Epicurean Vegan

Healthy eating for discriminating palates

Spinach Soup with Basil and Dill February 20, 2012

Filed under: Soups — epicureanvegan @ 11:07 am
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This is a delicious and very flavorful soup from Color Me Vegan. I’m not typically a big fan of dill, but it tastes great combined with the basil and spinach. It’s also very simple to make. Even during the summer, I think this soup would be ideal to make because of the abundance of fresh herbs.

INGREDIENTS:

3 medium potatoes, peeled and diced

2 medium onions, chopped

5 cloves garlic, minced

6 C vegetable stock (I used 4 and added 2 cup of water)

1 tsp salt

1-1/2 lbs fresh spinach, chopped

1/2 C fresh dill

8 fresh basil leaves, minced

1/2 C nondairy milk

1-3 Tbs agave

Juice from one lemon

Pepper

Tofutti sour cream, optional

DIRECTIONS:

In a large soup pot, combine the onions, potatoes, garlic, broth, and salt and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.

In a food processor or blender, puree the soup with the spinach, dill, and basil. I had to do this in two batches. Blend until smooth. Return it to the soup pot and add the milk, agave, and 1/2 the lemon (add more if needed).

Warm the soup up, but don’t bring it to a boil. Season with salt and pepper and serve with a dollop of sour cream on top! Enjoy!

 

 

 

Lemon Risotto with Sweet Potatoes and Spinach February 11, 2012

Filed under: Dinners,Sides — epicureanvegan @ 6:43 pm
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Barb at That Was Vegan? posted this recipe, but used Israeli couscous and kale. YUM! I didn’t have any couscous and of course, I had eaten all the kale, but . . . I really wanted to make this dish. I added some mushrooms, too and it was delicious! You could also use wild rice or barley—just keep in mind they both take up to an hour to cook. Otherwise, this is quick and satisfying meal.

INGREDIENTS:

1 C arborio (risotto) rice

1-1/2 C water

1 vegetable bouillon cube

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

1 to 2 C mushrooms, sliced

1 C fresh spinach, chopped

Salt, pepper, and cumin, to taste

2-3 Tbs lemon juice

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray, or drizzle with olive oil. Add the potatoes. I sprinkled on some salt and pepper, too.

Bake 15-20 minutes until they start to brown—but be sure to turn once. While the potatoes bake, bring the water and bouillon cube to a boil, then add the rice. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook 10-15 minutes. Stir in the mushrooms, spinach, salt, pepper, cumin, and lemon juice. Cover until the veggies soften and wilt.

Stir in the sweet potatoes and enjoy!

 

Quinoa with Mushrooms and Spinach February 9, 2012

Filed under: Dinners,Lunches — epicureanvegan @ 7:29 pm
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Occasionally, there are nights I don’t cook dinner for the fam. Either we have lots of leftovers, or everyone is doing their own thing, so we fend for ourselves. Tonight was one such night. But when The Husband saw what I made, he kindly asked if I’d share. He said this was one of his favorites dishes—we both loved it. And so easy! Throw this together in 20 minutes and you have a healthy, protein-packed meal.

INGREDIENTS:

1 C quinoa

2 C water

1 vegan vegetable bouillon cube

3 C fresh spinach

3 C fresh mushrooms, sliced

Salt, pepper, and garlic powder, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

In a medium saucepan, bring the water with the bouillon cube to a boil. Stir it around so the cube dissolves completely. Stir in the quinoa, reduce heat to low, and cover for about 15 minutes. When the quinoa is almost done—just a tiny bit of water left—add the spinach, mushrooms and seasonings; combine well.

Turn the heat off, cover, and let the spinach and mushrooms steam a bit—5-7 minutes. You may need to drizzle with some water if there isn’t enough moisture left. Once the spinach is wilted and the mushrooms are tender, serve and enjoy!

 

Layered (Deep Dish) Pizza January 24, 2012

Filed under: Dinners — epicureanvegan @ 11:13 am
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This brings deep dish pizza to a whole new level; five levels to be exact. Since the Mexican Lasagna turned out so great, I thought I’d make a pizza version. It was delicious! This may be my new favorite way to eat pizza.

