Spaghetti Squash with Spicy Braised Greens, Raisins, and Nuts

25 Apr 2011 1 Comment

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

I love the ‘Skinny Bitch in the Kitch’ Ladies! This is such an amazing and deelish meal and beyond healthy and nutritious. Of course love that too 🙂

Great Combo! We love all things Kale. We have been eating it so many times a week lately and just can’t get enough of this super nutrient-rich green. Expect a bunch more kale recipes coming up soon, but typically we steam it and mix it with some tamari or sea salt and enjoy just like that. So good! But if you want a little something extra, check out some of my other ways to enjoy this amazing vegetable: Polenta with Black Beans, Pan-Fried Tofu & Roasted Coconut Tomato Sauce, Kale Chips, Sunshine Joy Soup, Green Goddess Pasta and of course Everyday Green Juice.

And Spaghetti Squash is always so fun. It really adds a substantial and tasty addition to any meal. I remember as a kid loving to have fun with this one. See here for an extra Simple Spaghetti Squash Recipe.

See the other Skinny Bitch Recipes I have played with and enjoyed here: ‘Chicken salad’ sandwich, Green Goddess Pasta and Vegan Summer Garden Pasta

Spaghetti Squash with Spicy Braised Greens, Raisins, and Nuts
adapted from ‘Skinny Bitch in the Kitch‘
6 servings

4 lb spaghetti squash, scrape out seeds
water
3 tablespoons refined coconut oil
3 cloves of garlic
2 canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, seeded and minced or 2 jalapenos or other hot chiles, seeded and minced
2-3 bunches kale, chard, mustard greens, collard greens, or combo, cut into 1/2 in. strips
2 cup vegetable stock
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup raisins
1/3 cup pine nuts
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

  1. Pre-heat oven to 375
  2. Place the squash flesh down in  baking pan. Add 1/2 inch water and bake for about 1 hour, until squash is easily pierced with a fork.
  3. Heat coconut oil in a 4-6 quart stockpot over medium. Add garlic and chiles and cook for 1 min.
  4. Add the greens, stirring until they’re all in the pot. Add 1 cup or more of the stock, 1 tsp of the salt and the raisins. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil.
  5. Reduce heat to simmer, cover, cook until greens are tender, about 10-15 min (15-20 for collard greens) (If pan gets dry before cooked, add more stock a bit at a time, 2 tablespoons as a time)
  6. Stir in the pinenuts.
  7. When the squash is done, use fork to separate the strands into a large bowl. Add olive oil and salt and toss gently.
  8. Transfer “Spaghetti” to plates and top with greens mixture. Garnish with pine nuts and serve.

Polenta with Black Beans, Pan-Fried Tofu & Roasted Coconut Tomato Sauce

20 Jun 2010 7 Comments

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

This was surprisingly easy to make and deelish! Michael and I both loved it so much!! I would say double this recipe as it will go FAST 🙂 This dish is hearty with great flavor. This is definitely a great dish for people transitioning to a vegan diet, meat-eaters you want to impress with how deelish vegan food can be, and of course Vegans will love this too!! So yum!!!

I added my go-to pan-fried tofu to this dish. As far as I know, it is the best way to make tofu that is super tasty! The crust is perfect!! You can always change up the spices to suit any meal 🙂

Before the Sauce

Polenta with Black Beans, Pan-Fried Tofu & Roasted Coconut Tomato Sauce
Adapted from a recipe on http://www.thekitchn.com/

Polenta with Black Beans and Roasted Coconut Tomato Sauce
1 can black beans (15 ounces)
1 can diced tomatoes in juice (28 ounces)
6 large stalks swiss chard or kale
3 large or 6 small garlic cloves, diced
1 package pre-cooked polenta (18 ounces)
1/2 cup light coconut milk
2 tbs. jamaican jerk seasoning
3 tbs. olive oil
1 tbs. apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup water
1 tbs. chopped fresh thyme
1 lb extra firm tofu
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
dash of salt
dash of cayenne
sprinkling of Daiya/Italian – Mozzarella Blend

