Hearty 'Beef' Cassoulet

This recipe came from Peta's Vegetarian Starter Kit.

Serves 4 (but we had left overs). This was so good. The husband, 12 year old, AND the 3 year old loved it and have requested that I make it again someday. The husband and I think the "beef" had the texture and taste of real beef that has sat in the crock pot all day.

6 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 cups chopped onions (I did less because the husband doesn't love onions)

1 Tbsp. dried thyme

3 bay leaves

1/2 tsp. marjoram

1 tsp. dried rosemary

3 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 cup red wine

1 cup peeled and sliced carrots

3/4 cup sliced celery

1 cup cubed potatoes

1 cup diced tomatoes

3/4 cup cubed seitan

2 Tbsp. molasses

2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

1 15-oz can kidney beans, drained

1 15-oz can navy beans, drained

Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

1 cup whole wheat bread crumbs mixed with 3 Tbsp. olive oil

I used safflower oil instead of olive oil.

Preheat oven to 350 F

In a large pot, saute the garlic, onions, thyme, bay leaves, marjoram, and rosemary in the olive oil for about 2 minutes.

Add the wine, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the carrots, celery, potatoes, and tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the seitan, molasses, mustard, beans, salt, and pepper. Heat through.

Transfer to 6 15-oz oiled casserole dishes (I just did one large one). Top with the bread crumbs, cover, and bake for about 45 minutes.

Pumpkin Fudge Pie

Got this bad boy from 24 Carrots

Best pie ever.

Pumpkin and Peanut Butter Soup

This was better than I thought it would be. My 12 year old had seconds.

I will definitely make this again and I highly recommend. Very peanut buttery.

You can find the recipe here.

Melissa

Pumpkin and Raisin Biscuits

I found this lovely recipe here.

I didn't roll them out and make them perfect. I just did them like cookies. They tasted just as good and were a lot quicker to make. The orange icing was probably the best part.

The kids really enjoyed them.

Melissa

Vegan Banana Bread

This is an amazingly moist banana bread recipe. I couldn't eat it because I'm allergic to bananas. But I'm told it was delicious.

Melissa

Delectable Chili

Serves 6. This recipe comes from Saving Dinner the Vegetarian Way.

1 TBSP olive oil (I used safflower)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, pressed

2 (14 oz cans) red kidney beans

1 (15 oz can) chickpeas

4 cups tomato juice

2 TBSP chili powder

1 TBSP cumin

salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot, heat oil over medium-high heat and cook onion and garlic till onion is translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and stir together. Simmer on medium-low heat for 40-60 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Enjoy. My meat eating dad had some and he said it was very good.

Melissa

Vegan Pumpkin Pie

I found this amazing vegan pumpkin pie recipe. It was delicious. My non vegan dad loved it. So did my boys and my husband.

Melissa

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cinnamon Frosting

I found these on a great blog called, "Hell Yeah it's Vegan". That's what I wanted to say when I took these to work. People loved them.

My advice to you is to double the recipe. It didn't make as many as it claimed. Also, the consistency was more like muffins than cupcakes.

My 12 year old begged me not to take them to work.

Melissa

Baked Tofu

I made baked tofu in stir fry the other night. So much tastier than real or faux meat. My family loved it.

Melissa

Vegan Pumpkin Pancakes

I recently learned how to puree pumpkin. I made a ton of puree and froze it. It could easily last me all year. I found the pumpkin pancake recipe here.

I thought this was a great website on how to roast the pumpkin seeds.

My 12 year old said, "Pumpkin pancakes??!! I didn't know such a thing existed! WOW!".

They were amazing.

Melissa

Grandma Squash

We call this recipe grandma squash because my great grandma made it. I asked my dad for the recipe so I could try to make it vegan. I did and it came out so good that we forgot to take pictures. We were too busy stuffing our faces. I used Ener G Egg replacer and safflower oil. I didn't have mint which was probably a real shame for taste reasons. I used a ton of garlic salt instead.

Here's my dad's recipe. Shred zucchini into a bowl. Let it stand 1/2 hour then drain excess water. Add 1 egg, flour, mint and salt/pepper. Use enough flour to make it pancake like batter. More egg for more batter. Probably about 2 tablespoons of mint to start.

