fat garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 6 tablespoons tomato paste
• 4 (15-ounce) cans white beans (such as cannellini or Great Northern) or chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1cup boiling water
• Salt and black pepper
• 2/3 pound mozzarella, coarsely grated (about 2 2/3  cups)
• 2 bunches kale 
• Step 1

  Heat oven to 475 degrees. In a 10-inch ovenproof skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high. Fry the garlic until it’s lightly golden, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste (be careful of splattering) and fry for 30 seconds, reducing the heat as needed to prevent the garlic from burning.

• 
  
• Step 2

  Add the beans, water and generous pinches of salt and pepper and stir to combine. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top, then bake until the cheese has melted and browned in spots, 5 to 10 minutes. If the top is not as toasted as you’d like, run the skillet under the broiler for a minute or 2. Serve at once.

NYTimes Homemade Hummus

Blend

 Two cans of chickpeas, drained. 

Juice of 1 small lemon 

1 clove garlic

2 Tbsp olive oil 

1 Tbps tahini 

2 Tbps water

salt and pepper

Add additional water to make smoother to desired texture. 

Kale and Tofu Deliciousness

 Wash the kale and massage it with a little olive oil and course sea salt to make it soft and bright green and and cut into strips

Fry onions in olive oil. Add minced ginger and garlic and fry a bit more

Add the kale, put on a lid and steam for about 10 minutes until soft.

Add toasted almonds, soy sauce, a few drops of sesame oil and red pepper flakes

In the same pan you fried the onion, etc., fry some tofu (don't need additional oil) and throw it on top.

Serve with rice 

Savoury South African Kale & Bean Dinner

This is a simple but incredibly delicious dinner that our South African Au Pair served up this evening:

Ingredients:
3 large onions
5 cloves garlic (she grated these)
1 bunch finely chopped cilantro
2 tomatoes (she grated the insides and threw out the skins)
1 box mushrooms, sliced
1 can great northern white beans
1 large bag kale
salt to taste

Sautée onions, garlic, mushrooms, tomato, and cilantro in olive or canola oil
Add kale, beans, until soft,
Salt to taste

Serve with white rice. She also served with a delicious salad of avocado, sliced peppers, and cashew nuts (no lettuce or dressing). It was phenomenal!

Vegetarian Cholent

If you are not familiar with it, cholent is a delicious, hearty dish that Orthodox Jews often cook on Shabbat because it keeps warm on a low burning stove or a hot pot all day and night. This is a vegetarian version of course of what is typically a very carnivorous dish. This is adapated slightly based on my experimentation, but mostly lifted from: https://www.joyofkosher.com/recipes/vegetarian-cholent-with-kishke/

Protein: Beans

Ingredients:
3 Yellow onions, chopped
2 big fat carrots, peeled and chopped
6-8 dried figs
4 cans beans (kidney, black, white, pinto or a combination)
1/2 cup pearl barley
1 Tbsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp paprika
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
3/4 cup BBQ sauce
3-4 cups water.

Combine in a slow cooker and cook on high overnight. To be really authentic, toss in some washed eggs (shell on) to enjoy with this later.

Meatless Bologonese Sauce

Protein: Lentils, walnuts

This recipe is amazing and truly has confounded carnivorous friends and family who swear it has meat in it. (It does not). 

Super simple:

- 1 bag lentils, rinsed, cooked

- 4 cups cooked vegetables (those frozen bags of carrots, peas, corn, broccoli mix works well)

- 3 cups walnuts

Blend all together in a food processor, then spread thinly in a couple of baking dishes and bake on medium/high heat (500 degrees), until dry and flakey all the way through. If needed, stir it up so that parts that are still wet also dry out. 

Remove from dish and break the brittle cake into chunks. You can store most of it in freezer bags in your freezer. Add a cup or two to your favorite pasta sauce in a saucepan on the stove and serve over pasta. Great with parmesan cheese. 

Just Banana and Egg Pancake

Did you know that you could make pancakes with just two eggs and a mashed banana as batter?! Thanks to my friends Janeen and Beth for this pure gem!

For extra nutrition, I often add 1/4 cup almond flour, 1/4 cup of milk (needs an extra egg to hold it together).

Amazing with Nutella but very good on it's own because the cooked banana is so sweet!

