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Spicy Lentil & Root Vegetable Stew

February 4, 2009 in Entrees, Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Entrees

I admit it, I’ve been cooking rather heavy stuff of late, even if they are healthy – lots of soups and stews and hearty fare. I can’t help it, it’s the hibernation impulse. And since I try to avoid driving in the snow whenever possible, I rely heavily on bulk items in the pantry – which is also a very economical way to go. This particular stew is a great one for cleaning out the pantry & tossing in whatever extra root veggies you like. Today I added a sweet potato and a celery root (celeriac), the latter of which added a nice, sweetish, clean taste into the mix. A parsnip would have been nice if I had one, too. Go crazy!

SPICY LENTIL STEW

5 cups vegetable broth

1 pound lentils, rinsed and sorted

1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes

1 large onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 large sweet potato, diced*

1 celery root, peeled and diced*

1 tablespoon chili powder

t teaspoons cumin

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)

coarse black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Bring broth to a boil in a stockpot. Add lentils, return to a boil and then reduce heat to a low simmer. Cover and cook for 20 minutes.  Add tomatoes, vegetables, spices, salt and pepper. Simmer uncovered and stirring frequently (you want it to reduce a bit and thicken up) for 30 minutes. Taste for seasoning and vegetable tenderness – cook longer if needed for vegetables (adding water if it becomes too thick).

Finish with the balsamic vinegar. Top each bowl with sour cream if desired.

*Or any other root vegetable you have on hand and like!

– posted by Anne

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Chocolate. Avocadoes. Together at last.

January 29, 2009 in Desserts, Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Vegan Recipes

I thought it was about time for a sweet (yet healthy) treat around here. The combination -Vietnamese in origin, in fact -may sound bizarre if you’ve never had it, but cast your doubts aside!  Try it for a treat. It’s decadent, but positively so.  It may seem strange to have a shake in January, but it’s so rich and satisfying that it seems all the more fitting as a light dessert at a time when we’re all still working off those holiday pounds. This version is naturally vegan.

CHOCOLATE AVOCADO SHAKE

1 ripe avocado
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups non-dairy milk (hemp. rice, almond, whatever)
5 or 6 ice cubes

Blend all in a blender or food processor on high until smooth. Makes 4 small servings or 2 very generous ones.

As reflected in the recipe, I prefer using non-dairy milks here, and am especially fond of hemp milk these days, as it’s quite nutritious. Whichever variety you use, I recommend the vanilla variety if possible. If you prefer, or don’t have any non-dairy milk on hand, skim cow’s milk would also work.

– posted by Anne

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'Tis the Season – or, Saved by Zero

January 15, 2009 in Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Side Dishes, Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Entrees

Sorry to invoke everyone’s least favorite commercial appropriation of a pop hit, but it’ll all make sense in a minute.

We here at FFF do strive to cook seasonally, especially since doing so is usually a very frugal way to cook as well. In the next few months you’re going to see a lot of stews, soups, and other nourishing foods, including comfort foods. But what’s more in season right now, in January, than focusing on health and, of course, trimming down a little?

I myself have the extra task this year of finally knuckling down to shed the rest of my baby weight (my daughter was born in April – it’s high time, don’t you think?), so I find myself turning to a classic that I’ve revamped a little – the well-known “Zero Soup”. It was originated by Weight Watchers (and counts for zero points, hence the title), but is really suitable for just about any diet plan, save perhaps for the most die-hard Atkins devotee. I just added a few extra vegetables, really, and you should feel free to do the same.

ZERO POINT VEGETABLE SOUP, a la FFF

nonstick cooking spray OR 1 tablespoon olive oil

2 carrots, peeled and diced

1 large onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

6 cups vegetable broth + 1-2 cups water

3 cups cabbage, shredded

1 leek, chopped (make sure to clean it well)

1 large parsnip, chopped

2 red bell peppers, chopped ( I sometimes use orange or yellow for the color)

1/2 pound frozen green beans

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 teaspoons dried basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, or more to taste

1 large zucchini, sliced into half-moons (this is definitely the biggest fudge seasonally, can be omitted)

Spray a large stockpot with cooking spray or add olive oil and heat on medium high. Add the carrots, onion and garlic and cook for about 5 minutes, until they just start to sweat. Add broth and all the remaining vegetables and spices EXCEPT the vinegar and zucchini, if using, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce to a simmer for about 20 minutes. Add vinegar and zucchini and cook until zucchini is tender.

