bell pepper

20 Minutes To The Table Episode 5: Zucchini Rotini Marinara with Vegetables

August 25, 2013 by Veronica Grace 14 Comments

It’s been a long day, you’re tired, you’re hungry and you have no imagination for what to make for dinner. – I know this feeling and what to make for dinner when I have no inspiration. This vegan Zucchini Rotini Marinara is something that I make quite often because it’s easy to throw together and it’s great for using up vegetables in the fridge. Sometimes I’ll add in some mushrooms, broccoli, or carrots, but I really love this version with zucchini, bell peppers and peas. I use whole grain rotini and I like this style of noodle because it holds onto the sauce well, has a nice texture and looks really pretty on the plate. I got a giant box of this at Costco for a good deal. It lasted me forever and made quick meals really easy.

I actually prefer a spiral type of noodle compared to spaghetti or fettucini as well. This way I can add more veggies and have a little less pasta. Most of the time I make my own pasta sauce each time with just canned tomatoes and season it and blend it up, but I wanted to show you a quick version of this recipe. I know most of you are probably used to buying pasta sauce in a jar.

When I went shopping in Canada there weren’t too many brands of pasta sauce available that didn’t contain olive oil, canola oil or soy bean oil, but I did find 2 different brands. Just look for one that has a low fat, or light description on the front and then check the back to see if it has any oil. I really try to make sure everything I buy is oil-free, it just doesn’t need the extra calories and I don’t enjoy eating slick or greasy food anymore.

Vegan pasta marinara is one of the easiest dishes you can make, but you can make it delicious and special by jazzing it up with some fresh veggies, cooking them perfectly and seasoning your sauce to your liking. I always like to add some fresh chopped onions for more flavor. The recipe video is below.

If you enjoy my video please click on it to view it in youtube so you can click the like icon and subscribe to my channel so you can get more recipe videos. Thank you for the support!

Recipe follows below.

20 Minutes to The Table Episode 5: Zucchini Rotini Marinara with Vegetables

Serves 6

Pasta Ingredients:

1 onion, diced
2 zucchinis sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 cup frozen peas
300g/4 cups dried whole wheat rotini (or GF)
1 700 ml/ 24 oz. jar of pasta sauce (look for oil free and low in sodium)
1 tbsp. fresh parsley
Salt to taste
Fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add salt if desired.

2. When water is boiling add the pasta, bring it back to a boil and then begin timing it as per the directions on the package.

3. Saute onion in a non-stick pan, dry for 4-5 minutes.

4. Add the zucchini and bell peppers. Cook until just tender.

5. Add the tomato sauce and stir to combine, when hot add the frozen peas.

6. Test the pasta for desired doneness. Drain in a colander.

7. Add drained pasta to pasta sauce in a large saute pan (or a pot if you don’t have one large enough).

8. Marry the flavors together for a minute or two to help the pasta absorb the sauce.

9. Add the fresh parsley and salt and pepper to taste.

10. Serve!

Cranberry Walnut Salad

Ingredients:

4 cups Spring Mix salad
2 tbsp dried cranberries
2 tbsp walnuts, chopped
Balsamic vinegar to drizzle

Directions:

1. Assemble salad in a bowl or on plates.

2. Drizzle with dressing and serve along with pasta.

What is your favorite type of pasta and vegetables to cook together?

20 Min To The Table: Rainbow Black Beans and Rice with Garlicky Citrus Kale

August 18, 2013 by Veronica Grace 16 Comments

Beans and rice are and eaten throughout the Caribbean and Latin America and it’s easy to see why! Beans are so easy and versatile to use in many dishes and can absorb all kinds of delicious flavors when seasoned with delicious spices and herbs. It’s also an extremely affordable and satisfying dish that pretty much anyone can make!

This Rainbow Black Beans and Rice is my take on an old staple, but it will also work for pinto beans or kidney beans so feel free to get creative and use what you have.

And aren’t you cooking fresh beans weekly by now with your EZ Bean Cooker or Digital Pressure Cooker? Aren’t you? I hope so. With weekly fresh beans you have to put them to use and start incorporating them in new recipes! Hopefully 🙂

Also if you’d prefer to just buy pre cooked brown rice to always have on hand you can check out Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice Pouch or Steamed Brown Rice Bowls and use it for this recipe.

Video below:

For more delicious recipes please check out my cookbook Vegan Comfort Foods From Around The World here (and pick up an apron while you’re at it too!) To subscribe to my Youtube channel please click on the video to open it in a new browser and hit the subscribe button beside LowFatVeganChef just under the video. Likes are always appreciated as well! The recipe follows below.

