Sun-dried Tomato Hummus

Remember my post about homemade hummus?

Well, I thought I'd be a little creative and take a stab at altering it based on that grid. And it came out well, if I do say so myself.

Blend the following in a food processor and you're done!:
1 can chickpeas, rinsed
1/4 cup tahini
1 large clove of garlic, diced
1/4 cup packed sun-dried tomatoes (I used the ones not in oil)
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp dried italian seasoning (oregano, basil, etc)
1 tbsp lemon juice

I used this hummus as a spread for my lentil wrap (torilla, hummus, cooked lentils, sliced cherry tomatoes, arugula) and it complimented it perfectly.

Fiesta salad

Somewhat similar to my fiest corn salad, here's a tasty sidedish from A Teaspoon of Happiness that's really easy and quick to prepare. No cooking involved!

I cut the recipe in half. That makes more than enough for two people.

Broccoli-Cauliflower Tower of Power

As I was looking for a new recipe to try out on my Christmas party guests, I was excited to find this one from MyRecipes.com. A very easy, yummy, and healthy side dish to any meal. Unfortunately, the bowl I used wasn't deep enough to make a second layer of broccoli. I also added cheddar cheese to the top - next time I make this, I'll probably add cheese between layers for fun.

Fiery Potato Wedges

I had some potatoes on hand that I planned to make fries out of, but I was in the mood for something spicy. So I thought I'd throw some stuff together and see what happened. Turned out perfectly!

Ingredients
2-3 russet potatoes
Seasonings to taste
Cayenne pepper
Garlic powder
Lemon pepper
Black pepper
Hot sauce

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. 2. Cut potatoes in half length, halve each half, then halve again (so each potato makes 8 wedges). 3. Mix potatoes with seasonings in a large bowl. Spread on an oiled cookie sheet. 4. Bake for 35 minutes and serve. Be careful - it'll plump your lips for sure!

Pinto Bean Queso

A yummy alternative to salsa, and very filling. Use at your next picnic!

A recipe from VegNews.com

One thing the recipe neglects to mention is to blend the queso before serving. It never says to mash the beans or anything like that, so unless you like chunky queso, be sure to blend to tasty smoothness.

Quinoa Salad... with Avocado?

The day before I came across this recipe, my husband and I were talking about how we needed a new quinoa salad recipe for the summer. And then this one fell into my lap. My intention was to use one or two avocados chopped up and mixed into the salad instead of served up in the cute, but very avocado-heavy way suggested in the recipe. Then I forgot. And it was still delicious. It also makes a crazy amount of food, so unless you're having company or bringing it to a potluck, I suggest halving the recipe. I used regular uni-colored quinoa with delicious results. Great as a side-dish or light meal.

Quinoa Stuffed Avocado
Ingredients:

2 cups tri-color quinoa, cooked

1/4 cup red onion, small dice

1/2 cup cucumber, small dice

1/2 cup tomatoes, small dice

2 Tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 avocados, halved and pitted (less if you're chopping and adding to the salad)

Directions:

Prepare quinoa according to package directions.  Fluff with a fork and transfer to a large bowl.  Mix in the red onion, cucumber, tomatoes, cilantro, olive oil, vinegar and salt.  Cut each avocado in half and gently scoop out of the shell, keeping it intact.  Scoop the quinoa salad into the center of each avocado or chop the avocado and add to the salad.  Serve immediately.

Orange-glazed beets

Thumbing through my BHG cookbook, I came across this recipe and realize I've never made anything with golden beets before! I love beets, so it's time to start!



Ingredients
4 golden beets
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp shredded orange peel (see my instructions here!)
1 cup orange juice

1. Drop beets in a pot of boiling water - don't peel them first! Boil for about 25 minutes.
2. In a small pot, melt butter, then mix in sugar and cornstarch, then orange peel and juice.
3. Remove beets from water and slip off the skin. Slice, and drown in in the sugar mix.

I served this with my Apple rice salad.

Spicy bean dip

One day I was looking for a good dip recipe and came across this one from OurBestBites.com. Tried it and loved it! I served it with some fresh pita slices and a side of my garlic soup.

Jalapeno Biscuits

Mmmmm, down homme cookin'.

Found this recipe at VegNews.com (but don't worry - you don't have to use the vegan ingredients - use all the dairy you want!)



Even if you're not a fan of spicy food, no worries. You get just a hint of spicy, and I even used a tad more jalapeno than the recipe called for.
I served with black bean soup. Great for dipping!

Kale chips

What to do when you have a bunch of kale that you have no plans for? Kale chips! What to do when you have a baby who can't chew thoroughly enough to not choke on her super-healthy leafy greens? Kale chips!