Heat olive oil in skillet then add batter and grill. Flip after brown on one side. Can be messy and tough to get the right consistency but always tastes great.

Melissa

Turkish Black-eyed Pea Salad with Pomegranates & Walnuts

I received 3 gorgeous pomegranates in my Bountiful Basket last week. I've never even seen a pomegranate, I've only eaten the seeds when I ordered it in something at a restaurant. So the first thing I had to do was learn how to get the seeds out. I went here to do that.

Then I googled some recipes and came across this one. It looked delicious and I had all of the ingredients.

It was really good and I made a ton. I should be sick of it by next week.

Revisions: Basil instead of parsley. Apple juice instead of pomegranate juice. No lemon (just because I forgot). I skipped the Za’atar.

I used romaine lettuce leaves and kind of ate it like a lettuce wrap.

Melissa

Pumpkin and Black Bean Casserole

I ordered a bunch of baking pumpkins from Bountiful Baskets last week. I've never cooked with pumpkins, but I love anything made with them. So I started googling away and found some great recipes to try.

I made pumpkin and black bean casserole the other night and my 12 year old raved about how good it was. I feasted on the left overs all week.

It was easier to make than it looks. The only thing that was a pain in the butt was peeling the pumpkin. I'm sure if I had a better knife it would have been easier.

My revisions: 1 can of corn instead of fresh or frozen. No onion. No green pepper. 1 Mexican Squash. Instead of the spices, I used a taco seasoning packet.

Melissa

Rigatoni with Zucchini and Eggplant

I made this last night and everyone loved it. I will make this for potlucks in the future. Or for company. Amazing.

I found the recipe here.

I made some revisions based on what I had. I used one small white zucchini and 1 whole medium eggplant. I only used about 6 oz of tofu because that's all I had. So I just did a dash or so of each ingredient that went into the tofu. I also used linguini. I skipped the vegan parmesan because I don't like it. Next time I make this I'll use all of the ingredients correctly. Next time I also won't try to cram it all into a too small casserole dish and make a mess in the oven. Oops. Oh well.

Melissa

Mega-Garlic Pasta

This recipe comes from the cookbook, "Saving Dinner The Vegetarian Way".

It serves six so I cut the recipe in half. I still have an insane amount of leftovers.

The following is the original recipe.

12 oz linguine

4 tbsp olive oil

12 garlic cloves, pressed

3 tsp red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain and keep warm.

Meanwhile, in a small skillet, heat 2 tbsp of oil (I used safflower) over medium-low heat. Add garlic, pepper flakes, and salt and pepper and saute till garlic is tender.

Toss pasta with remaining 2 tbsp oil (I used olive), basil, and garlic mixture. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.

The kids really loved this one. I did too. I'm already looking forward to leftovers.

Melissa

PS See the beets in the salad? I am still using the beets from bountiful baskets from 3 weeks ago. They are delicious but I'm getting sick of them.

Vegan Egg Sandwich

I loved egg sandwiches. That is until I learned how horribly laying hens are treated on factory farms. I have a friend who has true free range chickens. I would gladly eat those eggs. I didn't have any, but I did have tofu. I was inspired to try this after having vegan eggs benedict at 24 carrots today. I have made tofu scramble in the past and I love it. The vegan eggs benedict was ridiculously good.

I did a google search and found this recipe.

I added a little bit of turmeric as well. I'm having it with some celery and hummus. Amazingly delicious!

Melissa

Healthy Pasta Primavera

We made this dish together, it was a little timely cutting the vegetables, however this dish was delicious, we froze the leftovers in individual servings, and they thawed and reheated great!



Ingredients
1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 sweet orange peppers, cored, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch strips
1 pound spaghetti
3/4 cup half-and-half
3/4 cup chicken broth (I used vegetable broth)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 cloves garlic, sliced
2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Shaved Parmesan, optional

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add asparagus and green beans; cook 4 minutes. Add peppers and cook 1 more minute. Scoop out vegetables with a large slotted spoon and place in a colander. Rinse under cold water.

