If you’ve ever made my Mock Chicken Salad you’ll already have an idea of how this dish is made – it’s the same process. I set out to make the Mock Chicken Salad but I was feeling creative and wanted to change it up significantly. I absolutely LOVE what I ended up with. SO delicious. And, it’s really easy to make!! No cooking required for the filling. Though, if you would like it warm and/or find raw celery and onion too crunchy or strong, feel free to sauté those first. I made these for lunch on a fairly warm day but I think the warm/cooked filling would be nice on a chilly day or at dinner. It’s up to you! Experiment….I did!
Feel free to use this filling for a sandwich instead of lettuce wraps.
They are only a garnish, so a small amount is used, but the Tamari-Lime Sliced Almonds are AMAZING here.
Spicy Butternut Squash Soup with Lemon-Maple Brussels Sprouts
Most butternut squash soups are a little sweet for me. Honestly, I’ve got a major sweet tooth but some things, like my soups, I want to be more on the savory side. So, this soup is still sweet of course, but the jalapeño and cooking sherry (or white wine) create some interesting flavors that help offset the sweetness. And, while I don’t generally cook with oil, I added a tiny drizzle of truffle oil before serving – YUM. Since I was a little heavy-handed with the jalapeño (by my definition – remember, I’m a spice wimp), I dumped my Lemon-Maple Brussels Sprouts in the soup to offset the heat. Delicious! In the future I will leave the seeds out of the jalapeño – this time I used half of the seeds and the soup was really spicy.
A few weeks ago Engine 2 (Rip Esselstyn’s baby) announced they would be conducting a recipe contest. The entries had to include at least one ingredient from the Engine 2 line of foods (available at Whole Foods – try them if you haven’t!), be plant-based (duh), oil-free, low-fat and low-sodium. I was familiar with the line of foods they offered and immediately got the idea for a recipe to enter into the contest. It was announced today that my recipe was chosen as the Grand Prize Winner!! http://engine2diet.com/the-daily-beet/ So fun and exciting!
The folks at E2 will be sharing this recipe with their readers, and I am sharing it now with you. It’s very easy, and delicious! Enjoy!
Fresh corn would have made this thick, chunky chowder even better but I was unable to find organic. Corn is one of those items I always buy organic due to the possibility of GMO’s. A very small portion of domestic sweet corn in the produce section is actually GMO, but since it’s not the law for it to be labeled (lame), it’s better to err on the side of caution. Most of the GMO corn is used in processed foods (aka JUNK) and animal feed – just another reason to stay away from that crap and eat WHOLE plant foods!
Anyway, I digress. This soup is delicious….and even better the next day. For more intense and “zesty” flavor, add more cumin and chili powder, and use medium or hot green chiles – I used mild. Jalapeños would be good here too, but as I’ve said before, I’m a spice wimp. I used 2 teaspoons of chili powder and found it to be a bit too spicy, though the fam disagreed (told ya…wimp). One of the two teaspoons was chipotle chili powder since I love that smoky flavor. In one of the pictures below you will see something green in the chowder. I stirred in some steamed kale and it was super yummy.
Update 9/26/13: I made this without the cashews (accidentally) and it was every bit as creamy and delicious. So, I’ve changed the ingredient above to OPTIONAL.
I got the idea for this recipe last weekend when we got food from the Seabirds truck, a vegan food truck in OC. Very tasty! We had it for dinner but it would be great for any meal.
Traditional quesdillas call for ooey, gooey sticky cheese but this one does not. You can use some Daiya vegan cheese if you like (it would be delicious, not gonna lie), but just keep in mind its a processed food with a lot of fat. Maybe you can use a tiny bit. 🙂 In this recipe I used a cashew cheese concoction made with cashews and green chiles. I didn’t use much since cashews are very high in fat as well. I took my “Cheesy Sauce” recipe (see in Recipes), and tweaked it a little bit to make a thicker, spreadable mixture. See below for details. You can use all sorts of different veggies in this dish; I used what I had on hand which happened to be mushrooms and spinach, along with the potatoes.
You can use brown rice tortillas to make these babies gluten free.
I needed something to eat for lunch and the red lentils in the pantry got my attention. I literally threw these ingredients together without a plan, and was SO happy with the result. It’s hard to believe something this easy could be so flavorful. It was so good in fact that I included the dish in an Indian themed feast I cooked this past weekend. It was a big hit along with the Indian Spiced Cabbage, Roasted Aloo (potatoes), brown basmati rice and whole wheat flat bread.
Red lentils are great because in addition to being extremely healthy and low-fat, they are quick-cooking. They can be used in sauces to add fiber and protein, or as the main ingredient along with a few others such as the recipe here. Unlike brown/green lentils they break down easily, blending in with whatever else is in the dish. They also end up being more yellow in color, even though they are called red and start out more of an orange color. At 140 calories per cup (dry), 0 grams of fat, 7 grams of fiber and 11 grams of protein, red lentils are a great addition to the diet.
In this dish I used two different types of curry powder, but you don’t have to. Regular curry is the yellow/orange version you see in most stores. Different brands can taste different from each other, with some more mild than others. Madras curry is another type that is similar to regular but with more spice. Berbere curry is an Ethiopian version, that has a smokier scent/flavor and is much spicier than the others. Feel free to use whatever variety you have on hand, or a combination like I’ve done here. The measurements I used result in a mild dish. As I’ve said before, I’m a spice wimp.
This is a recipe I’ve had on my website for a long time but I revamped it last night and it’s so much better now. I recommend topping with a squeeze of lime, a drizzle of Sour Un-Cream and Cornbread Muffins ((find in Recipes). Make sure to read the NOTES at the bottom of the recipe for important tips.
One of my favorite restaurants Native Foods has an African Peanut Soup that I adore. It tastes very fattening though so I wanted to try and make something similar, but with less fat. As well, theirs is a very smooth soup and I prefer chunkier soups – I like chewing! This version is thick and chunky, while still being creamy. And this can vary depending on how much of it you want blended, using your immersion or regular blender. Feel free to play around with spices and amounts. Those listed here result in a mild flavor.
As much as I complain about not enjoying cold weather and shorter days, I must admit the food that is most often consumed during those months, i.e., soups and stews, is my most favorite! I made this soup in the crock pot recently on a rainy Saturday. Perfect! I really like lentils so a soup that calls for two kinds – even better!
The butternut squash I bought 2 weeks earlier was calling out to me, I could hear it (not really, but just work with me here). “How long are you going to let me sit here on the counter before I rot?” Okay! Okay! I’ll cook you! But then what should I do with you? Well, after I roasted it, I got the idea to cut into bite-sized pieces and make a stew. The squash and I were glad I did!
They do sell pre-cut squash which would save some time. Just sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast on parchment covered cookie sheet at 400 for 30 minutes . I think the roasted flavor adds to the stew, but you could just can add the squash to the pot and cook that way.
