Rainbow Chopped Salad (V)(GF)

Rainbow Chopped Salad (V)(GF)
the salad ingredients:
large head of romaine
15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 large orange bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 pint cherry tomatoes, chopped
1/2 english cucumber, chopped
2 cups corn
1/2 red onion, chopped
Cilantro-Avocado Dressing (V)(GF)
the dressing ingredients:
1 cup loosely packed cilantro, stems removed and roughly chopped
1 avocado, smashed
2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice (about 1/2 lime), more to taste
1 to 2 garlic cloves
1/4 cup avocado oil (or olive oil)
1 1/2 tsp. white wine vinegar1 tsp. agave nectar
1/8 tsp. salt

the method:

1. Make the dressing: puree all ingredients in a food processor/blender until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.
2. Finely chop romaine, bell pepper, tomatoes and onion.
3. Place all ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine.
4. Toss with desired dressing and serve.
   

 

Meatless Monday: Black Bean Tostadas

Black Bean Tostadas (GF)

the ingredients:

• Corn tortillas
• 1 can refried black beans (I make my own, but if you buy canned make sure they are vegetarian)
• 3/4 tsp. cumin
• Shredded cheese or vegan cheese
• Tomatoes, diced
• Red onion, diced
• Romaine lettuce, chopped
• Additional toppings of your choice (I like to put a lot of hot sauce on mine)

 

the method:

1. Preheat oven to 400. Lightly spray tortillas on both sides and place on baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat refried beans and cumin in a pan over low to med-low heat, stirring occasionally.
3. Layer tortillas with beans, cheese, and onion.
4. Return layered tortillas to the oven for a few minutes to melt the cheese.
5. Add the rest of your desired toppings and serve.

Toast with Avocado-Basil Spread & Sliced Tomatoes (GF)

Toast with Avocado-Basil Spread & Sliced Tomatoes (GF)

the ingredients:

2 slices gluten-free toast (I used Udi’s)
3 medium avocados (ripe)
2 cups fresh basil leaves
1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 tbsp non-fat Greek yogurt
3 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup sliced cherry tomatoes
salt & pepper to taste

 

 

the method:

1. In a food processor, combine basil leaves and olive oil, pulsing until fine.
2. Add in avocado, Greek yogurt and lemon juice, blending until smooth.
3. This spread recipe yields eight servings – yay leftovers! This spread is great on sandwiches, in pasta salad and as a dip. So yummy! 🙂

Meatless Monday: Pasta alla Hepburn (GF)(V)

Sometimes you just have to stop and ask yourself, “What would Audrey eat?”

the ingredients:
2 tablespoons of Earth Balance butter
1 large spring onion, chopped
1 26.2 oz. box of Pomi strained tomatoes
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons soy milk
1/4 cup vodka
1/2 pound gluten free pasta (cook while making sauce)
flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

the method:
Heat butter in a big skillet until melted, then add onion and sauté until softened. Toss in the tomatoes with some salt and pepper, and let simmer until thickened and the tomatoes are breaking down. Around 10 minutes, give or take. Stir in the vodka and half and half and let heat briefly. Stir into the cooked penne. Garnish with fresh parsley.

Margherita Pizza (GF)

Margherita Pizza (GF)
the ingredients:

• 1 gluten-free pizza crust (I used Udi’s, but I plan on making my own pretty soon!)
• 1 pound (2 large) ripe summer tomatoes or 1 16-oz can whole or diced tomatoes
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/4 cup loosely packed basil, sliced into ribbons
• 8 ounces smoked mozzarella cheese, sliced or grated (you can use regular mozzarella – this is just what I had on hand)
• Salt and pepper

 

the method:

1. Heat the oven to 425°F.
2. Cut the tomatoes into wedges and trim away the stem area. Gently squeeze the wedges over a bowl to remove the excess juices and seeds. Combine the tomatoes with the garlic and half of the basil in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Process until the tomatoes break down into a sauce, scraping down the sides as needed. If desired, strain to make a thicker sauce.
3. Spread a light layer of the sauce over one of the rounds of pizza. Top with half of the slices of mozzarella. Leave some space between the pieces of mozzarella.
4. Bake for 7-12 minutes—exact cooking time will vary depending on your oven temperature. Pizza is finished when the crust is deep brown with charred spots and the cheese is bubbling.
5. Sprinkle the pizza with basil as it comes out of the oven. Let it cool briefly before slicing and serving.

