Easy Veggie Chili

There are so many reasons to love veggie chili: it's easy to make, it freezes great, it's delicious and warming on a cold winter day, it's a great take-along dish (tailgating, etc).

This recipe in particular is a favorite, just because of how easy it is. I am sure there are fancier recipes to knock your socks off (see list at bottom). But I stick to my favorite, because when I'm making chili, I am not usually in the mood to put in extra 'knock your socks off' effort. This is warm (not spicy) and delicious, and hits the spot every time.


If you have time and feel like putting in some extra effort, make cornbread muffins to go with the chili. This combo will make you very happy.

Veggie Chili
adapted from CookingLight

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup diced green peppers
2 carrots, chopped (chunky)
3 celery stalks, chopped
2 garlic cloves, diced
1 small can of corn kernels (approx. 1/2 cup)
1 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can black beans
1 can chickpeas
2 cups of water, divided
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, for topping (optional)


Chop/dice all your vegetables.

Heat oil in large pot, then add onion through garlic and saute 7-8 minutes.

Add corn through beans, and 1 1/2 cups water, bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes. Add additional water as necessary, so the chili doesn't dry out or burn on the bottom of the pan. Serve warm, with shredded cheese sprinkled on top.

Notes:
* You can use up to 4 cans of beans (and almost any variety you want: kidney, cannellini, butter beans, etc), but Tim doesn't like chili too 'beany' and therefore I use only 2 cans. Tastes great either way!
* Additional vegetables to add/substitute: diced celery, zucchini, red/yellow/orange bell peppers

More great chili recipes:
- Spicy Vegetarian Chili, from Simply Recipes
- Butternut Chili, from Karina's Kitchen
- Quick Vegetarian Chili with Avocado Salsa, from CookingLight

Guten appetit!

Hearty, Healthy Lentil Stew

This is one of my favorite winter meals. Complete comfort food.

Requires a bit of time (to cook the lentils and rice), but the preparation and work involved is very minimal. It's simple, packed with flavor, warm and healthy. Bring on the snow! I'll be tucked away on the couch, resting my big pregnant belly, watching a movie and eating lentil stew with fresh, crusty whole wheat bread. (sigh)

If you're a skier/snow-shoer, consider bringing this in your thermos instead of chili. Does a similar job, and would be a nice change.

A toast: To warm food, and cold days!



Lentil Stew
from Cooking Light

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 1/4 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped carrot
1 garlic clove, sliced
4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup water
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained
1 cup dried lentils
3/4 cup instant brown rice
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper


Heat oil in a small Dutch oven over medium-high heat.

Add onion, celery, carrot, and garlic to pan; sauté 8 minutes or until tender.

Add broth, water, and tomatoes; bring to a boil.

Stir in lentils; simmer 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in rice; simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in red pepper, salt, and black pepper.

More lentil soup recipes:
- Syrian Vegetarian Red Lentil Soup, from Herbivoracious
- Lentil and Escarole Soup, from Farmgirl Fare (use Vegetable Broth)
- Moroccan Lentil Soup, from A Year in Crockpotting

Guten appetit!

Black Bean and Spinach Lasagna

Have a lot going on this holiday season?? I love it, but it can be exhausting.

You sail through Halloween because it's the first; you/the kids dress up, everyone's excited, fall has arrived, etc, etc. Then Thanksgiving comes around and it's a family chaos bonanza, and you love it too because of the traditions, having everyone gather, and eating too much (mmm, pumpkin pie!). Then a few days later, barely recovered from Thanksgiving, December hits and you're in a shopping frenzy, going to holiday parties, friend/family open houses, and before you know it... cooking is a distant memory and a dinner of snickers and apple seems OK.

STOP. I have a great solution!


Black Bean and Spinach Lasagna. Yes, it's your solution. Why? Because it's delicious, it makes a ton, and freezes great. Make the recipe and cook half for dinner this week, and put the other half in your freezer for 2 weeks from now, when you are not even remotely going to want to cook OR have time to cook. A half-recipe will easily feed 3-4 people with a side (try garlic bread, or simple salad).

I'm wishing you fun, laughter and energy (given to your body through eating well!) this holiday season. Enjoy these moments.

