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Tag Archives: #vegetarian

Instant Pot Savory Vegetable Soup

13 Monday Feb 2017

Posted by mmvsmm in Recipes

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

#cleaningeating, #dinner, #fieldday, #ginger, #immuneboost, #instaeats, #instafood, #instantpot, #lunch, #muirglen, #nomnom, #organic, #paleo, #paleodiet, #pressurecooker, #quickmeal, #savory, #soup, #tasty, #vegan, #vegetable, #vegetarian, #wintersoup

A few weeks ago J and I invested in an Instant Pot and man is it awesome! Not only is it a time saver it’s also a seven in one multi-functional cooker: pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, sautes/browns, yogurt maker, steamer, and warmer in one! After spending three hours on the road today returning home from a fun weekend in PA, I was looking to make something for dinner that was quick, tasty, and did not require a trip to the store. In the winter I am always sure to keep the following staples so that at the very least I can whip up some kind of soup in a pinch:

  • Organic, reduced sodium, vegetable and/or chicken broth
  • Muir Glen organic cans of tomatoes (BPA free!)
  • Yellow onions
  • Garlic

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Anything else I find in my fridge or pantry to throw in is just an added bonus! J has been under the weather so instantly knew that fresh ginger root would play a role in this soup due to its natural immune boosting properties! For those of you that do not have an Instant Pot, this soup can also be made on the stove top.

Instant Pot Savory Vegetable Soup

Author: mmvsmm.com
Servings: 4-6
Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tbs Olive Oil
  • 2 Cloves Minced Garlic
  • 1 Tbs Minced Ginger
  • 2 Shallots (optional)
  • 1 Medium to Large Onion Diced
  • 2 Medium Zucchini Chopped
  • 1 1/2 Cup Broccoli Florets Chopped
  • 2 cups Curly Kale Chopped
  • 1 28 Ounce Can Muir Glen Diced Tomatoes
  • 5 Cups Free Range Low Sodium Chicken Broth (vegetable broth works too!)
  • 1 Tbs Parsley Flakes
  • 2-4 Thyme Sprigs
  • Sea Salt or Himalayan Salt to Taste

Instructions:

  1. Turn Instant Pot onto saute mode
  2. Drizzle olive oil into bottom of pot
  3. Once olive oil begins to heat, toss in onions, garlic, ginger, and shallots (if using) and cook until onions become translucent (about 5 minutes)img_0845
  4. Add in the zucchini, broccoli, and parsley flakes, stir for 2-3 minutesimg_0852
  5. Place thyme in the potimg_0854
  6. Pour tomatoes and their juices along with the broth over the veggie mixtureimg_0856
  7. Cover the Instant Pot with lid, ensuring that both the lid and its vent are in the “closed” position
  8. Set the pot to 10 minutes on the pressure cooker mode
  9. When the timer is up use the quick release method for ventilation
  10. Remove the lid
  11. Stir in the chopped kale until it begins to wiltimg_0864
  12. Fish out the thyme sprigs and remove from the potimg_0865
  13. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with sea salt or Himalayan salt to taste
  14. Enjoy!

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Recipe: Zucchini Noodle Veggie Lo Mein

08 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by mmvsmm in Recipes

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

#asianfood, #cleaneating, #dairyfree, #getinspiredeverday, #glutenfree, #grainfree, #instafood, #kitchenaid, #lomein, #lowcarb, #meatlessmonday, #nomnom, #noodles, #paleo, #sugarfree, #vegetarian, #whole30, #zoodles, Recipes

