OH MY Vegan Lasagna!!

31 Mar 2010 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

This is insane!! I love Daiya Vegan Cheese, amazing! The “ricotta” is beyond creamy and delicious. This is the Ultimate of all Comfort Foods! Both Michael and I were loving this. I have a feeling the next time we have company this is what I will make 😉 I am sure my guests will agree just how yummy this is! This is a crowd pleaser for vegans and carnivores alike!!

This is a perfect example of not only how easy living a vegan life is, but also how truly delicious and satisfying it can be!!

P.S. We are having a 2lb Chia Seed Giveaway that ends at Midnight on 4/2 – so don’t forget to enter HERE!!!

Amazing Vegan Lasagna

  • 1 box no-boil lasagna noodles
  • 12 oz. bag of soy crumbles
  • 18 oz jar of marinara sauce
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
  • 1 cup shredded vegan cheddar (preferably Daiya!!)
  • 1 cup shredded vegan mozzarella (preferably Daiya!!)
  • 1/2 – 1 tub lite firm tofu
  • tub of vegan cream cheese
  • drizzle of olive oil
  • few squeezes of lemon juice
  1. Preheat oven to 350.
  2. In skillet, saute soy crumbles with olive oil, onion, and garlic. Once browned, add marinara sauce, basil and oregano.
  3. In food processor, make “ricotta.” Put tofu, cream cheese, olive oil, and lemon juice. Pulse until mixed. Try to maintain coarser texture.
  4. In a 9x13x3 glass dish, layer bottom with noodles, then soy crumbles, then “ricotta”, then “cheeze”on top. Repeat layering process 2-3 more times. Top with oregano. Cover with foil and bake for about 45 minutes. Remove the foil and put back in the oven for 10-15 more minutes. Let sit for 10 minutes or so before serving.

Uncooked

Chicken with Potato-Pepper Hash

22 Mar 2010 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking Tags: , , ,

I knew that Michael loves hash so I wanted to give it a shot. He enjoyed this one and I loved how colorful it came out! Enjoy 🙂

Chicken with Potato-Pepper Hash

Serves 4

5 small red potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 1/2″ pieces
1 medium red pepper, diced
1 medium green pepper, diced
2 medium green onions, cut into 1/2″ slices
2 teaspoons plus 1 tablespoon canola oil
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon chili powder
4 medium, boneless chicken-breasts

  1. In 2-quart saucepan over high heat, heat the potatoes and enough water to cover to boiling. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 5 to 10 minutes or until potatoes are almost tender; drain
  2. Meanwhile, in nonstick 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat, in 2 teaspoons hot oil, cook diced red and green peppers until lightly browned, stirring frequently.
  3. Add the cut-up potatoes, green onions, and 3/4 teaspoon salt to the skillet. Continue cooking until potatoes are golden brown and tender, stirring mixture frequently. Remove from heat and keep warm on a platter.
  4. Mix together flour, chili powder, and 3/4 teaspoon salt. Coat chicken breasts with flour mixture.
  5. In the same skillet over medium-high heat, in 1 tablespoon hot oil, cook chicken breasts 6 to 8 minutes, until they are lightly browned on both sides and juices run clear when pierced with a knife, turning chicken pieces occasionally. Arrange the chicken on platter with the potato hash.

Maple Squash Mash

21 Mar 2010 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , ,

This is Amazing!!! So deelish, great texture and super good for you! This would make a great dish for kids to enjoy their veggies (or everyone for that matter!). You can make this even easier by buying the pre-cut squash, but even with peeling and cutting the squash this did not take too long. Very enjoyable and highly recommended! ENJOY 🙂

Gorgeous Color!

Maple Squash Mash

2 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into pieces
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
3 tablespoons Earth Balance
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

  1. In a large saucepan, place squash and water (water comes halfway up squash). Cover and boil squash in water with 1 teaspoon salt until tender and drain.
  2. Purée squash, syrup, earth balance, pepper and salt in Vita-mix or food processor. Serve and super enjoy

Cheesy Baked Penne with Cauliflower and Crème Fraîche & VEGAN Version! SO GOOD!

18 Mar 2010 10 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Who does not love Mac&Cheese? My friend Shalon gave me this recipe which she super enjoyed and I had to agree! Of course I made this Vegan so I could partake in all the fun and I am SOOO happy I did. Michael and I are obsessed with this dish! This made a huge batch and we were happy to have it to eat all week long 🙂 Thanks Shalon!! YUM!!!!

Note: Daiya Cheese – Ummm have you tried this yet? It is ABSURDLY AMAZING! There has never been a Vegan Cheese this good! I have had it before at restaurants but this was my first time cooking with it. SO amazing!! It was easy to find at whole foods, so awesome!

SO Yummy!

Without Breadcrumbs - Look how cheesy!

