Revisiting An Old Post - Vegetarian Black Bean Enchiladas

 

I found this old post and dusted it off because it is a really good recipe.  Even if you are not a vegetarian it is so good you'll still want to make it.   Use a vegan cheese and this would be completely dairy free.  I like to toss in meatless meals every once in a while to help extend our budget as well as add some variety to our culinary life.  If you are interested in this recipe click here.

 

Making Keto Chocolates

As I've shared before I have always had an incredible sweet tooth.  Going Keto has curbed it quite a bit, but I still enjoy a sweet treat every once in a while.  Especially if it is chocolate.

I posted on my other blog how I make my Keto chocolates.  If you are interested you can click here.  They are super simple to make and take only a few ingredients.  They taste good and are actually good for you.  What more can you ask?

Even if you aren't doing Keto these are still a really good treat to have on hand.  Really versatile too.  Give them a try and let me know what you think?

Vegetable Of The Week

It doesn't really matter what type of dietary lifestyle you lead, sometimes getting enough vegetables into your diet can be a bit daunting.  Keeping a variety that doesn't bore you to tears can be a challenge as well.  But, thanks to a suggestion from my nutritionist I came up with an idea to help me along.

The piece of advice I was given was to focus on a particular vegetable each week and come up with a variety of ways to prepare that vegetable each time.  Brilliant!  We have since dubbed it "Vegetable Of The Week".

I made a list of our favorite vegetables:

Broccoli - raw, steam, roast, sauté, include in recipes

Green Beans - sauté, roast, include in recipes

Asparagus - steam, sauté, roast

Carrots - raw, steam, roast, sauté, stir fry, include in recipes

Mushrooms - raw, stuffed, sauté, stir fry, include in recipes

Cauliflower - raw, riced, steamed, roasted, include in recipes

Cabbage - raw, steamed, braised, roasted, stir fried, include in recipes

Zucchini - sauté, roast, bake, include in recipes

Yellow Squash - sauté, roast

Each week we pick a vegetable that will be the main focus.  A featured guest at our table, so to speak.  We prepare that veggie two or three different ways and then move on to another one the next week.  It really helps to break up the potential for boredom or monotony and forces us to think of new ways to prepare our food.

Broccoli is one of those veggies that our family really enjoys and is extremely versatile.  We like to toss it in a little olive oil, minced garlic and some salt and pepper and then roast it in the oven until it just starts to crisp a little on the edges.  My oldest can't get enough.  And cream of broccoli soup is sooo good!

Our favorite way to prepare fresh green beans, hands down, has to be sautéing them in olive oil or bacon fat with sliced mushrooms and then finishing them off with a big spoonful of minced garlic and some soy sauce.

Asparagus is good sautéed or roasted with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Or steamed and tossed with butter is fantastic too.

Carrots are awesome raw, steamed or roasted and tossed with butter, salt and pepper, grated or julienned into salads, grated and added to dessert recipes, or as part of a stir fry.

We love to stuff mushrooms, slice them into salads or to add with other veggies, and of course they are excellent as part of a pasta sauce or sautéed with peppers and included in an omelet.

Cabbage is another versatile vegetable that is great raw or cooked.  We use it a lot in a variety of salads as well as steamed and dressed with butter, salt and pepper.  It is also fantastic shredded and added to soups in place of pasta.

Zucchini and Yellow Squash really go well together and I will often slice them up and saute or roast them in olive oil with garlic, basil, salt, pepper and some butter.  Delish!  And of course zucchini is great julienned and used in place of pasta as well as shredded and used in muffins, bread, and Zucchini Bites.  I also diced it up and add it to soups and pasta, slice it and add to lasagna or shred it and add it to meatloaf.

So there are some ideas for you on what you can do with a variety of veggies.  If you have some other ideas please share them in the comments below.  I'm always looking for more ideas.

Vegan Carrot Cake

A while back, after posting the recipe for Vegan Chocolate Cake, one of my readers sent me a link to a carrot cake recipe she thought I might like.  She was so right, because this girl loves carrot cake.  The recipe looked pretty darn good and I wondered if I could adapt it to my favorite recipe which is delicious, but not very healthy.  Well, I worked with it and this is what I came up with:

Vegan Carrot Cake

1 1/2 cups flour

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. cloves

1/4 tsp. allspice

1/8 tsp. nutmeg

1 large carrot, peeled & finely grated

1/2 cup walnuts, pecans or almonds, finely chopped

1/2 cup raisins, chopped

1 small can crushed pineapple, drained, save the juice

4 Tbs. vegetable oil

1 Tbs. vinegar

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix flour, sugar, soda, salt and spices together in a large bowl.  Add carrot, nuts, raisins and pineapple and mix together.  Add enough water to reserved pineapple juice to equal one cup of liquid.  Add juice, oil, vinegar and vanilla to the bowl and stir until well combined.

