Tag Archives: recipes

Maple Roasted Brussels Sprouts

For the Brussels Sprouts haters!!!Maple Roasted Brussel Sprouts

  • 1 pound Brussels sprouts, ends trimmed and outer leaves removed and halved
  • 1 medium sweet onion, slices
  • 1 large apple, peeled, cored and cubed
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Toss the Brussels sprouts, onions and apples together in a bowl.
  3. Mix the olive oil, maple syrup, salt and pepper together then drizzle over Brussels sprouts mixture. Stir until everything is coated (add another tablespoon of maple syrup if you so desire) and place on a greased baking sheet.
  4. Bake for 25-30 minutes, stirring a few times while baking, until apples are tender, onions soft and Brussels sprouts begin to caramelize.  ENJOY!

LOOKING FOR SOMETHING DIFFERENT FOR DINNER SIDES?

Cheesy Hasselback Potatoes -6 servingsDINNER SIDES

  •  4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 6 cloves garlic, minced or finely diced
  • 6 med Yukon potatoes, scrubbed & dried
  • Kosher salt and ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F and line a baking sheet with foil.

In a small saucepot, bring the butter, oil and garlic to a boil over high heat; remove from the heat.

Using 2 wooden spoons placed on each side of a potato as a guide, cut the potato into thin slices about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick, without cutting through the bottom (the spoons will keep you from cutting all the way through the potato). Repeat with the remaining potatoes. Place the potatoes on the prepared baking sheet and brush each potato with some of the butter mixture, trying to get the butter between the slices. Sprinkle each potato with salt and pepper.

Bake for 30 minutes, then remove the potatoes from the oven. The potatoes will have started to spread out from cooking and it will be easier to brush each slice with some more of the butter mixture. Put the potatoes back in the oven for an additional 20 minutes.

Remove the potatoes from the oven again and sprinkle the Parmesan over the top and into the slices. Return to the oven to melt and brown the cheese, an additional 5 minutes. Serve the potatoes immediately.

Homemade Vegetarian Chili

This recipe came from from Cookie and Kate

Ingredients for Homemade Vegetarian Chilihomemade vegetarian chili

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium red onion, chopped
  • 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 medium carrots, chopped
  • 2 ribs celery, chopped
  • ½ teaspoon salt, divided
  • 4 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
  • 2 tablespoons chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 large can (28 ounces) or 2 small cans (15 ounces each) diced tomatoes*, with their juices
  • 2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
  • 2 cups vegetable broth or water
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnishing
  • 1 to 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar or lime juice, to taste
  • Garnishes: chopped cilantro, sliced avocado, tortilla chips, sour cream or crème fraîche, grated cheddar cheese, etc.

Directions for Homemade Vegetarian Chili

In a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat, warm the olive oil until shimmering. Add the chopped onion, bell pepper, carrot, celery and ¼ teaspoon salt. Stir to combine and then cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and the onion is translucent, about 7 to 10 minutes.

Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika (go easy on the paprika if you’re sensitive to spice) and oregano. Cook until fragrant while stirring constantly, about 1 minute.

Add the diced tomatoes and their juices, the drained black beans and pinto beans, vegetable broth and bay leaf. Stir to combine and let the mixture come to a simmer. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally and reducing heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer, for 30 minutes. Remove the chili from heat.

For the best texture and flavor, transfer 1 ½ cups of the chili to a blender and blend until smooth, then pour the blended mixture back into the pot. (Or, you can blend the chili briefly with an immersion blender, or mash the chili with a potato masher until it reaches a thicker, more chili-like consistency.)

Add the chopped cilantro, stir to blend, and then mix in the vinegar, to taste. Add salt to taste, too—I added ¼ teaspoon more at this point. Divide the mixture into individual bowls and serve with garnishes of your choice. This chili will keep well in the refrigerator for about 4 days

MAYAN HARVEST BAKE

MAYAN HARVEST BAKE INGREDIENTSMAYAN HARVEST BAKE

  • 2 sweet potatoes, washed and diced into 1/4 inch cubes (about 4 cups)
  • 1 ripe plantain, peeled and diced into 1/4 inch cubes**
  • 2 Tablespoons avocado oil, divided
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
  • 1/2 cup water or vegetable broth
  • 1 Tablespoon ground ancho chile powder/pepper (or regular chili powder)
  • 1 teaspoon coconut sugar
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 4 cups finely chopped kale ( I have used spinach  and also baby kale leaves)
  • 1 15 oz. can organic black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
  • 1 18 oz tube polenta, sliced into 1/4 inch slices

OPTIONAL toppings 1/4 cup roasted pepitas, sliced avocado, sour cream

MAYAN HARVEST BAKE DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400° degrees.