2. Add pasta to boiling water and cook following package directions, about 9 minutes. Drain; return to pot.

3. While pasta is cooking, place half-and-half, chicken broth, salt, pepper and nutmeg in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat.

4. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and garlic and cook 30 seconds. Add cooked veggies and tomatoes. Cook, stirring a few times, about 1 minute, 30 seconds. Spoon into pasta pot. Stir grated cheese into the half- and-half mixture. Add to pasta and gently stir in parsley until all ingredients are combined. Allow to stand for 5 minutes. Shave Parmesan on top, if desired

Quickest-Ever Spicy Marinara

This is another recipe from family circle... I loved it, my fiance liked it, he is getting used to pastas, and vegetarian meals LOL he loves his meat!!!

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 can (28 ounces) plum tomatoes in thick puree
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 pound extra-large (or traditional-size) rigatoni
1/2 cup fresh basil
6 tablespoons part-skim ricotta cheese

Directions
1. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add oil, onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally so garlic doesn't burn. Add tomato paste and cook 1 minute. Add tomatoes and puree, sugar, salt and red pepper flakes. Break up tomatoes with a wooden spoon. Cook, uncovered, over medium heat for 12 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. While sauce is simmering, cook pasta following package directions, about 10 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water.

3. Tear basil into bite-size pieces and stir into sauce. Toss pasta with sauce, adding 1/4 cup of reserved cooking water if needed to thin out sauce.

4. To serve, spoon pasta into individual serving bowls and top each with a tablespoon of ricotta.

Beet Soup

Remember in my previous post about my overabundance of beets from my bountiful basket? Well, I still have a bunch and they are still as good as new. So I found this recipe from Lisa's Kitchen.

Revisions: I used safflower oil instead of olive oil. I used half an onion and a stalk of celery. I used bulgur instead of barley, which didn't need to be presoaked. I used black eyed peas (beans) instead of black beans (I did soak them). I don't have fresh cracked pepper, so I just used regular black pepper. Just a few dashes. Instead of tamari I used Bragg's Liquid Amino Acids. I used a few dashes of dill weed instead of 1/2 cup of fresh dill. I left out the feta.

I had this with a side salad and garlic toast. My favorites. Yum.

Melissa

Pasta with Beets

I got about a dozen beets in my Bountiful Basket last week. I love beets but they are so messy that I never buy them. I did a google search for vegan beet recipes and this delicious recipe popped up. It was so easy and tasty!

I substituted celery for onion. I didn't have any onion, plus my husband hates it, unless it's in salsa. I didn't add greens. I did add about 6 cherry tomatoes, split in half. I also added 1/4 tsp of nutritional yeast and 1 tbsp of pine nuts.

I served this with fresh sliced mango and a side salad and garlic toast. I'm so full.

Melissa

Baked Orzo with Zucchini

This recipe comes from Vegetarian Times

I skipped the cheese. I could have used vegan cheese but I didn't feel like it. I threw in some pine nuts for protein. I skipped the leeks and used celery instead. I also didn't add salt to taste.

Delicious dinner. We had fresh mango, a salad, and garlic bread too.

Melissa

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

This was delicious and I will definitely make it again. I got the recipe from a tiny cookbook called Vegan A Go-Go! by Sarah Kramer.

1 small head of green cabbage

Filling:

1/4 cup bulgur

1/4 cup boiling water

1 small onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 large button mushrooms, minced

1 tbsp oil (I used safflower)

1 tbsp Braggs or tamari

1/8 tsp paprika

1/8 tsp black pepper

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

3 tbsp walnuts, finely chopped

1/2 cup cooked cabbage, finely chopped

Sauce:

2 large garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp olive oil

1 14-oz can diced tomatoes

1 5.5 oz can tomato paste

1 tsp sweetener (maple syrup or sugar)

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

Preheat ove to 350 F. Remove core from the cabbage and steam whole head for 20 minutes. Set aside to cool. Remove 6 large outer leaves and set aside.

To prepare the filling: in a small bowl, pour boiling water over bulgur. Cover with lid and set aside. In a medium saucepan on medium heat, saute the onions, garlic, and mushrooms in the oil until onions are translucent. Add the Braggs, paprika, pepper, cayenne, walnuts, and bulgur and saute for 6-8 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the cooked minced cabbage and set aside.

