Simple and Fresh Recipes for Lent

One-pot Vegan Jambalaya

Ingredients: 

• 1 ½ yellow onions
• 3 red bell peppers
• 3 sticks celery
• 3 cups white mushrooms, pre-sliced
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp minced garlic
• 3 cups canned diced tomatoes
• 1 ½ Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 ½ Tbsp cajun seasoning
• 4 ½ cups kidney beans
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 ½ tsp dried thyme
• 4 ½ cups brown rice (dry)
• 3 tbsp chopped cilantro

Directions:

• Finely chop onion, red bell pepper, celery, and white mushrooms.
• In a large pot over medium-high heat, warm olive oil. Add onion, garlic, celery, and red bell pepper and stir, cook 2 to 3 minutes, until onion starts to soften. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
• Add diced tomatoes and tomato past, stir and add cajun seasoning. Cook 2 more minutes.
• Add kidney beans, soy sauce, dried thyme, white mushrooms, and rice. Stir and cook 2 minutes, then add 3 cups of water and a pinch of salt. Cover tightly and bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low and cook 20 minutes without lifting the lid.
• Turn off heat and let stand 10 minutes before opening lid. Fluff rice with a fork and season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with cilantro (optional).

Recipe from PlateJoy

Red Cabbage and Apple Salad with Pecans

Ingredients (original ingredients in parenthesis): 

• 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsp dijon mustard
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 2 apples
• 1 lemon
• 1 red cabbage
• ½ cup pecans
• ½ cup vegan blue cheese, vegan feta, vegan tofu feta (blue cheese)

Directions:

• In a small bowl, whisk together rice vinegar, apple cider vinegar, and mustard. Gradually whisk in olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Thinly slice apples; in a medium bowl, toss apple with 4 tsp juice from lemon. Thinly slice red cabbage.
• In a large bowl, combine apple, red cabbage, pecans and vegan blue cheese. Toss with dressing to taste.

Recipe adapted from PlateJoy

Vegan Pumpkin Muffins

(Makes 12 muffins)

Ingredients (original ingredients in parentheses): 

• 1 1/2 c all-purpose flour 
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp allspice
• 1 1/4 c sugar
• 1/2 c vegetable oil
• 2 flax eggs (lightly beaten eggs)

• 1/2 c almond milk (milk)
• 1 can pumpkin purée (1 cup)
• 1/2 c pumpkin seeds

Optional

• 1/2 c chopped walnuts 
• 1/2 c raisins

Directions:

• Toast pumpkin seeds in a dry skillet on medium heat.  Set aside. 
• Combine all of the dry ingredients in a bowl (except the pumpkin seeds, walnuts, and raisins).  
• Carefully stir in the wet ingredients. 
• Fold in walnuts and raisins. 
• Spoon mixture into a muffin tin.
• Sprinkle toasted pumpkin seeds on top. 
• Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes. Test with a toothpick. 
• Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from “500 cupcakes” by Fergal Connolly

“Grains & Greens” Salad

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup uncooked grains* (Karen’s favorite combination: 1/3 cup rinsed quinoa, 1/3 cup millet, 1/3 cup raw buckwheat grouts)
• 2 cups water
• 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas/navy/cannellini beans or 1 (15-oz) can of beans (rinsed and drained) or frozen peas/edamame (thawed)
• 1 ½ cups chopped seasonal vegetables (peppers, tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, snap peas, whatever you have on hand!)
• 1 ½ cups lightly cooked/blanched greens (collards/kale/spinach/etc.) 
• ½ – ¾ cup chopped green onions
• 1 cup finely chopped fresh herbs (parsley, basil, and/or cilantro) or 1-2 TBSP dried herbs  
• ¼ cup lemon juice (approximately 2 to 3 lemons)
• 2-3 TBSP apple cider vinegar (or rice wine vinegar)
• Splash of olive oil
• 2-3 cloves garlic (pressed or minced)
• ½ tsp salt
• Black pepper (to taste)

Directions:

• Cook grains: put the grains and the water in a medium saucepan.  Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then decrease the heat to maintain a gentle simmer.  Cook until the grains have absorbed all of the water, about 15 minutes, reducing heat as time goes on to maintain a gentle simmer.  Remove from heat, cover, and let the grains rest for 5 minutes.
• In a large serving bowl, add the beans, chopped vegetables, greens, green onion, and herbs.  Set aside.
• In a small bowl, combine the vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and salt. Whisk until blended, then set aside.
• Once the grains are mostly cool, add them to the serving bowl, and drizzle the dressing on top. Toss until the mixture is thoroughly combined. Season with black pepper, to taste, and adjust the other seasonings as needed. For best flavor, let the salad rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
• This salad keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for about 4-5 days. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Note: I enjoy using millet and buckwheat because they are both nutrient rich, tasty, and generally speaking are more sustainable (socially and environmentally) than quinoa.  

Recipe adapted from Cookie and Kate

Herbs/Greens-On-Hand Salad Dressing

Ingredients

• Large handful of fresh herbs (parsley, basil, cilantro) or any kind of greens (spinach, kale, collards, mixed lettuce greens)
• ¼ cup rice wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
• 2-3 TBSP lemon/lime juice and/or orange juice
• 1/4 yellow onion (or several green onions or 1 tsp onion powder)
• 1-2 garlic clove (or 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp garlic powder)
• ½ tsp salt 
• 1/4 tsp pepper

Optional:

• 2-4 tbsp olive oil or 1 small avocado pitted
• To add a touch of sweetness try: a bit of maple syrup, agave, more orange juice, and/or several TBSPs chopped dates

Directions:

Using an immersion blender/blender/mini food processor – add all of the ingredients and blend until smooth. Store in the fridge until ready to use.

