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At my last job we had an on-site café that served fresh, healthy lots meals for cheap (really the best perk of the job)! Every few weeks they’d offer a Buddha bowl that became my favorite thing ever. Vegan, tasty and so satisfying. So I did a little research and pulled together the elements that I loved most. The good thing is you can make things ahead of time and have them on hand to reproduce the bowl throughout the week!
Combine a big bowl of the following (or whatever other veg you have on hand that might go well) & enjoy!
Crispy Chickpeas 1 15 oz can Chickpeas, drained and rinsed Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling Sea salt Paprika, curry powder, or other spices (optional) Preheat the oven to 425° and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Pat chickpeas dry. Transfer to baking sheet and toss with a drizzle of olive oil and salt. Roast for 20-30 minutes until golden brown and as crispy as you want them to be (keep going if they’re not there at 30 minutes). Remove from oven and toss with your spices while the chickpeas are still warm. Crispy Tofu 1 block Extra Firm Tofu, pressed, drained and cut into cubes 1 tbsp Olive Oil 1-2 tbsp Soy Sauce or Tamari 1-2 tbsp Cornstarch Preheat the oven to 425° and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper (double up and make the chickpeas at the same time!). Place tofu cubes in mixing bowl and add olive oil and soy sauce (to taste) and toss to combine. Add 1 tbsp of cornstarch at a time until the tofu is well coated. Arrange on the baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes, tossing halfway through, until tofu is golden brown. Lemon Tahini Dressing 1/2 cup Tahini Juice of 1 medium Lemon 3 tsp Lemon Zest 1 tbsp Olive Oil 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder 1/4 tsp Salt Dash of maple syrup to taste 1/4–1/2 cup water Add all ingredients (use just ¼ cup water at first) to a mason jar and shake vigorously to emulsify. Add more water as needed to ensure pourability over your bowl of goodness.
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What do you do when you have way too many tomatoes and a good size loaf of rosemary sourdough bread sitting around? Tomato soup and grilled cheese! I found this recipe and was delighted that I actually had all the ingredients to make a quick and soo tasty tomato soup.
I also happened to have some leftover heavy cream, which added to the richness, but it's not necessary if you want to stay on the lighter side. 4 tbsp Butter 1/2 Medium Yellow Onion, cut into thick wedges 5-6 Medium Tomatoes (or 28 oz can whole peeled or crushed) 1-1/2 cups Veggie Broth (I make mine with Better than Bouillon) Couple pinches of salt Fresh ground Black Pepper 1./4 cup Heavy Cream (optional) Handful basil Melt butter in a medium saucepan, Add tomatoes, onions, broth and a pinch of salt to the pan. Simmer, uncovered, for 40 minutes. Add more salt (to taste), pepper, cream and torn basil to pan and use an immersion blender to puree to desired consistency (leave a few chunks in for a more rustic feeling soup). Makes about 4 small servings. Cold winter days call for my favorite soup ever! I get rice ramen noodles (and usually the shiitakes) from Costco, then throw in a bunch of other staples I usually have around the house. Even my kiddo eats this, even though he professes not to like soup.
1 lb Firm Tofu, drained and pressed 1 tbsp Sesame Oil 1 tsp Garlic, minced 1 tbsp Ginger, minced 12 oz Shiitake Mushrooms, sliced and washed Sprinkle Bacon Salt Sprinkle Red Pepper Flakes or 1 tbsp Sriracha 6 cups Veggie Broth (I make mine with Better than Bouillon) 1.5 tsp White Miso Paste 2 tsp Soy Sauce 1 tbsp Rice Vinegar 7.5 oz Ramen Noodles (3 of the rice ramen portions from the Costco package) 2 cups Spinach or Bok Choy, torn 6-minute Egg, halved lengthwise* Sesame seeds, green onion, grated carrots or whatever other garnish you prefer Heat sesame oil, add garlic and ginger over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, cook until soft and slightly brown. Add more oil if needed. Add broth, miso paste and soy sauce. Bring to a boil, then cover and let simmer for 15-20 minutes. Cut tofu into thin strips and place in dry pan. Let sit until golden on one side, then flip. Remove from pan when done and cut into bite sized pieces. Set aside. Add vinegar and ramen noodles to mushroom broth, separating with a fork after awhile, and cook for about 3 minutes. Add torn spinach and cook for another minute. Or use sliced bok choy, adding at the same time as the noodles. Top with garnish, tofu and soft boiled egg. *Place desired number of eggs in pot of cold water until just covered. Heat on high until boiling. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 6 minutes. Remove from heat and dunk in ice bath to halt cooking. This is one of those "kitchen sink" recipes that make good use of veggies that might be ready to leave their home in the fridge. The soup is good today, good frozen or saved for whenever you need a hearty soup. Plus it's vegan! I considered frozen broccoli too but felt like I had enough veggies in there to make it substantial.
