Vegetarian Crockpot Mexican Gloop

I love striving for a no-processed kitchen, but sometimes it requires a little fast thinking. Since we are a one vehicle family, the days that I keep the car by taking my husband to work have become guaranteed crockpot dinner days. This wasn’t just a crockpot day; it was also a we-aren’t-grocery-shopping-for-another-3-days kind of day. I used what we had, it looked pretty ugly, but it tasted mighty fine.

You need:

-Pinto Beans (I make all of my own, maybe 1 ½ cups or so)

-Kidney Beans

-Chickpeas

-several celery stalks, chopped

-onion, diced

-half of poblano pepper, chopped

-1 ½ cups or so of your favorite salsa

-2 tablespoons or so of your favorite taco seasoning (We use Penzy’s!)

-4 oz. cream cheese, broken up into pieces (half of a packet was all I had and it was more than enough)

-cilantro, red pepper, salt, and pepper to taste

-several corn tortillas

 I’m going to tell you what I did, and what variations I might do later.

Directions:

-Mix everything except the tortillas together in a bowl

-Lay a few corn tortillas on the bottom of the crockpot

-Pour some mixture, and continue layering that way until it’s all gone. I made 3 layers.

-Cook on high 3-4 hours or Low 6-8

-VOILA! ENJOY!

The next day, J was off work and wanted to make tacos for lunch with the leftovers. He seared some corn tortillas in the cast iron skillet and put the mixture inside. This got me thinking that you could make the mix in the crockpot or stove top and just use that to fill tortillas if you wanted. OR make quesadillas even…WOAH! Crazy!! I also think potatoes, any other kind of bean, and even chicken or beef for you carnivores out there would work too. 

Happy Eating! 

-Hollie

Curried Calabaza Coconut Soup

Ready to eat. Yummy!

A couple of weeks ago, I did not have much in the way of fresh produce.  The farmer's market just didn't have much that week and I had to get creative.  No worries though, I live in Puerto Rico.  I know how to get creative in the kitchen.  As you may have figured out by now, there are some staple ingredients that I always have in my kitchen and use for almost every meal.  The two main staples being onions and garlic.  I think that these are the best, most universal base for any recipe.  If you start every recipe by sauteing onions and garlic in coconut oil, you will be guaranteed to have a flavorful dish to build on.

Calabaza!

Two other staple ingredients that I use in about half of the things I cook are ginger and turmeric.  Ginger is great for your tummy and turmeric has all kinds of fantastic health benefits as well.  Turmeric is a powerful natural anti inflammatory, so it is sort of like nature's advil without the nasty drug hazards.  Both ginger and turmeric have been shown in various lab studies to have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-tumor effects on a cellular level.  Obviously, these studies used differing amounts of the two foods, but the way I see it, eating ginger and turmeric regularly can't hurt.   

The broth was red from using beets so it turned pink when the coconut milk was added.

One ingredient you can find all year long in sunny Puerto Rico is calabaza.  This is a squash that is similar to a pumpkin.  The varieties grown in PR have a mostly green skin and orange flesh.  Calabaza can be substituted for pumpkin or butternut squash in some recipes, but it is slightly more watery, so some substitutions may need to be made.  This pumpkin is also rich in nutrients like potassium, vitamin A, and vitamin C.  It is a very low calorie food as well.  Depending on what I plan to use calabaza for, I usually choose to leave the skin on for the extra fiber content.  Be aware that this can make your dish look less pretty though.

Simmering away.

Curried Calabaza Coconut Soup        

Ingredients:

1 tbsp coconut oil
1 large onion, diced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
3/4 tbsp fresh turmeric, minced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp recaito
3 cups calabaza squash, cut into 1 inch chunks
3 cups vegetable broth (I make my own. Adjust the salt if using store bought broth)
2 cups coconut milk (I make my own. You may need to adjust the broth if using store bought)
2 tsp curry powder
Salt and pepper to taste
Raw pumpkin seeds (optional for protein and garnish)

Directions:

1. Heat coconut oil in a large pot over medium heat.
2. Add onion, ginger, turmeric and saute for a few minutes until the onion is translucent.
3. Add the garlic and recaito and saute for one more minute.  Do not let the garlic burn.
4. Add calabaza, vegetable broth, coconut milk, curry powder, and salt and bring to a boil.
5. Turn heat down and let simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the pumpkin is cooked thoroughly.
6. Immersion blend until mixture is relatively smooth, then serve.  Top with raw pumpkin seeds for protein and garnish if you like.