Cheesy Baked Penne with Cauliflower and Crème Fraîche – VEGAN VERSION IN ITALICS AND BOLD

* 1 – 1 1/2- to 1 3/4-pound head of cauliflower, cored, cut into 1-inch florets
* 1 12oz can of diced stewed tomatoes (drained)
* 5 tablespoons butter (EARTH BALANCE)
* Coarse kosher salt
* 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
* 1 cup 1% lowfat milk (8th continent light soymilk)
* 21/2 cups coarsely shredded sharp cheddar cheese (DAYIA – Used 3 cups)
* 3/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated Parmesan cheese (Didn’t use)
* 1 cup crème fraîche (Tofutti vegan Sour Cream)
* 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
* 10-12 ounces penne (3 1/2ish cups) (Used 14.5 ounces high protein penne)
* 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs

  1. Cook cauliflower in large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Using large sieve, transfer cauliflower to bowl. Reserve pot of water.
  2. Melt 2 tablespoons butter (earth balance) in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add cauliflower; sauté until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes. Cook 1 minute to blend flavors. Remove from heat. Season with coarse salt and pepper.
  3. Return reserved pot of water to boil. Add pasta and cook until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain; return pasta to same pot. Stir in cauliflower mixture.
  4. Melt 2 tablespoons butter (earth balance) in large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add flour and stir 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk (soymilk). Cook until sauce thickens, whisking occasionally, about 4 minutes. Add 2 cups cheddar cheese (daiya cheese); whisk until melted and sauce is smooth. Whisk in 1/2 cup Parmesan (didn’t use), then crème fraîche (tofutti vegan sour cream) and mustard. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and stir into pasta and cauliflower in the pot.
  5. Butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Spoon in pasta mixture and with 1/2 cup cheddar cheese (daiya cheese). Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in small skillet. Add breadcrumbs and toss to coat. Remove from heat; mix in 1/4 cup Parmesan (didn’t use). Sprinkle crumbs over pasta.
  6. Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake pasta uncovered until heated through and bubbling, about 35 minutes.

Turkey Meatloaf with Mushrooms

15 Mar 2010 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking Tags: , , ,

My Fabulous friend Shalon gave me this recipe to make for Michael. It was super simple and I followed all her directions exactly. He really enjoyed it 🙂 (especially the crust!) Meatloaf is always something great to make for a bunch of people or if you like to have leftovers, like we do 🙂 It freezes wonderfully as well. Enjoy!

Turkey Meatloaf with Mushrooms

* 2 cups bread crumbs
* 1 cup chicken broth
* 8 ounces sliced white mushrooms
* 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 heaping tablespoon dijon mustard
* 1 envelope Lipton onion soup mix
* 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1 pound ground turkey (15% fat)
* 1 pound ground turkey breast

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/3-inch loaf pan with olive oil.
  2. Toss bread with broth in large bowl. Let stand until bread absorbs broth and softens, about 10 minutes. Mix chicken broth, bread crumbs, mushrooms, eggs, onion soup mix, pepper, dijon mustard and olive oil.
  3. Add turkey; mix just until blended. Transfer to pan, mounding in center. Bake until thermometer inserted into center registers 170°F, about 1 hour 25 minutes. Let rest 15 minutes before serving.

Vegan Waffles OH MY! YUM!

08 Mar 2010 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

My fabulous friend Rae hosts super fun brunches in her gorgeous sunlight filled apartment! So fun! Great group of people and amazing food. Love it!

They had all the usual suspects from waffles, eggs, bacon, fruit & mimosas. Rae was so thoughtful and even made me vegan waffles so I have fun food too! They were deelish!

Check out the pics 🙂 Waffles, fruit and boysenberry syrup. YUM!

Rae’s Vegan Waffles

2cups All Purpose flour
1cups Whole Wheat Flour
1/4cup brown sugar (Rae used sucanat)
2tbsp canola oil
1/4tsp salt
1tsp baking powder
2 1/2c soy milk (Rae used rice milk & some water)

Mix the dry together, add the wet. Don’t overmix. Make sure the waffle iron is hot and cook 4-6 minutes each! ENJOY!

Spinach and Tofu with Peanut Sauce

01 Mar 2010 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

YUM!!! I love peanut sauce, tofu and spinach so what can be bad here?!?! You can serve this over rice or noodles as there is more than enough sauce to go around. What a deelish dinner!

Spinach and Tofu with Peanut Sauce
adapted from Vegan Feast Kitchen

Quick peanut sauce:

1/4 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup veggie broth
1/2 cup plain soymilk or nut milk
2 Tbs coconut powder
2 Tbs sweet Thai chile sauce
1 Tbs lemon or 2 Tbs lime juice
1 Tbs tamari

Whisk all ingredients in a small saucepan and heat gently.