INGREDIENTS:

5, 8″ flour tortillas

1 Tbs olive oil

3 Field Roast sausages, Italian Seasoning flavor, crumbled

1 green bell pepper, chopped

2 -1/2 C mushrooms, sliced

4-5 C fresh spinach, chopped

1 C fresh basil, chopped

1, 15-oz can Glen Muir pizza sauce

1-1/2 C Daiya cheese, mozzarella flavor

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350. In a large skillet heat the olive oil and add the bell pepper; cook until slightly tender. Add the crumbled Field Roast and heat through.

Add the mushrooms, spinach, and basil. Cook just until the spinach wilts a bit. Bake the tortilla shells about 2-3 minutes per side. Spray the bottom of a 9″ cake pan with cooking spray, then pour a small amount on the bottom. Lay one tortilla on the bottom, add some sauce, veggie mixture, then sprinkle some cheese on it.

Repeat, top with last tortilla, rest of sauce and cheese.

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

 

Stuffed Bell Peppers with Field Roast, Ricotta & Spinach August 1, 2011

I love stuffed pasta shells, but I don’t always love filling up with carbs and wheat from the pasta. This is a fabulous and healthy alternative, which the family raved about. My hegans agreed that these were the best stuffed peppers I made. You can check out the other recipes here.  I used my go-to ricotta recipe, as well as The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook’s Parmezano Sprinkles–both very easy to whip up.

INGREDIENTS:

My go-to ricotta:

1 14-oz pkg extra-firm tofu, press and drained

1/3 C nutritional yeast

1 C fresh basil

2 Tbs fresh rosemary

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

2 Tbs lemon juice

1/4 C Daiya mozzarella

Parmezano Sprinkles:

1/2 C blanched almonds

2 Tbs nutritional yeast

1-2 tsp light miso

1/4 tsp salt

The peppers:

4 bell peppers, washed, tops removed and innards cleaned out

1 tsp olive oil

2 tsp garlic, minced

1 C onion, diced

2 Field Roast sausages, Italian flavor

2 C mushrooms, diced

4 C fresh spinach, chopped

1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, drained

Salt and pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

To make the ricotta, crumble the tofu into a food processor. Add the rest of the ingredients (except for the Daiya) and blend until somewhat smooth. You don’t want it too smooth. Stir in the cheese.

To make the parmezano sprinkles, grind the blanched almonds to a fine consistency. Add the nutritional yeast, miso, and salt. Combine well. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. When you get read to use it, give the container a shake to loosen it all.

Preheat oven to 375. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and garlic. Add the onions and cook until they just begin to get tender. Using your fingers, crumble up the Field Roast sausages and add to the skillet. Cook for another 5 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and diced tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms soften. Stir in the spinach and cook 5 minutes, or until the spinach cooks down a fair bit.

Remove from the heat and let sit for about 10 minutes. Drain any excess tomato juices if you need to. Then, stir in 1 cup of the ricotta mixture.

Stuff each pepper with the mixture, pressing down with every scoop.

Bake for 30 minutes. Top with some of the parmezano sprinkles and bake another 5 minutes.

Enjoy!

 

A Look Back July 29, 2011

When it’s time to plan meals for the week, I sometimes rely on some old favorites of mine. When looking back on my recipes, I always come across yummy ones I’ve forgotten about. I thought I’d bring these oldies, but goodies to you.

Appetizers

Party Cheese Ball

Stuffed Mushrooms

Mustard Greens and Cheeze Filo Pie

Avocado Bruschetta

.

Breads

Pesto Potato Bread

Blueberry Muffins with Crumb Topping

Home-made Pita Bread

Chive-Flecked Spud Muffins

.

Side Dishes

Israeli Couscous with Pine Nuts & Parsley

Easy, Creamy Pasta Salad

Baked Fries with Sea Salt & Truffle Oil

Easy Cole Slaw

.

Soups

Eggplant Parmagiano Stew

Vegetable-Barley Soup

Vegetable-Barley Chili

.

Lunch

Smoky-Miso Tofu Sandwiches

Garden Wrap

BLTA with Tempeh Bacon

Green Tea Rice with Lemon, Snowpeas & Tofu

.