Every single recipe on the internet goes like this:
De-stem and chop 1 bunch of kale, sprinkle with olive oil (1-2 Tbsp) and a bit of salt and toss. Pop in a 275-350 degree oven for 10-25 minutes. I went with 275 for 25 to get them super crispy. Next time I might add a bit of garlic with the oil and salt. Nutritional yeast sounds delicious, too.

A Saucy March - Potatoes with Spicy Tomato Sauce

For fans of the hot and spicy...

Found this yummy recipe from EatingWell.com.



The recipe says to serve this as a dip, but I preferred to smother my potatoes with the sauce.

Thanksgiving potatoes part 2

I saw this recipe for holiday spiced sweet potatoes months ago and new I had to try it for thanksgiving. Here it is, with my adjustments.

5 lbs sweet potatoes
4 Tbsp margarine
6 Tbsp soy milk
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp cardamom
1 tsp nutmeg
sprinkle of ground ginger

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Poke sweet potatoes all over with a fork. Wrap in aluminum foil and roast until fork tender all the way through, about 45-60 minutes. Remove potatoes from the oven and allow to cool before peeling. (The skin should just peel right off with a knife or even your fingers.)

2. Place warm potatoes in a bowl with margarine, soy milk, syrup, salt, vanilla, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg and ginger. Mash until desired consistency. (I like these on the smoother side. If you do, too, use as hand blender.) Serve warm!

(I totally stole that picture from the website, because the potatoes got gobbled up before I could get a photo!)

Thanksgiving potatoes part 1

This year, I was in charge of potatoes. My mom never made mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving, but I always think they're the perfect preparation, so I went to town. I followed the basic mashed potatoes recipe in Veganomicon and added a hell of a lot of roasted garlic, plus some chopped chives (both of which are suggestions in the book).

Ingredients:

4 pounds yukon gold potatoes

5 T margarine

1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk

2 t salt (I used 3, but found it to be a bit salty)

a sprinklin' of black pepper

1/2 - 1 clove of roasted garlic (depending on how crazy you are)

a handful of chopped chives

Directions:

Cut potatoes into 1-inch chunks (I peeled them, but it's a personal choice), put in a pot with cold/cool water. Boil for 15-20 minutes, until soft enough to mash. Drain the potatoes, reserving some of the water in case you need it. Put the potatoes back in the pot, add margarine, garlic and chives. Mash well. Add the rest of the ingredients and mash again until everything looks and tastes delicious.

Fried Rice

My first attempt at fried rice. Totally winged it (wung it?). Turned out more like a stir-fry than fried rice, but good nonetheless. If you don't have a soy ginger sauce (I bought mine at Whole Foods), make your own sauce with soy sauce, ginger, garlic and any other asian flavors you'd like (or use a different sauce/marinade). Of course, feel free to switch up the vegetables to your liking.

Ingredients (all measurements are approximate):
2 cups broccoli (I used florets)
1/2 cup peas
1/2 cup green beans, cut up
1/2 small onion
(I'd totally meant to use carrots, but forgot)
1/2 block of tofu
Soy ginger sauce
sesame oil
2 cups cooked rice

Directions:
Press the tofu for 30-60 minutes, then cut it up and toss it with a little of the sauce/marinade. While that's marinating, heat the oil and saute the onion for a few minutes. Then add the rest of the veggies and the tofu. Once all of that is heated through, add the rice and a few tablespoons of sauce and cook until it looks and smells delicious.

Bobbing for Apples - Apple Rice Salad

Based on a recipe in my old Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, a delicious sweet and tart sidedish to any meal! And quick and easy to prepare:



Salad Ingredients
1/2 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup cooked wild rice
1 Granny Smith apple, chopped
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup sunflower seeds, shelled

Dressing
2 tbsp basalmic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp orange zest
1/2 clove garlic, diced

1. Combine all the salad ingredients and set aside.
2. In a jar with a lid, combine the dressing ingredients. Close the jar and shake up. Pour over the salad mix and serve!

Spicy side of beans

A quick and easy sidedish (but hard to photograph apparently. Sorry for the bad pic!)



Ingredients
1 can black beans, rinsed
1 cup frozen corn
1 chopped tomato, or 1 cup pico de gallo
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup green pepper, chopped
1-2 tbsp lime juice

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Let sit in the fridge for up to an hour so the veggies absorb all the juicy goodness. If you prefer a super spicy/hot side, add some jalapeños and red pepper.

(Indoor) Picnic Birthday Party!

My baby is 1! We through her a big birthday party in her grandma & grandpa’s backayard with a picnic style lunch. Simple munchies to start – tortilla chips, salsa, pita chips, veggies and hummus. An assortment of salads: simple green, potato, and pasta. For the main event, we catered wraps, because I am not super mom and had to farm out some of the work. It’s good to admit when we’re not perfect. Dessert: Blondies (because she got her daddy’s hair. If my genes had been stronger we would’ve had brownies), made by my fantastic-best-friend-since-4^th-grade, Ariel, fruit salad, and a home-made and –decorated birthday cake. It was the largest party I’ve ever organized and hosted. And it was fantastic!