Toss chopped sweet potatoes and plantains cubes in 1 Tablespoon oil. Sprinkle with sea salt and spread onto a baking sheet. Roast for 20 minutes or until sweet potatoes are tender.

While the potatoes and plantains are roasting, heat remaining 1 Tablespoon of oil on medium-high in a large skillet. Add onion and garlic and sauté until soft and fragrant, about 5-7 minutes. Add tomato sauce, water, chile powder, coconut sugar, paprika, sea salt and cinnamon into the skillet and let sauce simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes. Add black beans and kale into the skillet. Stir kale into the sauce, allowing it to wilt. Once kale/spinach has wilted down, remove sauce from the heat.

Meanwhile, spray a 9×13 or 11×7 casserole dish with non-stick spray. Line the bottom of the dish with polenta slices, overlapping if needed. Top with the cooked quinoa. Then add the roasted sweet potatoes and plantains. Pour the saucy black bean and kale mixture over everything and use a spoon to create an even top layer. Bake casserole in the 400° oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, sprinkle pepitas over the bake and serve warm. Top each portion with sliced avocado

** The plantain should be very ripe — yellow and covered with large black spots. Mine had a ton of black spots and worked great.

Chickpea Panzanella Salad

From Jessica in the Kitchen.com Chickpea Panzanella Salad

3 main salads, 6-7 side servings

PANZANELLA SALAD

  • 3 1/2 cups gluten free crusty bread, chopped into 1 inch cubes
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
  • 1/4 large red onion, sliced
  • 1 cup cubed English cucumber
  • 2 tablespoons basil, julienned
  • 1 can (about 1 1/2 cups) cooked chickpeas, washed and drained

MUSTARD BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE

  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons lime or lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • pinch salt and ground black pepper

MUSTARD BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE:
Mix all the ingredients for the vinaigrette while the bread is toasting so that the mustard can emulsify.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Add the bread cubes to a silicone mat on a baking sheet or a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper or foil.
Drizzle the bread with the extra virgin olive oil and toss to ensure all the cubes are covered with oil.
Bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
In a large mixing bowl, add the toasted bread, the cherry tomatoes, red onions, cucumber cubes, chickpeas and basil. Toss until combined.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER:
Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and toss again to combine.
Cover the salad and let sit for 30 minutes to up to an hour so that all the ingredients are completely soaked in and the flavors combined. Serve and enjoy!

Potato Salad with Green Beans and Salsa Verde

From FoodandWine.com

Serves 6-8

A terrific salsa verde makes this velvety potato salad extraordinary. Here the salsa is made with parsley and chives; try making it with other summer herbs, like tarragon or basil, as well.

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup minced chives
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped mint
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 large garlic clove, minced
  • Salt
  • 1 1/4 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 1/2 pounds green beans, trimmed
  • Chive blossoms, for garnish (optional)

Directions

  1. In a medium bowl, combine the olive oil with the chives, parsley, mint, lemon zest, lemon juice and garlic and season with salt. Let the salsa verde stand at room temperature for 15 minutes to 1 hour.
  2. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, cover the potatoes with cold water, add a large pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Cook the potatoes over moderately high heat until just tender, about 8 minutes; drain and return them to the saucepan. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and toss to coat. Season with salt.
  3. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the beans and cook until crisp-tender, 4 minutes; drain. Return the beans to the pot and stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Season with salt.
  4. Add half of the salsa verde to the potatoes and half to the beans, stirring to coat. Transfer the beans to a serving bowl. Top with the potatoes, garnish with the chive blossoms and serve right away.

Paella Primavera

Serves 6Paella Primavera

Who needs a paella pan? A large skillet stands in for the wide, shallow two-handled cookware in this quick veggie-laden version of the classic Spanish rice dish. Just like its pasta namesake, Paella Primavera lends itself to endless variation. You can substitute zucchini for broccoli in the summer; in the fall, replace half the broccoli with cubed butternut squash

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 tsp. olive oil
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped (1 cup)
  • 6 green onions, thinly sliced (1 cup)
  • 3 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbs.)
  • 1 tsp. crumbled saffron threads
  • 1 cup short-grain white rice, such as Valencia
  • 3 cups broccoli florets
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen baby peas
  • 1 cup halved grape or cherry tomatoes
  • 12 each pitted green and black olives, halved
  • 1 lemon, cut into wedges
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Directions

  1. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add bell pepper and green onions; cook 5 minutes. Stir in broth, garlic, and saffron; bring to a boil. Sprinkle rice over ingredients, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, covered, 10 minutes.
  2. Sprinkle broccoli, peas, tomatoes, and olives over rice. Cover, and cook paella 8 minutes, or until rice is tender. Remove from heat, and let rest, covered, 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Serve with lemon wedges and parsley

