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  • Roasted Veggie Burrito Bowl

    Roasted Veggie Burrito Bowl

    Many people think that vegan food consists of just salads, and that we go hungry a lot of the time, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.  Every meal I make, I create things that will satisfy me and fill me up, especially dinner because I have more time to cook in the evening (lunches are usually stuff I make ahead of time).  One of my favorite things to make is hearty bowls.  Bowls filled with lots of veggies, grains and beans, and whatever I happen to have on hand. One specific bowl I have been making however on the days I have longer runs and I am really hungry though is this Roasted Veggie Burrito Bowl!

    I started making it because I was craving fajita veggies from my favorite Mexican restaurant but I decided to just roast them and add them to my bowl.  This current bowl has all of my favorite veggies.  Roasted bell peppers, mushrooms, and zuccchini.  Plus avocado and jalapenos from my garden and local sweet corn.  As a side note, the corn is so freaking amazing this time of year, how could I not include it?! I also like to include a good amount of greens at the bottom. I pretty much add a bunch of greens to every lunch and dinner.

    For the beans I used pinto seasoned with chili powder, cumin, garlic, lime, sea salt and cilantro and they are so good and flavorful!  If you are one of those people who hates cilantro feel free to leave it out or add a little oregano instead.  Lastly cooked brown rice is at the center of the bowl. This meal is so good and so satisfying I am not going to lie, I have made it at least once a week for a few months now.  I know you could just go to Chipotle and get a bowl, but home made is sooo much better!  If you love Mexican inspired flavors, definitely give this Roasted Vegetable Burrito Bowl a try!

    Roasted Veggie Burrito Bowl

    Makes 2

    Ingredients:

    • 1 large red bell pepper, cut into 2 inch chunks
    • 1 medium zucchini, cut in half and sliced
    • 1 small onion, cut in half, then cut into wedges
    • 1 large portabello mushroom, sliced 1/4 inch thick
    • olive oil or avocado oil spray
    • sea salt
    • 1 ear organic sweet corn (alternatively you can use 3/4 cup frozen kernels)
    • 1 1/2 cups cooked pinto beans (canned is fine, just rinse and drain them first)
    • 1 garlic clove, minced
    • 1/2 tsp cumin
    • 1/2 tsp chili powder
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt (or to taste)
    • juice of one lime
    • 2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
    • 1 cup cooked brown rice
    • 4 large handfuls greens (romaine, spinach or arugula are my favorite)
    • 1 sliced jalapeno (optional)
    • 1 sliced avocado
    • 1/2 cup salsa
    • hot sauce for serving (optional)

     

    Instructions:

    1. Preheat the oven to 375F and line a large sheet pan.
    2. Spread out the peppers, zucchini, onions, mushrooms and corn (you can keep it on the cob if using a cob) on a sheet pan, and spritz with a little olive oil or avocado oil. Sprinkle with sea salt, and place in the oven.  Roast until the veggies are just tender and starting to brown at the edges, about 30 minutes.
    3. Meanwhile, in a pan on the stove, add the beans, garlic, cumin, chili powder, sea salt, lime juice and cilantro and cook over low heat until heated through.
    4. When the veggies are done roasting and the beans are hot, to assemble the bowls, add some greens to the bottom of each bowl, then add half the rice to each bowl, followed by the beans, roasted vegetables (cut the corn off of the cob first before adding it), avocado, sliced jalapenos, salsa, and then sprinkle with hot sauce if desired.
    5. Serve!

     

  • Veggie Filled Tempeh Fried Rice

    Veggie Filled Tempeh Fried Rice

    I was given an Instant Pot for Christmas, and I was pretty excited about it.  Before this year, I have never really thought about using a pressure cooker, but I had been seeing a bunch of my friends cooking things in them and posting photos on Instagram and Facebook and it got me interested. I haven’t made anything super exciting in it yet, just rice and beans, but wow do they ever cook fast!  I cooked dry un-soaked garbanzo beans in 40 minutes and it normally takes me like 2 hours on the stove!  And the other day I made some rice in it because I had a tofu dish I wanted to serve it with and it came out perfect in only 10 minutes.  I have a confession to make, I am usually horrible at cooking rice on the stove. I usually end up making it too mushy, or it gets to dry because I do other things and forget to turn it down. We use a steamer at work and it is a life saver for that type of stuff so I don’t have to worry about watching it.  Anyways, the Instant Pot is even faster than the steamer so I was very impressed.  I had some of that rice leftover because I made more than I needed, so I thought what better use for it, then to make some fried rice?!

    I hadn’t made it in years. Well, the traditional kind at least, I made a raw version a few years back but that is different.  I like my fried rice to be filled with veggies.  None of that super greasy stuff that is mostly rice and not much else that you get at restaurants sometimes.  Shrimp fried rice used to be my favorite before I went vegan.  But anything shellfish or shrimp totally grosses me out now, not to mention the idea of eating an animal.  So, for this one I decided to use tempeh cut into little cubes.  Kind of like they do for chicken with fried rice. It was perfect!  It added protein and a nice meaty texture without being meat.  I added in plenty of veggies as well, carrots, mushrooms, green onions, and garlic.