To prepare the sauce: in a medium saucepan on medium-low heat, saute the garlic in the oil until translucent. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Assemble cabbage rolls by dividing filling among the 6 reserved leaves. Roll each leaf and arrange in a lightly oiled 8x8 in baking dish. Spoon sauce evenly over top and bake for 20-25 minutes. Makes 2 large or 4 small servings. Sauce makes approx 2 cups.

Melissa

Chili

I love Healthy Bitch Daily. This was the easiest chili recipe I have ever made. I will make it for years to come. The husband and I devoured it.

I forgot to take a picture but chili looks like chili, you know?

Enjoy,

Melissa

Summertime Salad: White Bean and Veggie Medley

This is a really yummy and healthy salad. I found the recipe on Healthy Bitch Daily. The recipe was super easy.

Enjoy.

Melissa

Chocolate Chip Coconut Cookies

From Vegan A Go-Go! by Sarah Kramer

egg replacer to equal 1 egg (ener G egg replacer)

1/2 cup vegan margarine

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

3/4 cup vegan chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a food processor, blend the egg replacer, margarine, sugar, and vanilla until smooth and set aside (I used my muscles and a spoon and it was fine).

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and soda, salt, coconut and chocolate chips. Add the margarine mixture and stir until well incorporated. Roll dough into balls, lay on cookie sheet, and bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cookies cool 5 minutes before removing from sheet. Makes 18-24 cookies.

One of the best and easiest cookie recipes ever. MMMMM.

My friend had some last night and she said they were as good as Paradise Bakeries. :o)

Melissa

Fresh Tomato Pasta

Today I looked in my fridge and I found onion, garlic, parsley, and a whole bunch of tomatoes that looked like there were going to turn bad in a couple of days. So I decided to make up a recipe.

You can alter the amounts based on how much of each flavor you want. But here's how I did it. My 12 year old had 3rds he liked it so much.

2 TBSP red onion-minced

1 large clove garlic-minced

Saute these until garlic is very lightly browned over medium heat with some oil. I did maybe 1-2 minutes.

2 sprigs of parsley chopped

4-6 whole tomatoes diced

1 cup of olive oil

dash of pepper

pinch of sea salt

4 pepperoncini's (banana peppers)-diced

2 dried bay leaves, diced

Put all of the ingredients in a bowl and cover. Let marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Cook any kind of pasta that you want. Drain it and mix it with the sauce.

Very light summer dish. Enjoy.

I also thought some black olives and pine nuts would be good in this. Try adding a splash of lemon juice or red wine vinegar too. Maybe fresh mushrooms. Mmmm. The possibilities are endless.

Melissa

Seafood Pesto Pasta

So my fiancé gets Family Circle magazine, I'm not sure why, but there are some great recipes in it!! Tonight we had Seafood Pesto Pasta. It was a very quick to prepare, and we both loved it!! I didn't take my own picture of it, so I am borrowing the picture from the Family Circle website!! While on the website I found 3 more vegetarian recipes to make!!! Check it out by clicking HERE

Ingredients

• 3 cups frozen chopped broccoli
• 1 pound frozen bay scallops
• 3/4 pound frozen raw, peeled medium-size shrimp
• 2/3 cup low-sodium chicken broth (I used vegetable broth)
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 3 sprigs parsley
• 1 thick slice onion
• 1 thick slice lemon
• 1/2 pound angel hair pasta
• 7 tablespoons reduced-fat basil pesto (such as Buitoni)

Directions

1. Coat slow cooker bowl with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange broccoli on bottom of bowl, then top with frozen scallops and shrimp. Pour broth and wine over top, then add parsley, onion and lemon. Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours or LOW for 4 hours. Drain and discard parsley, onion and lemon.

2. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package, 7 minutes; reserve 1/2 cup water. Drain pasta; place in large serving bowl.

3. Add seafood and pesto to pasta; toss well to combine, adding pasta water by the tablespoonful, if needed.

Brittney

Loving Hut

Won Tons

Spring Rolls

Plain ole French Fries and Ketchup

My 3 yr old getting in on the action of taking photos of food.