Here's what I put in mine...and as always, keep adding flavor as needed! 1 tbsp Veggie Oil (I used Avocado) 1 tsp minced Garlic 1 tsp minced Ginger 1 Leek, well washed and sliced 5-6 Baby Bella Mushrooms, cleaned and sliced 1-2 Carrots, peeled and trimmed and rough chopped 1-2 Celery Stalks (including tops), trimmed and rough chopped 1/2 head of Cauliflower, rough chopped 2 cups Veggie Broth 2 cups Coconut Milk (like, the kind you drink, not the cans) 1 tsp Curry Powder, to taste Salt & Pepper, to taste A good handful of sliced Basil Add the oil to a soup pot warmed over medium-high heat. When warm, add the Garlic, Ginger, Leeks and Mushrooms and saute until hot and slightly caramelized. Meanwhile, add the chopped vegetables to a food processor to get them ready for cooking. Pulse til they're finely diced and set aside. Add all veggies, broth, milk, curry and salt and pepper to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve with whatever carb-filled side dish you're craving :). So what do you do with a couple of spotty bananas that you’ve put in your freezer (besides make an amazing banana bread)? Try something new! I wanted to make some tasty muffins for my family’s breakfast but also wanted them to be a bit more robust in their nutritional profile. So I added a protein powder I thought would complement the flavors. I’m loving Four Sigmatic because it combines plant-based superfood proteins with adaptogenic mushrooms to create a tasty powder that’s easy to put in smoothies or baked goods. So here we go! 3 Past-their-prime bananas (defrosted, if necessary) ⅓ cup Butter ⅔ cup Sugar 2 Eggs 1 tsp Vanilla Extract A pinch of Salt 1 tsp Baking Soda 1.4 oz Protein Powder (I used the Sweet Vanilla flavor for this one, but their Peanut Butter would also be awesome) 1- ½ Cups Flour A buncha Chocolate Chips Make sure your bananas are defrosted and mushy. ALSO, make sure your butter is melty and mushable (so take it out of the fridge a few hours before). Spray your muffin tins with an olive oil or coconut oil-based spray. Turn the oven on to 350. Put the mushy bananas and butter in a big bowl and smash them together (use a potato smasher, fork, whatever). Blend until it’s as creamy as possible. Add sugar, egg and vanilla until combined. Stir in salt, baking soda and protein powder. Add flour and chocolate chips and combine, then divide the mixture into 12 muffin tins. Set the timer for 20 minutes and see how they look. Clean knife? Good. If not, add on a few minutes. Enjoy for a snack, dessert or breakfast! I was recently gifted an Aerogarden that produces serious amounts of herbs in just a few weeks...and keeps on giving for months. You just choose which herbs or greens you want to grow and they send you the pods. Before Christmas I realized I had an excess of basil and cilantro from my last round of pods, so we decided to make homemade pesto for friends as holiday gifts. I got advice from a chef friend about how to make the best of these fresh-as-can-be herbs.
These ratios can be altered based on what you’ve got on hand. And really, just keep altering until it tastes like what you want! 4 packed cups of Basil or Cilantro 1 packed cup of Italian Parsley A small pinch of mint (optional) Fresh lemon juice, to taste Lemon zest, to taste ¼ tsp of Garlic (I use the jarred kind but fresh would be great too!) 3 tbsp Avocado Oil 1 tbsp Shredded Parmesan Cheese 1 tbsp Nuts: Pine nuts, walnuts, whatever nuts (also optional) Salt, to taste Put everything in a blender or Cuisinart to mesh ingredients. Taste often and adjust as needed. Spread on bread or pizza, mix into scrambled eggs or just dip in a cracker (or two). One of my favorite salads ever (and one that I requested for my wedding) combines just a few simple ingredients. The good thing is you can do the steps in any order--they don’t have to be hot to taste great together.
