Spring Planting (indoors)

Happy Spring! The warm weather has made me want a garden more than usual....my lack-thereof won't stop me though.

As a start, I dug out some old pots, a leftover bag of planting soil from last year, and some seeds. I also stopped at a local garden store to buy some mini plants....herbs, peppers, and tomatoes. Then I let the fun begin!

Vegetarian Recipe #8: Enchiladas with Tofu and Black Beans

This is one of my favorite recipes. I love Mexican food, but it's not always easy to find fulfilling vegetarian options. Enchiladas with Tofu and Black Beans is a great vegetarian Mexican dish that's full of so many goodies! I like to make a large dish of enchiladas so I have leftovers all week....otherwise I make this into two small dishes and freeze one prior to baking it. Then I simply pop it in the oven in a couple weeks for a quick, fulfilling dinner plus lunch the next day.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups of fresh vegetables, chopped (ie. bell peppers, onions, asparagus, broccoli, zucchini, spinach)
• 1 can black beans, rinsed (or dry beans, soaked overnight)
• 1 can whole kernel corn
• 1 can refried beans, fat free
  
• sprouted tofu, strained
• 1 Tbs. chili powder
• 8-10 whole wheat tortillas, medium
• 1 12-oz. jar enchilada sauce (I really like Trader Joe's brand)
• 1 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
• avocado (optional topping)
• plain Greek yogurt, nonfat (optional topping)
  
  

Saute vegetables until almost fully cooked, add about 1/2 Tbs. chili powder to the vegetables. While they are cooking, fold and place 8-10 tortillas in a large baking dish, or two square baking dishes. Divide black beans, refried beans, and corn among all tortillas. You should fill the bottom of all tortillas. Strain tofu, mash, and add remaining chili powder. Tofu takes on whatever flavor you give it, so be sure to add a sufficient amount of chili powder for good flavor. You may also want to add a dash of sea salt to the tofu for extra flavor. Add the tofu to the tortillas. When the vegetables are finished cooking, add an equal part to each of the tortillas.

Now for the hardest part -- folding the enchiladas! Carefully roll each tortilla and place the opening side down. You may have to squish all of them together, but the goal is to fill the baking dish(s). When all the tortillas are secure in the baking dish, pour the jar of enchilada sauce over all tortillas. Make sure to cover the outer edges of tortillas, to stop them from getting crispy. Then sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the entire dish.

Cover the dish with tin foil. To stop the cheese from sticking to the tin foil, spray cooking spray on the inside surface of the foil before placing it over the dish.

Cook at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes or until the center of the dish is warm, and the cheese is melted. Cut into square pieces, like lasagna. Add a slice of avocado and a dash of plain Greek yogurt to each piece.

Vegetarian Recipe #7: Cashew Chardonnay Sauce over Fettuccine

I originally saw this recipe in my Vegetarian Times magazine....it was submitted by an amazing restaurant called Ravens, in California, which is fully vegan and grows their own vegetables. I really hope to visit someday! In the recipe below, I added extra veggies and modified the portions, but it's close to the original.

Ingredients:

3 oz. uncooked fettuccine (enough for 2 people)

2 cups baby spinach (chopped)

12 small asparagus spears (smaller spears have more flavor!)

1 red bell pepper, cut into thin spears

1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes

sauce

1 cup raw cashews

1 cup Chardonnay wine

1 Tbs. nutritional yeast

lemon juice from 1/2 lemon

1 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

To make sauce, puree cashews and 1 cup water in food

processor until smooth. Simmer Chardonnay in a small saucepan over medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until only 1/3 cup of liquid remains in the pan (the water will evaporate). Stir in the cashew puree, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, and ground pepper.

To make pasta, cook fettuccine in boiling water.

In the meantime....

To make vegetables, saute asparagus and peppers until almost soft. I prefer my vegetables slightly crunchy. You may want to put the asparagus in the pan first since it takes slightly longer to cook. Add spinach and sun-dried tomatoes at the end, just to warm/wilt them.