Savoury Kale and Potato Crepe

My street-food favorite! I can make it at home! Yippeee!

Crepe:
1/2 cup spelt (or other whole grain) flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk

Filling:
1 bag chopped kale
3 waxy potatoes, diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
juice of 1/2 lemon

1 slice cheddar cheese cut up

1. Boil chopped kale and diced potatoes until soft. When soft, drain and mix w. lemon juice & garlic.
2. Mix crepe ingredients (Should be quite liquid. If too thick, add milk. If too thin, add flour). Pour on  an (already very hot) frying pan or skillet coated with a bit of butter or olive oil. Flip when you can get under it with a spatula.
3. Once flipped, add a cut up slice of cheddar cheese to melt. Remove to a plate.
4. Put hot potato/kale filling on top of crepe, fold and enjoy!

Cool thing is that the filling and the crepes can be kept separately in the fridge for at least a week and enjoyed whenever you need a quick meal.

Could-Kale-Really-Be-This-Incredible Salad?!

1 bunch chopped kale (stems removed)
1 cup grated carrots (throw in food processor)
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup tofu (or chicken)

Dressing:
2 Tbps. canola or olive oil
2 Tbps. rice vinegar
1 Tbps. honey
2 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. minced fresh ginger (can be bought in a squeeze bottle where I live!)
1/2 tsp. salt


1. Combine the veggies and let sit in the dressing. If it's still too crunchy (which it usually is for me), I put the whole shebang in a frying pan with 2 Tbsp. of water and let it steam a little (dressing on is fine).
2. Delicious with tofu or chicken that's been sauteed in the dressing or some combination of soy sauce/ginger/oil.

Shakshuka

Ohmigosh! I adore this Israeli dish. My family is getting sick of it. I now serve it ALL THE TIME. So easy, so delicious.

1 Tbp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 onions
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 bell peppers (any color)
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1 tsp. paprika
salt and pepper to taste
6 eggs
coriander
crumbled feta
pita bread

1. Sautee onions, garlic, peppers until translucent
2. Add the tomatoes, spices and simmer
3. Crack the eggs on top and let simmer until the whites have hardened.
4. Sprinkle with chopped coriander and feta

Serve with warm pita

Spanikopita Tartine

The amazing flavour burst on this little toastie was kind of mind-blowing! I highly recommended. I put some toasted chopped walnuts on top for extra protein. Taken from my Abel & Cole CSA circular.

Subtle and Delicious Orange & Brown Sugar Salmon

Huge thanks to my creative friend, Christy who brought me this when I had my baby. I cook it whenever I really want to impress company!

2T brown sugar

1tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp grated orange zest

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp grnd coriander

1/8 tsp black pepper

Comine ingredients and rub onto salmon. Place under broiler until crisp and then bake

Lebanese Braised Eggplant with Chickpeas

Again, lifted right from Vegetarian Times. http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipe/braised-lebanese-eggplant-with-chickpeas/

Serves 6

Slow-cooking eggplant in tomato sauce makes it incredibly silky and tender. Choose a marinara sauce that has as few ingredients as possible so the flavors don't overwhelm the eggplant.

• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 large onion, diced (1 ½ cups)
• 6 medium Japanese eggplant, halved lengthwise and cut into 2-inch pieces (or 2 large eggplants)
• 1 clove garlic, minced (1 tsp.)
• ½ tsp. ground allspice
• ¼ tsp. ground cumin
• 1 cup marinara sauce
• 1 Tbs. red wine vinegar
• 1 15-oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 2 large mint sprigs, plus 2 Tbs. chopped mint
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, and sauté 7 minutes, or until soft. Stir in eggplant, and cook 5 minutes or until beginning to brown. Add garlic, allspice, cinnamon, and cumin, and cook 1 minute more.

2. Stir in marinara sauce, vinegar, and 2/3 cup water, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in chickpeas. Season with salt and pepper. Lay mint sprigs on top of eggplant mixture, cover, and transfer pot to oven. Cook 45 to 50 minutes, or until eggplant is tender. Remove mint sprigs, and stir in chopped mint. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Super Easy Lentil Soup

Delicious with small chunks of cheddar cheese and crusty bread!