I hope you enjoy this healthy, vegan treat.  What are some staple ingredients you always use? 

~Donna

Alfalfa Sprouts

Finished sprouts!

Sprouts are so delicious aren't they?  I absolutely love to top off just about anything with some sprouts.  Sandwiches, salads, soups, the possibilities are endless!  Sprouts are also amazingly good for you.  They contain tons of protein, enzymes, vitamins and amino acids that our bodies need.

This is not my image, but I just found it floating around on the internet.

One negative side to sprouts is that they can be pretty expensive.  This might be due to the fact that they don't last very long.  I'm not really sure, because they are so easy to make from super inexpensive seeds, beans or legumes.  Different types of sprouts have different nutrients, although the general benefits discussed above are the same.  They also have different uses.  For example, we like to sprout lentils and use them in salads, cook them up in soups, and add them to bread for an extra protein and vitamin boost.  The much more delicate alfalfa sprouts are delicious raw on salads and sandwiches.

Two tablespoons of seeds.

Soaking the sprouting seeds.

According to Sprout People, alfalfa sprouts contain Vitamins A, B, C, E, and K, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, Zinc, Carotene, Chlorophyll, Amino Acids, Trace Elements, and 35% protein. These little guys pack a lot of punch, huh?

All the materials

Often people will tell you that you need special equipment to make your own sprouts.  This is not true.  As long as you have a large (quart size) mason jar and some cheesecloth, you are good to go.  You also need water and alfalfa seeds (or broccoli or radish) made especially for sprouting.

Day 1 After Soaking

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5: Morning

Day 5: Afternoon. Ready to Eat.

Materials Needed:

Alfalfa Sprouting Seeds

Mason Jar or Sprouting Jar

Cheesecloth or Strainer Lid (if using a mason jar) 

Filtered Water

Directions:

1. Add 2 tablespoons of alfalfa seeds to a large mason jar or sprouting jar.  

2. Add filtered water to cover and let soak for 8 hours or overnight.  

3. Secure cheese cloth to the top of the mason jar and rinse and drain. 

4. Place jar upside down at a 45 degree angle if possible to drain on a bowl or plate.  

5. Rinse and drain two to three times per day for three to five days.  

6. When sprouts have grown to the point that they are filling up your jar, put them in a sunny area for a few       hours to facilitate formation of chlorophyll.

7. When the leaves turn green they are ready to be put into cold storage or eaten.  

8. Sprouts need to be eaten within a few days.

Note: it is also a good idea to skim the seeds off of the sprout.  This helps to keep mold from growing.  Just put finished sprouts in a bowl and fill it up with filtered water.  The seeds should float to the top and you can just skim them off.  This does sound slightly easier and less time consuming than it actually is.  

One of my absolute favorite sandwiches is just hummus, lettuce, tomato, cucumber and sprouts on whatever bread you like.  Yummy!  Do you make your own sprouts? Why or why not?

-Donna

Sweet Potato Coconut Soup Recipe

 the soup drizzled with sesame oil and paired with fresh baguette

This is one of my family's favorite soups. It's fairly easy and is vegan...yay! and yay! I created hacked this soup recipe after eating at a local Thai restaurant and tasting their delicious take on Sweet Potato Soup. This one obviously yields way more for way less.

Ingredients:                                                 

• 2 large sweet potatoes (mine were about 2lbs. each)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 inch piece of fresh grated ginger
• 1 1/2 tbsp. red curry paste
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1/2 tbsp. vegetable base (or 2 cups low-sodium broth of your choosing)
• sesame oil

Serve with: Fresh baguette

Steps:

Steam or bake your sweet potatoes until tender all the way through. (I baked mine in foil for 2 hours). Set aside.

Next, in a large pot sauté onion until soft. Add ginger. Sauté for 2 min. ( I forgot to saute the ginger with the onion, so I added it with the curry paste)

Add curry paste. Melt down and combine with onion and ginger. 

Add coconut milk and vegetable base. Simmer for 5 min. 

