18 Mar 2014
by marisashealthykitchen
in Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: celery, chickpeas, crock-pot, diced tomatoes, Freezer Cook, freezer cooking, garam masala, garlic, gluten-free, healthyslowcooking.com, Kathy Hester, kids, meal planning, not-chicken bouillon, one-pot meal, organizing meals, quinoa, Quinoa Stew, red lentils, slow cooker, Slow Cooker Indian Spiced Chickpea Quinoa Stew, soy-free, sweet potato, turmeric, turnip, vegan freezer cook, vegan freezer cooking, vegan meal planning, vegetable bouillon
Here is a super simple deelish slow cooker meal! We LOVE a great one-pot meal! I like Kathy’s suggestions to add any veggies you have on hand or use yellow lentils instead of red, potato in place of turnip and even carrots.
A while ago I spent a day doing a Huge Freezer Cook aka cooking/assembling meals and freezing then for later use! Brilliant idea but makes for one super crazy cooking day plus another whole afternoon to shop! But I made 26 meals to freeze!! Some meals required cooking and storing in tins to be later defrosted and cooked or reheated. Some meals, like this one, I cut and prepped all the ingredients/spices and put in a food saver bag so it was ready to go in the slow-cooker 🙂 We Love having a freezer full of meals for when we need a prepared meal and don’t feel like or have time for cooking!
This was PERFECT after we came home from vacation recently. We woke up in the morning and I just tossed the bag of ingredients & the 4 cups of water, in the slow-cooker and 8.5 hours later we had a wonderful & hot dinner. Which after coming back to the cold, snowy NY from hot and sunny Mexico was much needed to warm us up! Plus always so nice when the kids love the meal you prepared! Yeah!
Slow Cooker Indian Spiced Chickpea Quinoa Stew
Recipe from Kathy Hester at healthyslowcooking.com
serves 4 to 6
- 4 to 5 cups water
- 1 can diced tomatoes (or 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen)
- 1 can chickpeas, rinsed (or 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen)
- 1/2 cup red lentils
- 1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
- 1 cup peeled turnip, chopped
- 1 cup sweet potato, chopped
- 1/2 cup celery, chopped (about 1 stalk)
- 1 tablespoon not-chicken bouillon
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 2 teaspoons garam masala
- salt, to taste
Put everything in the slow cooker and cook on low 6 to 9 hours. Taste, re-season if needed (you may not even need the salt if your bouillon is salty.)
* If you plan to prep & freeze for another time, add the water at the time of cooking.
29 Jan 2014
by marisashealthykitchen
in Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: appetizer, dip, entertaining, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, h'orderves, Hors d'oeuvre, Hors d'oeuvres, lemon juice, Party, polenta, Polenta Squares with Sun-Dried Tomato and Walnut Tapenade, rosemary, sides, sun dried tomatoes, Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade, thyme, tomatoes, vegan, vegetable broth, vegetarian, walnut tapenade, walnuts, yellow cornmeal
I love Gena’s site and have always been happy with how her recipes come out! We love Polenta in our house, so not surprising when I saw this one I had to try! I am such a sucker for appetizers too, they really are always the best part of any meal or party! I made these for several gathering and parties and they were always a hit. Enjoy!!!
You can prepare the polenta up to 2 days in advance, and the tapenade up to 3 days. On the day of your party, simply broil the polenta squares and top them with the tapenade. The polenta can also be used as a base for many different seasonings. Try & play around 🙂
Just a couple of past polenta dishes and I am sure many more to come: Creamy Polenta with Barbecue Seitan Sauce, Vegan Creamy Polenta with Sausage and Peppers, Mushroom and Kale Polenta, Polenta & Shallot Squares, Polenta with Nectarine-Blackberry Salsa, Polenta with Black Beans, Pan-Fried Tofu & Roasted Coconut Tomato Sauce, Slow Cooked Corn Polenta and Chiles and Polenta Vegetable Casserole.
Polenta Squares with Sun-Dried Tomato and Walnut Tapenade
Recipe from http://www.choosingraw.com
Serves 22 (recipe can easily be halved)
Polenta Party Squares
6 cups vegetable broth (low sodium if possible)
2 cups polenta (yellow cornmeal)
1 teaspoon sea salt
Black pepper, to taste
1 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 batch sun-dried tomato and walnut tapenade
Bring the polenta, salt, and broth to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer. Using a long wooden spoon, continually stir the polenta until it has thickened (approximately 25-30 minutes). When the mixture is very thick and is pulling away from the sides of the pot, stir in the pepper and thyme.
Oil a 15.25 x 10.25 baking sheet (or line with parchment paper). Spread the polenta mixture evenly over the sheet with an inverted knife. It should be about as thick as the edge of the pan itself. Allow it to cool, and then transfer to the fridge for a few hours.
