Category Archives: All Things Green

Kale Butter

by

12

This is for all you kale “cult members” out there! There seems to be two kinds of people when it comes to kale – those who have no idea what it is and those who are obsessed with it. I don’t have much experience in between the two, only one or the other. We eat kale almost everyday so I suppose that puts us in the “cult member” category.

I found this recipe in the Engine 2 Diet book. It’s really good on crackers, pasta, veggies and sandwiches/wraps. I smear this on my toddler’s sandwiches with white beans and soy cheese and she devours it!

Ingredients:

* 1 bunch kale, rinsed and chopped (I use black/lacinato kale – use stems too)

* 1/2 cup walnuts

* 1/2 cup water – (use water leftover from steaming kale!)

* Salt, to taste

Directions:

– Steam the kale for 5 minutes, until tender

– Blend the cooked kale with the walnuts and 1/2 cup of the green water from steaming. Blend until smooth.

– Add salt to taste, if desired

My toddler LOVES this! Can you tell?

 

Napa Cabbage Tacos

by

1

I ordered a napa cabbage from my CSA and when it arrived yesterday I was blown away at how big it was!

I took the leftover TVP “meat” mixture and all of my toppings (including the Southwestern Chipotle Dressing/Sauce)and used the napa cabbage to make Napa Cabbage Tacos! Napa Cabbage isn’t as thick as regular cabbage, it’s very refreshing and has a nice crunch to it.

These turned out really good! Yay for leftovers!

TVP “Meat” With Hidden Greens

by

3

After discovering the best Chipotle Dressing/Sauce recipe (from Melomeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day), I decided to make Taco Salad! I know, I’ve been on a chipotle kick lately but I’ve made all these things with ONE can of chipotle peppers in adobo and I’m really excited about it.

You can use this “meat” to make anything that calls for taco meat. We love this filling in tacos!

This isn’t my usual loaded Taco Salad but it’s a really delicious one with minimal ingredients, great if you don’t have much time but you need something healthy. I can think of a bunch of additional toppings I could add but this is my quick version.

The “meat” ingredient is TVP – Textured Vegetable Protein.

Texture vegetable protein is a high-fiber, high-protein meat substitute made from soy flour and available in a variety of flavored and unflavored varieties, as well as different sizes, from large chunks to small flakes. It has a shredded chicken texture when cooked.
I like the Bob’s Red Mill brand, you can buy it at Sprouts for about $3 a bag – makes about 2 meals (4 servings each) with lots of leftovers.
** Here’s my Taco Salad “Meat” recipe, you can also use this “meat” for tacos or burritos.
  • 2 cups TVP
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp olive or vegetable oil (optional)
  • 1 package taco seasoning or homemade taco seasoning (link to homemade taco seasoning recipe!)
  • 1 bunch of chard – washed and chopped
  • 1.2 – 1 bunch of kale – washed and chopped
  • 1/4 – 1/2 cup salsa (I like Costco Kirkland brand the best!)

Preparation:

* In a large skillet, heat the water over medium heat, and add the TVP, stirring well. Allow the TVP to reconstitute for 2-3 minutes.

* Add oil (if you are not using oil, add a few Tbsp of broth) and soy sauce, combine and cook for 30 seconds

* Add chard, kale and taco seasoning, stirring well. Cover and allow to cook for another 3-5 minutes, stirring as needed.

* Mix in salsa and remove from heat.

–  My Quick Taco Salad Toppings

I like to use romaine lettuce for my taco salad base, it has a nice crunch to it!

I top most of my mexican dishes with Follow Your Heart cheese – I like the Nacho Cheese flavor the best! It shreds and melts well and tastes awesome!

I also like to use Tofutti brand Sour Supreme – tastes just like real sour cream but much better for you!

Shred the nacho cheese, add to meat and romaine lettuce, top with guacamole and sour cream. Finish it off with Chipotle Dressing/Sauce (the sauce is A MUST!), chips (if you wish, not necessary) and a little salsa (if you like it spicy!) and you have a VERY tasty meal!

My husband and daughter both loved this! This is a great way to hide a few leafy greens for those who refuse to eat them!

** Leftover Alert!

We had the TVP “meat” with all the same toppings in Napa Cabbage Tacos tonight for dinner and it was delicious!

Sushi Roll Edamame Salad with Green Onion Miso Vinaigrette

by

0

We’ve been craving sushi lately but haven’t had much extra time so I made this sushi’ish salad instead. It turned out really good! The dressing is fabulous and I plan on using it for many things in the future – veggie sandwiches, kale salads and veggie kabob marinade!