Drain the pasta when it is soft (be careful not to overcook). Toss it with the 2/3 of the Cashew Chardonnay sauce, and divide between two plates. Top each plate with asparagus, peppers, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes. Drizzle the remaining sauce over the top.

Enjoy! You likely won't have leftovers. :)

*Note, the red wine pictured is not part of the recipe. It's just a recommended addition for the chef to enjoy while cooking!

TIP: Freezing Berries

Freezing berries is a great way to ensure you always have fruit available! Find a local berry farm in the summer and pick them yourself or buy from a local Farmer's Market or grocery store at the peak of their season. This way, you'll be certain you're buying the sweetest, most nutritious berries possible! You can even talk to the farmer who grew them....find out if he/she uses pesticides on the plants, etc.

You'll likely get a better product for a better price if you buy when they're in season! So my advice (which I wish I followed this past summer)...buy more berries than you think you'll need! If you're like me, you'll get addicted to smoothies and use several pounds each month! I've run out several times already and had to buy berries shipped in from around the world. Not ideal, but they're work if you're in a pinch!

This method allows you to freeze berries, without them freezing into one large clump! You'll find it's easy to grab a few berries to add to your favorite recipes all year long!

Instructions:

• Rinse all berries in a strainer with cold water.
• Gently rub off any dirt.
• Cut off leaves/stems and halve large berries, like strawberries.
• Lay out a piece of papertowel and set cut/clean berries on paper towel to dry for a few minutes.
• Transfer dry berries to a cookie sheet (that's small enough to fit in your freezer). Keep berries in a single layer so they do not stick together once frozen.
• Transfer cookie sheet to the freezer. Let sit for about an hour, or until outer layer of berries are frozen.
  
• Use a spatula to transfer the berries from the cookie sheet into a gallon freezer bag.
• Remove as much air from the bag as possible and seal.
• Keep in the freezer for up to a year!

Enjoy in smoothies, pies, yogurt parfaits, sangria, etc!

Vegetarian Recipe #6: Carrot Soup

Ingredients:

10 small-medium carrots (smaller carrots, with no cracks, are sweeter)

3 medium potatoes

1 c. spinach

1 bunch leeks

1 Tbs. butter (for saute)

1 Tbs. fresh tarragon leaves

1/4 c. agave nectar

2 c. milk

4 c. vegetable stock

1/2. c. dry white wine

salt and pepper to taste

Rinse and chop carrots into chunks. Rinse and quarter the potatoes. Fill a large sauce pan 1/3

full of water, bring to a boil. Add the carrots and potatoes. Return the water to a boil, then let simmer until vegetables are soft. I choose to leave the potato skins in my soup, but you can easily remove them once the vegetables are soft, if you choose.

Rinse and chop leeks, spinach, and tarragon. Saute leeks in butter and add the spinach and tarragon once the leeks are almost soft.

Add 1/3 of potato/carrot/water mixture to a food processor or blender. Add 1/3 saute mixture as well. Add some of the vegetables stock to aid in blending. Blend until smooth. Pour back into large pot. Repeat until all ingredients have been blended. Add milk, white wine, salt, and pepper.

Let mixture simmer on stove for at least 20 minutes. Serve.

My advice: freeze half the soup and reheat in a month when you need a healthy quick meal!

Vegetarian Recipe #5: Mango Salsa with Cucumber

This recipe idea came from the Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home Cookbook, which I modified slightly.

Ingredients:

2 mangos (the best are slightly soft to the touch and smell sweet)

1 crisp cucumber (un-peeled)

1 small tomato

1/2 red bell pepper

juice from 1 lime

2 Tbs. chopped fresh cilantro leaves

sprinkle of cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste

Chop all fruits and vegetables. Remove seeds of cucumber, tomato, and red pepper and discard. Combine. Add lime juice and cilantro. Stir and sprinkle in cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper to taste.

Serve chilled. Makes a great accompaniment to chips or on top of Black Bean Burgers (see Vegetarian Recipe #4)