Dinner. I know it doesn’t look super appetizing bit it’s really tasty and packed full of vitamins.
Lentils with onion, carrot, broccoli, tomato and spices (cumin, coriander, ginger, cardamom, garlic)
You literally stick it all in a pot until the veg is cooked and serve it over brown rice.
Yum!
Kale and Lentil Soup
My stomach hasn’t been agreeing with me today, so I decided to make a simple but hearty soup that would be easy to digest. I didn’t have an exact plan, I simply added spices and ingredients here and there and came up with this. The soup turned out better than I could have expected. It’s flavorful and filling without being to salty or heavy.
Ingredients
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 large carrot, diced
- 3 celery stalks, diced
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 2 clove of garlic, diced or pressed
- 1 tsp ground or fresh ginger
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp fenugreek seeds, ground (optional since these can be hard to find)
- 1 litre of water or vegetable stock (I used water and 2 veg. bouillon cubes)
- 1 can of lentils undrained
- 1 - 2 cups of kale, chopped (depends on how green you like your soup! add as much or as little as you like)
- salt and pepper
In a med-large pot warm olive oil on medium and add the onion, carrots, celery and garlic. Cook and stir frequently for a few minutes then add the spices and stir. Cook until onions are semi translucent. Add stock and lentils and turn heat to high until boiling. Once boiling, reduce heat to simmer and add the kale. Taste the broth now, and add salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for aprox 10 minutes or until the carrots and kale are soft.
About 8 servings. 2 Points+ values per serving.
Dijon Herb Tenderloin and Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese
Tonight’s dinner was sooo tasty!
The Tenderloin
In a small bowl mix dried or fresh Rosemary, Basil, Thyme, Salt and Pepper (whatever amounts you wish, as long as it’s enough to cover the surface of the pork)
Add a spoonful or two of Dijon mustard, and about the same amount of olive oil to make a paste. Rub this over the surface of the pork.
Bake at 400 for 25 minutes then cut into medallions.
The Salad
You only need about 2 beets for the salad if you are serving two people but I did 6 and saved the rest in the fridge for future meals. You can roast them however you like but I find it’s easier to peel and chop them before hand. Mine took about 45 mins at 400 degrees.
At the last 10 minutes, remove you pan from the oven and drizzle some balsamic vinegar to coat.
Once the beets are mostly cooled, assemble your salad. You will need:
- Goat cheese crumbles
- Unsalted dry roasted almonds
- Some type of Balsamic vinaigrette (or make your own!)
Top with the beets and toss together then dig in.
Carrot Ginger Soup
I’m making this right now! Ryan is sick so I wanted to make something that would go down easy and feel nice on the throat. The original recipe was double the size, but since it’s just two of us I halved it. I also used yam instead of butternut squash and greek yogurt instead of heavy cream. Here’s my version:
- 1 small yam, diced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion, or 1/2 large onion chopped.
- 1/2 pound carrots - peeled and diced
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed or to taste
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp corriander
- 1 (1 inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 cups veg stock or water (i used one cup of each)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 pinch ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup greek yogurt (optional)
- Heat olive oil in a large saucepan or soup pot over medium heat. Add chopped onion and garlic, and cook, stirring until onion is translucent. Pour in the water, and add yam, carrots, cumin, corriander and ginger. Bring to a boil, and cook for at least 20 minutes, or until carrots and yams are tender.
- Puree the mixture in the blender, or using an immersion blender. Add boiling water if necessary to thin, but bear in mind this is meant to be a thick creamy soup. Return soup to the pan, and heat through. Season with salt, pepper and cinnamon.
- Ladle into serving bowls, and pour a thin swirl of yogurt over the top as a garnish if desired
The finsihed product should look like this:
Vegetarian Chipotle Chili and Pumpkin Cornbread.
I’m quite excited for tonight’s dinner. The two recipe’s I found will compliment each other nicely and they are both healthy and tasty!
Vegetarian Chipotle Chili (Source)
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1 can (28 oz/796 mL) diced tomatoes
3 cans (19 oz/540 mL each) mixed beans, rinsed and drained
2 tbsp chopped canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (I misread this and added the whole can by accident! This will be a spicy one.)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
In a Pot, saute carrots, onion, bell peppers and garlic in oil until tender, about 7 minutes. Add chili powder and cumin; cook and stir 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, beans and chipotle peppers.
Optional add ins: A tablespoon or two of brown sugar, a few squares of dark chocolate. I added both because of my chipotle mix up and they seem to tone down the spicyness a bit.
Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until mixture is slightly thickened, about 30 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serves 8.
I’ll be topping mine with a dollop of greek yogurt and maybe some chopped avocado. Yum!
Moosewood Restaurant Almost Fat-Free Cornbread
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 egg whites
3/4 cup nonfat yogurt or 3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup pumpkin puree or 1/2 cup sweet potatoes or 1/2 cup winter squash
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup unbleached white flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
Preheat oven to 350°F
Prepare an 8 inch square baking pan with oil or cooking spray.
In a large bowl, beat the brown sugar, egg white, yogurt or buttermilk, and pumpkin until frothy.