Springtime Veggie Pasta Primavera

Serves 6-8vegan recipes

1 lb small pasta of your choice…rotini, penne or oriochetti…use whole wheat where possible

  • 2 cups fresh broccoli florets
  • 2 cups asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 2-in pieces
  • 1 large sweet pepper, diced
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 cup fresh spinach, roughly chopped
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Grated Parmesan cheese for topping
  1. Cook pasta according to package instructions, reserving 1/2 cup pasta cooking water. Set aside.
  2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, saute broccoli, asparagus, pepper, onion, and garlic in olive oil until veggies are just tender, about 7-10 minutes. Stir in spinach, peas, and cherries tomatoes and continue cooking an additional 5 minutes.
  3. Remove cooked veggies from heat and stir in cooked pasta, 1/2 cup reserved pasta cooking water, lemon juice, and basil. Season with salt and pepper to taste and top pasta primavera with grated Parmesan cheese. Serve warm.

Colorful Chopped Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing

From Cookie and Katevegetarian recipes

This healthy green salad features crisp lettuce, edamame, chopped cabbage, bell pepper and broccoli in homemade carrot-ginger salad dressing. So delicious! Recipe yields 4 medium-sized salads.

  • 6 ounces chopped butter lettuce or romaine
  • 1 ½ cups edamame, preferably organic, defrosted if necessary (Green soybeans)
  • 1 ½ cups chopped purple cabbage
  • ¾ cup chopped red onion
  • Florets from 1 head of broccoli, finely sliced
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • ⅓ cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro
  • 1 batch of homemade carrot ginger dressing
  1. In a large serving bowl, combine everything but the dressing. Toss to combine.
  2. When you’re ready to serve, toss in enough dressing to lightly coat all of the ingredients—or, if you intend to have leftovers, store the salad separately from the dressing, and toss individual servings with dressing just before serving. The salad will keep well this way for 3 to 4 days.

Carrot Ginger Dressing   1 1/3 cups

This salad dressing tastes remarkably fresh, creamy and light. It would pair nicely with other recipes with Asian flavors. Recipe yields about 1 ⅓ cups salad dressing.

  • ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • ⅓ cup rice wine vinegar
  • 2 large carrots, peeled and roughly chopped (about ⅔ cup)
  • 2 tablespoons peeled and roughly chopped fresh ginger
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon honey
  • 1 ½ teaspoons toasted sesame oil
  • ¼ teaspoon salt, more to taste

In a blender, combine all of the salad dressing ingredients as listed. Bend until completely smooth. Taste, and add additional salt if the dressing doesn’t make your eyes light up. If it’s too sour (it should have some zing to it), blend in a bit more honey.

CREAMY SPINACH AND CHEESE GREEN CHILE ENCHILADAS

SERVES 8

COURTESY OF TWO PEAS AND THEIR POD

INGREDIENTS:SPINACH ENCHILADAS

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, diced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 10 cups fresh spinach leaves
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
  • 1/3 cup chopped cilantro
  • 1 can (4.5 ounces) Old El Paso chopped green chiles
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground chili powder
  • 1/2 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
  • Salt and black pepper, to taste
  • 2 cans (10 oz each) Old El Paso Mild Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
  • 8 Old El Paso Flour Tortillas (Burrito size)
  • 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
  • 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
  • Toppings: Green onions, chopped, Fresh cilantro, chopped, Diced avocado

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Add the spinach leaves and cook until they are wilted and shrinks down. Stir in the lime juice, cilantro, green chiles, cumin, and chile powder. Remove from heat and stir in the sour cream. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
  2. To assemble, spread about 1/2 can of enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish. Fill each tortilla with about 1/3 cup of the spinach mixture. In a medium bowl, combine both kinds of shredded cheese. Sprinkle cheese over spinach mixture, about 3 tablespoons per enchilada. Roll up and place seam side down in the baking dish. When all enchiladas have been rolled and placed in the pan, top with the other 1/2 can of enchilada sauce and about 1/2 of the other can. We had some sauce leftover. Sprinkle remaining shredded cheese on top of enchiladas. Bake 20-30 minutes or until the cheese is melted, and the sauce is bubbling around the edges.
  3. Garnish enchiladas with green onion, cilantro, and avocado, if desired. Serve warm.

Note-these enchiladas freeze well. Cool completely, without toppings, and place in a tupperware container. Reheat individual servings in the microwave when ready to eat! You can also freeze an entire pan and reheat in the oven!