Fall into Spring

It’s been a hard week. My father passed away and we will soon be traveling to Fargo to celebrate his life. If I were to celebrate his life with his favorite food we would be having brats - he loved them. When I was a child we would go camping and he would cook them over the fire and serve them with beans. Later, he would do them on the grill - actually the last meal I shared with him included brats. 

I admit once in a while when I smell brats cooking on the grill I’m tempted to try one, but the urge only lasts a short time or it goes away after I try a bite. On the flip side I love baked beans (vegetarian that is). I’ll eat them warm or cold, alone or with a heavy grained bread, for breakfast, lunch or dinner - doesn’t really matter. 

All this talk about brats makes me think of Spring and grilling season. Spring has officially arrived in Minnesota; the garden is planted and the spinach, kale and collard greens are coming up! This year we’ve planted squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, herbs, broccoli, cauliflower, beans, peas, peppers, watermelon and eggplant. We’re skipping the carrots this year - too much real estate not enough return. 

I threw this salad together after looking in the fridge to see what we had. This salad is perfect for lunch or dinner and it’s vegan and gluten-free. I wanted to use lentils but realized half way through the chopping that we were out so I substituted navy beans. Next time I’ll use lentils I think they would pair better with the balsamic. With that being said it was delicious and hit the spot.

INGREDIENTS

1 large sweet potato, diced into ½ inch cubes

3 med carrots - 1/2 inch chop

2 tsp Herbs de Provence

2 Tbsp pure maple syrup

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, divided

1 yellow onion, diced

16oz brussels sprouts, thinly sliced

1 can beans (lentils, white, black) your choice

¼ cup balsamic vinegar

⅓ cup pepitas

½ tsp salt + pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 425F.

Combine sweet potato, carrots, Herbs de Provence, maple syrup, 1 tbsp olive oil, and a pinch of salt in a medium boil. Spread onto prepared baking sheet and roast for about 11-13 minutes. Toss and roast until golden, another 11-13 minutes.

Heat ½ tbsp olive oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes set aside. 

Heat ½ tbsp olive oil in a medium pan over medium heat. Add Brussels sprouts and cook until golden brown, 4-5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Add balsamic vinegar and remaining 2 tbsp olive oil to brussels sprouts and combine with onions, sweet potatoes and carrots. Adjust seasoning, top with pepitas and serve!

Vegetarian in 30 Minutes

Some days life has too many demands and dinner cannot take an hour to make. Last Tuesday was one of those days. I finished up late at work, was working on a Pampered Chef fundraiser, needed to make some phone calls and the bathroom was in dire need of cleaning. 

Now that Spring has arrived I want to spend time outside - on the deck, in the garden and walking in the neighborhood. Last week started a wonderful spate of beautiful weather; warm, sunny and pleasant. So when Tuesday rolled around I was searching for something healthy and fast - and this Buddha bowl was the ticket. 

The recipe serves 2 but you can easily double it and have leftovers for later in the week. This was so delicious, it will definitely go into the rotation and when the broccoli and spinach ripen in the garden - well let’s just say I can’t wait. 

Ingredients

Quinoa

1 Cup Quinoa rinsed

2 Cups Water

Roasted Chickpeas

1 can chickpeas

Drizzle Olive Oil or other neutral oil

1/2 Tsp Salt

1/2 Tsp Smoked Paprika

1 Tsp Adobo Chili Powder

1/8 Tsp Turmeric

1/2 Tsp Oregano

Red Pepper Sauce

1 Red Bell Pepper ribs and seeds removed

2 Tbs Olive Oil or other neutral oil

Juice from 1 Lemon

1/2 Tsp Pepper

1/2 Tsp Salt

1/2 Tsp Paprika

1/4 Cup Fresh Cilantro 

Add In’s

Steamed broccoli - I used one crown

Fresh spinach - Dan added spinach to his but I opted out 

Avocado - 1/2 avocado per person

Sesame seed (black or white)

Instructions

Prepare the quinoa by bring 2 cups water to a boil, then add quinoa. Simmer for about 15 minutes until all water is absorbed. When done, remove from heat and keep covered for about 10 minutes so quinoa can absorb any excess water.

Preheat oven to 425. In a bowl, toss chickpeas, oil, and spices until chickpeas are evenly coated. Roast on a stoneware baking sheet for 15 minutes. When done, remove from oven and let cool.

To make red pepper sauce, add all dressing ingredients to a high speed blender and blend until smooth. 

Assemble the buddha bowls. 

In two bowls, divide quinoa, steamed broccoli, spinach, avocados and chickpeas. Drizzle everything with red pepper sauce, and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

To be honest we should have made a double batch of the red pepper sauce - It was so delicious and I wanted to lick the bowl (Ok the roasted chick peas were pretty awesome too!).

A Perfect Cheese!

I stay away from cheese not because it comes from an animal, I stay away because when I eat too much it makes me sick. I’ve often told Dan that if I was going to die from eating too much cheese I’d want it to be Havarti with dill. I love the creaminess of the cheese and anything with dill in it has to be good for you right?

Over the years I’ve tried making a number of nut based cheeses but until recently the end result has left me less than enthused. Like the Havarti, I want my cheese to have that creamy feel on my tongue and I want the flavors; the garlic and herbs to come through. 

For those of you who are Facebook friends you might recall that last week I was on a cooking spree, I made my own vegetable broth from veggie scraps, then I made rhubarb and apple crisp (yes together) and I topped off the weekend making a vegan cheese from cashews. The longest part of the cheese making process is in the soaking of the cashews and waiting that hour after it bakes before eating, everything else is pretty painless and quick. 

I started with a recipe from My Vibrant Kitchen’s blog post from last November and then I changed it up a bit to suit my taste. To be honest this is the best non dairy cheese I’ve made to date. It’s flavorful, creamy and has the right amount of spices and flavor. The only thing I would do differently next time is put it in a loaf pan (instead of a 8 x 8) and make more than one batch (ok that’s actually 2 things). 

Ingredients

1 ½ cups cashews, soaked

½ cup water

5 garlic cloves

juice of 1 lemon

½ tsp salt

½ cup olive oil

3 - 4 Tbsp nutritional yeast

1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped

1 tsp fresh sage, chopped

1 tsp fresh oregano, chopped

Instructions

Soak the cashews overnight - if not overnight at least 8 hours but overnight produces the best results

Pre-heat the oven to 190˚C.

Drain the cashews and add them to a high-speed blender or food processor.

Peel the garlic cloves and juice the lemon and add both to the blender.

Add water, salt, olive oil and nutritional yeast and blend until the mixture is smooth and creamy.

Finely chop the herbs, add them to the blender and pulse until well combined.

Pour the mixture into an oven-save dish lined with baking paper and top with additional herbs.

Bake it for 40 minutes, then let it set in the fridge for 1 hour before slicing.

Enjoy on crackers, in a sandwich with avocado and tomato (this was my fav), or just slice it and eat the possibilities are endless. 

Thanks for stopping by!