Philly "Steak" Sandwich (It needed some vegan cheese)

Sweet & Sour "Chicken" (My 12 yr old said it tasted exactly like real chicken)

Chow Mein with tofu.

Curry soup. Very tasty.

Moo Shoo veggie style and very tasty.

Excellent Carrot Cake!

The Loving Hut

Okay, this place is weird. Weird television playing propaganda about Quakers and Veganism on the walls.

The service was really awful. They got our order wrong, never bussed our table and it took forever for them to take our order. Then my entree came out with our appetizer. My husbands appetizer came out last. There was only one other party in the restaurant too. I can't imagine what it would be like if they were busy.

The food was all delicious. A bit too much salt. The price is great and I would here again if it was closer to home. I would just order take out next time.

Anaheim Chile Soup

Okay, I got part of the recipe off of bountiful baskets on Facebook. But I kind of made it up. So if you can cook with out measuring things then just put in what you want and make it to your liking.

Carrots, celery, onion, corn, roasted chiles (you roast green chiles by placing them on the bbq for 5-10 minutes per side, then seal them in a plastic bag for 10-15 minutes. Take them out and peel the skins off and add them to the soup).

So the first thing I did was saute the carrots, onion, garlic, and celery (I wish I had added some zucchini or squash or potato). While you are doing this boil some corn on the cob.

Scrape the corn from the cob into the pan. Put the cobs in too. Cover all of this with water. Boil and then simmer uncovered until your veggies are cooked to your liking. Remove the cobs, throw them away.

Take some flour and some oil in a pan. Simmer and mix till brown. Add some veggie broth. Simmer this till a little thick. Add it to the soup. Add the chiles. Simmer a bit longer. The longer you simmer any soup or stew the more flavorful it'll be.

Enjoy. Very spicy.

Melissa

Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes

Steam a head of cauliflower in pieces. Put it in the blender with salt, pepper, and soy milk (however much you would use to make mashed potatoes, I never measure this). Blend till lump free. Add to a baking dish. Bake at 400 for about 10 minutes with some paprika sprinkled on top. It's really yummy.

Melissa

Spicy Tomato Ziti

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. chopped mushrooms
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1 35-oz. can Italian chopped tomatoes
1/2 tsp. hot red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lb. ziti
2 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and garlic and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juice, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

Cook the pasta in boiling salted water according to the package directions. Drain well. In a large serving bowl, toss the pasta with the sauce, sprinkle cheese on top and serve.

Brittney

Orzo Stuffed Peppers

1 cup orzo pasta
4 peppers

2/3 cup tightly packed fresh parsley
1 clove garlic
2 tbs olive oil
12 oz. faux ground beef-style crumbles
1 large can of Italian chopped stewed tomatoes
1 12-oz. jar tomato sauce

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Cook the orzo pasta according to the directions on the package. Drain and set aside.

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Cut the tops off the peppers (save them) and scrape out the insides, removing the seeds. Place the peppers into the boiling water, simmer for 3 minutes, remove from the water, and invert them onto a paper towel to drain.

In a large skillet, brown the beef-style crumbles in the oil and garlic over medium heat. Stir in the orzo, parsley, and can of tomatoes. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the mix

ture is heated through.
Pour the tomato sauce into an 8-inch glass baking dish. Fill the peppers with the “beef” mixture and place them into the baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes.

Makes 4 servings

Brittney

Black Eyed Bean Casserole

Oh boy. This might be my new favorite meal. I am so full from it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Black Eyed Bean Casserole.

Melissa

P.S. It made lots of leftovers.

Blueberry Muffins

I have been trying many muffin recipes. I finally found one I love. Vegan Blueberry Muffins. So moist and tasty. We couldn't eat just one.

Melissa

Bruschetta

Balsamic and Basil Bruschetta

Okay, my kids devoured these in seconds.

Melissa

Steamed Cabbage

Great recipe from here. I liked this because it doesn't make the house smell yucky like boiled cabbage does.