Need an idea for Meatless Monday? Eating less meat is one of our goals for the new year, and we plan to accomplish that by cutting out meat on Mondays. Since I cook extra for leftovers it may turn out that most Tuesdays are meatless too! I stumbled across this Zucchini Noodle Veggie Lo Mein recipe when making the Mango Noodle Bowls for our Tapas Party on NYE. Another great, low-carb and grain-free recipe from Get Inspired Everyday. At the start of 2016 I cut out gluten from my diet, but any grains in general are a form of carbohydrate and thus get converted to sugar when digested. As many researches have shown that cancer LOVES sugar, I’ve decided to go completely grain free in 2017! This will make eating out much more difficult as even gluten-free crusts, breads, or buns will have to be avoided unless I am fortunate enough to find a paleo restaurant (paleo diet is grain-free) like Hu, where we frequent when in NYC. And we just so happen to be going there this weekend to see my specialist! I have no doubt that I will have more energy and less inflammation due to this decision, which is so key for me given my almost constant sacrum pain. Fun fact: did you know that eating an anti-inflammatory diet can drastically reduce joint pain?

This recipe was so easy to accomplish with our KitchenAid spiralizer attachment. We had beautiful noodles made from both zucchini and carrots in just minutes! Check out this short video as proof!

After not being able to eat lo mein in over a year, this recipe changed all of that. And I didn’t miss a single thing about not having real noodles. As a little girl who grew up LOVING Chinese takeout out, I am a very happy camper!

Zucchini Noodles Veggie Lo Mein

Athour: Get Inspired Everyday!

Prep time: 30 mins
Cook time: 8 mins
Total time: 38 mins
 Serves: 4 servings
Ingredients
  • 2 Tablespoons avocado oil, or olive oil
  • 12 crimini mushrooms, 6 ounces, washed and sliced
  • 2 baby bok choy, 6 ounces, thinly sliced and thoroughly washed
  • 1 large red bell pepper, 8 ounces
  • 1 large carrot, 6 ounces, peeled and ends cut off
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 Tablespoons ginger, minced
  • 1 bunch of green onions
  • 4-8 zucchini, depending on their size, weighing 2 pounds, spiralized into noodles
Sauce:
  • 2 Tablespoons tapioca starch
  • 3 Tablespoons gluten free soy sauce or coconut aminos
  • 1 Teaspoon toasted sesame oil
  • 1 Tablespoon mirin, optional but nice for more authentic flavor
Instructions
  1. Make sure all your veggies are prepped before starting the stir fry.
  2. For the bell pepper, cut out the core and remove as many seeds as you can. Thinly slice it or spiralize it by place the core side on the blade side of the spiralizer and pushing the pronged side into the bottom end of the pepper. Then turn the handle and spiralize it. Spiralize the carrots, or if they’re too small, thinly slice them. For the green onions, thinly slice the whole bunch, both the green and the white part. Reserve the green part for the end of the stir fry and keep the white part with the garlic and ginger.
  3. Preheat a very large skillet (at least 15″) over medium high heat. While the skillet heats, make the sauce by mixing together the tapioca starch and soy sauce until the tapioca has completely dissolved, and there are no lumps. Mix in the sesame oil and mirin if you’re using it, and set the sauce aside.
  4. When the pan is hot but not smoking, add 1 Tablespoon of the oil into the pan along with the mushrooms, bok choy, bell pepper, and carrots. If you’re comfortable cooking over high heat, increase the heat from medium high to high for a more authentic seared flavor. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes, or until the veggies are starting to soften.IMG_0504.JPG
  5. Add the garlic, ginger, and the white part of the green onions and stir fry for an additional 1-2 minutes, or until it’s fragrant and the green onions have wilted. Transfer the stir fried veggies to a large serving bowl and place the bowl in the oven at a low temperature to keep warm (150ºF) while you finish cooking.
  6. Place the pan back over high heat, and add the remaining 1 Tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add the zucchini noodles to the pan and stir fry just until the noodles are barely beginning to soften, 1-2 minutes. Add the sauce mixture and the reserved green part of the green onions, and immediately remove the pan from the heat.
  7. Add the noodles to the veggie mixture in your serving bowl and toss to completely combine. Taste and adjust the seasonings by adding a bit of sea salt if necessary.
  8. Serve immediately.
  9. The leftovers keep well for this dish, and I like to eat them cold for lunch the next day. The zucchini noodles will shed water, but you can just pour off the extra liquid, the taste is still great.
Notes
You may need to add sea salt to taste, especially if you use coconut aminos which is generally less salty than soy sauce.
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Veggie Lo Mein!

