Tag: celery

Recipe: Loaded Salad

Loaded salads are baaack!

I remember planning for a vegan pregnancy. 2 months into the pregnancy and I craved a hamburger. I still ate a lot of #veggies and fruit, but meat was back on the menu. Salads weren’t satisfying anymore, which totally bummed me out. Any of you who’ve dealt with pregnancy cravings KNOWS what I’m talking about when I say, “What baby wants, baby gets!” Now I’m past breastfeeding and starting to feel more in control of my eating. Enter stage left, the grand and ggloriousLOADED SALAD!! This salad tastes great and fills my belly.
Ingredients per salad:
5 oz lettuce
1 roma tomato, diced
3 sweet mini bell peppers, diced
1/2 cup hummus
3 tablespoons spicy nut mixture
1/4 cup salsa for salad dressing
5-6 kalamata olives, pitted

Directions:
🍅Using large bowl, layer in this order
🍅Lettuce
🍅Salsa sprinkled on lettuce
🍅Hummus in corner with kalamatas on top
🍅 Tomatoes in 2nd corner
🍅Bell peppers in 3rd corner
🍅Peanut mixture in 4th corner

Optional toppings:
Radishes
Avocado
Celery
Carrots
Seeds – chia, sunflower, and/or #pumpkin

Fill your belly and feel great! I’ll see you at the table!

Beef Stew with Canned Beef

I love a good stew, especially when it’s cold outside. This stew is on the lighter side because there’s a small ratio of beef to other ingredients, no oil and no added salt.

Ingredients:
2 12 ounce canned beef
1 small onion, diced. Or use 1/4 cup dehydrated onion
3 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2″ pieces
4 large potatoes, cut into 1″ cubes with skin still on
4 celery stalks, cut into 1/2″ pieces
1 lb tomatoes, rough cut or 1 14 ounce can stewed tomatoes
2 cup frozen peas (See Note 1)
1 14 ounce can corn, or 2 cup frozen corn
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
2 tablespoons organic no-salt seasoning
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf

Directions:
1. Using large pot, water saute the onion for 2 minutes then add the carrots and celery and saute another 2 minutes
2. In a separate pot, boil the potato cubes for 10 minutes, then add the potatoes to the rest of the stew.
3. Add corn, tomatoes, canned beef with juice and black pepper, organic no-salt seasoning, bay leaf, Italian seasoning, stir to combine.
4. Add 2 cups of water and simmer for 20 minutes.
5. If you want it thicker, make a rue using 2 ladles of hot liquid into bowl. Add 1 tablespoon flour and whisk thoroughly, then add corn starch one tablespoon at a time to thicken – I usually use 2 tablespoons. Add rue to high powered blender with 10 cooked potato pieces and blend until pureed. Pour mixture into stew and mix thoroughly; heat through.

Serve stew with a yummy crusty bread. Freeze left overs for quick meal another day. Enjoy!

I’ll see you at the table!

Note 1: Peas cook quickly, so I add the peas when I reheat the stew so that they’re still firm and sweet, a nice contrast to the heartiness of the rest of the stew.

Turkey Rice Soup

I love soup! I could eat soup for almost every meal. My family enjoys a lot of soup recipes, as well. As a busy mom and business owner I’m glad that soup is a meal that I can prepare ahead of time and heat up as needed.

Turkey and Rice Soup
Turkey and Rice Soup

Below is my go-to easy turkey and rice soup that is always a hit in our family (teens and adults). I like this recipe for using items mostly from food storage too.

Ingredients:
1 14 ounce can cooked turkey (can substitute canned chicken)
1 cup cooked white rice (rice must be cooked because will absorb more water even after it has been cooked)
Small white onion, small dice, or quarter cup dehydrated onion
4 large carrots, peeled and diced, or 1/2 cup dehydrated carrots
1/2 bunch of celery, cut into quarter inch pieces
1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt, or 1/2 tablespoon of Organic No-salt Seasoning (I prefer Costco product over Spike)
2 dried bay leaves

Directions:
1. In a large soup pot on medium heat, add 1/4 cup water then immediately add celery and saute for 2 minutes.
2. If you’re using fresh onion and carrot, saute with celery, otherwise add the dehydrated onion and dehydrated carrot with celery and can of turkey meat with juice – this juice will stop veggies from sticking to bottom of pan. Stir to mix.
3. Add Italian seasoning, thyme, black pepper, salt or Organic No-Salt Seasoning and bay leaves.
4. Add 10 cups of water and 1 cup precooked rice, turn heat up to high and bring to boil. Cover and boil for 10 minutes.
5. Turn heat down to low and simmer for 20 minutes.