*****

As it stands, it’s hyperbolically healthy and naturally versatile. Add any combination of veggies you like, with the exception of high-starch items like corn or beans – tread carefully there. Those will up both the calorie and carb content (though if you’re not as concerned about those, feel free). If you have some fresh basil, by all means substitute it for the dried. If you like more of a kick than this very simply seasoned soup gives, add some crushed red pepper or even a few dashes of sriracha.

As a bonus for you, I’ve calculated the calories per VERY LARGE serving. If you divide this into four hearty helpings, each bowl comes to 205 calories. But you could probably just as easily get 8 bowls out of it, bringing it down to a measly 102.5 calories. So chow down and feel virtuous!

– posted by Anne

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Our Inaugural Recipe: Ultimate Veggie Chili

January 8, 2009 in Gluten Free, Healthy Fare, Vegetarian Entrees

I thought this one would be the perfect recipe to kick off our fabulously frugal blog. This was featured in our cookbook “101 Things to Do With Tofu” (see our bios for more information on that and other projects we’ve done), and was also featured last year on the Food Network’s Ultimate Recipe Showdown! I was one of three finalists in the chili division on the “Comfort Foods” episode, and it wound up coming in 2nd place. Not bad for a ridiculously easy vegan chili!

Ultimate Veggie Chili

I’ll write more about the experience of filming Ultimate Recipe Showdown in a future entry if readers are interested. Now that their second season has started airing (just the other night), it’s interesting to see what changes they’ve made.

Anyway, I’ve worked on this recipe literally for years, fine tuning it and trying different ingredients and approaches. This version is the one that includes all of my favorite variations over the years. I love the combination of diced and crushed tomatoes, and I am partial to black beans and corn as a pair. I like this amount of spice, and the smokiness of the chipotle powder – but it goes without saying that you should adjust it as you please.

The cashews are probably the most unusual ingredient – I got that idea from a chili I used to eat regularly back in college, when I was a dance major at the Boston Conservatory. The Trident Bookstore & Café on Newbury Street had a very tasty veggie chili that included cashews – I loved both the texture and how they added a kind of additional meaty texture.

ULTIMATE VEGGIE CHILI

  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon each chipotle chili powder and red pepper flakes
  • 14 ounces extra-firm tofu, frozen and thawed
  • 2 (14-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
  • 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 (4-ounce) can diced jalapenos, drained
  • 1 (4-ounce) can green chiles, drained
  • 2 (14-ounce) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 (14-ounce) can dark kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 cup frozen corn*
  • 1 cup whole roasted cashews*
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

In a large stockpot, sauté onion, bell pepper, and garlic in the olive oil over medium-high heat until onions are starting to soften. Stir in cumin, chipotle, and red pepper flakes. Crumble the thawed tofu into the mixture and sauté 5 minutes more.

Reduce heat to medium. Add all tomatoes, jalapenos, green chiles, black beans, kidney beans, corn and cashews; mix well. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Add salt and pepper, to taste.

*****

As the recipe stands, it’s an effortlessly vegan recipe. I personally prefer to add a little sour cream and grated sharp cheddar, but it stands alone perfectly well too, or you could use a vegan sour cream and/or cheese.

This is a great pantry recipe – only a few fresh produce items are called for, and as I said before, it really couldn’t be much easier. The one technique that might be new to a lot of people is the freezing, thawing and crumbling of the tofu. This is a crucial step! The freezing process causes the moisture within the tofu to separate from the soybean curd, which results in a denser, chewier texture, which is perfect for crumbling into any recipe you would normally use ground beef, turkey, sausage, etc. If you tried to crumble the tofu without freezing it first, the texture is much more like scrambled egg than ground meat.

My favorite way to do this is, after defrosting the tofu, placing it in a clean dishtowel and wringing it out (this was demoed on camera in the Showdown), thus squeezing the water out and crumbling the tofu at the same time. I usually crumble it a bit more by hand after I open the towel, just to make sure it’s even – and then right into the pot it goes!

*As the recipe appeared on the Showdown (and still appears on the Food Network site), I used only ½ cup each of the corn and the cashews, but I found that I was ALWAYS adding more, so I went ahead and changed it. Such is the constantly evolving nature of my recipes.

– posted by Anne

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