 

One Pot Tomato Basil Pasta (GF)

I started my 200-hour yoga certification about two weeks ago thinking I had all the time in the world. Even though we all need that extra hour every day to get things done, I decided to go after something I have been dreaming about doing for about year – and it’s the best decision I have ever made.  My days are busy, but not chaotic. I go to Ashtanga almost every day after work and spend a good portion of my weekend on the mat, as well. We are currently turning half of our guest bedroom into a mini yoga studio so I can practice when I  have to work late or can’t make it to class for some reason. I have a feeling this will look totally adorable and I will post pictures once it’s ready. 🙂

With a full-time job, a house to take care of and a hungry boyfriend to feed, these last couple of weeks have been exhausting – I don’t know how people with kids do it! Hats off to you!

So far, these yoga classes have been an amazing experience, these teachers are inspirational and have put me in positions I never even dreamed I could do. In order to keep up with the things I enjoy (like cooking), I’ve had to make some compromises. I still fully plan on cooking as much as possible, but I realized I needed to find more convenient meals in order to keep up with my routine and ensure I eat a healthy, home-cooked meal as much as possible.

Even though more of my time is being absorbed since I started certification, I surprisingly feel more balanced. This dish is one that I pinned almost a year ago when looking for quick week-day meals. It’s a one pot dish, so you know that prep and clean up will be a cinch. This dish can also be made vegan easily by omitting the parmesan or substituting it with a vegan option.

Enjoy!

One Pot Tomato Basil Pasta (GF)

the ingredients:

• 12 ounces gluten free pasta (I used Rotini)
• 1 can (15 ounces) diced tomatoes with liquid
• 1 large sweet onion, cut in julienne strips
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves
• 2 large sprigs basil, chopped
• 4 1/2 cups vegetable broth (regular broth and NOT low sodium)
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• Parmesan cheese for garnish

the method:

1. Place pasta, tomatoes, onion, garlic, basil, in a large stock pot. Pour in vegetable broth. Sprinkle on top the pepper flakes and oregano. Drizzle top with oil.
2. Cover pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a low simmer and keep covered and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes or so. Cook until almost all liquid has evaporated – I left about an inch of liquid in the bottom of the pot – but you can reduce as desired .
3. Season to taste with salt and pepper , stirring pasta several times to distribute the liquid in the bottom of the pot. Serve garnished with Parmesan cheese.

Yep, that’s it!

Mongolian Tofu and Mushrooms

Excuse me for my absence… got a lot going on in FBV land :). I didn’t really do much cooking over the weekend – Nick was busy working and I got a glorious weekend all to myself. I literally got nothing done – NOTHING. But some weekends are made for doing nothing, right?? In the spirit of not lifting a finger at all this weekend, I decided to order in on Friday AND Saturday… I never do that!

Any who, I was feeling a bit inspired yesterday – not too inspired since this dish only took about 20 minutes to make haha. I was inspired by my favorite dish at Pei Wei (judge me if you want, but some of their dishes are irresistible) known as Mongolian Tofu. My version didn’t turn out exactly like you get in the restaurant, but was still yummy. With Nick’s we just pan-fried some chicken in place of the the tofu… and mushrooms – Nick hates mushrooms.

We served our proteins over a bed of Farmer’s Market Fried Rice – you know, just like that recipe I made a couple of weeks ago… except I added some broccoli and carrots to this one. 🙂

Happy Monday everyone!

Mongolian Tofu and Mushrooms:

The Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons chili sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced
• 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar vegetable oil, for frying (about 1 cup)
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 large green onions, sliced on the diagonal into one-inch lengths
• 1 block of extra firm tofu, drained and cubed
• 1/2 cup sliced button mushrooms

 

The Method:

1. Make the sauce by heating 2 tsp of vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over med/low heat.
2. Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches.
3. Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens.
4. Remove it from the heat and dip the tofu pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides..
5. Let the tofu sit for about 2 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.
6. Heat up one cup of oil in a wok (you may also use a skillet for this step as long as the beef will be mostly covered with oil) over medium heat and add tofu and mushrooms. Saute for 5 minutes.
7. Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring, then add all the green onions.
8. Cook for one more minute, then remove the tofu, mushrooms and onions with tongs or a slotted spoon to a serving plate. Serve over rice.

 

Homemade Slow Cooker Spicy Marinara and Artisan Bread

One of my favorite things to come home to is a delicious supper that has been in the slow cooker all day. I decided to make Slow Cooker Spicy Marinara so I didn’t really go all out on this one, but I must say, it was one of the best marinara sauces I’ve had in a while (sorry Auntie)!  I did my own little take on this recipe from Life Currents blog, but added some crushed red pepper and a nice glug of red wine because, well…  um do you know me? I’m a firm believer in red wine really bringing out the vibrancy in a tomato sauce – and I think slow cooking the sauce for over 8 hours really allowed the flavors to develop beautifully. I’ve made a lot of pasta sauces for Nick, but I think this one was his favorite. I made a whole ton of this stuff because you can freeze it and it keeps FOREVER.