Vegan Rainbow Black Beans and Rice

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 onion chopped
4 cloves of garlic minced or pressed
1 tomato, diced
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
2 15 oz can black beans or 3 1/2 cups fresh cooked in a little bean liquid
2 1/2 tsp cumin
1 1/2 tsp Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute or Mrs. Dash (salt free seasoning)
1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
1/2-3/4 tsp Herbamare or salt *or to taste
Fresh ground pepper to taste
handful cilantro, chopped
3 cups pre cooked brown rice (about 1 1/2 bags)
8 Corn tortillas *optional

Garlicky Citrus Kale

Ingredients:

1 large bunch of kale, stems removed
4 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
1/4-1/2 lime juiced
Pinch of salt
Fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Add the onions, tomatoes and garlic to a pan over medium high heat and cook for 2-3 minutes.

2. Add the bell pepper and celery and cook for about 5-7 minutes just until the celery is just tender.

3. Add the beans, a little bean liquid and the seasonings and let cook 2-3 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, gently steam the kale and minced garlic in a little boiling water for 2-3 minutes just until cooked and set aside.

5. Add the cooked brown rice to the beans and veggies. Stir gently and heat for a minute. Taste test and adjust seasonings if desired.

6. Drain the kale and season with lime juice, salt and pepper.

7. Quickly heat the tortillas in a microwave (30 seconds) or in a flat pan just until warm and pliable.

8. Serve and Enjoy!

Have you ever made rice and beans? What are your favorite seasonings to add?

Fat Free Vegan Greek Rice Stuffed Peppers Recipe

June 9, 2013 by Veronica Grace 14 Comments

I have done A LOT of travelling in the past few years (visiting over 30 countries around the world), and Greece was one of my favorite places I visited. (Greek rice stuffed peppers were a favorite I found) Greece was pretty incredible and unexpected as I had never seen anything other than photos of ancient ruins or the white and blue houses of Mykonos on postcards. I went on a 2 1/2 week journey back in August and September of 2010 and visited many different places in Greece.

I saw the ruins of Athens, the rocky shorelines and picturesque houses of Mykonos, the rolling hills and mountains of Naxos, The Palace of the Grand Masters of Knights in Rhodes, the mesmerizing Balos Lagoon and Palace of Knossos on Crete, and the Tholos of Athena Pronaia Sanctuary and Oracle at Delphi.

I also took a ton of photos and wrote about that journey here. (I wrote about it on an old blog of mine and have moved it to this one). So if you are a travel bug like me or just love gorgeous landscape photography definitely check it out!

In my time in Greece I learned that there was much more than just olive oil and seafood to Greek cuisine. Traditionally the Greeks and Cretans ate vegetables, grains, fruits, seafood and olives. In fact their diet was vastly healthier eating homemade unprocessed food, unlike what they do now (which is more like a SAD Westernized diet drenched in copious amounts of olive oil and wine).

So what I took from my travels was using vegetables, grains and herbs in a way that complimented each other to bring out the full flavor of simple vegetable based dishes. The Greek rice stuffed peppers served in Greece are generally stuffed with ground meat as well, but occasionally I found some that were vegan without meat. Mykonos served some at the beach cafes and a Taverna in Delphi had some as well. But these versions used white arborio rice (Italian risotto rice) and were drenched in olive oil.

For my version I decided to switch to whole grain brown rice and remove the olive oil (for health purposes dousing all vegetables in olive oil isn’t recommended). So while it’s not “traditional” it is still very rustic and delicious. I’ve packed it full of dill, parsley and lemon juice so you get all the flavor of the full fat version but without the extra calories.

This recipe is featured in my cookbook Vegan Comfort Foods From Around The World which is available in a digital or physical version wherever you are in the world.

In fact it’s probably my family’s favorite recipe, my mom and even my friends make this recipe regularly as an entree for omnivores and they always receive rave reviews. So it makes me happy that something so simple can be delicious and satisfying to people on a wide variety of diets.

So scroll down for the recipe and get cooking!

Fat Free Vegan Greek Rice Stuffed Peppers Recipe

When I traveled in Greece I sampled several vegan versions of stuffed vegetables. Greek rice stuffed peppers was one of my favorites. I switched out the traditional Arborio rice for brown rice to make this a whole grain version. If you like the combination of lemon and dill, you’re going to love these.
Prep Time: 30 min Total Time: 1 hour 20 min

