Black Bean & Quinoa Chili

December 10, 2011 by aprilcball

Here’s another great recipe from Melomeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day, this is one of our favorite meals! This chili is even better the second day and even better than that thawed from the freezer! I usually double this recipe and freeze half in 2 cup portions for my hubby to take to work. This is really good topped with Chipotle Sauce.

Ingredients:

2 T olive oil
1 large onion or 1.5 cups diced
5 cloves garlic, or 1.5 T minced
1 t cumin seeds (ground is OK)
1 t coriander
2 T chili powder
1/4 t oregano or marjoram
2 serrano chiles, seeded if less spice is desired, chopped – I omit these sometimes so my toddler will eat it
1 small green pepper or 3/4 c chopped
1 small red pepper or 3/4 c chopped
pinch salt/pepper
3 c black beans (28 oz can or 1 c dried. but if they’re dried they need to be cooked first)
4 c vegetable stock or water
2 bouillon cubes if not using stock – I use 1 cube
1/2 c quinoa, rinsed
15 oz can corn or 1.5 c frozen corn – I use frozen corn
14 oz can diced tomatoes, or better yet, Rotel
more stock/water if necessary
Juice of 1 large lime – I add the zest in as well
2 c cilantro, chopped
salt/pepper to taste

Method:
1. In a heavy bottomed soup pot over medium heat, place the first 11
ingredients in the pan and saute for at least 10 minutes.

2. Add the beans and stock and quinoa and bring to a boil. Cover, turn heat down
to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes

3. Then add the corn and tomatoes.

4. You may need to add more water to reach your desired thickness.

5. Turn heat to low and cover for 20 more minutes.

6. Stir in the lime juice and cilantro and season with salt/pepper to
taste.

7. Top with vegan sour cream, avocado and Chipotle Sauce!

Veggies

Saute

Add beans and stock

Add corn and tomatoes

Yummy!

Lick-The-Bowl Cheezy Cabbage Potato Soup

December 7, 2011 by aprilcball

This is the ultimate comfort soup! It’s SO GOOD you’ll want to lick the bowl when you’re done! The cabbage and mushrooms are such nice additions too.

Cheezy Cabbage Potato Soup

This recipe is from Melomeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day (FAV!) I added sliced baby portobello mushrooms because I had them and they were a nice addition! The ingredient list is long but this is actually a really easy soup to make so don’t be intimidated!!

Cooking spray (optional, you can water saute if you’re oil-free)

1 onion (around 1 cup, diced)

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried dill

1 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp caraway seeds

5 cloves garlic

pinch salt

6 cups shredded green cabbage (around 1/2 a medium head) – (I used the fresh organic cabbage from my CSA box, YUMMY!!!)

1 (8oz) pack of sliced baby portobello mushrooms (white mushrooms would be okay too)

2 cups diced potatoes (around 2 medium) – (Used the organic potatoes from my CSA, so good!)

1-2 canned chipotle pepper in adobo (use 1 if you don’t like heat in your soup) – I use 2

6 cups water

1.5 bouillon cubes – I use no salt added veggie broth cubes

black pepper to taste

Method:
1. In a large, heavy bottomed soup pan over medium heat spray with cooking spray add the onions, garlic and spices. Cook for several minutes, or until the onion is translucent.

2. Now, add the cabbage, mushrooms, potatoes and chipotle pepper(s) and coat with the spice/onion mixture for several more minutes. This part is tricky because the veggies haven’t cooked down yet so use two spoons to mix.

3. Add the water and bouillon and bring to a boil, uncovered. Simmer for several minutes, then turn the heat down to low and cover and allow the potatoes and cabbage to cook.

4. Meanwhile, prepare the ‘cheese/cream mixture’

Cheesy Cream:

1/2 block lite tofu – I used half a box of Organic Mori -Nu Firm Silken Tofu

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1.5 Tbsp tahini

2 tsp dijon mustard

2 small cloves garlic – I used about 1 Tbsp minced garlic

1 tsp yellow mustard (prepared)

2 Tbsp umeboshi vinegar (or 1 T soy sauce and 1 T lemon juice)

1 Tbsp lemon juice

Directions:

1. Process all of the above in a food processor until totally smooth.

2. When the soup is done take it off the heat (this is VERY important or the mixture will curdle) and stir the cream mixture into the pot.

3. Let it sit, covered for 5 minutes and taste for salt/pepper.

4. If you’d like, add around 3 cups of the soup to the food processor and puree for a creamier soup (and to get all of the cheesy sauce out!). Add the pureed soup back into the pot – THIS IS WHAT I DID

This makes around 8 cups of soup… trust me you will LOVE the leftovers! This soup gets better the longer it sits in the fridge too!

Saute onion, garlic and spices. Add in cabbage, potato, mushrooms and chipotle

Add water and bouillon

Make Cheezy Cream in food processor (only takes a minute!)

I added 2+ cups of soup into the food processor with cheeze, blended then poured back into main soup

Poured back in

Yummy!

Spicy Broccoli Cheeze Soup (kidtestedfirefighterapproved.com)

Coconut Mung Beans (Pressure Cooker)

November 25, 2011 by aprilcball

I bought some mung beans at the Asian Market last week, I’ve been wanting to try them since they’re so good for you. This recipe is from Melomeals: Vegan For $3.33 A Day – I’ve had my eye on it for a while now so I decided to make it tonight. It’s really easy to make, doesn’t take much time at all and tastes delish! It was a tad too spicy for our toddler but not for us at all. The toasted coconut topping was a nice touch.