Pour batter into a well oiled 8" X 8" square pan.  Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 35 to 40 minutes until center springs back to the touch.  Remove from oven and cool.

Although this cake doesn't need it, I frosted it with cream cheese icing, but a simple dusting of powdered sugar would be very good as well.  It is super moist and very delicious.  I hope you give this one a try.

Vegan Chocolate Cake

I'm not a vegan, but I know a good cake and this one is a good one!  I made it for us a month or so ago because I've been looking for healthier dessert options for us.  Well, let me tell you, one bite and you might question whether it is really a healthier cake, because it tastes so darn good!

Vegan Chocolate Cake

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup water or black coffee

6 Tbs. vegetable oil

1 Tbs. apple cider vinegar

1 tsp. vanilla

In a large mixing bowl whisk dry ingredients together.  Add remaining ingredients and whisk until batter is nice and smooth.  Pour into an oiled 8" X 8" baking pan.  Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until top springs back at the touch.  Remove to rack and allow to cool.

Frosting

2 Tbs. vegan butter

1 cup powdered sugar

1 Tbs. cocoa

1/2 tsp. vanilla

3 tsp. almond milk

Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat slowly with a mixer until combined.  Then beat on high until fluffy.  Add more almond milk if needed.  Frost cooled cake.  Serves 9.

I used regular butter in the frosting, but everything else I followed to the letter.  It was fabulous! 

Definitely give this one a try.

Eating For Health - Other Proteins

When you decide to lower your meat consumption it is always good to add other protein sources to your diet.  The average man needs 56 grams of protein per day and the average women needs 46 grams.  Even more if you are physically active.

One of the best proteins to add is the very versatile legume.  My favorite legume is black beans and I eat them quite a bit.  I use them in soups and chili as well as other dishes like stuffed bell peppers, burritos and tacos, salads, rice bowls, etc.  Recently I made black bean burgers and much to my surprise and amazement they were delicious!  One cup of beans equals 14 grams of protein or more.

Eggs are another source of protein we eat quite a bit.  We are very fortunate to have our own supply of healthy and nutritious farm fresh eggs in our own backyard.  And quite honestly there is no comparison to the quality of a farm fresh egg over a commercially produced one.  I use eggs a lot in baked goods, but also omelets and quiches as well as breakfast burritos and fried rice dishes.  Hard boiled eggs make it into sandwiches and salads or get eaten as snacks.  Another very versatile source of protein.  One large egg has 6 grams of protein.

I'm not a tofu or soy eater, but once again another versatile source of protein.  Soy milk has 8 grams of protein in a one cup serving.  A lot of Asian foods, especially soups use tofu which has a whopping 20 grams of protein per cup.

Nuts and seeds are another delicious way to add protein to your diet.  A one ounce serving of nuts or seeds averages about 6 grams of protein.  Not too shabby and they make for a healthy and nutritious snack.  Add some to salads or baked goods to boost the nutrition factor up a notch.

Plant proteins are one source you may have never really thought of but yes, plants do have protein.  Rice for instance packs 6 grams of protein in a one ounce serving.  Lentils have 9 grams!  Oatmeal has 5 grams.  Vegetables such as potatoes, spinach, avocados, broccoli and brussel sprouts are also good sources of protein.

Protein powders.  There are a lot of them out there and I personally don't know enough about them right now to say whether or not they are a good idea.  Right now I choose to get my protein from the foods I consume.  But if anyone knows of any pros or cons about protein powders please share in the comments.

Meat remains the largest source of dietary protein, but if you are looking to cut back on your meat consumption, for whatever reason, you have plenty of other options out there.  Do your homework and check out these options for yourself.  Good foods that are really good for you!

Stuffed Bell Peppers

This recipe turned out better than I could've imagined.  Even the girls loved it and they are my toughest critics.  My oldest isn't much on vegetables but she sure likes these.  I hope you do too!

Stuffed Bell Peppers

3 whole bell peppers

1 cup rice

1 cup black beans, cooked

1 stalk celery, diced

1 carrot, diced

1/2 onion, diced

2 tomatoes, diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp. dried basil

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1 Tbs. oil

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella, optional

Lightly oil a 9" X 13" baking pan.  Wash peppers, cut in half from top to bottom and remove seeds.  Lay peppers out in baking pan.

Tomatoes give off just the right amount of liquid

Cook rice until almost done, but not quite.  In a medium pan heat oil and sauté celery, carrot and onion.  Add tomatoes, garlic, basil and oregano.  Continue cooking until just tender.  Remove from heat, stir in rice and beans.  Spoon filling into pepper halves.

Cover baking dish with aluminum foil and bake in preheated 350° oven for 45 minutes.  Remove from oven and top with mozzarella if desired.  Serves 6.

For vegetarian or vegan you can leave off the cheese or use a vegan cheese.  Low fat, low sodium and delicious.  We love the flavor of red, orange or yellow peppers the most, but green ones are really good too.