Black Bean and Spinach Lasagne
from Cooking Light

2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional, I omitted this as Tim doesn't like cilantro)
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups (16 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese with peppers (I used a mixed pre-shredded bag of cheddar and emmentaler), divided
2 (16-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (2-pound, 13-ounce) jar pasta sauce (try the Smokey Marinara sauce, tastes great!)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
9 precooked lasagna noodles
Garnish: chopped fresh cilantro (optional)


Stir together first 5 ingredients and 1 cup shredded cheese; set aside.

Mash beans with a potato masher or fork in a large bowl (* VERY important to do this first, as I dumped in the pasta sauce too quickly and found it hard to mash the beans after); stir in pasta sauce and cumin.

Spread one-third of bean mixture on bottom of a lightly greased 13x9 inch baking dish (use 2 smaller pans if you are going to divide the lasagna and freeze half).

Layer with 3 noodles, half of spinach mixture, and 1 cup cheese; repeat layers.

When you are close to the end: spread with one-third bean mixture, top with remaining 3 noodles and remaining bean mixture.

Bake, covered, at 350 for 1 hour; uncover and top with remaining cheese. Bake 5 more minutes or until cheese melts. Garnish, if desired.

Lasagna, lasagna and more lasagna:
- Roast Vegetable Lasagne, from Exclusively Food
- Roasted Squash-Onion Lasagna, from One Hot Stove
- Fennel and Tomato Lasagna, from Mostly Eating
- 3 Cheese Pesto Vegetable Lasagna, from Ms. Adventures in Italy

Guten appetit!

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

I planted, from seed, a zucchini plant this year. I am embarrassed to show you how spindly and bad it looks...


Note to self and all future zucchini growers: zucchini plants do not, repeat NOT, like being planted in a pot. Plant in rich, fertile soil in the GROUND. Ah well, it had some pretty flowers on it, yet no zucchini survived growing larger than 3 inches.

If you had more luck than me and have a bounty of zucchini's (lori), this bread would be a good way to use a couple. It was an easy recipe with most items on hand, and came out deliciously moist. However, don't make the mistake I did and think it's a zucchini bread with chocolate chips. This is basically a chocolate cake with zucchini (which you can barely see or taste). And it's yummy.

Can you see the tiny fleck of zucchini? (Ignore the weird sausage fingers)

I doubled the recipe, and it made 2 loaf pans and 12 muffins. I baked the muffins for approximately 30 minutes, but I recommend checking them after 20, to see if they are done.


Good weekend snack for the kids after going back to school and hitting those books! Or a fun treat to bring into the office. Delicioso.

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread
slightly adapted from Cooking Light

3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 cup applesauce
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups finely shredded zucchini, about 1 medium (I peeled mine before shredding, just cause)
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate morsels, as it's what I had)
Cooking spray


Preheat oven to 350.

Place first 3 ingredients in a large bowl, and beat with a mixer at low speed until well blended. Stir in applesauce.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups. Combine flour and the next 4 ingredients (through salt), stirring well with a whisk.

Add flour mixture to sugar mixture (slowly), beating just until moist and fully combined.

Stir in the zucchini and chocolate chips. Spoon batter into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray.

Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out almost clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack, and remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.


Check out these additional chocolate and zucchini recipes:
- Chocolate and Zucchini Cake, from Simply Recipes
- Chocolate Chip Orange Zucchini Bread, from All Recipes
- Chocolate Zucchini Brownies, from Suite101.com

Guten appetit!

Morning Glory Muffins

I should do some guest posts and have my foodie friends contribute their household favorite recipes... I know some really good cooks!

This recipe comes from the east-side, Virginia yo. Michelle is one of 2 high-school best friends, and a seriously wicked cook. She participates in a cooking light supper club, hosts parties with their friends and has old-world italian recipes handed down to her from her grandmother, who lives in Lucca. Um, yeah. Yum! She e-mailed me yesterday to tell me about her mother's day plans, where she's hosting the celebration and having a mexican themed menu. I wish I could hide in her basement and have her sneak me plates of food.

But enough about my champagne wishes, and food dreams...

She happened to send me a muffin recipe 3 weeks ago, saying it was a household favorite (her 1 year old gobbles them up). Looking over the recipe, it reminded me of the Morning Glory muffins we used to buy at Macrina bakery in Seattle. If you EVER visit Seattle, do-not-miss Macrina bakery. Seriously.