Breakfast

Quinoa-Couscous Cereal with Dried Fruit

Colorful Kale and Potato Casserole

Hash Brown Casserole

Home-made Granola

.

Dinner

Sweet Chili-Lime Tofu

Breaded Zucchini with Lentils and Rainbow Chard

Angel Hair Pasta with Mushrooms & Ricotta

Spinach & Tofu Calzones

Spinach & Pesto Lasagna

Fresh & Healthy Soft Tacos/Burritos

Pecan-Crusted Seitan

Field Roast with Fresh Blueberry Sauce

.

Desserts

Glazed Chocolate-Avocado Cupcakes

Chai-Spiced Berry-Oatmeal Cookies

Cheeze Danishes

Sunflower-Cherry Oatmeal Bars

 

Day 3 of Reboot, plus Potato-Spinach Soup July 20, 2011

Filed under: My Vegan Life,Soups — epicureanvegan @ 6:25 pm
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So the first three days of a reboot are usually the worst. You’re hungry, tired, and usually suffering from headaches. You may even feel like biting someone’s head off. Just remember, feeling lousy is actually a good thing when detoxing—it means your body is expelling toxins (just try to refrain from murdering anyone).

Today’s been a good day. Yesterday . . . not so much. The Husband was ready to force feed me a burrito or two, but I mashed up an avocado with some lime juice and ate it with a handful of jicama. I admire folks who can do the all-juicing fast—I think I’d keel over after two days of it. Luckily, the reboot I’m doing allows me to eat fruits and veggies in addition to the juicing. I am also allowed to use small amounts of oils and spices. My mid-section is noticeably smaller and I’ve dropped two pounds already. No complaints there!

I started the day off with a kale-strawberry-mango smoothie. The reboot does not include nuts, so when I’m fully rebooted, I think some chia seeds would be ideal in this.


Ok, it may not look appetizing, but it is truly my favorite smoothie! Give it a whirl: 5-6 kale leaves, 5 strawberries, 1 mango, and 3/4 cup of water. Blend until smooth. :)

After munching on salad mid-morning, for lunch, I needed something with some girth. A warm meal sounded great, too. I remembered my Potato-Leek Soup recipe, but it’s not quite acceptable for the reboot as it is . . . so I gave it a reboot of my own.

The original recipe calls for Earth Balance margarine and milk, so I needed to get creative. I added mushrooms to give it that thick and creamy texture and I also threw in some spinach. I incorporated a sweet potato and used a tablespoon of coconut oil instead of butter. LOVED it! It was exactly was I was needing to fill me up and satisfy my comfort food cravings—all with staying within the reboot guidelines!

INGREDIENTS:

1 Tbs coconut oil

1 large sweet potato

1 tsp garlic, minced

3 medium russet potatoes or 6 small Yukon Gold potatoes, diced

2 large leeks, sliced thin, then halved

2 cups mushrooms, quartered

1-1/2 to 2 cups fresh spinach leaves

5 cups water or low-sodium vegetable broth

salt and white pepper, to taste

fresh chives

DIRECTIONS:

In a large soup pot, melt the coconut oil and add the garlic. Saute for a minute. Add the leeks and saute 5-7 minutes, or until they soften.

Add the potatoes and broth/water; bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes, or until the potatoes soften.

Working in batches, ladle into a food processor and add some mushrooms and spinach. Puree until smooth-ish. Transfer to a large bowl. Continue to puree the rest of the soup, adding mushrooms and spinach. Season with salt and white pepper and top with some freshly chopped chives. This was out outstanding and I didn’t miss the milk, cheese, or sour cream that the original recipe uses.

Layer, I threw together another tasty smoothie: 4 kale leaves, 1/2 a small cantaloupe, 1 pear (peeled and chopped), and 3/4 C of water.

I snacked on some salad, munched on some jicama and cherries, and for dinner, I had some more of the leftover potato-spinach soup and decaf herbal tea. I have several more recipes geared up for the next few days, so I’ll be bringing those to you soon. All in all, I feel pretty good and its get easier as I go. The key is planning. Be armed with recipes and ingredients. I recommend planning your meals in advance and spending some time chopping vegetables up ahead of time so that it’s a matter of just grabbing them when you need them. Lack of planning can easily derail you from the reboot!