1 bag of lentils
1 bag of frozen vegetables
1 chicken or vegetable boullion cube
salt and pepper

1. Cook lentils
2. Cook vegetables in pot of water with boullion
3. Combine
4. Blend in blender
5. Add salt and pepper to taste

Crustless Quiche

This recipe is from my one of my favorite chefs, Amy Fothergill, "The Family Chef!" Her website is here: http://amythefamilychef.com/

Crustless Zucchini Quiche (creamy version)

1/2 - 1 cup par-boiled vegetable like cauliflower, broccoli or 2 raw zucchini, sliced thin or 1 box frozen, chopped spinach, drained
1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella or cheddar cheese
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

6 eggs
2 cups of milk or cream
1/2 cup flour or pancake mix (you can also use a gluten-free flour blend to make the dish GF)
1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
1/4 tsp ea nutmeg and dry mustard (or 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard)

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. Grease a 13"x9" baking dish with non-stick spray or oil. Place vegetable on bottom and then top with cheese.
3. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, milk, flour or pancake mix, salt, pepper, nutmeg and mustard.
4. Pour egg mixture on top. Place in oven and bake 35-40 minutes or until egg is set and top is golden brown and puffed.
5. Allow quiche to cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting.

Crustless Spinach and Feta Quiche (this one has great flavor)

Awesome Lentil Burgers

Also Directly out of Vegetarian Times: http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipe/jack-burgers/

Makes 10 patties

30 minutes or fewer

·       1 15-oz. can Eden Foods lentils with onion & bay leaf, rinsed and drained (or just lentils cooked w. a bay leaf)

·       ½ large onion, finely chopped (1 cup)

·       2 medium carrots, shredded (1 cup)

·       ¾ cup prepared marinara sauce

·       ¾ cup walnuts, finely chopped (I used almond powder)

·       ¾ cup Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free pancake mix (I used flour instead)

·       1 Tbs. Bob’s Red Mill nutritional yeast

1. Combine all ingredients in large bowl.

2. Spray large skillet with cooking spray, and heat over medium heat. Scoop batter by 1/3 cupfuls onto hot skillet, and cook 3 to 4 minutes, or until bottoms of patties have browned. Flip, cover pan, and cook 5 to 7 minutes more, or until browned on both sides and vegetables have softened.

September 2012 p.69

Chickpea Tagine with Cinnamon, Cumin, and Carrots

This is straight out of Vegetarian Times, Oct. 2008

Serves 4

30 minutes or fewer

North African cooking often features cinnamon in both savory dishes and desserts. Carrots and raisins make this a slightly sweet stew that’s best served with a dollop of “sour” Greek-style yogurt to complement the flavors.

• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 small onion, thinly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbs.)
• 2 14.5-oz. cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into thin rounds
• ¼ cup dried currants
• 1 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp. honey
• ½ cup plain Greek-style yogurt
• 3 Tbs. finely chopped parsley

1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and sauté 2 to 3 minutes, or until onion slices are soft. Stir in chickpeas, carrots, currants, spices, honey, and 2 cups water. Cover and simmer 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper.

2. Divide tagine among 4 bowls. Garnish each serving with dollop of yogurt, and sprinkle with parsley.

Best Dal EVER

Thanks to Sherrie Cheema, my dear friend's mom for blowing my mind with this one! I've never been a huge dal fan, but this is thick and rich, flavorful but not spicy and really filling!

Protein: lentils

Carmelize 1 chopped onion
Add to a pot of cooking lentils (3 cups lentils with 6 cups water)
1 boullion cube
6 cloves chopped garlic
2 inches chopped fresh ginger
1/4 tsp. salt (preferably Hawaiian sea salt, though I just used regular old salt)
2 tsp. cinnamon

Awesome served with rice, barley, or quinoa (best with red quinoa)
AND a salad of cucumbers in rice vinegar, sugar, and salt
The flavors all combine deliciously!

Watermelon Gazpacho

Okay, no protein here, so it's not an entree, but it's really good:

In a blender, combine:
Watermelon (4 cups or so)
1/2 a large

cucumber (skin on)
1/4 red onion
1 handful fresh mint leaves
1/4 tsp. salt
a few shakes of black pepper

Serve chilled.