Add sweet potato. I simply spooned the insides out with a large spoon. 

How beautiful is that bright orange!

I then poured this mixture into my Ninja and took it for a ride (I blended it until smooth). I typically use my emersion blender, but it's currently packed away on its way to Guam. You can read about that here.  

Then pour the mixture back into the pot and heat for about 10 more min. This helps all the flavors to combine.

Now, serve with a drizzle of sesame oil and a piece of fresh baguette. Yummo!

                               -Anjelica

Curried Pumpkin Soup with Homemade Coconut Milk

Curried Pumpkin Soup. Yum!

A couple weeks ago I decided that I needed to do a freezer cleanse to make room for some new stuff.  I realized I had two full ziplock bags of frozen pumpkin or calabaza.  So I had planned to make this delicious Pumpkin ginger soup.  However, my plans were thwarted by the farmers market selection for that week, as I once again stocked up on too many fresh goodies.  (My favorite problem to have.)  Well this week I did the same thing, but I couldn't get this soup out of my head.  However, I decided I wanted to do something different because I had just gotten some beautiful jalapenos and turmeric from the farmers market.   So I had this crazy idea: throw the whole recipe plan out the window and make a curried pumpkin soup.  Brilliant!

Forgot the jalapeno. 

Remembered to take a picture of the jalapeno, and of course the beautiful turmeric too.

Ok, to be completely honest, this wasn't really a huge deviation from what I had planned to make. This is actually how I cook all the time.  I have an idea or a general premise for what I want to make, then I look at what I actually have and adapt.  Living in Puerto Rico has really forced me to be a better cook because I learned early on that you can't expect to have a list and just go to the store and get everything.  I have learned that there is a reasonable chance for finding certain things, and a slim chance for others.  As a result, I am a better cook.

Living in PR.  Thought I'd throw that in there.

I have never been a big recipe follower, but I do like to get ideas and inspiration from others.  If it's a big hit in this house, it usually doesn't take me long to integrate it into the regular rotation and completely forget where the idea even came from.  I think this recipe originally started as a Google search for ways to use pumpkin that I didn't like the results of.  So I made something up.

Chopped veggies. 

Since this was completely fly by the seat of my pants and I wanted to eat at some point that night, I asked S. to write down the ingredients as I shouted them out.  That way I wouldn't forget anything.

Sauteing everything up right before I dumped veggie broth all over the stove.

According to my husband the directions are:
"Dump half the veggie broth on the hot burner as a sacrifice to the vegan gods.
Start drinking some wine while it cooks.
Complain about wine in Puerto Rico.
Clean up cat pee."

Doesn't Ellie look all innocent like she would never spitefully pee in the corner?

These things did all happen.  However, these steps are not necessarily all important.  Except for the wine. The wine drinking is definitely a requirement.

Look at all those colors.

I guess I should also clarify that I was not actually worshiping false idols.  I just spill things, a lot. Then S. makes fun of me.  Then we both drink wine.

Pureeing the soup right up.

Anyway, the actual directions follow the ingredients list.

Can you tell I almost forgot the jalapeno?

Curried Pumpkin Soup

1 tbsp.coconut oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno, diced
1 inch fresh turmeric, minced
2 inches fresh ginger, minced
2 pounds pumpkin, diced
1 1/2 c. homemade coconut milk* (see note)
4 c. vegetable broth, homemade (could use store bought, but alter or omit the salt if you do)
1/2 tbsp. curry powder
pinch cayenne pepper, or to taste
salt to taste

Actual directions:
1. Heat coconut oil on medium heat. Add onion, garlic, jalapeno, turmeric, and ginger and saute for 2 minutes.
2. Add pumpkin, coconut milk, and veggie broth and bring to a boil.
3. Add seasonings and turn heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes until pumpkin is cooked.
4. Taste for seasonings and add more if desired.
5. Transfer soup to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.  Or to desired consistency.  If necessary, heat soup again and enjoy.

NOTE: 
The recipe I use for coconut milk is from here.
I like to use the full 2 cups of coconut so that it is more flavorful.  I also only strain it if it is going to be used for drinking because my Vitamix makes it so fine.  For cooking, it isn't really necessary to strain it, but you should do what you prefer.

-Donna