Broccoli and Olive Frittata

1 medium yellow bell pepper

1 medium red bell pepper

2 broccoli crowns, cut into bite-size pieces (or 1 pound frozen broccoli)

1/2 cup pitted ripe olives, halved

6 organic eggs, softly beaten

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk

2 Tbsp chopped fresh sweet basil or 1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp dried oregano

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

1/2 cup cashews, ground fine (for garnish)

1. Quarter and seed peppers, then broil them for 5-10 minutes or until lightly charred. Place in a closed brown paper bag, and let cool for 5 minutes. Peel and thinly slice. (If you don't mind the peel, leave it on and just slice the roasted peppers into thin slices.)

2. Reduce oven heat to 400 degrees F.

3. Grease a 9-inch round pan. Place broccoli, peppers, and olives in the pan, making sure to arrange them evenly. Beat remaining ingredients except cashews together in a small bowl and pour over vegetables.

4. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the center has set. Broil for the last two minutes to brown the top. Cool, slice into wedges, and serve warm or cold garnished with ground cashews (in place of Parmesan cheese). Serves 4.

Note: You can use this basic recipe for any type of frittata that you desire. Other ingredient ideas include basil, pine nuts, and pesto. You can add spinach to almost any frittata. Be creative.

Try #1 - February 11, 2022

This was delicious and very satisfying. I used frozen broccoli but cooked it before putting it into the pan. I left out the olives, because olives are gross. I made this in the morning but will also try putting it together the night before and refrigerating so I can stick it in the oven in the morning.

Slow Cooker Sausage and Veggie Soup

1 lb spicy sausage (ground or links, sliced)
8 medium-sized carrots (about 1 pound), sliced
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1 medium-sized zucchini (about one cup), chopped
1 medium-sized yellow squash (about one cup), chopped
15 oz can cannellini (white kidney) beans, rinsed and drained
3 cups chicken broth
24 oz jar of your favorite pasta sauce

1. Put sausage in bottom of slower cooker.  Add all the other ingredients and cook on low for 8 hours, or until the carrots are soft.
2. Break apart sausage and stir.

Freezer Meal Method:
1. Label 1 gallon-sized freezer ziploc bag.
2. To the freezer bag, add pasta sauce, cannellini beans, carrots, tomatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, onion, and ground sausage.  Add the ground sausage last, so it's the first ingredient poured into the slow cooker.  Do not add chicken broth to bag; it will be added when you are ready to cook the meal.
3. Remove as much air from the freezer bag as possible, seal, and lay flat in your freezer.
4. The night before cooking, move frozen bag to refrigerator to thaw.
5. The morning of cooking, pour contents of bag into slow cooker, add chicken broth, and cook on low for 8 hours or until carrots are soft.
6. Break apart sausage and serve.

Source: No Cook Freezer Meals, by Kelly McNelis (thefamilyfreezer.com)

Try #1 - February 24, 2022
I decided to just make this in the crockpot without freezing first, to see if it was a meal worthy of freezing.  It was!  The soup was delicious, and easy, and hit the spot on a cold February night.  I will definitely try the freezer method on this one.  Some modifications I made: I used Trader Joe's sweet Italian chicken sausage links, sliced (next time I would cut the pieces even smaller) and I used an extra zucchini instead of a yellow squash.  I also used garbanzo beans instead of cannellini.  For the pasta sauce, I used a 15 oz can of Kirkland pasta sauce and then added enough Classico sauce to get up to the 24 oz total.  We served this with Abby's biscuits, but it would also be great with crusty bread.

Tubu (Tofu) Chorim

1 pack formed bean curd (tofu)

1 tsp roasted salt (1/2 tsp table salt)
2 Tbsp oil for frying

To make yangnyomjang sauce:
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar (optional) - I used 1/2 tsp
1 tsp red pepper powder - I used 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp chopped garlic
3 stalks green onions
Optional: 3 Tbsp soup stock

1. Cut the tofu into rectangles 2 inches long, 1 inch wide, and 1/2 inch thick.  Lightly sprinkle with salt.
2. Slice green onions lengthwise to 2-inch lengths, or simply chop them.  Mix them with other sauce ingredients.  This is enough when adding the sauce directly to the tofu pan, but add 3 Tbsp soup stock if you want to boil the friend tofu and sauce in a new pan to make it softer and juicier.