Sift the cornmeal, flour, salt and baking powder into the mixing bowl. Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just mixed.
Pour the batter into the oiled pan and bake, uncovered for 20 to 25 minutes.
This comes together so quickly, you can make it while the chili is simmering on the stove! It’s moist and sweet and really realy good.
Make it at Home: Indian Dahl
Bland food just doesn’t do it for me. If I’m cooking or eating at a restaurant, I prefer dishes with more complex and strong flavors over simpler, subtler options. Don’t get me wrong, I can appreciate food that tastes good without a lot of dressing up, but overall I love a good flavor punch in the face. Indian food has been a favorite of mine since I discovered my love for all things spicy as a teenager. As much as I love eating it at a restaurant where experienced chef’s have prepared it and it usually tastes amazing, it’s not always the healthiest option.
I’ve taken to making curries at home from scratch so I can control what goes in the dishes and reduce the fat content. Not to say that fat isn’t necessary, because it is, but I prefer to use good fats like olive or coconut oils in moderation. For instance, this recipe which my Dahl is based on, calls for 1/2 cup of vegetable oil to sautee the onions and garlic in which in my opinion is a little overkill. I used about a tablespoon of olive oil instead and it still tasted amazing. My advice is, don’t be afraid to tinker with recipes to suit them to your needs. Unless you add something odd or remove something integral it’s pretty difficult to mess up a good home cooked meal.
So here’s my version of the Dahl recipe. It does take about an hour to make, but it’s really worth it and it freezes very well for lunches and future dinners. I added tomatoes and fresh ginger as per the recommendation of The Kitchn which is one of my new fave cooking blogs. All the photos in the post are taken by them as my camera is packed away somewhere.
1 medium onion, chopped
1 small hot pepper, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 - 2 tablespoons olive or coconut oil
1 cup dried red lentils
1-2 cups vegetable broth or water
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1/8 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 medium can of diced tomatoes, undrained
1 tsp lemon juice
1 large handful of chopped fresh spinach (or 1/2 cup frozen)
Sautee onion, garlic and chilies in oil until onions are semi translucent.
Add all the spices and the lentils and stir to combine.
Pour enough water or stock to cover the mixture and let bring to a boil. Stir often.
Turn down heat and let simmer. Continue to stir often. When most of the liquid is absorbed by the lentils, add the can of tomatoes and lemon juice. (You may need to add a little more water here if the lentils are still a bit hard)
Simmer until the lentils are mushy and most of the excess liquid has been cooked down. You can use your judgement here, depending on what consistency you prefer.
At the last minute, add the spinach and stir until it has wilted.
Serve on top of basmati or brown rice and enjoy!
Recipe Experiment: Thai Prawn Coconut Curry Soup
After buying some coconut oil (since everyone’s been raving about it!) I decided to make up a recipe for this soup. It turned out so good I wanted to share the recipe with you.
Ingredients
8-10 raw prawns (I used frozen)
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 small piece of ginger, chopped
1 red chili, chopped (optional, it does make it extra spicy!)
1 tsp dried or chopped fresh Basil
1 tbsp Coconut Oil
1 tbsp Thai Red Curry Paste
2 cups Veggie or Chicken broth (I had some frozen so this is just an estimation, you can add more of less depending on how much broth you want)
1/2 can coconut milk
1 carrot, sliced, chopped or however you like it.
1 cup Spinach, Chopped
1 large handfull of Bean Sprouts
2 green onions, chopped.
The juice of 1/2 a lime.
Sautee The garlic, ginger, chili and basil in coconut oil for a minute or two. Add the prawns and cook until the outsides are pink. Add the curry paste and carrot, sautee for a minute longer. Pour in broth and coconut milk, bring to a boil. Add the spinach, bean sprouts and lime juice. Turn the heat down and simmer for about 5 mins. Keep checking your shrimp, you dont want them to overcook! Garnish with green onion and enjoy!
Serves Two.
Optional additions/substitutions:
Red and Green Pepper
Chicken or Tofu instead of Prawns
Rice or Buckwheat noodles - I was going to add these originally, but the sprouts and spinach make a good noddle substitute.
This is me seriously procrastinating. I went to the grocery store to get a few items and left with 70 bucks worth of food. Here’s the kicker: it was only 4 bags worth. Eating healthy is expensive!
Here’s some images of my meals from today.
First is steel cut oats with mango. This was my first time trying these and holy crap are they tasty. I retract my “oatmeal sucks” statement from before.
The other 2 is my lunch, a tuna melt on 5 grain bread from a local bakery.Tuna melts are prob one of my favorite lunch items, here’s my variation:
Ingredients (as shown in image above, before mixing)
1 pouch of tuna (much better than canned)
1 tsp light mayo (or a drizzle of olive oil)
2 tsp organic dijon mustard
1 small kosher pickle, chopped
lemon juice
garlic powder
cayenne pepper
black bepper
kosher salt
Shredded skim mozzarella.
This makes enough to put on 2 slices of bread. Pita is a good option too. Bake at 400 ish until cheese is brown and melty.
(Great for people who like tuna, and flavors that punch you in the face. yum!)