Adapted from: Life Is But a Dish

Photo by Char Beck on Unsplash 

“Greens-On-Hand” Pesto

Ingredients:

• 4 cups greens-on-hand (arugula/collards/kale/spinach/mixed greens/etc.)
• 1 cup nutritional yeast flakes
• 1 cup nuts or seeds (you pick: pecans/pine nuts/walnuts/sunflower seeds)
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 3-4 cloves (or more) of garlic
• 1/4-1/2 cup water
• 1/2 tsp salt

Directions:

• Using a food processor or small blender, add the greens, nuts, garlic, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, and sea salt and blend/mix on high until a loose paste forms.

• Add the water a little at a time (trickling it in while the machine is on if possible) and scrape down sides as needed until the desired consistency is reached – a thick but pourable sauce. 

• Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more nutritional yeast for cheesy flavor, salt for overall flavor, nuts for nuttiness, garlic for bite / zing, or lemon juice for acidity.

• Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator up to 1 week. After that, pour into ice cube molds, freeze, and store up to 1 month or more.

Notes:

• I like to use toasted nuts as that adds to the overall flavor.

• I usually use raw greens, but lightly cooked or blanched greens also work.  And, yes, this recipe works really well with basil. 12

Recipe adapted from Minimalist Baker

Potato Chip Cookies

(Makes 12 cookies) 

Ingredients: 

1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas or 1 (15-oz) can 
1 ½ cups dates (soaked in warm water for 10 minutes) 
2 cups crushed “reduced/low fat” potato chips 
1 cup almond flour (or oat flour) 
¼ cup coconut oil (or 1 avocado*) 
2 tsp vanilla extract 
1 T apple cider vinegar 
1 tsp baking soda 
½ tsp salt 

Directions:

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or brush a small amount of oil onto the sheet. Using a food process or blender, blend all of the ingredients together except the flour and potato chips. Once the ingredients are well incorporated (no chunks of chickpeas or dates are visible), blend in the flour. Remove the dough from the food processor or blender and divide the dough into 12 balls/blobs… the dough will be fairly soft and somewhat sticky. 

Fold in some of the crushed potato chips into each ball and press the dough ball onto the cookie sheet. 

Bake for approximately 25 minutes at 350 degrees. The cookies are done when they reach 200 degrees (using a cooking thermometer) and/or they have turned golden-brown, and the middle of the cookies are only slightly soft (as they cool they will firm up a bit). 

Enjoy!

*Note: This is a good “no-oil” alternative. However, it will turn your cookies slightly green

3-Ingredient Raw Cacao Bites

Ingredients:

• 1 cup walnuts (115 g)
• 1 cup Medjool dates (200 g)
• 2 tbsp raw cacao

Directions:

1. Place the walnuts in a food processor or a powerful blender (food processors work better) and blend until they have a crumbly texture.
2. Add the dates and the cacao and blend again.
3. Make balls with your hands and they’re ready to serve.

You can store the bites in a sealed container at room temperature, or keep them in the fridge, especially in summer.

Recipe adapted from simpleveganblog.com

Roasted Veggie Grain Bowl

Ingredients:

Grain (makes extra):

• 1 cup raw quinoa, rinsed
• 1¾ cups water

Creamy Kale Pepita Pesto (makes extra):

• ½ cup pepitas (or shelled raw pistachios)
• 2 small garlic cloves
• 1 packed cup chopped kale
• 1 packed cup cilantro, more for garnish
• ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ cup water
• ½ teaspoon maple syrup or honey

Roasted Vegetables

• 2 parsnips, chopped into ½ inch pieces
• florets from ½ cauliflower
• ½ bunch broccolini
• 1½ cups halved Brussels sprouts

Protein

• 1 (14-ounce) can chickpeas, drained & rinse, use ¼ cup per bowl, save the extra

Garnish

• sauerkraut 
• toasted pepitas

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Make the quinoa. 
   • Add the rinsed quinoa and water to a medium pot. 
   • Bring it to a boil, cover, reduce the heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let it sit, covered, for 10 more minutes. 
   • Fluff with a fork. 
3. Make the sauce. 
   • Combine the pepitas, garlic, kale, cilantro lemon juice, sea salt, pepper, olive oil, water, and maple syrup or honey in a blender and blend until smooth.
4. Roast the vegetables. 
   • Place the parsnips, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower on one large baking sheet. Place the broccolini on the second baking sheet. Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil and pinches of salt and pepper, toss to coat, then spread evenly onto the sheets. 
   • Roast the parsnips/Brussels sprouts/cauliflower 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown around the edges. Roast the broccolini for 10 to 12 minute or until tender. 
   • When cool to the touch, chop up the broccolini stems.
5. Assemble bowls with a scoop of quinoa, the roasted vegetables, about ¼ cup chickpeas, and a scoop of sauerkraut and top with pepitas. 
6. Drizzle with the sauce. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if desired, and serve.

Recipe adapted from loveandlemons.com