1 head Butter Lettuce Wash and chop into salad-sized pieces 1 cup Roasted Butternut Squash Turn the oven to 400 and prepare the squash by peeling it, scooping out the seeds and chopping into small cubes. Toss onto a foil-lined pan with 2 tbsp Olive Oil, and Salt, Pepper and Garlic to taste (or save a step and add Garlic Salt!). Cook for 25-30 minutes, flipping halfway through, until tender. Set aside. 1 cup Sauteed Shiitakes Remove the stems and wipe them down (or rinse, depending on your preference). Heat a small saute pan on medium-high, and when hot, add 1 tbsp of Olive Oil. Saute, stirring regularly until they’re crisp and slightly caramelized. Set aside. Now for the toppings! 1 cup Goat Cheese, crumbled A handful of Pepitas (Shelled Pumpkin Seeds) Salt & Pepper, to taste Lemon Vinaigrette, to taste It’s the best savory salad for a winter’s night. And you’ll probably end up with more dressing than you need, so just stash it away in a mason jar for future salad cravings! The other day I had a spaghetti squash that was lingering in the kitchen and I wanted to do something with it besides just make a substitute for spaghetti. This pasta-like bake is a little more exciting! It’s filled with lots of vibrant flavors that help bring it to life. And it was delish.
Squash 1 Spaghetti Squash Olive oil Salt & Pepper Sauce 2 cups Marinara (I use Victoria because it’s fresh and simple) 2 tbsp Capers 2 tbsp finely chopped Castelvetrano Olives ½ cup chopped Grape Tomatoes 3 tbsp Pesto (whatever kind you like) 2 tbsp fresh herbs (like Basil or Parsley) ¼ cup chopped Fresh Mozzarella 1 tsp of chopped Garlic Pinch of Red Pepper Flakes Topping A good helping of Shredded Parmesan First, cook the squash. Preheat oven to 400. Chop it in half, scoop out the seeds, and brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down on a foil-lined baking sheet. Poke a few holes in it with a fork. Cook for 30-40 minutes until the inside feels soft enough for you to fork out the goodness. Once it’s done, fork out the goodness and put in a loaf pan (or similar sized oven-safe pan). While the squash is cooking, get a medium sized saucepan going with all the other Sauce goodies. Simmer until warm and ready for mixing into the squash. Put everything but the Parmesan in the loaf pan, mixing well, and cover with foil. Put back in the oven (still at 400) and cook for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and add parmesan, then put under the broiler for 10 minutes or until the Parmesan looks crispy. Serve with garlic bread (because you’re not getting all the carbs from real pasta, right?). On cold winter days (or days I just don’t feel like eating a big breakfast) I reach out for an umami-filled soup like miso to warm me up. I didn’t realize until recently that this soup can be as simple as melting some miso paste in hot water until it develops that rich color and flavor.
Once I got it down, I decided to give it even more flavor with a few of my favorite things. Of course, all of these ingredients are optional, but I like them together. I generally use Mellow White Miso, but you could experiment with different types. I always taste at the end to make sure there is enough miso flavor in there. Finely cut strips of dried seaweed are optional, but they definitely up the fishy flavor! Add a dash of Sriracha and Sesame Oil at the end, if you want. ¼ cup Miso Paste 4 cups Water 1 cup torn Spinach ¼ cup chopped Cilantro 1 cup diced Silken Tofu Juice of 1 lime Throw everything in a pot until it’s hot. Enjoy. This was one of those recipes that came about because I looked in the fridge and realized I needed to do something with some leftover carrots (from this Lentil & Veggie Soup) and some curly kale. And it became my new favorite thing! Also something that would be great to bring to a potluck.
1 bunch Curly Kale 3 tbsp Olive Oil ½ cup Shredded Carrots (hello Cuisinart! You are my best friend.) 3 tbsp Lemon Juice 1 tsp Curry Powder Salt & Pepper, to taste ¼ cup Cashews, chopped Pull the kale off the stems by hand and chop finely. Drain. Once it’s dry enough, massage it with olive oil and lemon juice. Add to a salad bowl and top with curry and salt and pepper and mix. Top with cashews |
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