Coconut Mung Beans

1 T coconut oil
1 /2 t cumin seeds
1 large onion, diced
1 Serrano chili (I used a jalapeno, all I had. Removed all seeds and diced)
1 T minced ginger
1 T curry powder (I used Kashmiri Curry from World Spice Merchant)
1 c mung beans
4 c water
1 t Creole seasoning
Juice and zest 1 lemon (around ¼ lemon juice. You can use lime juice or 3 T of apple cider vinegar in place of lemon juice)
½ c cilantro
Toasted coconut for garnish (I toasted unsweetened coconut shreds in my toaster oven on 325F for a few minutes)
Soy Sauce/Pepper to taste

* In case you’ve never seen them before, here are mung beans:

Dry Mung Beans

Directions:

In a pressure cooker over med hi heat add the oil, cumin, onion, chili, ginger, and curry powder along with a pinch of salt. Sauté for several minutes, then lower the heat down to low and continue cooking for 10 more minutes. (My pressure cooker doesn’t have a low setting so I just sautéed it for about 8 minutes or so)
Add the beans, water and Creole seasoning
Put top on pressure cooker and bring to high pressure for 6 minutes.
Let the pressure come down naturally then stir in lemon juice and zest and cilantro. Taste and adjust seasonings and add toasted coconut to garnish if you desire
Serve over rice – I used brown rice and served it with Naan bread… my hubby’s request!

Saute onions, pepper, ginger, curry, cumin seeds and a pinch of salt in coconut oil

Add beans, water and creole seasoning

Cover, cook on high pressure for 6 minutes

Toast unsweetened coconut for topping

Slow release pressure, add lemon juice, zest and cilantro

Yum!

Yummy Bean Soup

November 22, 2011 by aprilcball

This soup is delicious! It’s a little spicy and very satisfying with a side of toasted naan (if you eat bread, we do no more than twice a week) and a glass of red wine (or hemp milk for my toddler!). This recipe is from HealthyMammas.com – home of the recently made Creamy Dreamy Superfood Pudding and Black Bean & Corn Quinoa (2 more fabulous recipes!). This recipe is toddler approved, she ate the whole bowl but she commented on it being “spicy Mommy spicy” the whole time… you may want to back off the chili powder if you have a spice sensitive child. My daughter will eat wasabi peas and dried chili mango so she may be the exception. 🙂

Bean Soup

Ingredients (Serves 6-8)

1 7/8 lbs 15 bean soup mix (I used the 8-bean soup mix from my CSA – about 5 1/2 cups)
1 quart low sodium vegetable broth
1 tablespoon olive oil (you can use veggie broth or water to sauté instead – I used broth)
1 large onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 box frozen chopped spinach, or 10 oz of fresh, chopped spinach (I used fresh – 2 bunches organic spinach)
2 carrots, thinly sliced (I used leftover shredded carrots from Healthy Veggie Muffins)
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained (I used fire roasted with garlic)
8 tablespoons lemon juice (about 2 lemons worth) – this makes it!!
2 bay leaves
3 dashes Tabasco sauce (Didn’t have any so I used a big squirt of Sriracha)
1 tablespoon oregano
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground thyme
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
1/2 tablespoon salt (optional)

Instructions

Soak beans overnight, or at least 8 hours. Drain and rinse.
Cook beans in water until just tender by simmering on the stove in 2 qts. water for 1 1/2 hours. (or more) (Can also cook in slower cooker or pressure cooker.).
Shortly before the beans are done, saute onion and garlic in oil (or veggie broth) until slightly brown.
When beans are done, drain half the cooking water.
Add all remaining ingredients and simmer, uncovered, for 40-60 minutes, stirring occasionally. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Beans are cooked, adding in remaining ingredients (except spinach)

Added chopped spinach

Delish!!

Black Bean & Corn Quinoa

November 19, 2011 by aprilcball

This is very healthy, easy to make and delicious! My husband and toddler LOVED it! You could eat this dish with a ton of things, we had it with wheat tortillas, shredded carrots, cilantro and leftover TVP Taco “Meat” and a side of Garlic Yu Choy.

Black Bean & Corn Quinoa

I found this recipe on a new food blog I’ve been checking out – Healthy Mammas. I made their Creamy Dreamy Superfood Pudding a few days ago and that was really good!

Black Bean & Corn Quinoa

Ingredients (serves 4 to 6)

1/2 onion finely chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
2 cups organic veggie broth (plus a bit more for sauteing your onions and garlic)
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional – I used 1/8 tsp)
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup frozen corn
1 (15oz) can black beans drained and rinsed
Optional (Throw in a can of drained diced tomatoes – OR serve with some fresh salsa) – I added one can of Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes with Garlic… YUM!
Chopped cilantro, to top (optional but good!)

Instructions

Saute onion and garlic in a few tablespoons of veggie broth over medium heat until soft and almost translucent.
Add the garlic when the onions are about 1/2 done…you may need to add a little more broth as they cook to keep them moist and keep them from sticking.
Mix in quinoa and cover with 2 cups veggie broth.
Season with spices and salt & pepper.
Bring to boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer until most of the liquid is gone…about 10 to 15min.
Stir in corn, black beans and diced tomatoes – continue to cook on low heat for about 5 more minutes until all liquid is absorbed and everything is heated through. (add a little extra veggie broth if needed)
Taste and season with additional sea salt if needed.
Enjoy!