I also thought about grabbing an Italian loaf to make some homemade garlic bread – but it isn’t really totally homemade unless you make the bread too, right? It dawned on me that I had just added a 5-minute Artisan bread recipe to my Pepperplate account so I decided to try it out. I failed to get a picture of the bread itself, but in the picture below, you can see the final product – Herb and Cheese Garlic Bread (obviously not vegan, but can easily be made vegan with shredded Daiya cheese). I made a VERY small loaf so I only let it rise about an hour before tossing it in the oven and still came out delicious and golden-brown in color. I made a ton of more dough, so expect to see a picture of one these beauties in the near future.

I put together this little Italian dish for the two of us:

 

Slow Cooker Spicy Marinara

Ingredients:

Makes 13 (½ cup) servings

• 8 cups crushed tomatoes or 2 (28 oz.) cans crushed tomatoes
• 1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
• 2-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 2 whole bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• ½ tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• dash of crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon salt, if desired
• freshly ground pepper

The Method:

1. Place all ingredients in the slow cooker. Stir well to combine. Secure the lid on your slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 6 hours. Stir the sauce and remove the bay leaves. Taste for seasonings, adding more salt and some freshly ground pepper as desired.

5 Minute Artisan Bread

Makes (4) 1lb. loaves

Ingredients:

• 3 cups lukewarm water
• 1 1/2 tablespoons granulated yeast (2 packets)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt or 1 1/2 tablespoons other coarse salt
• 6 1/2 cups flour, unsifted, unbleached, all-purpose (not strong)

The Method:

Preparing Dough for Storage:

1. Warm the water slightly. It should feel just a little warmer than body temperature. Warm water will rise the dough to the right point for storage in about 2 hours. With cold water it will need 3-4 hours.
2. Add the yeast to the water in a 5 quart bowl or, preferably, in a resealable, lidded (not airtight) plastic food container or food-grade bucket. Don’t worry about getting it all to dissolve.
3. Mix in the flour and salt – kneading is unnecessary. Add all of the flour at once, measuring it in with dry-ingredient measuring cups, by gently scooping up the flour, then sweeping the top level with a knife or spatula. Don’t press down into the flour as you scoop or you’ll throw off the measurement. Mix with a wooden spoon, a high-capacity food processor (14 cups or larger) fitted with the dough attachment, or a heavy duty stand mixer fitted with the dough hook until the mixture is uniform. If you’re hand mixing and it becomes too difficult to incorporate all the flour with the spoon, you can reach into your mixing vessel with very wet hands and press the mixture together. Don’t knead, it isn’t necessary. You’re finished when everything is uniformly moist, without dry patches. It takes a few minutes, and will yield a dough that is wet and loose enough to conform to the shape of its container.
4. Allow to rise. Cover with lid (not airtight or it could explode the lid off). Allow the mixture to rise at room temperature until it begins to collapse (or at least flattens on the top), approx 2 hours, depending on room temperature, and initial water temperature Longer rising times, up to 5 hours, won’t harm the result.
5. You can use a portion of the dough any time after this period. Fully refrigerated dough is less sticky and easier to work with than dough at room temperature.

Ready to bake? Follow the instructions below:

1. Prepare your loaf tin, tray, or whatever you’re baking it in/on. Sprinkle the surface of your refrigerated dough with four. Pull up and cut of a grapefruit-size piece of dough (c 1 lb), using a serrated knife.
2. Hold the mass of dough in your hands and add a little more flour as needed so it won’t stick to your hands. Gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all 4 sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Most of the dusting flour will fall off – that’s fine, it isn’t meant to be incorporated. The bottom of the loaf may appear to be a collection of bunched ends, but it will sort itself out during resting and baking.
3. The correctly shaped final product will be smooth and cohesive. The entire process should take no more than 30 – 60 seconds.
4. Rest the loaf and let it rise in the form, on the tray/pizza peel, for about 40 minutes Depending on the age of the dough, you may not see much rise during this period. That’s fine, more rising will occur during baking.
5. Twenty minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 450°F Place an empty broiler tray for holding water on any other shelf that won’t interfere with the rising bread.
6. Dust and Slash. Dust the top of the loaf liberally with flour, which will allow the slashing knife to pass without sticking. Slash a quarter inch deep cross, diagonal lines, or tic-tac-toe pattern on top using a serrated knife.
7. After a 20 min preheat you’re ready to bake, even though the oven thermometer won’t be at full temperature yet. Put your loaf in the oven. Pour about 1 cup of hot water (from the tap) into the broiler tray and close the oven to trap the steam.
8. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the crust is nicely browned and firm to the touch.
9. Store the rest of the dough in the fridge in your lidded (not airtight) container and use it over the next 14 days. The flavour and texture improves, becoming like sourdough. Even 24 hours of storage improves the flavour.