3. Pour oil into a heated pan and brown both side of the tofu pieces.

4. You can add the sauce and boil the tofu directly in the pan, or boil the sauce in another pan add the browned tofu to it.  The first way will make the tofu rather gummy whereas the second way will make it softer.

Source: Heidi!

Try #1 - February 20, 2022
This was delicious!  I just added the sauce directly to the tofu pan, which seemed fine to me.  I served it with brown rice and steamed broccoli.  I think next time I would try stir-frying vegetables (in a separate pan from the tofu) and maybe double the sauce to have enough to stir-fry with the veggies as well as the tofu.

Cream of Spinach Pockets

Cashew Cream Sauce:

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup raw cashews

3 Tbsp nutritional yeast

2 Tbsp cider vinegar

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Filling:

1 Tbsp vegetable oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup frozen spinach, thawed

1/4 cup fresh parsley

4 medium pita pockets or tortillas

1. Put all the cream sauce ingredients, including salt and pepper to taste, in a high-speed blender and mix until it is all smooth, then set aside.

2. To make the filling, heat the oil in a pan over medium heat and add the onion.  Stir and cook for 3 to 5 minutes before adding the garlic and spinach.  Cook them for an additional 3 minutes.  Add the cashew cream sauce and cook until it thickens a little and has a creamy consistency, about 2 to 3 minutes.  Turn off the heat and mix in the parsley.

3. Stuff each pita pocket with filling or spread the filling over half a tortilla and fold the other half over.  Cook the filled pita or tortilla in a panini maker or a skillet.

Source: Easy Vegan Breakfasts & Lunches, by Maya Sozer

Green Velvet Smoothie

3 to 4 large kale leaves, stemmed
1 apple, cored
1/2 banana (can be frozen)
2 Medjool dates, pitted
1 Tbsp chia seeds
1 Tbsp peanut butter
1 cup cold almond milk

Optional Toppings:
Raspberries, blueberries, almond slices

1. Put all the ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth.

Source: Easy Vegan Breakfasts & Lunches, by Maya Sozer

Try #1 - February 22, 2022 (2-22-22!)
Yum!  Very delicious smoothie.  I accidentally used a whole banana.  Instead of almond milk I used some Greek yogurt and regular milk, and added a tablespoon of almond butter.  Great smoothie!  

Sauteed Mushroom and Avocado Hummusadillas

2 Tbsp olive oil

3 shallots, thinly sliced (or substitute onions)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 medium portobello mushrooms, thinly sliced (I used peppers and zucchini instead of mushrooms)
4 Tbsp hummus
2 large tortillas
1 avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
Fresh arugula

1. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are translucent, about 3 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Add the mushrooms and cook until most of the juice is reduced and the mushrooms turn golden brown.
2. Spread 2 tablespoons of the hummus over one side of a tortilla.  Add half of the sauteed mushrooms over hummus and fold the tortilla in half.
3. Cook both sides in a skillet until each side gets a nice crust with slightly charred spots.  Repeat for the second quesadilla.  After they are cooked, open the fold briefly to add the avocado slices and fresh arugula.

Source: Easy Vegan Breakfasts & Lunches, by Maya Sozer

Try #1 - February 20, 2022
The idea of a hummus "quesadilla" intrigued me, so I decided to give this recipe a try despite not loving sauteed mushrooms.  Instead of mushrooms, I sauteed onions, peppers, and zucchini.  The result was delicious!  So delicious I made it again for lunch two days later.  Seems like a versatile recipe - could sauté various vegetables and probably add some black beans.  I loved the hummus in place of cheese - my new favorite way to eat hummus.  Yum!

Update: I had this three times in one week, it was that good.  Abby liked it too and made it a couple of times for herself!  I added kale instead of arugula, which was great!