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Showing posts with label carrots. Show all posts
Showing posts with label carrots. Show all posts

Seitan With Broccoli



 
My kids aren't the best at eating vegetables on their own, so I try to think of ways to throw a variety of veggies together in one meal so they get a good variety in one shot.  Stir-fries are a good way to accomplish this.  My husband used to love Beef and Broccoli so I have created a "plant" version so we can still enjoy it.  He loves this recipe - even the seitan.  My kids aren't big seitan eaters, but they also love this recipe.  I hope your family enjoy it too! 

We serve it over brown rice or quinoa usually but any grain will do.  OR you can just eat it by itself. You will also want to make the baked seitan recipe ahead of time (it takes 90+ minutes). Otherwise this is a pretty quick meal to make.  If you want to go without seitan - just throw in some extra veggies that you like instead.


Seitan with Broccoli
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
3 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
3 Tbsp hoisin sauce
2 Tbsp rice wine
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp cornstarch
½ recipe baked seitan, thinly sliced
1 lb (4-5 cups) broccoli broken into bite-size pieces
1 bell pepper, cored and sliced
1 carrot, sliced on the diagonal
¾ cup onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
¼ tsp Better Than Bouillon, No Beef Base
¼ cup water
Directions
Combine the soy sauce, hoisin, rice wine, brown sugar, and cornstarch in a mixing bowl.  Whisk to combine the liquid with the cornstarch.  Mix in the seitan and let marinate for 30 minutes.
 
Heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat.  Add the broccoli, bell pepper, carrot, onion, garlic and ginger and stir-fry.  Stir the vegetables frequently for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables have softened.  Add the seitan and its marinade and continue cooking, stirring frequently for about 5 minutes. 
 
Whisk together the bouillon and water in a small bowl.  Add it to the vegetables and seitan and cook for another 2 minutes, until the sauce thickens and clings to the seitan and vegetables. 
 
Serve over brown rice or quinoa if you like.
 

Chickpea and Rice Soup


I have a new recipe that I know you are going to love.  This is one my family races to the fridge the next day, and this only if we didn't pig out on it the night before!  I found it on one of my favorite blogs http://www.theppk.com/.  I tweaked it for my needs and it turned out so delicious!  It reminds me of a creamy chicken soup - except there is no chicken.  I made it for my parents and a non-vegan friend of theirs and it was definitely a hit!  My mom is not a big fan of chickpeas, but she loved the soup!  The chickpeas are so creamy they almost seem to melt in your mouth.  And if you are new to kale - this is a good recipe to try.  This is one soup you will want to make over and over again!


Chickpea and Rice Soup
Prep time:  10 minutes
Cook time:  1 hour
Makes:  4-6 servings

Ingredients:
3/4 cup cashews, soaked in water for 2 hours or overnight
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried rosemary
3/4 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp salt
Fresh black pepper
3/4 cup brown rice, rinsed
3 ribs celery, thinly sliced
1 cup carrots, diced chunky
5 cups no chicken broth (Better Than Bouillon)
2 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (about 3 cups)
4 cups chopped kale

Directions:
Drain the cashews and place them in a blender with one cup of fresh water. Blend until completely smooth, scraping the sides of the food processor with a spatula occasionally to make sure you get everything. This could 1 to 5 minutes depending on the strength of your blender.

Preheat a stock pot over medium heat. Sauté onion with a pinch of salt for about 5 minutes, until translucent. Add garlic, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper and sauté a minute more.

Add rice, celery and carrots and then pour in the broth. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, bring down to a simmer, add the chickpeas, and let cook for about 30 more minutes, or until rice is cooked and carrots are tender.

Add the cashew cream and kale, and simmer until kale is wilted, 3 to 5 more minutes. You may need to add water to thin the soup if it seems too thick. Taste for salt and seasonings and let sit for 10 minutes or so to allow the flavors to marry.

It thickens as it cools, so if you have leftovers, just thin with a little water when you reheat.

Asian Salad Bowls


Sometimes when I've had a busy day, cooking dinner is one of the last things I feel like doing.  But I don't want us all to have to go without dinner!

A robot like Rosey from the cartoon The Jetsons would be nice.  Probably not going to happen anytime soon (or ever - unless my engineer daughter makes me one)!

So, besides maybe a bowl of cereal (my family would probably protest) I like to try to keep it simple.  So here is a quick and easy dinner for those nights I feel lazy.  It's so delicious and a nice light meal for a summer night too!



Asian Salad Bowls
Serves 4

1/4 cup water
1Tbsp cornstarch
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce (I like to use Kikkoman from the Asian aisle)
2 rounded cups chickpeas
1 8 oz. can water chestnuts, coarsely chopped
Crunchy chow mein noodles
2 carrots, shredded
spring salad mix

Whisk together water and cornstarch in a bowl until smooth.  Stir in teriyaki sauce.  Add chickpeas and water chestnuts, stir to coat.  Marinate for 30 minutes. 

Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Pour the chickpea mixture into skillet and heat until it is heated through, about 10 minutes.

Serve the hot chickpea mixture over the spring salad, carrots, and chow mein noodles (in that order) in individual bowls.