After making my first batch, Tim said the same thing, reminded him of the Morning Glories and I was asked to make them again - immediately. Hey, when you know what you like, go with it! Since then, I've made this recipe 4 times. They are always gone within 3 days. Michelle said she freezes her batches and then can take 1 or 2 out of the freezer, warm them up with a pat of butter and have them ready for breakfast in a flash. I have no idea how she controls herself enough to put them in a freezer and wait to eat them.

Note: I incorrectly used cupcake cups in this picture. Unfortunately, they stick to the paper cups. Instead, grease your muffin tin, and pour the batter in directly.

If you make these muffins, would love to know how your family responds.

Morning Glory Muffins
(do not know the source)

1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour (I sometimes use whole wheat flour, or a combo- turns out great)

3/4 cup flaxseed meal (ground flaxseeds)

3/4 cup oat bran (I use a breakfast muesli, and works well. I think any oat would be OK here)

1 cup brown sugar (I dont like super sweet, so I cut this to 1/2-3/4 cup sugar)

2 tsp baking soda

1 ts baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1 1/2 cups carrots, shredded (I use 2 medium-large carrots)

2 apples, peeled and shredded

1/2 cup raisins (optional, but I use craisins on michelle's recommendation- delicious!)

1 cup nuts, chopped (I like a mix of nuts and use raw almonds, sunflower seeds, and raw pecans)

3/4 cup milk

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp vanilla

Pre-heat oven to 350 (176 in celsius!).

Mix together flour, flaxseed meal, oat bran, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir in carrots, apples, raisins and nuts.

Add milk, eggs and vanilla and stir until everything is moistened. However, do not over mix.

Grease a muffin pan (I use Pam). Fill muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake at 350 F for 15-20 minutes. Yields 15 medium muffins.


You are probably sick of reading by now, but this is worth an extra minute - I promise!

I forgot to mention how healthy these muffins are. I was going on and on about the deliciousness, and I neglected to tell you the secondary reason they are so fantastic! Flaxseeds have an abundance of omega-3 fatty acids. The benefits of flaxseeds have been linked to a reduced risk of heart disease, helping with varicose veins, reducing blood pressure, reducing cholesterol, and acting as a possible benefit to arthritis conditions (click here for more info on omega-3 fatty acids). While you can gain the omega-3 fatty acids in fish (such as salmon), flax are SIX times richer than most fish oils. So go ahead, flax it up!

Guten appetit!

Roasted Chipotle Salsa

I'm a fan of mexican food. Ok, ok, I LOVE mexican food. If I could have, I probably would have married it. Yep, a solid veggie burrito or enchilada could serve as the only food I eat for the rest of my life. (For Tim, it would be Italian, and specifically pizza. Good thing pizza is my 2nd favorite food!)

Unfortunately for me, as soon as we stepped off the plane in Germany, it was painfully obvious how lacking they were in Mexican food (anything Latin American actually, they really are pork and potato folks over here). You know those gleaming food isles in the US with tons and tons of ethnic food?? We have none of that (sigh). I did, after a few sad months, find a Mexican store in Munich! Hip, hop, hooray! Just 1, but hey, that's all I need. And they thankfully stock some of the basics I'm used to (dried chilis, black beans, chipotle chilis in adobo sauce, corn tortillas, etc). I think the first time I went there, I practically kissed the woman, I was so happy.

After that, we stopped pretending we liked the Fuego salsa they sell in our regular grocery store (they offer one store bought salsa option, which is Pace Picante-esk and a cross between ketchup and spaghetti sauce, with chunks of onion and green peppers). But forget all that, I now had the means to whip up our own easy, tangy, smoky salsa... I just needed a recipe.

The Roasted Chipotle Salsa recipe below had me at 'hello'. Why? Because anything with Chipotle chilis immediately has my attention.

This salsa is soooo tasty, and super easy to make! Requires a bit of chopping, some time to broil, then zap it all in a food processor, and your done.

Makes a great dip, especially if you want to offer a few options (like guacamole, this chipotle salsa, and then maybe a fresh tomato salsa). We like it best as a sauce for our Chickpea and Corn Fritters. Really, any salsa needs you have, this recipe fits the bill. It also froze well, and was just as tasty 2 weeks later.

