Sweet Potato & Lentil Soup

January 18, 2013 by aprilcball

We all really enjoyed this soup! Ava took one bite and said “Yummy!”… that rarely happens!! I decided to puree part of the soup with my immersion blender after taking these photos and it turned out even better. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato & Lentil Soup

Ingredients:

Water/Broth for sauté

1 Medium Onion Diced

2 Cloves Garlic, peeled and minced or pressed

1 – 15oz Can Fire-Roasted Crushed Tomatoes

1 Tbsp Minced Fresh Ginger

1 1/2 tsp Turmeric

1 tsp Cumin

1 tsp Ground Coriander

1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon

1/8 tsp Cayenne

3 Medium Sweet potatoes, peeled & cut into 3/4″ cubes

8 Cups Veggie Broth -OR- 4 Cups Veggie Broth AND 4 Cups Water

1 1/2 Cup Red Lentils – sort and rinse before using

Salt & Pepper

Instructions:

1. Water/broth sauté the onion and cook, stirring frequently for 2 minutes or until the onion starts to soften. (OR water sauté)

2. Add in the garlic, ginger and spices (except the salt & pepper), stir well and cook for about 30 seconds.

3. Stir in the tomatoes and cook for 3 minutes.

4. Add the sweet potatoes, broth/water & lentils. Stir well and bring to a boil over high heat. When the mixture comes to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the sweet potatoes and lentils are soft. Taste, season with salt & pepper and serve.

Chop all of your ingredients

Spices

Saute onions for a few minutes then add ginger, garlic and spices. Stir well and cook for about 30 more seconds

Add tomatoes and cook for about 3 more minutes.

Smells so good!!!

Add broth/water, lentils and sweet potatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce to low and cover. Cook for about 20-25 minutes or until potatoes and lentils are soft.

Puree part of the soup with your immersion blender!

Ava loved it!

Sweet Potato & Lentil Soup

Spices

Saute onions for a few minutes then add ginger, garlic and spices. Stir well and cook for about 30 more seconds

Add tomatoes and cook for about 3 more minutes.

Smells so good!!!

Add broth/water, lentils and sweet potatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce to low and cover. Cook for about 20-25 minutes or until potatoes and lentils are soft.

Serve as is or puree part of it with your immersion blender.

Ava loved it!

Adapted from a recipe in “The Kind Life”

Brown Rice & Lentil Burgers

July 17, 2012 by aprilcball

Hey there!

Sorry I’ve been absent lately, operation “Daily Toddler Energy Drain” is in full effect this summer which means I haven’t been spending a ton of time at home. We’ve also been camping quite a bit since we bought our RV. So much fun!

I haven’t done a ton of cooking lately but I decided to make these burgers tonight since I need a burger recipe for our upcoming camping trip. Our son is turning one soon and I also needed a new menu item for him to try. These burgers were a hit all around, our kids LOVED them! I ate mine in a lettuce wrap with horseradish mustard, Habanero Sauce, avocado, relish and heirloom tomato slices. YUMMO!!

Brown Rice & Lentil Burgers

Kid Tested AND Approved!!!

The original recipe is from the blog For The Love of Food. I altered it a bit and I may continue to do so the next time I make them. I want to play with the spices a bit, maybe make a spicy batch next time.

Brown Rice & Lentil Burgers

1/2 cup dried green or brown lentils, rinsed (I used brown)

1/2 cup brown rice

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 carrot, grated

4 garlic cloves, minced

3 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground sage

1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 1/2 cups water

1 cup vegetable broth

1 cup quick oats

Combine the lentils, brown rice, onion, carrot, garlic, cumin, sage, and salt in a medium-size saucepan. Add the water and vegetable broth. Cover and bring to a boil then reduce the heat and boil gently until the rice and lentils are tender and all the liquid is absorbed, about 40 minutes.

Drain in a colander to remove any excess liquid. Add mixture to large mixing bowl and add the quick oats, stir until combined. Let cool until able to handle. Form into 8 large burger patties.

Preheat oven to 350F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper – you can spray the paper with a little cooking spray if you’re worried about them sticking (I did). Bake them for 15 minutes and flip. Bake an additional 15 minutes and remove from oven. Let cool slightly, they will harden a little and become easier to handle.

Add ingredients to medium-sized saucepan, cover and bring to a boil. Lower temp and continue to cook at a low boil for about 40 minutes.

Cook until lentils and rice are done and liquid is almost all absorbed.

Transfer to mixing bowl, add quick oats and combine. Let cool until able to handle.

Form patties and place on parchment paper (spray if you wish). Makes 8 large patties, I had to make them in two batches!

Almost done! Mini patty for our one-year old 🙂

Yummy!!!

Chipotle Lentil Burgers (kidtestedfirefighterapproved.com)

Spicy Lemon Chard

December 14, 2011 by aprilcball

This is one of my favorite lunch recipes, this flavor mixture is addicting! I usually eat a whole bunch of chard for lunch using this recipe, sometimes with a side of whole wheat bread or rice. It’s quick and easy to make too, great for busy people! This is a unique spice blend that most people either love or hate… I LOVE IT and I hope you do too!

Spicy Lemon Chard

1 -2 bunches of chard (leaves AND stems) ,washed and chopped – I use red, green or rainbow… ALL GOOD! I use 1 bunch but you may want to use 2 the first time, or half the spices (to make sure you like it first!)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil – you can use water or veggie broth if you’re trying to cut out oil. I use broth and it works perfectly
1-3 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Directions:

Heat the oil (water or broth) in a large skillet and saute the garlic gently until golden. Add the chard, paprika, cumin, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste and mix well.
Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Let cool. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

I usually choose red chard but any will do

Use the stalks too for added fiber and crunch!

Wash and dry chard and tear leaves from stems - chop

Easy ingredients!

Saute garlic first... I use jarred garlic when I'm in a hurry

Add in stems for a minute or two, then add in chopped leaves

Add spices/lemon and saute for a few minutes

Serve cold'ish

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!

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!