Spaghetti with Lentils

I read somewhere, a while back, about using lentils in place of ground beef in spaghetti. It actually is a great substitute and turned out better than I expected. Even the Mister thought it was good, which is 1) rare with my "weird food" dishes, and 2) saying something because he usually prefers meat over beans and the like.


All you do for this dish is in place of cooked ground beef, add cooked lentils. Use your usual sauce and noodles. Enjoy!

Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

So I have to admit, this recipe is a personal creation, but it's pretty tasty. It could top a myriad of dishes, from tofu or chicken, to vegetables or crackers. I love roasted vegetables so it was easy to like this one.

3 red peppers, halved, cleaned out and roughly chopped into 2" cubes
olive oil
salt and pepper
pinch of sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon chicken base

Lay peppers on cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix to coat. Roast peppers in 425 F oven until tender, about 20 minutes. Place in food processor and pulse until peppers are thoroughly crushed. Add a few pinches of sugar, oregano and chicken base. Pulse until at desired texture. Add more salt and pepper to taste. Can also add water to make it thinner.

Trainer Momma's Power Granola

This stuff is so good, with a mild orange-y taste. I love it.


photo and recipe

2 cups regular oats
1/3 cup ground flaxseed
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup chopped slivered almonds
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/3 cup orange juice
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cooking spray
1/3 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 300°.

Combine first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl.

Combine orange juice, honey, and brown sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat just until sugar dissolves, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in oil and vanilla.

Pour honey mixture over oat mixture, stirring to coat. Spread mixture in a thin layer onto cookie sheet coated with cooking spray.

Bake at 300° for 10 minutes; stir well. Bake an additional 15 minutes or until golden brown. Spoon granola into a bowl; stir in dried cranberries. Cool completely.

Makes 4 3/4 cups. Each serving is 1/4 cup at 93 calories.

Easy Sauteed Tofu

I really do like tofu, but it has to be prepared right, with enough seasoning, or it tastes too bland for my palate. I got this idea from this Dinosaur Meat recipe, of simply breading the tofu in s+p and whole wheat flour, then pan frying it, and it has become a weekly staple for me. You could easily use this breading method with alot of protein sources, like chicken, beef, seitan, and of course, tofu.

14-ounce package firm tofu
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 pinches seasoning salt
2 tablespoons oil

Slice the tofu into 1/2" wide cubes. Fill a baggie with flour and salt and shake the tofu around. Heat a pan with two tablespoons of oil and sprinkle off the excess flour mixture as you put the tofu in the pan. Fry till golden on all sides.

Veggie Bean Tacos

I like to combine cooked vegetables and beans for an easy, one-pot filling for tacos or just by themselves. There really is no end to the possibilities of veggie/bean combinations. Though I like to start by sauteeing a diced onion in olive oil, if you don't have any onions, you can just make it without.

1/2 onion, diced

olive oil

1/2 red pepper, diced

1 large zucchini, diced

1 can beans, drained (i.e. pinto, garbanzo, black-eyed peas, black)

seasoning salt

pepper

Heat a few splashes of olive oil in a large non-stick skillet. Add the diced onions and saute over medium-high heat until they start to soften. Add the pepper and zucchini and saute until zucchini just barely turns translucent. Add the beans and turn to medium-low, then add several dashes of seasoning salt and pepper, to the taste. Simmer for five minutes.

Can serve with grated cheese, sour cream, salsa, tomato and/or avocado.

Creamy Bean and Green Chile Enchiladas

I have been craving Mexican food for a few days and kept mulling over what I wanted. I decided on enchiladas. Mine usually turn out dry and I wanted these moist. I wanted an almost chile-relleno-like texture. I considered steaming them like tamales, but then decided against it. But that's the moistness level I was going for. I also wanted something meatless. And usually I don't eat cheese or sour cream, but I was feeling like treating myself. So, these aren't vegan, but they are meatless and I think they tasted pretty darn good. My kids asked for seconds and thirds (Finn called it lasagna). Little did they know they were eating something containing zucchini and beans! At any rate, like usual, feel free to tweak to your preferences.


16 corn tortillas
canola oil, for frying
1/2 sweet onion, diced fine
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 zucchini, shredded fine
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
few dashes cayenne pepper
4-ounce can diced green chiles
2 green onions, diced fine
1/2 cup green chile sauce
15-ounce can white cannellini beans, drained
15-ounce can pinto beans, drained
2 cups sour cream, divided
2/3 can Campbells' cheddar cheese soup
1 bag shredded colby-jack cheese


In nonstick skillet, heat oil and cook tortillas in it on each side until browned (about 20 seconds per side). Set aside.

In same large nonstick skillet, saute onion, garlic and zucchini until onion is translucent and mixture loses its juices. Add coriander, cumin, seasoning salt, pepper and cayenne pepper. Add diced green chiles, green onions and green chile sauce. Saute over medium-high heat until heated through and incorporated, about 3 minutes.

In large mixing bowl, mash cannellini and pinto beans with potato masher until creamy. Add 1 cup sour cream, cheddar cheese soup, colby jack cheese and 2/3 of chile mixture in skillet. Mix to incorporate. Can add more seasoning salt, pepper and/or cumin, to taste.

In small mixing bowl, mix 1 cup sour cream and remaining 1/3 chile mixture. Mix well.

Assembly: In 9x13 pan, spread 1/2 of the sour cream/chile mixture on bottom of pan. Take one of the tortillas and spread about 1/4 cup of bean/sour cream/cheese mixture in the middle, then roll up and place seam side down in prepared pan. Repeat until the pan is full. Spread remaining sour cream/chile mixture over enchiladas. Then cover with remaining colby jack cheese.

Cover with foil and bake at 335 F for 40 minutes. Take the foil off and broil on high for 3 minutes, or until cheese is browned and bubbly. Serve with chopped lettuce, sour cream, guacamole and salsa, if desired. Also, makes a great accompaniment to this Spanish Rice.

Vegetarian Sloppy Joes


I love sloppy joes. I always have. And I was not about to stop eating them just because I resolved to eat less meat. So, I played around with sloppy joe mixes and sauces, rice and beans, and came up with a pretty good alternative to the meat version. As always, feel free to substitute and tweak according to your tastes and/or what you have on hand.

1 15-ounce can red kidney beans, drained
1-15 ounce can pinto beans or black beans, drained
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 packet sloppy joe seasoning mix or 1 can sloppy joe sauce
1 can tomato paste (if using seasoning mix)

In a medium sauce pan, warm the tomato paste, water and seasoning mix according to package directions. Or, pour sloppy joe sauce into pan, if using that instead. Mix in the beans and rice, heat through and serve on whole wheat buns. Alternative cooking method: crock pot.

Easy peasy!

Note: I prefer homemade sloppy joes, rather than using flavoring packets, but I have yet to find a homemade recipe that I like. So, if you have a good one, please let me know. I would love to try it.