Roasted Chipotle Salsa
from Cooking Light

1 1/2 cups chopped onion
3 medium tomatoes
6 garlic cloves, unpeeled
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, undrained*

* Chipotle chilis in adobo sauce are very, very hot. They are responsible for the great flavor of this salsa, but if you are not a fan of spicy heat, just use 1 chili from the can to start with.

(sorry, this is the best photo I can muster right now!)

Preheat broiler.
Place the first 3 ingredients on a baking sheet; broil for 20 minutes or until blackened, stirring often. Remove garlic cloves; squeeze to extract garlic pulp. Discard skins.
Place onion, tomatoes, and garlic in a food processor; add the remaining ingredients, and process until smooth. Serve warm or at room temperature with baked tortilla chips.

Guten Appetit!

Curried Egg Salad, Pasta Casserole and a Disaster

Welcome Recipe Box Swap readers!

While this is an old post, it's one of our top 3 favorite meals and one I'd like to share with you. After making it a couple times, it's super easy to whip up. It's also great to double (or triple!) and to freeze (up to 2 months). Did I mention, it's delicious?!

I hope you enjoy. Thanks for visiting my food blog.

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A number of days ago, I promised more egg salad recipes- curried, to be exact. Well, sit back and enjoy the internet aromas of delicious curried egg salad recipes...

Mmmm, do you smell that? No? Sniff harder. Maybe it would help if you put your nose right up next to the screen... now?

Well, maybe you don't smell anything because there has been no curried egg salad cooking at my house this past week. Sorry- April Fools? No, no. I suppose that doesn't work for promises made days earlier, does it?

Well, I will give you a consolation prize AND curried egg salad (But later this week. Please, as if you don't STILL have colored eggs in your fridge to use, I've got time).

As a consolation prize, I'm giving you our make-it-three-times-a-month, can't-get-enough, gift-to-all-our-food-loving-friends, pasta casserole. I first made this 2 years ago, and since then, I kid you not, I triple any batch I make and we have this once a week. I also gift this casserole to all friends I feel are worthy.

It is de-licious, and I feel it's time to share the pasta casserole love with you. Enjoy!

Pasta Casserole
AKA Chipotle Macaroni & Cheese, from Cooking Light

1 (7-ounce) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chiles, undrained
4 cups hot cooked elbow macaroni (about 2 cups uncooked)
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup 1% low-fat cottage cheese
1 cup 2% reduced-fat milk
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Cooking spray
3 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 350°.

Remove 1 teaspoon adobo sauce from can; set aside. Remove 2 chipotle chiles from can; finely chop to measure 1 tablespoon. (Use half the chilis/sauce requested if you are not a spicy fan!)

Reserve remaining chiles and adobo sauce for another use. (I separate the remaining chilis and sauce into recipe portions, then put into ziplock sacks to freeze for the next time I make the casserole)

Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chopped chiles, onion, bell pepper, and garlic; cook 4 minutes or until onion is tender, stirring frequently. Sprinkle with flour; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly.

Reduce heat to medium; add tomatoes. Cook 3 minutes or until thickened. Add reserved 1 teaspoon adobo sauce, pasta, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, milk, Parmesan, and egg; stir to combine.

Spoon pasta mixture into a 2-quart baking dish coated with cooking spray; top with breadcrumbs. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until bubbly. (We like a crispy top, so it usually takes up to an hour for our casserole to cook as we like it)

Last, but most importantly, remove CAREFULLY from the oven. Otherwise, you risk this:


Yep, that's fresh, yummy, delicious pasta casserole on our kitchen floor. The pan slipped right out of my mitted hands and onto the floor as I was removing it from the oven. Drats, drats, drats.

Guess it was about time for one of my usual kitchen disasters. Karma was coming back to haunt me today for all the jokes I played. The final April Fools was on me!

Hope you enjoy your casserole more than we did, this time around.

Guten appetit!

Enchiladas

These are the most delicious enchiladas on the planet! Ok, ok - I haven't tasted all the enchiladas on the planet, so maybe that's a tiny exaggeration. But, they are definitely the most delicious hausfrau enchiladas ever made. I'm safe with that assessment. And no, this is not the only enchilada recipe I've made - so the rating is fair and well deserved.