The rest:

Cube 1 block of  firm tofu and brown it quickly in a nonstick skillet in 1 Tbs. peanut oil

Add the peanut sauce mixed with:
1 tsp. roasted (Asian) sesame oil
a few shakes of Thai or Vietnamese hot sauce

Stir this around the pan until the tofu almost absorbs it.

Add 12 oz. of fresh, cleaned baby spinach.

Stir around over high heat JUST until the spinach wilts. Serve immediately and ENJOY 🙂

Chicken with Peppers and Hummus

24 Feb 2010 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking Tags: , , ,

This dish was super easy and had bright fun colors! The hummus blended in with the chicken but Michael said it was a great addition. This is a great weeknight meal that can be thrown together so quickly! You could even just buy chicken tenders and throw this together with the veggies for a super fast dinner.

Chicken with Peppers and Hummus
adapted from Gourmet
4 servings

1/3 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
1 1/2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breasts, sliced in 1 1/2 inch tenders
1 red or orange bell pepper, cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch-wide strips1 Italian frying or Cubanelle pepper, cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch-wide strips
1 medium red onion, cut lengthwise into 1/2-inch-wide strips
1 (8- to 10-ounce) container prepared hummus

  1. Preheat broiler. Line a large baking pan with foil.
  2. Stir together oil, salt, cumin, pepper, and oregano in a large bowl, then toss with chicken and vegetables.
  3. Arrange in baking pan and broil 4 to 6 inches from heat, stirring once, until chicken is just cooked through and vegetables are lightly charred, about 8-12 minutes.
  4. Divide hummus among plates and top with chicken and vegetables.

Short Ribs with Pasta

22 Feb 2010 1 Comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking Tags: ,

I love making Michael Short Ribs because I know it is one of his favorite things. Rare that I cook red meat at all, but I do this sometimes because I know he likes to eat it every once in a while. He really liked this dish but, as I found out, prefers his meat separate from his pasta. So all the leftovers I packed up were meat only 🙂 He also said that the chocolate didn’t add much, so forget about it if you don’t have that, although it did add a pretty touch to the dish. Overall, he really liked this dish, but I don’t think he has met a short rib he didn’t like.

Short Ribs with Pasta
Recipe adapted from Giada De Laurentiis
Serves 4-6

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 pounds short ribs
  • Salt and Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 (14-ounce) can tomatoes (whole or diced)
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
  • 2 teaspoon fresh thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 1/2 cups beef broth
  • 3/4 cup red wine
  • 1 pound pasta
  • 4 to 6 teaspoons shaved bittersweet chocolate
  1. Place the olive oil in a large heavy soup pot over medium heat. Season the short ribs with salt and pepper, and dredge in the flour. Add the short ribs to the pan and brown on all sides, about 7 minutes total.
  2. Meanwhile, combine the onion, carrot, parsley and garlic in a food processor and blend until finely minced. Then add the tomatoes and tomato paste and pulse.
  3. Once the short ribs are browned, carefully add the mixture from the food processor to the pot. Add the rosemary, thyme, oregano, bay leaf, beef broth, and wine. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Remove the lid and simmer for another hour and a half, stirring occasionally.
  4. Remove the meat and bones from the pot. Discard the bones. Shred the meat and return it to the pot. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper, or to taste.
  5. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until done. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Add the pasta to the pot and stir to combine. Add the reserved pasta liquid 1/4 cup at a time, if needed, to moisten the pasta.
  6. Transfer to serving bowls, top each bowl with 1 teaspoon of chocolate shavings. Serve immediately.

Short Ribs and Sauce before cooking

Short Ribs after cooking and shredding

Zucchini Strata

17 Feb 2010 Leave a comment

by marisashealthykitchen in Home Cooking, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , ,

More grating! My box grater was sure getting a work out these last couple of weeks. If you hate grating or have a tendency to cut yourself, try using the grating blade on a food processor. It is super simple and fast. I have one and have used it in the past,  but for some reason I love to grate. So box grater it is for me.

Michael really enjoyed this one! It can be a great side dish, breakfast or even a vegetarian entrée. Super simple, yet I love the way it came out with great color!

Zucchini Strata
Serves 4

4 zucchini
2 teaspoons salt
2 large eggs
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup Parmigiano, grated
1 teaspoon curry powder

  1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Grate the zucchini and place in a sieve with 1 teaspoon of salt. Let is drain for about 15 minutes and then rinse well to remove the salt. Squeeze the zucchini with a towel to get as much water out as possible.
  2. Whisk the eggs and add the bread crumbs, cheese, curry powder, and the remaining teaspoon of salt. Combine with zucchini and stir until combined.
  3. Pour the mixture into a sprayed/greased 8×8 baking and pat down until smooth. Bake for 15-20 minutes. If there is still liquid on top, blot with a paper towel and put back in the oven for 5-10 minutes. Remove and let cool slightly before serving.

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