Preheat your broiler. Cut the polenta into squares (you should get about 22). Return them to a baking sheet and brush lightly with olive oil. Place under a broiler for 8 minutes, or until they’re lightly toasted. You can alternately bake them at 375 for twenty-five minutes or so. Top each square with a tablespoon of tapenade, and serve.
Sun-dried Tomato and Walnut Tapenade
3/4 cups sun-dried tomatoes (not oil soaked)
2 cups water
2/3 cups walnuts
2 small cloves garlic
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
Boil the water and pour it over the tomatoes. Allow them to soften for 20 minutes. Discard most of the water (keep a half cup in case you need to thin the tapenade).
Grind the walnuts in a food processor fitted with the S blade until they’re finely ground. Add the tomatoes and garlic, and pulse to combine. Add the lemon, sea salt, pepper, and rosemary.
Run the motor of the food processor and drizzle in the oil in a thin stream. If the mixture is still very thick, drizzle in some of the soak water from the tomatoes until it reaches the desired consistency. You’re aiming for the consistency of regular tapenade, or a thick pesto.
22 Jan 2014
by marisashealthykitchen
in Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: brown lentils, cayenne, crock-pot, cumin, garam masala, garlic, ginger, indian, lentils, onion, quick and easy, quinoa, sauces, sides, slow cooker, turmeric, vegan, vegetarian
My friend Dina told me about a super easy slow cooker lentils recipe. It was really yummy and beyond easy! There is something so nice about placing everything in a slow cooker and hours later having a hot cooked and deelish meal waiting for you! Perfect for weeknight dinners 🙂
Easy Slow Cooker Lentils
2 cups brown lentils
1 1/2 cups quinoa
1 chopped onion
3 cloves minced garlic
1 tbsp fresh grated ginger (I keep mine peeled and frozen so it is super easy to grate )
1 tsp each garam masala, turmeric, cayenne, cumin
Salt to taste
Mix all of the above in the slow cooker and put in enough water to cover by an inch plus. Cook on high for 2-3 hrs or low for 3-4 hrs. (add more water if needed) I served it with yogurt and chopped cucumber. Deelish!
15 Jan 2014
by marisashealthykitchen
in Raw Vegan Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: avocado, caesar, caper, Cashews, dip, dressing, garlic, green, kale, kale salad, lemon juice, miso, nutritional yeast, pignoli, pine nuts, quick and easy, radish, raw, rice vinegar, salad, vegan, vegetarian
Back to the Kale Salad! YUM! This one is so creamy and deelish it will please even people who think they don’t love kale. This dressing can be used with any other salad or even as dip!
Kale Caesar Salad
2 large bunches kale, stems discarded, chopped
Caesar Dressing
1 bunch red radishes, sliced super thin
3 tablespoons capers
1/2 ripe avocado, chopped
- Massage Kale and Dressing in a large bowl. Use your hands to massage and make sure to really get in there to soften the kale and evenly distribute the dressing.
- Add radishes, capers and avocado and toss.
Caesar Dressing
2 cups water
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup cashews
1 clove garlic, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons dark miso
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- Place all the ingredients into a high speed blender and blend till creamy.
- Chill until ready to use and shake well.
05 Jan 2014
by marisashealthykitchen
in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: apple cider vinegar, Barbeque, barbeque sauce, Barbeque Seitan, bbq, chili powder, comfort food, Creamy Polenta, garlic, grits, mustard, onion, peanut butter, polenta, red pepper, sauces, seitan, sides, sugar, tamari, tomato sauce, vegan, vegetarian
As you know we LOVE polenta over here 🙂 What is not to love; creamy, smooth corn goodness! And what makes this even better is a deelish, hearty sauce over top 🙂
Just a couple of past polenta dishes: Vegan Creamy Polenta with Sausage and Peppers, Mushroom and Kale Polenta, Polenta & Shallot Squares, Polenta with Nectarine-Blackberry Salsa, Polenta with Black Beans, Pan-Fried Tofu & Roasted Coconut Tomato Sauce, Slow Cooked Corn Polenta and Chiles and Polenta Vegetable Casserole.