  1. Preheat oven to 500F. Empty entire can of tomatoes in a ceramic or glass baking dish, add coconut milk, and place in the oven. Bake 35 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, heat 1 tbs. olive oil in a saucepan. Add 1-2 cloves diced garlic, 1 tbs. jerk seasoning and cook 2 minutes. Add entire can of black beans and set heat to low, stirring occasionally.
  3. Separate swiss chard stems from leaves. Dice stems very fine and add to a saute pan with 1 tbs. of oil and 2-3 cloves diced garlic. Heat through on medium 2-3 minutes, then add chopped leaves, apple cider vinegar, and 1/3 cup water. Cover with a lid and set heat to low.
  4. Check on the tomato sauce. Stir in fresh thyme and continue to roast.
  5. Drain, blot and press Tofu to release liquid. Slice into 1/2″ cubes.
  6. Heat vegetable oil on medium-high heat in a non-stick pan and add tofu, sprinkling with salt and cayenne. Let tofu sizzle for 6 minutes without stirring until a crust forms. Turn tofu over and cook for another 4-5 minutes. Remove from pan and train.
  7. In the same pan heat 1 tbs. olive oil on medium heat. Slice polenta in 1/2″ thick slices. Sprinkle one side with remaining 1 tbs. jerk seasoning. Fry polenta, about 3 minutes per side until light brown and crispy.
  8. To serve: spoon about 1/3 cup of beans on a place, 1/3 cup of tofu. Top with a heaping spoonful of greens and a slice of polenta. Top with about 1/4 cup tomato-coconut sauce and a sprinkling of daiya cheese and enjoy!

Kale Chips

16 Jul 2009 2 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Raw Vegan Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

I love Kale Chips!! You can make them with so many flavors or keep it very simple. There are tons of recipes out there. I prefer these simpler chips. They are gone so quick normally there is no time for a picture. But I made sure this time to take some 🙂 If you do not have a dehydrator I would suggest making these with the oven door ajar or if you want a quick vegetarian (non-raw) snack put the oven up to 350 degrees and bake these for 8-10 minutes. I am sure that would be divine too! This recipe is such a great alternative to any other kind of chips. They are crunchy, a little oily and salty; sooo super good! I have a tendency to check the dehydrator to see if they are done and munching the whole time! They are so good! I also like to use namu shoyu instead of salt because it brings more liquid into the kale rather than having to rely solely on the oil. The nutritional yeast bring such a good and cheesy flavor. So great! Make more than one batch if possible because these go QUICK!!

bowl of kale chips

Kale Chips

1 head of kale, stems removed and torn in pieces
1/4 cup of namu shoyu
2-3 tablespoons of oil (grape seed, canola, olive)
1/4 cup of nutritional yeast

Place the kale in a big bowl and then pour the rest of the ingredients in. (I normally just drizzle over, so the measurements are approximate) With your hands massage all the ingredients together making sure it is well combined and all the kale looks a little wet and nicely coated. Divide in half and place on 2 dehydrator mesh sheets. Dehydrate till crunchy, from 6-10 hours.

before kale
Pre-dehydrator Kale on the mesh sheet

after kale

 Post-dehydrator kale (with a few pieces missing from munching!!)

Sunshine Joy Soup

29 Jun 2009 2 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Raw Vegan Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes Tags: , , , , , , , ,

sunshine soup

I love Natalia Rose and often find myself going back to her advice and her recipes. Here is a recipe for a go-to soup that she has in her book The Raw Food Detox Diet. She suggests having it as a snack or a meal. I thought it was enough for a meal, but I do like her suggestion of having it 30+ minutes before another meal. The soup was divine, I just loved it! It is super sweet, yet you know you are getting all that alfalfa and kale goodness. Like so many raw recipes, all that is required is to clean & cut the ingredients and then throw them in your Vitamix or blender and you are ready to enjoy! So simple and perfect!