Melissa

Peach Cobbler

Had a sugar craving today and I had a whole bag of peaches in the fridge. So I googled vegan peach cobbler and this recipe came up.

It's delicious. Enjoy.

Melissa

Tempeh Stew

I made this in the crock pot the other day. So delicious. Enjoy. No picture. You'll just have to trust me on this one. The recipe is located here.

Melissa

My Favorite Pancake Recipe

I found the recipe here.

I make this once a week for myself and the kids. It's divine.

Sometimes I add fruit. Sometimes I use coconut milk instead of soy milk. Once I added walnuts. I always use whole wheat flour.

Enjoy!

Melissa

Brownies!

Today I went to one of my favorite restaurants, 24 Carrots. They serve vegan flax brownies that are to die for. But, oops, today the chocolate chips had dairy in them. So my mom and son had the brownie and loved it. So I came home and made my own.

I got the recipe here.

I added a few tablespoons of flax seeds and a handful of chocolate chips. Delicious!!

Melissa

Zpizza

Zpizza is my new favorite pizza place. You get to eat pizza cruelty free with their vegan pizza. And, you don't get that bloat that cheese gives you after you eat pizza.

My husband and I were shocked at how good this was. We thought it was real sausage and cheese for a minute. We thought, "oh no, they messed up our order!".

Zpizza has many locations. I hope you live near one. Oh, did I mention they have gluten free options and that everything is organic?

Quinoa Tacos

I made this recipe that I found on you tube. You can watch it here.

The kids loved it, but my husband thought it was too bland.

I eliminated the guacamole since I'm allergic to avocados.

I have been eating leftovers forever. So yummy.

Also in the photo is vegan nacho cheese over tortilla chips.

Melissa

Raspberry Chocolate Cake

My husband found this recipe here. We had it for Father's Day. It was so easy to make and so delicious.

Lentil Vegetable Soup

The whole family really enjoyed this one.

Makes 8 cups.

From Skinny Bitch in the Kitch

1 TBSP refined coconut oil
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch dice
1/2 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch dice
1/2 onion, cut into 1/2 inch dice
1 zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/2 inch slices
1 yellow squash, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/2 inch slices
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dried marjoram
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/8 tsp cayenne powder
6 cups low-sodium vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups lentils
1 TBSP tamari or soy sauce
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with juices

Heat the oil in a 4-6 quart stock pot over medium heat. Add the bell peppers and onion, stir occasionally for 2 minutes. Add zucchini, squash, garlic, and spices, stir occasionally for 1 minute.

Stir in the stock, lentils, and soy sauce. Increase the heat to high, boil, and then reduce to a simmer. Cook until the lentils are tender, about 30 minutes. Add the sesame oil and tomatoes, stirring until the tomatoes are heated through.

Pesto Pasta

This recipe is delicious. Everyone but the 3 year old liked it. He said the noodles were dirty.

It's from Peta.

Serves 4

2/3 cup basil pesto
1 9oz pkg fresh fettuccine
1 TBSP olive oil (I used safflower)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups sliced roasted red bell peppers
1/2 cup pitted olives, halved lengthwise (I used kalamata)
salt and pepper to taste

place pesto in a large bowl

cook pasta according to pkg directions

While pasta is cooking, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring until soft and fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the peppers and olives and cook, stirring until hot, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Drain the cooked pasta, reserving 1/3 cup of water. Whisk the pasta water into the pesto.

Add the pasta to the pesto and toss to combine. Add the peppers and olives and combine.

Divide among 4 bowls and serve immediately.

We actually had leftovers.

Melissa

Peach Crisp

The recipe is for apple crisp. However, I had so many peaches from Bountiful Baskets that I decided to substitute peaches for apples.

The entire family loved this, served warm and topped with soy cookie dough ice cream. Perfect spring time treat.

Melissa

Brussel Sprouts

I got this delicious recipe from this site.

The husband doesn't like brussel sprouts, so he had corn on the cob instead. The 3 year old said, "yucky". The 11 year old said, "these are good, but I prefer them the usual way". I'm guessing he means steamed, because that's the only way I have ever made them.

But I loved them. I hope you will too. Oh, I added apples like the website recommends.

Melissa