Creamy Polenta with Barbeque Seitan Sauce
1 1/2 cups water, divided
3 teaspoons tamari, divided
1 large onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1 teaspoon stone-ground or Dijon mustard
8 ounces coarsley chopped or grated seitan
4 cups cooked polenta (see recipe)
Heat 1/2 cup water and 1 teaspoon tamari in a large pot. Add onion, pepper, and garlic and cook until onion is soft and translucent. Add remaining 1 cup water and 2 teaspoons tamari, tomato sauce, sugar, chili powder, vinegar, peanut butter, mustard, and seitan and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes. Spoon the cooked polenta into bowls and top with the sauce. Enjoy 🙂
07 Oct 2013
by marisashealthykitchen
in Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: basil, dill, entertaining, feta, garlic, greek, green onion, h'orderves, leek, lemon juice, majoram, non-dairy cheese, nutmed, nutritional yeast, olive oil, onion, oregano, puff pastry, scallion, sides, snack, Spanakopita, spinach, Spinach Pie, thyme, tofu, vegan, vegan cheese, vegan feta, vegetarian, walnuts
My kids are Obsessed with Spanakopita so naturally I had to make some at home. It was hard to save them some 😉 but we did manage it. I have made this since without the puff pastry because the filling is just so good on its own. Also love my veganized version with tofu, no one would even notice, it is just so good!
Spanakopita – Spinach Pie
2 – 10 ounce packages frozen spinach, thawed
1 pound extra firm tofu, crumbled
1 teaspoon dill
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup walnuts, ground
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon salt
pepper, taste
1/4 cup olive oil
dashes of nutmeg, thyme, marjoram, basil and oregano
1 onion, chopped
1 leek, quartered and chopped (cleaned super well!)
4 scallions, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed (or phyllo dough)
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Saute the onion with a little salt in olive oil until translucent. Add in the leeks, garlic and scallions, season with salt, and continue to saute until translucent.
- Combine the spinach, tofu, dill, lemon juice, walnuts, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, olive oil & spices together and mix well.
- Combine onion mixture with the spinach/tofu mixture.
- Line a baking sheet with ether parchment paper or aluminum foil. Unfold puff pastry and place on baking sheet. Spread the spinach mixture over the pastry, leaving a border of one inch all around the edges. Keep the spinach flat; do not pile high. Cover with the second sheet of pastry that has been slightly flattened to one inch bigger than the first sheet. (This ensures all the spinach will be covered). Press edges together with fingertips, making sure mixture is sealed well. Brush just the top with non-dairy milk, Cut a few slits in the top with a sharp knife to allow steam to escape.
- Bake 30-40 minutes, until golden brown. Can be served hot or at room temperature.
You have options for the extra filling. You can use it like a dip, eat it with a spoon or take another sheet of puff pastry and made deelish spinach pinwheels!
For the pinwheels: Unfold the pastry sheet on the work surface. Top with the spinach mixture. Starting at a short side, roll up like a jelly roll. Cut into 1/2-inch slices. Place the slices onto 2 baking sheets. Bake for 15 minutes or until the pastries are golden brown. Remove the pastries from the baking sheets and let cool on wire racks for 10 minutes.
22 Aug 2013
by marisashealthykitchen
in Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: baguette, bean dip, cannellini beans, comfort food, crackers, dip, entertaining, garlic, h'orderves, lemon juice, martha stewart, marthastewart.com, olive oil, quick and easy, red wine vinegar, roasted garlic, rosemary, sides, snack, vegan, vegetarian
I have made this dish now a few times and every time I prepared it a bit differently and every time it came out deelish!! Super easy, super yummy, healthy and everyone will love it!
I am really into cooking dried beans lately instead of using canned ones. I found this insanely easy technique of just soaking them and cooking them on low for 4+ hours in a crock pot! Done, easy peasy!! Beautiful! You will never have to use canned beans again unless you are in a pinch!!
3 variations:
- red wine vinegar or lemon juice
- roasted garlic blended in & saved some full roasted cloves for garnish
- fresh garlic blended
Rosemary White Bean Dip
- baguette or crackers
- 2 cans (15.5 ounces each) cannellini beans, rinsed & drained OR 1/2 lb dried beans, soaked & cooked
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 1 to 2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar (or lemon juice)
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
- Coarse salt and ground pepper
- (optional) fresh or roasted garlic
If using baguette, slice 1/2 inch thick, brush with olive oil, and cook in a 350-degree oven until lightly toasted.
In a food processor, combine cannellini beans, olive oil, vinegar or lemon juice and garlic (optional). Process until smooth, adding water if necessary. Add 2 teaspoons rosemary and pulse until combined. Season with salt & pepper and Transfer to a serving bowl and drizzle with a little oil.