I prefer to cook this soup one day in advance so the flavors blend together. Keep in refrigerator in sealed container for up to 5 days – if it lasts that long! Reheat and enjoy with your favorite rolls or grilled cheese sandwiches. You can freeze as well – I recommend individual servings.

I’ll see you at the table!

Asian Noodle and Vegetable Stir Fry

Sometimes I think I was born on the wrong continent. I LOVE Asian food. I especially love Asian noodle dishes. Here’s a great dish that works well for adults and kids.

Ingredients:

1 package of rice noodles – I recommend getting something fresh, not frozen nor dried, in the refrigerator section of an Oriental food store.

1 zucchini, 1/4 inch slices

1 carrot, 1/8 inch slices – if you have a mandolin or quick slicing machine, it goes much faster and more consistent thickness

2 celery stalks, 1/4 inch slices

1/2 white onion, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 head of broccoli, cut into small florets

Cilantro leaves, peanuts and lime wedges for garnish.

Water for the water-sautéing.

For the meat lovers: Add one pound of shelled shrimp.

 

Sauce ingredients:

1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce

2 tablespoons Sriracha – omit if you don’t like spicy

1/4 rice wine vinegar

1/4 teriyaki sauce

Before you start cooking, mix together the above ingredients and set aside for when you’re ready to add the sauce to the stir fry.

 

Directions:

First start with cooking your noodles per the directions on the package. Strain your noodles and set aside in a bowl. You’ll want to run warm water over them later to break up the “stuck” noodles before adding to the stir fry.

Using a large wok on medium high heat, add 1/4 cup of the water (not using oil saves calories and fats) then immediately add the garlic and white onion. Keep moving the veggies so that they don’t stick and add a little water as needed. Cook for about 3-5 minutes, or until the onions are clear.

Add the other veggies and keep adding water as needed. Use the lid if you want to keep the steam in the wok.

If you’re adding shrimp, do that now. It should only take 1-2 minutes to cook the shrimp.

Add the sauce and heat through with the veggies. Should take about 2-3 minutes.

Add the noodles and stir through, getting the sauce and veggies mixed thoroughly. Take care to not stir too hard and break up the noodles. Better to keep the noodles intact – looks better.

Serve immediately. Allow the diners to add their own garnish.

Enjoy!

Recipe: Lentil Vegetable Soup

Jen cooking soup in condo located in Marbella, Spain While traveling, I look for places to stay where I have access to a kitchen which allows me to cook healthy food and save money from eating out all the time. A pot of soup that is ready to eat whenever I’m hungry is a great way to eat healthy too.

On the first night of this two week trip to Spain, I headed to the grocery store and bought several items to sustain me for a few days. Perhaps I bought too much because while walking home, several times I had to set the bags down in order to give my arms a break!

Cooking for someone else can be interesting too because they don’t always like what you like to eat. But, luckily my travel partner is game to try anything I will cook on this trip. She is curious to know what it would be like to try some recipes that don’t have sugar, oil nor salt.

Lentil Vegetable Soup ingredientsLentil Vegetable Soup: (Yield: 2 quarts)
Ingredients:
Half red bell pepper, diced
Half broccoli head, rough chop
Half yellow onion, diced
2 clove garlic, minced
2 small turnip, diced
5 small yellow potatoes, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 stalk leek, white end sliced in 1/4 inch rounds
2 medium zucchini, diced
3 stalk celery, diced
1-12oz can diced tomatoes
2 cup cooked lentils
2 cup frozen peas
2 tablespoon Italian seasoning

Directions:

  • Using a large soup pot, on medium high heat, water sauté the onion for about 5 minutes.
  • Add garlic and leek, continue water sauté for 3 minutes.
  •  Add carrot, celery, bell pepper, continue water sauté for 3-5 minutes or until celery is soft.
  • Add broccoli, zucchini, can diced tomatoes, lentils and seasoning. Stir thoroughly and bring to soft bubbling boil.
  • Use hand held blender to puree part of the soupIn a separate pot, boil diced potato and turnip for 10-15 minutes until soft. Strain and add to vegetables when they have reached the soft boil. Stir to thoroughly incorporate.
  • Using a handheld blender, purée about 1/3 of the soup mixture. If you don’t have a blender, then you can enjoy a chunkier style.
  • Add the frozen peas, turn down heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • If you want it spicy, add 1 teaspoon dried chili pepper flakes.