Summer Skillet Pasta

So, I’m not a huge fan of zucchini. There’s something about its vibrant color that makes you think you’re biting into a veggie that’s packed full of flavor. It’s actually the same way I feel about eggplant. However, the Whole Foods by my work had the most beautiful zucchini arrangement last week and I couldn’t help but buy one and hope that I that I find a yummy recipe to put it in. Turns out, I did.

I introduce to you, Summer Skillet Pasta. I took this recipe from one on of my favorite blogs, Iowa Girl Eats. Her recipe calls for chicken sausage, but since I am a vegetarian, I decided not to use that ingredient (obvi). I know that there is some yummy vegetarian sausage at every grocery store, and I’m going to be honest with you ­– I was too lazy to get it. In my opinion, omitting that spicy sausage flavor didn’t take away from the dish at all.

This skillet took about 20 minutes to make, so it was perfect. (Did I mention how lazy I was feeling that day?)

Summer Skillet Pasta:

Ingredients:

8 oz penne, dry (or any pasta)
1/2lb spicy chicken sausage
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, sliced
1/2 shallot, sliced
1 zucchini, halved and sliced
salt & pepper
10oz cherry tomatoes
fresh basil
Romano or parmesan cheese, if desired

The Method:

1. Heat the skillet over medium and add extra virgin olive oil to the skillet. Add garlic slices and shallots and cook until they start to turn golden brown, about 1 minute. Add zucchini, season with salt and pepper, then saute until tender, about 4-5 minutes. Add cherry tomatoes then place a lid on top of the skillet and allow tomatoes to get hot and tender, about 3 minutes, stirring once or twice.

2. Meanwhile, cook penne in a large pot of salted boiling water. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta cooking water before draining.

3.. Add some of the pasta cooking water to create a sauce and make sure pasta isn’t sticking together Serve topped with torn fresh basil, and grated Romano or Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Farmer’s Market Fried Rice

 

Last night, I was a lone-diner. No complaints over here though – while Nick was having a love affair with his last Groupon steak, I was whipping up a unique version of fried rice. I stumbled upon this low-cal veggie packed phenomenon while looking for Farmer’s Market recipes. It only has 397 calories per serving! The amount you see on that plate was the perfect amount for dinner last night.

Originally posted by Eating Well, I decided to not mess with the recipe at all. And since my new job has a Whole Foods located right across the street, it was really easy to find all the ingredients it called for.  The thing I like best about Whole Foods is that it’s sort of set up like an outdoor Farmer’s Market in the produce section. Meaning, you can pick up the exact amount of produce that a single recipe calls for. For instance, this recipe called for only four Brussels sprouts, so I wasn’t forced to buy an entire bag sprouts that would eventually spoil. This may not be the same for all grocery stores in the US, but in AZ, it’s really hard to certain veggies, such as carrots, Brussels sprouts, green beans, etc. unbagged.

I had wanted to make this recipe for a while and I’m sad that Nick didn’t get to try it because it’s probably one of my favorite dishes that I have made. Ever.

For those of you with omnivorous significant others and family members, this dish could easily be paired with any type of meat. Steak, chicken, pork, even shrimp. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons plus 2 tablespoons peanut oil or canola oil, divided
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
• 1 cup 1/4-inch diced, peeled and cored parsnips
• 4 medium Brussels sprouts, trimmed and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 4 cups cold cooked brown rice
• 12 cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

 The Method:

1. Heat a 14-inch flat-bottomed wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds of contact. Swirl in 2 teaspoons oil, coating the bottom completely. Add beaten eggs and cook, tilting to cover the surface as thinly as possible to make an egg pancake. When the pancake is just set, 30 seconds to 1 minute, flip using a metal spatula and allow it to set for about 5 seconds. Transfer to a cutting board. Cut into bite-size pieces.
2. Swirl 1 tablespoon oil into the wok, add garlic and shallots and stir-fry, using a metal spatula, until fragrant, 10 seconds. Add parsnips and Brussels sprouts, reduce the heat to medium-high and stir-fry until the vegetables are nearly cooked through, about 2 minutes. Swirl in the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, add rice, tomatoes and soy sauce and stir-fry, breaking up the rice, until heated through, 2 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro, salt and pepper; add the egg pieces and toss to combine.