And for both myself and my friend Lisa, the recipe is per my usual: easy. Easy, even with regard to making your own sauce. Yep, you heard right: make your own sauce, most delicious, easy enchiladas.

Before making this recipe, you may think the ingredients and spices seem bland. Trust me, everything compliments nicely and is packed full of flavor. If you prefer spicy though, I would add one of the following to your sauce: diced jalapeno, red pepper flakes, or ground cayenne. Or you can offer tobasco on the table so people may determine their own spiciness.

Black Bean, Corn & Zucchini Enchiladas (from cookinglight)

1 teaspoon canola oil
2 cups diced zucchini
1 (10-ounce) package frozen whole-kernel corn (I use a can of corn)
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 cups Enchilada Sauce (see below for recipe)
Cooking spray
8 (8-inch) whole wheat tortillas (I use corn tortillas)
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese, divided

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 cups zucchini and corn; sauté for 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Remove from heat, and stir in beans.
3. Spread 1 cup Enchilada Sauce in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
4. Spoon about 1/2 cup zucchini mixture down center of 1 tortilla; sprinkle with 2 tablespoons cheese, and roll up. Place seam-side down in baking dish. Repeat procedure with remaining tortillas, zucchini mixture, and 14 tablespoons cheese.
5. Spread remaining 2 cups sauce evenly over enchiladas.
6. Cover with foil; bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Uncover; top with remaining 1 cup cheese. Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes or until cheese melts.

For the batch I made last night, I also included 3/4 of a red bell pepper, tasted great.

Enchilada Sauce (can make up to 2 days ahead and refrigerate, but I do everything at the same time. Start the sauce first, and while simmering, make the veggie filling, get your pan ready, pre-heat the oven, etc.)

1 teaspoon canola oil
1/2 cup diced red onion
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 cup organic vegetable broth (such as Swanson Certified Organic)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, undrained

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add onion and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until onion is tender. Stir in broth and remaining ingredients.
3. Reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes.


You'll probably notice in the picture, but I used a white onion (not red) for the sauce last night. Both work.

The sauce yields 3 cups. I double and freeze half for my next enchilada batch.

Takes a total of 30 min to create this enchilada dream, then 40 min to cook. Dinner in 1 hour and 10 minutes, flat. Deee-licious leftovers.

Guten appetit!

Cauliflower Soup

Big 'Thank you' to Jamie for introducing me to a new soup! Tim has been sick this week, so hearty, healthy soup is just what Dr. Me calls for.

As you will soon learn, my favorite type of recipe is *easy*. The easier the better. I have tried super complicated recipes, and frankly, they're not usually worth the effort and taste overdone. 'Less is more' is my self-proclaimed, newly decided upon, going to forget about by tomorrow, motto.

Introducing, a super simple, rich in flavor, winter comfort food that you should not miss: Cauliflower Soup.

I have to laugh at myself for attempting a 'presentation'. Went a little overboard with the drizzled olive oil. Tim got the non-olive oil saturated bowl, although mine was still delicious! Newly added to the shopping list, an olive oil cruet/bottle for future soup presentations.

Here's the How-To: (recipe from Foodnetwork)

1 head cauliflower
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 quart (4 cups) vegetable stock (for a thicker soup, use 3-3.5 cups)
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Remove the leaves and thick core from the cauliflower, coarsely chop, and reserve.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan or soup pot over medium heat and add the onion and garlic. Cook until softened, but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add the cauliflower and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook until the cauliflower is very soft and falling apart, about 15 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and, using a hand held immersion blender, puree the soup, or puree in small batches in a blender* and return it to the pot.
4. Add parmesan and nutmeg, stir until smooth. Season, to taste, with salt and black pepper.

Keep warm until ready to serve. Goes great with whole wheat, crusty bread.

1 recipe will feed 4 adults. Consider doubling the recipe and freezing half.

* When blending hot liquids: Remove liquid from the heat and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes. Transfer liquid to a blender or food processor and fill it no more than halfway. If using a blender, release one corner of the lid. This prevents the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. Place a towel over the top of the machine, pulse a few times then process on high speed until smooth.