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For added crunch we topped this dish with sesame seeds and sweet pea sprouts!

Recipe: Zucchini Noodles with Spinach Vodka Sauce

12 Monday Dec 2016

Posted by mmvsmm in Recipes

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

#cleaneating, #dairyfree, #glutenfree, #italiancooking, #lowcarb, #muirglen, #paleoeats, #pastaalternatives, #sugarfree, #sugarfreelife, #titosvodka, #vegan, #vegetarian, #vitamix, #whatsfordinner, #yummy, Recipes

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My husband LOVES pasta. I, on the other hand, can live without it, which is OK as it isn’t conducive to eating clean. But, we’ve found a way to have the best of both worlds! Spiraling zucchini into “noodles” can still taste like great Italian food without all of the guilt. Now the challenge for tonight was all in the sauce. Hubby’s favorite Italian sauce is vodka sauce and because I avoid eating heavy cream, I discovered how easy it is to use cashew cream instead. We opted to top this dish with roasted cauliflower, red peppers, and crimini mushrooms, yum! If you can’t skip the protein, grilled chicken would be delicious with this as well.

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Zoodles!

This is my first recipe of my own creation, hope you enjoy!

 

Zucchini Noodles with Spinach Vodka Sauce
Approx. 6 servings
Prep./Cook Time: 30-45 mins

2.5 lbs zucchini, spiralized
3 tbs. olive oil
3 cloves of garlic minced
1 large sweet onion
1 cup good quality vodka (I used Tito’s)
2/3 cup raw unsalted cashews
2/3 cup filtered water
1 28 ounce can tomato sauce (I use Muir Glen for all of my canned tomatoes)
1 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 1/2 tbs dried oregano
3 cups fresh spinach
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Optional toppings: grilled chicken (for a non-vegetarian dish) or roasted veggies if you want to keep it vegetarian/vegan friendly. I tossed some chopped cauliflower, crimini mushrooms, and red pepper in olive oil, sea salt, black pepper, dried thyme, oregano, and parsley for 40 minutes at 375 degrees. Viola! And may I say the mushrooms were out of this world!

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To make the cashew cream:
If you have a high power blender -soak 2/3 cup of cashews in 2/3 cup of water while you make the rest of the recipe. We’re lucky enough to have a Vitamix on loan that did the trick. If you have a lower power blender, you’ll want to soak the cashews overnight. Blend the cashews and water on high for two minutes and set aside.

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Cashew pieces soaking in water

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Like magic, now we have cashew cream!!

1. Dice the onion
2. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat
3. Add onion and garlic, cook for five minutes – until soft
4. Sprinkle red pepper flakes and 1/2 tbs. dried oregano onto the mixture and stir to combine
5. Pour vodka into mixture and cook down until reduced by about half
6. Open can of diced tomatoes and can of tomato sauce. Pour into saucepan
7. Heat to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes
8. While sauce is cooking spiral zucchini into “noodles”
9. Heat olive oil in large skillet or wok, add zucchini spirals and cook for 4-6 minutes or until they reach your desired consistency. Do not overcook
10. Remove “noodles” from heat
11. Remove sauce from heat for 5 minutes and then add in cashew cream
12. Return sauce to burner on medium-low heat and add in spinach along with remaining one tbs. of dried oregano
13. Stir sauce until spinach begins to wilt, do not bring the sauce to a boil
14. Remove sauce from heat

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Now you’re ready to plate the meal! Serve the sauce over your zucchini noodles. Add fresh ground pepper and sea salt to taste. If you’re like my husband, who likes to pack on the heat, be sure to include additional red pepper flakes on the table. Now if only it were easier resist the temptation to use that leftover Tito’s for a nice dinner time Moscow Mule…

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