Serve  hot with bread or toasts. For a fuller meal, add a green salad and fruit for dessert. Enjoy!

Note from my travel companion: She added salt because is accustomed to eating food with added salt, but overall loved the soup and ate several meals from this one pot. Guess she liked it!

Soup is ready!In the comments section below, let me know what you think of the recipe. Thank you!

Healthy food close to home and far away tastes great and fuels your body to have the energy to enjoy the trip. I’ll see you at the table!

Recipe: Asian Noodle Green Salad

asian-noodle-green-saladAsian Noodle Green Salad
Ingredients for dressing – whisk together and set aside:
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
1/3 cup gyoza sauce (or low-sodium soy sauce)
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon julienned thai basil leaves

Salad ingredients:
2 cups asian noodles, cooked then chilled and cut into 1-2″ pieces
1 cup carrots, sliced
1 small cucumber, cubed
1-8 oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained
1-15 oz can baby carrots, drained and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1 tablespoon chia seed
3 stalks celery, diced
1/2 cup raw peanuts
1 cup baked tofu, cubed (I buy at Trader Joe’s; substitute edamame)
Toss together above ingredients with 1/2 dressing mixture. Add to 1 head red leaf lettuce and toss well. Serve with 1 avocado cubed and 1/2 cup rough chopped cilantro.

Serve immediately with extra dressing on the side. Will be plenty for 3 adults, or use as side dish for 6 people with another Asian dish.

Recipe: High Cruciferous Vegetable Stew

east to liveA little sun shining on my stew… It’s like God himself is pleased with this healthy dish! Another good one from the Eat To Live book.

Serves 10 (Yep! That’s going to be a lot of leftovers for us. But, I like do have extra for quick dinners during the week)

INGREDIENTS:

4 cups of water [we did 5 cups]
2 1/2 cups carrot juice
1/2 cup dried split peas
1/2 cup dried lentils
1/2 cup adzuki beans, soaked overnight, or no- or low-salt canned adzuki beans, drained and rinsed [we used one whole can]
1 bunch of kale, tough stems and center ribs removed and leaves coarsely chopped [we used half bunch]
1 bunch of collard greens, tough stems and center ribs removed and leaves coarsely chopped [we used half bunch]
1 head broccoli, cut into florets
8 ounces fresh or frozen Brussels sprouts, cut in half if large [we didn’t have any, so used 1/2 head of cauliflower cut into pieces]
8 ounces shiitake mushrooms, cut in half [we didn’t include, I don’t like mushrooms]
10 ounces celery sticks, cut into 1-inch pieces [we used 8 stalks, diced]
3 leeks, coarsely chopped
3 carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 parsnips, cut into 1-inch pieces [we didn’t have]
3 medium onions, diced
4 medium zucchini, cubed [we used 2 zucchini and 2 yellow crook neck squash]
4 cloves garlic, chopped, or 2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 (28-ounce) can chopped tomatoes, no-salt-added or low-sodium
1/4 cup Dr. Fuhrman’s VegiZest or other no-salt seasoning [we used 1/3 cup no-salt seasoning]
2 tablespoons Mrs. Dash [we didn’t use]
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 cup broccoli sprouts (optional) [we didn’t use]

DIRECTIONS:

Place all the ingredients except the parsley and sprouts in a large soup pot. Cover and bring to a simmer, cooking until the adzuki beans are tender, about 1 1/2 hours. (If using canned adzuki beans, simmer until the vegetables, lentils and split peas are tender and the flavors blend, about 1 hour.) In a food processor or high-powered blender, blend one-quarter of the soup until smooth. Return to the soup pot and stir in the parsley and broccoli sprouts (if using).