Yield:Serves 3-4 for entrées or 6-8 as a side dish

Ingredients

6 large or 8 small bell peppers (any color but green)
1 large onion, diced
3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
3 small zucchinis, peeled and diced
1 cup / 236 ml. low sodium vegetable broth
3 cups cooked brown rice (or other rice or grain of choice)
5 Tbsp. tomato paste
3/4 cup whole fresh parsley, de-stemmed and chopped
3/4 cup whole fresh dill, de-stemmed and chopped
Half to a full lemon, juiced (depending on how lemony you like it)
1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
3/4 tsp. Herbamare or Sea salt (or to taste)
1 lemon—cut into wedges (optional for garnish)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F /175 C. Cut tops off of peppers like you would a jack-o-lantern,
remove seeds, and wash thoroughly.
Place in an oven safe dish arranged upright and put tops back on. Bake for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a large pan, saut. onions, carrots and zucchini in vegetable broth for 5-6 minutes.
Stir in the rice and tomato paste and coat thoroughly.
Add parsley, dill, lemon juice, pepper, and Herbamare or salt and stir to combine.
When peppers are ready, remove from oven and fill with stuffing.
Place tops back on peppers and bake for an extra 30-40 minutes until peppers are soft.
Serve additional wedges of lemon if desired.

Additional Tips:

I don’t suggest using green peppers. Green peppers are actually an unripe pepper and much firmer. They will not be done in time if you cook them along with red, yellow or orange peppers. To freeze: cut them in half lengthwise and freeze in airtight containers or freezer bags and lay gently in the freezer until frozen. Due to the rice these are best eaten within 3 days, please freeze any leftovers if you won’t finish them within that time. Rice can grown bacteria in a moist environment so it’s best eaten freshly cooked or reheated from frozen. Enjoy!

Variations:

If you don’t like the taste or texture of brown rice, you can use white rice or quinoa instead. Try different vegetables too, you can dice up mushroms, asparagus, celery or greens instead if you don’t have carrots or zucchini on hand.

Nutrition Facts: 6 Servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 170.9
Total Fat 1.4 g
Saturated Fat 0.3 g
Sodium 325.7 mg
Total Carbohydrate 37.1 g
Dietary Fiber 5.6 g
Sugars 3.6 g
Protein 4.4 g

For more delicious Oil-Free and Low Fat Plant Based Recipes, check out my new cookbook Vegan Comfort Foods From Around The World:

On Sale $21.95 plus shipping!

Or get the Ebook version for $17.95 to download and read now!

Have you ever made stuffed peppers before? What are your favorite ingredients?

Plant Based Swiss Chard and Mushroom Tofu Scramble (Vegan Breakfast Scramble)

April 7, 2013 by Veronica Grace 21 Comments

FTC Notice: This blog post contains affiliate links that go to support the blog.

Psst… I have a secret to tell you…

Sometimes I like to make breakfast for dinner. 🙂 I don’t eat large or heavy breakfast, maybe only occasionally on the weekend as a brunch, but I prefer fruit, smoothies or fresh juice in the morning. So when I am writing breakfast/brunch recipes I sometimes make them for dinner! I have a favorite tofu scramble as my staple (see the recipe here), but I wanted some more variety with my greens. There was some beautiful Swiss chard at the grocery store, so I grabbed it and decided to create a new recipe for it.

I always like to add mushrooms and onions to my tofu scrambles for extra flavor as well but you can feel free to omit those or add tomatoes, zucchini or broccoli etc. This plant based tofu scramble is such a vibrant recipe it’s sure to be a crowd-pleaser whenever you serve it. I also roasted some baby potatoes dry in the oven and sprinkled some salt and smoked paprika on them for a little flavor. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did!

Plant Based Swiss Chard and Mushroom Tofu Scramble

Serves 2 or 4 smaller side servings

Ingredients:

14 oz package firm organic tofu
1/2 medium onion, chopped
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
1-2 tsp low sodium soy sauce
1 bell pepper, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1-2 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp Herbamare or sea salt
Fresh ground pepper to taste
1/4 cup almond milk or soy milk (unsweetened original) or you can blend a tbsp of hemp seeds/raw cashews with 1/4 cup of water
1 bunch chard, stems removed and chopped

Directions:

1. Drain, dry and crumble the tofu. (Try to squeeze out as much water as possible so it absorbs more flavour. I like to press it between clean tea towels or a tofu press!)

2. Heat a large non-stick pan and sauté onions and mushrooms in soy sauce for 5 minutes until soft. Add garlic and bell pepper and cook for 2 minutes.

3. While the vegetables are cooking add the tofu to a bowl and season with nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, Herbamare or salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.

4. Add tofu to vegetables and heat through and cook for about 5-8 minutes.

5. Add the chopped Swiss chard or other greens and almond or soy milk. Cover and steam for 1-2 minutes. (Longer if you use kale, less if you use spinach.)

6. Stir and check seasonings.

7. Serve with toast or roasted or steamed potatoes. (I made oil-free roasted baby potatoes with it. I like to add rosemary or thyme along with garlic and onion powder and a little salt. )

Have you ever made plant based tofu scramble before? What do you put in it?