I found this recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks “Appetite For Reduction: 125 Fast And Filling Low-Fat Vegan Recipes” By Isa Moskowitz. (Buy Here)

This recipe is super healthy, refreshing and so much faster than chopping up sushi toppings!

Ingredients:

* 1 cup shelled frozen edamame, thawed

* 1 Tbsp rice vinegar

* 1 tsp agave nectar

* 8 cups chopped romaine lettuce

* 2 cups cooked and cooled short-grain brown rice

* 1 small cucumber, cut into matchsticks (I cheated and just sliced them thin)

* 1 medium-size carrot, cut into matchsticks (again, cheated and just sliced them thin)

* 1 cup thinly sliced green onions

* 4 tsp sesame seeds (I used rice seasoning from the asian market – a mix of nori, sesame seeds and dried kelp)

* 1 sheet nori (seaweed paper) – cut into strips or tear into small pieces

* Sliced avocado

* Green Onion – Miso Vinaigrette (recipe)

– 1/4 cup red miso (Sprouts has it)

– 1-2 cups roughly chopped green onions, white and green parts

– 3 Tbsp rice vinegar

– 2 tsp chopped fresh ginger

– 1 clove garlic

– 2 tsp agave nectar

– 2 tsp toasted sesame oil (Trader Joe’s has it and it’s cheap)

– 1/2 to 3/4 cup water

Dressing Directions:

Blend in a blender until smooth, adding 1/2 cup water first and additional 1/4 cup as needed. Chill until ready to use.

Salad Directions:

– Prepare dressing first

– Mix together the edamame, rice vinegar and agave in a small bowl

– Assemble salad – romaine lettuce first, then rice, cucumber, edamame, carrot, green onion and sesame seeds

– Sprinkle with the nori and avocado

– Serve with vinaigrette

Coconut Red Lentils With Spinach, Cashews & Lime

by

0

This is really good served over brown or jasmine rice. If you don’t like rice, try serving it with chapti or naan bread (Costco sells both!)

This recipe is from ExtraVeganZa cookbook (Buy Here).

Ingredients:

  • 1 onion, diced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons curry powder – I use my usual, Kashmiri favorite but you can use whatever you have
  • 1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 cup red lentils, rinsed and sorted
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (to taste)
  • 1 (14 ounce) can light coconut milk
  • 1 lime, juice of
  • 1 3/4 cups water
  • 1/3 cup whole cashews
  • 1 cup fresh spinach, roughly chopped – I used 2 bundles of organic spinach since it wilts down so much and we love spinach!
  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped (optional)

Directions:

  1. In a large pot saute the onion in the olive oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes. While the onion cooks get the rest of the ingredients ready to go.
  2. Add in the curry powder, mustard seeds, turmeric and red lentils – cook for another 5 minutes. Watch the lentils don’t stick by stirring frequently and/or adding more oil if necessary.
  3. Mix in the coconut milk, salt, lime juice and water. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium low, cover the pot and let simmer for about 20-25 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Unlikely, but if you find the lentils have absorbed all of the liquid and are still not cooked, add a bit more water.
  4. Once the lentils are cooked they will break down quite a bit and you’ll have a reasonably thick dahl like consistency. Stir in the cashews and spinach, along with cilantro if using. Give those ingredients about 3 or 4 minutes to warm through and then you’re ready to serve. Garnish with additional cilantro, lime wedges and/or cashews. I added a bit of shredded coconut to the top of ours and it was good!

The BEST Green Smoothie

by

1

My CSA goodie box (from Abundant Organics) arrived this morning so I decided to make up a new green smoothie recipe. I threw this together and it turned out to be super delicious! Both my hubby and toddler slurped one down and asked for another, we may need to run to Sprouts for more greens!

I’ve been going back and forth from juicing to blending because I can’t decide which one I like better. A VitaMix blender really makes the difference when it comes to blending, most (if not all) other regular blenders don’t hold a candle to the VitaMix! Costco has the best price I’ve ever seen so if you’re looking to buy one, check it out!

So here’s my BEST Green Smoothie Recipe

* 1 orange, peeled

* 1 frozen banana

* 1 bunch chard

* 1-2 stalks of mint (stems, stalks… whatever you want to call them – about a handful of fresh mint)

* A 1.5″ by 0.5″ chunk of fresh ginger

* 1 small gala apple, remove seeds

* 1 cup vanilla, unsweetened coconut milk (I suppose you could use any kind of milk but this one is tasty!)

* Stevia – I used my favorite Kal Stevia, 2 tiny scoops

Blend all together and drink! YUMMY!!

*UPDATE*

I made this smoothie again today – I used parsley and cucumber instead of chard (just realized I’m out!) and it was really good too!!