    Also, I had to add flavor, so I went for a tamari, miso and mirin mixture and it was super delicious!  The best part about this is it only took me about 15 minutes to make start to finish.  You can’t beat that for a quick weeknight dinner.  If you have different veggies on hand, or one of these ones is not your jam, feel free to swap them.  I am all for using what you have in the refrigerator and not wasting food.  Some of the best meals are made that way.  So, the next time you have leftover rice give this a try!

    Veggie Filled Tempeh Fried Rice

    Serves 2

    Ingredients:

    • 2 Tbsp avocado oil, divided
    • 6 oz organic tempeh, cut into small cubes
    • 2 garlic cloves, minced
    • 2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
    • 6 scallions, sliced very thinly
    • 1 medium carrot, cut julienne
    • 1 medium zucchini, cut in half lengthwise, and sliced on the bias
    • 8 crimini mushrooms, sliced
    • 2 tsp white miso
    • 2 Tbsp mirin
    • 2 Tbsp tamari
    • 2 cups cooked rice
    • sea salt to taste

     

    Instructions:

    1. Heat 1 Tbsp oil over medium heat in a ceramic pan. Add the tempeh, and sautee it until it is starting to brown slightly.  Remove from the pan and set aside.
    2. Add the remaining oil to the pan, along with the garlic, ginger, and scallions.  Sautee for a minute until fragrant.  Add the carrot, zucchini and mushrooms and sautee until softened, about 5 minutes.
    3. Mix together the miso, mirin, and tamari in a small bowl, and add to the pan, along with the rice. Cook and stir together until the rice is uniform in color.  Add the tempah back to the pan and stir to incorporate.  Add a touch of sea salt if needed.
    4. Serve!
  • Vegan Southwest Shepherd’s Pie Chili

    Vegan Southwest Shepherd’s Pie Chili

    I made my Sweet Potato lasagna the other day, but I have had another sweet potato recipe floating around in my head for a while that I wanted to try out. It is definitely comfort food type weather here, so warming food is needed so badly.  I have been wanting to make a sweet potato topped shepherd’s pie for a while.  I usually just make the classic shepherd’s pie with gravy, loads of veggies, lentils instead of the meat and mashed potatoes on top, very Minnesotan and not spicy at all.  But I have been dreaming of a version with a spicy chili on the bottom and mashed sweet potatoes on top.  I figured I would make a batch and share it with Eric because he loves chili, beans, and anything spicy.  I actually was going to make this for New Years eve, because we are staying in and staying warm this year.  So, I thought it would be a good test run.

    I made a simple chili for the bottom portion, it cooked up quickly, and I added plenty of spice in the form of chili powder, cumin, cinnamon, chipotle powder and smoked Spanish paprika. It smelled wonderful while cooking.  It cooked up quickly as well, because I already had some cooked black beans on hand.  I don’t buy canned beans because it is more wasteful and I like the texture of my own home cooked ones better plus they are cheaper when I buy dried.  I them in the bulk section at the store, then I just cook up a big batch, then freeze them in containers, pulling them out when I need them. Which works perfect for things like this.  The chili tasted delicious, and of course you could eat it just like that if you didn’t want to mess with the topping, but this was to be a beautiful shepherd’s pie.  So I baked up some sweet potatoes to top it off.  Although you could steam them if you were in a hurry, they taste so much better roasted, all of the flavor intensified and caramelized into them.

    I like to add a little lime juice and sea salt, a trick I learned from a vegetarian cookbook a long time ago when I was learning to cook.  It is sooo good, even just as a side dish.  But even better when topping spicy chili like this!  It turned out so good!  The perfect savory dinner for a chilly night!  The best part is, this was easier and faster to make then the usual shepherd’s pie and that is always a win!  I hope you are all staying warm this Winter!

    Vegan Southwest Shepherd’s Pie Chili
    Serves 2-4

     

    Ingredients:

    • 2 large sweet potatoes or yams, cut in half lengthwise
    • 2 Tbsp lime juice
    • 1/4 tsp sea salt or to taste

     

    Chili:

    • 1 small onion, diced
    • 1 carrot, cut in half  lengthwise and sliced
    • 1 stalk celery, sliced
    • 2 garlic cloves, minced
    • 3 cups diced tomatoes (canned are fine)
    • 1 Tbsp chili powder
    • 2 tsp ground cumin
    • 1/4 tsp chipotle powder (or 1/2 if you really want it spicy)
    • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
    • 1 Tbsp Spanish paprika
    • 1/2 tsp sea salt or to taste
    • 1 1/2 cups cooked black beans

     

    Instructions:

    1. Preheat the oven to 400F degrees, and place the sweet potatoes cut side down on an baking sheet lined with parchment.  Bake until tender, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool until you can handle them to take the skin off. Place the flesh in a bowl, and add the lime and sea salt.  Mash together until smooth.  Set aside.
    2. Meanwhile, in a pot, combine all ingredients but the beans.  Bring to a boil, and lower to a simmer.  Cook on low heat for about 20 minutes or until the veggies are getting tender. Add the beans, and cook for about 10 minutes more until they soak up the flavor.  Once everything is cooked, remove from heat, and spoon into a casserole dish, or two smaller ones.
    3. Spoon the sweet potatoes over the top of the chili, place in the oven and bake for about 10-15 minutes at 400F degrees until bubbling.
    4. Remove from the oven, let cool for about 10 minutes, and enjoy!