Sunshine Joy Soup

2-3 servings
1 cup organic alfalfa sprouts
6 organic dates
2 cups fresh pineapple
3 leaves fresh kale, removed from stem
1-2 tablespoons packed fresh mint

Blend until very smooth. You may want to blend a few ice cubes as well so that the mixture does not heat up while blending. The soup is best when served immediately, but will last in refrigerator for 2 days.

Green Goddess Pasta

02 Jun 2009 1 Comment

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

I love making delicious comfort food that is also super healthy! There was such a great smell to this dish, I knew the flavors would rock! Michael confirmed this as well since he was the one eating it! I love all things Kale so it was so great to add this to the pasta for that healthy, tasty punch. Plus Broccoli, olive oil and garlic; such a good combo! The pasta I used is so fun and colorful, anyone would love it!

pastaGreen Goddess Pasta

Adapted from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch

serves 6

Ingredients

4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons refined coconut oil
6 tablespoons vegan or organic dairy butter (I prefer to use organic butter rather than vegan because of all the processed ingredients, but you could probably substitute oil instead to keep this vegan, or use vegan butter of course 🙂 )
3 quarts water
about 6 teaspoons fine sea salt
12 ouces whole wheat or brown rice elbow macaroni (I used Eden Organic Vegetable Shells Golden Amber Durum Wheat Pasta)
2 zucchinis, halved lengthwise ad cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 broccoli crown, cut into bite-sized florets (about 2 1/2 cups)
1/2 bunch (about 4 ounces) kale, cut into 1/2 inch long strips
1 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 cup pine nuts

Preparation

  1. In a 1 quart saucepan over low heat, combine the garlic and coconut oil ad cook, swirling occasional, until the garlic is fragrant and starting to brown, about 3 minutes.
  2. Remove from the heat, add the butter,  swirling until it melts and set aside.
  3. In a -6 quart stockpot over high heat, combine the water with about 1 1/2 tablespoons salt. Bring the water to a boil, add the pasta and cook according to the package directions until about 1 minute shy of being done.
  4. Stir in the zucchini, broccoli, and kale. Cook until the vegetables are tender and the pasta is cooked , about 1 minute.
  5. Drain the pasta mixture, reserving 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water.
  6. Return the mixture to the pot and stir in the garlic butter, pepper, 3 tablespoons f the pine nuts, and the remainging  teaspoon of salt, garlic and onion pepper.
  7. Transfer the pasta to plates or a platter, garnish with remaining 1 tablespoon of pine nuts and serve

Everyday Green Juice

08 May 2009 7 Comments

by marisashealthykitchen in Raw Vegan Recipes Tags: , , , , , ,

green-juice

MMM!! There is nothing quite like a big glass of Delicious Green juice to wake your body up and fill it with a quick shot of instant goodness! My husband and I drink our green juice every morning and really feel the difference.

My go to recipe is:

  • 2 different heads of greens (kale, chard, romaine, etc.)
  • either a celery or cucumber base (3-5 stalks of celery or 1/2-whole cucumber)
  • 1-2 green apples

It is really very simple and the whole process from washing the greens, juicing to cleaning the juicer happens in less than 15 minutes! So there is no time excuse for me, unless I am truly rushing out the door and then I could always stop at a local juice place and order it up 🙂 I always try to use as many organic veggies as possible. We drink these raw and we want to get the maximum benefits, so organic is the only way to go!

I recently wrote a post on my Juice Feast  that has information on juicers and local NYC places to go.

Today I really love the juice that I made!! It is so yummy and sweet!

  • 2 heads of romaine
  • 1 head of kale
  • 1 green apple
  • 1 gala apple
  • 5 small carrots

I normally do not put carrots in because they are a high glycemic vegetable. (although most vegetables are really low glycemic in the actual index compared to other foods) But today I only had one green apple and was just mixing it up a bit. It is fun sometimes to just throw whatever you have in the fridge right into the juicer 🙂 It is also super fun to mix it up and try out different recipes.

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