And now for the recipes:

A mega batch of Picnic Potato Salad (I used 9 lbs of potatoes, so 6 times that recipe!)

Pasta Salad (my mother-in-law’s recipe):

1 package of pasta (we used rotini)

Chopped celery, green onion, red pepper, zucchini and broccoli (wing it, keep chopping until it looks like a good amount!)

For the dressing, we mixed together red wine vinegar and olive oil (I wish I could remember the amounts, but I don't! I'm sure you could wing it and figure it out to taste), plus 1/2 tsp of oregano, basil and garlic powder. Salt & pepper to taste and add a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. It tastes best after at least a night in the fridge.

Kid’s pasta salad:

Frozen Mediterrenean Veggie blend from Whole Foods (zucchini, yellow squash, red pepper, onion, green bean..) steamed, chopped into baby-sized bits, mixed with orzo, topped with a splash of orzo and a sprinkle of dried basil and oregano.

Fruit salad (a bit of everything that looked good at the market - strawberries, blueberries, kiwi, grapes, and peaches)

Blondies (recipe from Smitten Kitten, with chocolate chips added because chocolate chips are delicious)

Birthday Cake (Lemony Vanilla variation of the basic vanilla cupcakes in Vegan Cupcakes take over the World, multiplied by 8, with vanilla buttercream from the same book, covered with Wilton fondant) 

Finished product

Being enjoyed by one of our little guests

Kale & Quinoa

As a working mom, I’m currently obsessed with trying to find quick, easy, healthy meals that my husband and I can share with our daughter (who is turning 1 next week and no, I don’t want to talk about it). Quick and easy, because my wonderful husband cooks dinner after putting E to bed so that we can eat when I get home. I stumbled upon One Hungry Mama and after browsing around for a bit, settled on very simple and tasty sounding One Pot Quinoa and Kale Pilaf. It takes about 20 minutes to make, since you can prep each step while the previous is cooking. It tastes best hot, but is still tasty cold. It could also work as a room-temp side at a BBQ or picnic. For E we left the nuts and cheese out, tossed everything and put some aside for her, simply because we’re holding off on introducing those foods to her for the time being.

http://onehungrymama.com/2011/04/family-food-find-one-pot-kale-quinoa-pilaf/#more-8623

One Pot Kale and Quinoa Pilaf, barely adapted from Food52
serves 2-4
(can be shared with kids 6+ mos)*
2 c salted water
1 c quinoa
1 bunch lacinato kale, washed, ribs removed and chopped into 1″ pieces
zest of 1 lemon
juice of 1 lemon, divided
1 Tbsp walnut oil (you can substitute another nut oil or olive oil)
1/4 cup crumbed feta cheese
3 Tbsp toasted pine nuts
2 scallions, chopped (green and white parts)
salt and pepper

1. Bring salted water to a boil in a covered pot. Add the quinoa, cover, and lower the heat until it is just enough to maintain a simmer. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes.

2. Add kale to the pot, piling the leaves on top of the quinoa. Cover and simmer for another 5 minutes. Turn off the heat, leaving the covered pot on the stove. Allow the kale and quinoa to steam for another 5 minutes. It’s done when all of the water has been absorbed and the quinoa and kale are tender. If the quinoa still has a hard white center, add a little bit of water and steam longer.

3. In the meantime, in a large serving bowl combine lemon zest, half of the lemon juice, oil, feta, pine nuts and scallions.

4. Fluff the quinoa and kale pilaf and add it to the bowl with the zest, juice, oil and other ingredients. Toss to combine. Add remaining lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Serve!

Apple fritters

Back in the day, my family would often go to Eat-N-Park for Sunday brunch after church. For the most part, I filled my plate with their apple fritters. I realized it's been quite awhile since I've had something similar, so I did a little research and made my own:



Ingredients
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup milk (I used almond)
1 egg (I used flax seed)
1 cup apple, finely chopped
1/2 cup powdered sugar
~1/2 cup vegetable oil (3-4" deep in a pan)

1. Combine the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a large bowl thoroughly. Add milk and egg (or equivalent). Mix until smooth.
2. Add in the apple and mix.
3. Drop the batter by the tablespoon into hot oil. Fry until browned on each side, ~4 minutes.
4. Remove fritters and place on paper towels, to soak up excess oil. Then roll in powdered sugar, or sprinkle on top.

Israeli couscous

A great sidedish. I served this along with my Hummus and Lentil Wrap

From Vegetarian Times:



Ingredients
1 cup Israeli couscous
8 green onions, finely chopped
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil

1. Cook couscous as directed. Drain and rinse with cold water.
2. Transfer couscous to a large bowl and stir in the rest of the ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Let stand for about 30 minutes.