Broccoli-Lentil Salad with Honey-Mustard Dressing

Another winner from the Vegetarian Times:

Protein: Lentils, walnuts

1/2 cup beluga lentils al dente
1 head broccoli cut into florets, lightly steamed but still crunchy (2-3 minutes)
1 small red onion diced
1/2 cup chopped nuts (almonds or walnuts)


Honey-mustard dressing:
4 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
2 tsp. honey
2 tsp. Dijon mustard

Tasty Breaded Seitan

This is my new favorite recipe. Incredible with the Bob's Red Mill recipe shown below. This recipe is directly lifted from:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/tasty-breaded-seitan/detail.aspx

Ingredients

• 1 (8 ounce) package seitan
• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons tamari
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions

1. In a small bowl, combine nutritional yeast, garlic powder, coriander, cumin, and black pepper. Dip seitan in tamari, then in the yeast and spice mixture. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Fry seitan in batches until browned on all sides.

Healthful (sort of) but Delicious Pasta Alfredo

I don't eat this stuff because I don't eat pasta, generally, but my daughter adores it.

Protein: cheese, milk, more cheese

Make a white sauce:
in a pan, add 3 Tbsp. olive oil
5  Tbsp. white flour
1 cup milk
adjust amounts to right consistency--a creamy sauce
Add 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Add cooked noodles to pan. Enjoy!

Vietnamese Spring Rolls

Protein: Tofu, peanut sauce

In rice paper, roll up:
bean sprouts
tofu
mint leaves
shredded carrots (optional)

Serve with peanut sauce

Peanut Sauce

This is great on Tofu with broccoli/spinach/kale/bok choy/whatever. Also great on seitan

10 Tbsp. water
8 Tbsp. crunchy peanut butter
2 Tbsp. rice vinegar
5 Tbsp. soy sauce
4 tsp. honey
4 tsp. grated ginger
4 cloves garlic

Easy Chickpea throw-together

Thanks Aneeta R. for this great quick and easy recipe!

Protein: Chickpeas

Put 3 Tbsp. olive oil and 2 cloves garlic in a pan
Throw in 1 can drained chickpeas
Sautee for a while--until soft (or wait and let them brown)

Salt and pepper to taste
Mix in with avocado and other stuff--cucumbers, red onions, etc.

Hemp & Cashew-Stuffed Potatoes

Just subscribed to Vegetarian Times and hallelujah on this recipe! Wowsers!

Protein: Cashew nuts, hemp seeds

1 cup raw cashews
4 large baking potatoes, scrubbed
6 Tbsp nutritional yease
4 Tbsp. coconut oil, melted
4 Tbsp. lemon juice
3 Tbsp. yellow miso paste
1 cup chopped scallions or chives
1 cup chopped parsley leaves
1 cup hemp seeds

1. Soak cashews in a large bowl of cold water for 1 hour to soften
2. Preheat oven to 400, Bake potatoes for 45-60 minutes
3. Cut potatoes in half and scoop out flesh, trying to retain their shape.
4. Combine flesh in a food processor with drained cashews, combine with nutritional yeast, coconut oil, lemon juice, miso in food processor until smooth.
5. Refill potato skins with the mixture.
6. Put potatoes back in over and bake 15-20 min until tops are golden
7. Serve sprinkled heavily with hemp seeds, scallions, and parsley

My New Favorite Breakfast: Nutty Pancakes

This is AWESOME! I have literally had this every morning for breakfast for the past month! I double this recipe, freeze it all and then microwave each morning (about 2 pancakes per person). With this, we get breakfast every morning for the whole family for two solid weeks.

Protein: Nuts, nuts, nuts

• 2 c. ground oatmeal (grind to powder in food processor)--alternatively, oat bran works
• 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 3 c. ground nuts (grind almonds or walnuts to a powder in food processor)
• 3 eggs
• 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 c. applesauce
• 2 c. milk 
• 1.5 c. ground flax seed (optional)

I separate this into three separate bowls and add:

- Blueberries to one bowl

- Dark chocolate chips to another (for some reason, dark chocolate has a much richer flavor than either milk or semi-sweet chocolate in this recipe)

- Dark chocolate chips and frozen bananas (If you eat them right away, fresh bananas work fine, but if you are going to freeze and unthaw the pancakes one breakfast at a time, for some reason, frozen bananas come out with a much better texture). 

Then ladle them out on a flat grill and flip when they are golden brown on the bottom. 

Freeze (I label the batches and pack them separately in the freezer for easy unthawing--1 min. in micro).