Simple Quinoa Salad
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup quinoa
1 cucumber chopped
1 cup sliced grape
1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions or diced red onion
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
1/2 cup chopped mint leaves
Juice from 1 lemons
1/2 tsp Real Salt or sea salt
1 small avocado cubed
Bring water to boil, add quinoa, cover, reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes until tender. Let cool befor adding to salad. While quinoa is cooking, combine all other ingredients. Add cooled quinoa and mix well.
Chic peas are a nice additional to this salad to make it more filling. You could also make it Mexican style by adding black beans and using cilantro instead of parsley and mint.
Black Bean Patty
Enjoy these delicious patties as a burger or a “stack,” topped with a spread of avocado and topped with Simple Kale Salad, Simple Quinoa Salad and garden fresh tomatoes.
2 ½ cups cooked black bean
1 cup oats
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chopped button mushrooms
1/4 cup bottled or canned green chilies
1 1/2 t chili powder
1 t cumin powder
1 t onion powder
1/2 t oregano
1/4 t smoked paprika
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 t Sea salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using a pastry cutter, mash all ingredients together until the mixture is sticky enough to hold together in a patty. Form into patties and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake 25 minutes, flip and cook an additional 5 – 10 minutes. Serve on a bun with your favorite toppings or in a “stack.”
Chipotle Patties/Burgers
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup chopped mushrooms, baby bella or button
2 cups cooked kidney beans
1 cup rolled oats
1 1/2 t Mrs. Dash Chipotle Seasoning
3 T tomato paste
2 T salsa
1 t oregano
1 t t thyme
1 t cumin
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mash all ingredients with a pastry cutter until the mixture becomes sticky and hold together. Measure out 1/2 cup portions and drop on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Shape into patties and bake for 25 minutes. Flip and bake an additional 10 minutes. Serve on a bun with your favorite burger toppings. Makes 7 – 8 patties.
April’s note: I love to top the patties with steamed kale or collard greens with ground up pumpkin or sunflower seeds, or mashed avocado mixed in. I grind about 2 – 4 T of seeds to one bunch of kale or collards. A southwest quinoa salad is also great served on top of the patties.
Cauliflower Chic Pea Curry
1 head cauliflower
1 t fennel seeds
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 T minced ginger
1 T coriander
1 T cumin
1/4 t red chili flakes (more if you like more heat)
1 14 oz. can crushed tomatoes
2 t garam masala
Sea salt to taste
1/4 t black pepper
1/4 cup cilantro
Break cauliflower into small florets and set aside. Heat a medium sauce pan over medium high heat. Add fennel seeds and toast until fragrant, 2 – 3 minutes, stirring to keep from burning. Add onion and sauté until it starts to brown. Add garlic, ginger, coriander, cumin and red pepper flakes. Stir for 2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water and cauliflower florets. Cook until cauliflower is tender adding more water if needed. Add tomatoes, garam masala, and pepper. Cook an additional 5 minutes. Stir in cilantro before serving or serve on top of individual portions as garnish. Serve over sweet potato, brown rice or other whole grain.
Cauliflower Tacos
The only vegetable in the fridge was a head of cauliflower and I really wanted Mexican food. So I did a recipe search for cauliflower tacos, came up with a few selections and created a recipe of my own. These were very delicious and quick and easy to make.
1/2 cup dry green lentils
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small head cauliflower, finely chopped
1 cup chopped mushrooms
2 T chili powder
2 t cumin
1 t smoked paprika
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t onion powder
Juice from 1 lime
Salt to taste
Boil 1 cup water. Add lentils, cover, and cook until tender. Add more water if needed.
Saute onion in a dry medium sauce pan over medium high heat until they start to brown. Add garlic and cauliflower and a tablespoon or two of water and continue to saute for 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and spices and cook until cauliflower is tender. Drain off excess water from lentils then add cooked lentils to cauliflower. Mix well. Soften corn tortillas by steaming them in a double boiler for 15 – 20 seconds. Fill with cauliflower taco meat, top with shredded cabbage, tomato, guacamole, and salsa.
Vegetable Pot Pie w/ Biscuit Crust
Florets from 1 head cauliflower
2 cups water
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 medium carrots, sliced
4 ribs celery, sliced
3 cups small broccoli florets
2 cups chopped mushrooms, cremini or white button
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 T dried parsley or 1/2 cup fresh
1 t dried sage
2 t dried thyme
2 cups frozen green peas
3 T Chicken Style Seasoning (See below)
1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 Biscuit Crust
In large covered pot, steam cauliflower florets in 2 cups water until tender. Spoon out cauliflower and 1 cup of broth into blender jar. Set aside. In the same pot, add 1/2 cup water, raw vegetables, and herbs. Sauté until carrots and broccoli are tender. Add more water if needed. Blend the steamed cauliflower with the Chicken Style Seasoning and seeds until creamy. Pour over vegetables, add peas, and mix well. Transfer to casserole dish. Cover with prepared Biscuit Crust. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 – 12 minutes.