25 Jul 2013
by marisashealthykitchen
in Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: beet, beet greens, chicory, CSA, entertaining, entree, farmers market, garlic, garlic pesto, garlic scape pesto, garlic scapes, olive oil, parmigian, pasta, pesto, pignoli nuts, pine nuts, side, spaghetti, vegan, vegetarian
We are LOVING our first summer being part of a CSA. A super awesome surprise box of beyond fresh veggies every week 🙂 What a great present to have! Before joining the CSA I had never had a garlic scape before. Garlic scapes are the beautiful bright green stems and unopened flower buds of garlic. I heard that if you place them in water, their flowers are beautiful!! (but then your house will also smell of garlic!). They have a mild-strong garlic flavor, depending, and can be used a variety of ways, often times just in place of garlic itself. You can find them early summer at farmer’s markets and they are quite the gem!
I decided to try making a pesto with them. I ended up adding a bunch of baby spinach to tame down the powerful garlic flavor, but in the end it was DEELISH! We used it to make pesto pasta, sautéed greens (from the CSA), as a condiment in wraps and even the babies Loved it as a dip with baby carrots. 
Garlic Scape Pesto
- 10 garlic scapes
- 2 handfuls baby spinach
- 1/3 cup pignoli nuts + some for garnish
- 1/3 cup finely grated parmigian (optional)
- sea salt and black pepper, to taste
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Puree everything together, scraping down the sides to incorporate everything. Season with salt and pepper to taste and garnish with pignoli nuts. Simple and delicious.
For Pasta – Just boil 1 lb of pasta and combine with Pesto.
For Sauteed Chicory – Boil Chicory for about 5 minutes to remove some of the bitterness and then saute with pesto. Amazing!! A CSA Fave!!!
For Baby Beet Greens – Chop up, saute the stems first till they soften a bit and then add the greens and mix with pesto. (enjoy the beets with this or on their own)
01 Jul 2013
by marisashealthykitchen
in Raw Vegan Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: cashew, garlic, gf, gluten-free, lemon juice, maca, nutmeg, nutritional yeast, olive oil, parmesan, pasta, pinenut, pinenut parmesan, spinach, thyme, zucchini, Zucchini Pasta
It’s been a while since I made zucchini noodles. They are so easy and so nutritious and such a light and quick meal. You need the spiralizer, but it is such a fun and inexpensive addition to your kitchen, so an easy investment. I have always loved these noodles because they are raw, vegan, deelish and healthy, but my sister loves them because they are gluten-free and still has that fun pasta meal feel to them. So awesome for everyone!
I love love love the Pinenut Parmesan. I have used it with so many different dishes as it is so versatile and deelish!
Check out these other Zucchini Noodle dish ideas 🙂
Amazing Raw “Peanut” Sauce and Zucchini Noodles, Raw Zucchini Noodles and ‘Peanut’ Sauce II, Raw Sweet & Spicy Sesame Noodles, Lemon Basil Pesto & Raw Zucchini Pasta, Raw Zucchini Noodles with Pesto and Sun-dried Tomatoes and Zucchini Noodles with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto.
Raw Zucchini Noodles with Creamy Spinach Sauce
Pasta
2-4 zucchinis, spiralized
Creamy Spinach Sauce
4 cups spinach
1 small garlic clove
1/2 cup cashews
1/4 cup water
1 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp thyme
Blend in high speed blender until very smooth.
Pinenut Parmesan from Raw Crisp Caesar Salad Recipe
1/2 cup pinenuts
1/2 cup whole cashews or macadamia nuts
2 teaspoon good oil or fresh water
6 tablespoons nutritional yeast
pinch dried garlic granules or powder
pinch Celtic or sea salt
First process macadamias and cashews until ground. Then add the pine nuts and process briefly. Follow with the rest of the ingredients and process until well mixed.
Toss the noodles with the sauce and sprinkle with Pine Nut Parmesan. Serve & Enjoy.
23 May 2013
by marisashealthykitchen
in Home Cooking, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Tags: avaocado, avocado, chery tomatoes, comfort food, corn tortilla, garlic, grape tomatoes, jalapeno, mexican, onion, quick and easy, red pepper, romaine, soy, taco, tempeh, vegan, vegan taco, vegetarian, whole grain tortilla
We love tempeh and tacos so this was a perfect dinner for us! I have made tacos with soy crumbles before but decided to grate tempeh this time and it was sooo good! YUM!
Tempeh Tacos
Makes 4 – 6 servings
1/2 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 jalapeño pepper, minced
1 red pepper, diced
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 8-ounce packages tempeh, grated
4 tablespoons Mexican seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
12 whole grain or corn tortillas
avocados, romaine lettuce, and jalapeños for add-ins
- Sauté onion, garlic, bell pepper and jalapeño in olive oil until soft. Add tempeh and continue to sauté for 2 minutes. Add seasoning, salt, and water. Cook the mixture 10 to 25 minutes, until enough liquid evaporates.
- Fill each tortilla with 2 or 3 tablespoons of tempeh mixture and your choice of add-ins.
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