 

Hash Brown and Spinach Frittata June 22, 2011

I  love making breakfast frittatas. They’re so easy to throw together and are perfect for cleaning out of the fridge of on-the-verge veggies. Since this one uses a Chipotle-flavored Field Roast Sausage, it supplies enough flavoring that I don’t add any other spices or seasonings to this dish, but feel free to add some if you’d like. Some fresh cilantro would be a great addition.

INGREDIENTS:

1 tsp olive oil

2 medium potatoes, shredded

2 C fresh spinach, torn (you can also use kale if you’d like)

1 C green or red cabbage, chopped

5 mushrooms, sliced

4 green onions, sliced

1 Field Roast Chipotle-flavored sausage, crumbled

1/4 C Tofutti sour cream

1 C Daiya cheese (I used a mixture of cheddar and pepper jack flavors)

1-1/2 C crackers, broken up into pieces

1 tomato, diced

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 375. Layer the cracker pieces on the bottom of a pie plate; set aside. Sprinkle with about half of the cheese. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the shredded potatoes and over medium heat, cook them for about 5 minutes, stirring them around. Add the cabbage and continue to cook until both the potatoes and cabbage begin to brown. Add the Field Roast, spinach, mushrooms, and green onions and cook until the spinach starts to wilt.

Stir in the sour cream to the spinach mixture and combine thoroughly. Pour the mixture on top of the cracker crust and spread it out evenly.

Top with the remaining cheese and the diced tomatoes. Bake for 15 minutes.

Let it cool for about 5 minutes, then slice into it and enjoy!

 

Wild Rice, Mushroom & Spinach Stuffed Peppers May 13, 2011

Filed under: Dinners — epicureanvegan @ 6:34 pm
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I know what you’re thinking . . . stuffed peppers again?! But these are different—that’s what makes stuffed peppers so great; the ingredient possibilities are endless. These take a bit more time since I used a wild rice mix, which needs to cook for 45-50 minutes, but they’re well worth the extra time. This recipe is enough for 4 peppers, but I made 3; the leftover rice mix will be ideal for tomorrow’s lunch.

INGREDIENTS:

4 large bell peppers, tops and innards removed

1-1/3 C wild rice mix

3 C mushroom broth

1/2 C pumpkin seeds, toasted

2 tsp olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 C fresh spinach, torn

1-1/2 C mushrooms, diced

1-1/2 C vegan pepper jack, shredded

DIRECTIONS:

In a large saucepan, bring the mushroom broth to a boil. Stir in the rice mix, reduce heat to low and cover for 45-50 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375 and in a small skillet, toast the pumpkin seeds.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and garlic, then add the mushrooms and spinach. Only cook until the spinach starts to serious wilt—just a few minutes. Stir in the cooked rice and pumpkin seeds.

Put a tablespoon or two of cheese in the pepper, fill part way with rice stuffing, then some more cheese. Top it off with more rice mix; a layering effect. Bake covered for 35 minutes, then uncover add a tiny bit of cheese on top and bake another 5 minutes. Enjoy!

 

Crispy “Chicken” Salad April 25, 2011

This salad is a staple around my house and each time I make it, I never learn. I eat way too much of it. It’s just so damn good. Not to mention, easy to make. Bake some meatless chicken nuggets and throw some fresh veggies together and you have a healthy meal in minutes.

INGREDIENTS:

1 bag Boca nuggets, baked and diced

Romaine lettuce, torn

Fresh spinach, torn

1 tomato, diced

1 avocado, diced

1 cucumber, sliced, then quartered

Vegan pepper jack cheese and/or cheddar, shredded

Green onions, sliced

Tortilla chips, broken up

Vegan Ranch dressing:

1 C Vegenaise

1-1/2 tsp lemon juice

6 Tbs almond milk

1/2 tsp dried chives

1/2 tsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp dried dill

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

I tend to put everything in separate bowls and let everyone create their own salads. To make the dressing, just whisk everything together in a small bowl and transfer to a pourable container. Refrigerate the leftovers. Enjoy!

 

 
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