Biscuit Crust
2 cups sifted white wheat flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t sea salt
1/2 cup raw cashews
3/4 cup water
Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in large bowl and mix well. Blend cashews and water until smooth. Gradually add to dry ingredients and mix until dough forms a ball. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 30 seconds to form a smooth ball. Roll to 1/2 inch thick and shape as desired. Cover pot pie.
Chicken Style Seasoning (Recipe from JoAnn Rachor, author of “Of These Ye May Freely Eat)
1 1/3 cups nutritional yeast
3 T onion powder
3 T sea salt
1 1/2 T dried basil
1 T garlic powder
1 t dried oregano
1/2 t turmeric for color
Grind all ingredients in a coffee grinder or high-powered blender until smooth. Store seasoning in a glass jar
Spicy Collards and Black-Eyed Pea Soup
Adapted from Fatfree Vegan Kitchen
1 large onion, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
3 – 4 garlic cloves, minced
1 pounds collards greens with stalks, chopped
1 1/2 t thyme
2 t oregano
1 cup chopped muchrooms, cremini or white button
4 – 6 cups water or vegetable broth
1 4 oz. can diced green chilies
1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
2 1/2 – 3 cups cooked black-eyed peas
1 T apple cider vinegar
1/2 t Mrs. Dash Chipotle Seasoning
1/2 t smoked paprika
1/4 t black pepper
Sauté onion in a dry soup pot over medium high heat until it starts to brown. Add 1 cup water or broth, celery, garlic, collards, and thyme and oregano. Cover and cook for 5 – 10 minutes until collards begin to soften. Add remaining ingredients including 3 – 5 more cups of water or broth depending on the desired thickness of soup.
Options: Stir in a cooked grain such as rice, millet, quinoa or wheat berries for a more filling meal.
Stirred in cashew cream or Seed Sour Cream.
Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna
10 whole wheat lasagna noodles
1 eggplant
1/2 cup dry millet cooked in 1 cup water
2 T balsamic vinegar
1 T tamari soy sauce
1 small onion chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
1 pound mushrooms sliced
1 pound of fresh spinach chopped
1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 T nutritional yeast
Juice of 1/2 a lime
1 jar fat free vegan marinara/pasta sauce
Sliced olives for garnish
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Thinly slice eggplant and lay on cookie sheet that has been lined with parchment paper. Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions. In a small sauce pan boil 1 cup of water, add the millet, and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Add balsamic vinegar, tamari, onion, and garlic to a large stock pot. Cook on medium-high for 2–3 minutes. Add sliced mushrooms and cook until soft. Add spinach and cook until wilted.
Drain the broth from the spinach mixture into a measuring cup. Add water to make 1 cup if needed. Pour liquid into a blender and add the cooked millet, sunflower seeds, seasonings and lime juice. Blend until smooth. Add this cream sauce to the spinach and mushrooms and mix well.
Ladle 1/3 of the marinara on the bottom of a 13×9 casserole dish. Layer noodles to cover bottom. Spread 1/2 the spinach mixture over noodles. Top with 1 layer of eggplant, 1/3 sauce, rest of spinach, layer of noodles, and remaining sauce. Sprinkle nutritional yeast on top and add sliced olives. Bake for 20 minutes.
Spaghetti Squash Garbanzo
1 spaghetti squash cooked ahead of time*
1 onion, chopped
2 cups sliced mushrooms, cremini or white button
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 t crushed red pepper flakes
1 14 oz. can crushed tomatoes
10 oz. fresh spinach or kale chopped
1 T Italian seasoning
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
3 cups cooked garbanzo beans
1 cup cooked wheat berries (page 29)
3 T Sesame Parmesan
Sea salt
*Bake spaghetti squash in 350 degree oven for one hour or until soft. Sauté onion, mushrooms, and garlic in 1/4 cup water over medium-high heat for 2 – 3 minutes. Add red pepper flakes, chopped tomatoes, and greens. Cook until tender, adding more water if needed. Add Italian seasoning, tomato paste, beans, and wheat berries. Cook additional 5 minutes. Stir in Sesame Parmesan and salt to taste. To prepare squash, cut lengthwise, remove seeds and scoop out flesh, and spread evenly on a platter. Cover with bean mixture. Garnish with Sesame Parmesan.
Hoppin John Zucchini Salad
1/2 cup long-grain brown rice
2 medium zucchini shredded
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup red onion minced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley
2 ears corn, cut off the cob
2 cups cooked black-eyed peas
1 avocado, diced
Zest of one lime
Juice of 2 limes
Sea salt
A few dashes of cayenne pepper
Chopped tomato for garnish
Boil 1 cup water, add rice, lower heat to simmer, and cook for 20 – 30 minutes until tender. Let cool. Place all other ingredients in a large salad bowl. Mix well. Salt to taste. Gently mix in tomatoes or garnish on top each serving.
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