Healthy recipes from the wonderful Veggie Chick !

www.theveggiechick.com

Recipe of the week

SMOKED CHIPOTLE SALSA

Ingredients:

2 smoked chipotle peppers or 1 and some of the juice (they come in cans and I transfer the balance to a small Tupperware and freeze to use next time) put more if you like it hot

6 Roma tomatoes cut in quarters

1/2 red onion sliced

4-5 cloves of garlic (or less if you don’t like it garlicy)

1/2 bunch of cilantro chopped

Juice of 1/2 lemon

2 table spoons of olive oil

Salt to taste

Preparation:

Turn oven to 350 Chop tomatoes and onions, garlic can be cooked whole, Cordell chop cilantro Arrange tomatoes, onions and garlic on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 35 mins Transfer veggies to food processor, add chipotle peppers, cilantro, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and blend till smooth. Serve it with blue corn tortilla chips or any chips of preference!

BREAKFAST QUINOA AND EGG MUFFINS

Ingredients:

4 eggs (beaten )

1/2 cup of heavy cream or milk

1 cup of cooked quinoa

1 cup of chopped spinach

1/3 cup of chopped Sun-dried tomatoes

1/2 cup of shredded cheese (I used Gouda)

1/2 small red onion chopped finely

2 cloves of garlic copped finely

Olive oil 1 teaspoon Salt and 1 pinch of black pepper

Preparation:

Preheat oven 350′ Spray muffin pan with olive oil spray Sautée the red onions on olive oil till translucent (3 mins) add garlic, sautée for another minute. Mix eggs and heavy cream, cheese and chopped spinach and sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl. Add the salt and pepper. Mix well and pour into cup cake sheet. Bake for 15 mins.

Oatmeal, Grains and Fruit Bake

Ingredients:

1 cup of oatmeal

1/2 cupboard chia seeds and flex seeds (or any grains of choice)

1 cup of any milk (I used almond)

1 tablespoon of Maple sirup (or agave nectar)

2 tablespoons of coconut oil

A sprinkle of cinnamon

1 large peach or nectarine sliced in quarts

Berries of any type (I used berries pure I had made using blue berries, raspberries and strawberries in the food processor)

Preparation:

Turn on the oven at 350′ Butter a baking dish In a bowl mix all the grains and oatmeal Spread them in the baking dish Mix milk and sirup Pour milk mixture on top of oatmeal mixture. It should be very soupy but oatmeal absorbs all the milk during baking Arrange fruit on top Sprinkle with cinnamon Bake for 35-40 minutes

Enjoy!!!

‘Chickin’ Pot Pie Family style

Ingredients for stew:

1 cup of veggie broth

1 package of veggie ‘chicken’ strips (put it in a bowl and drizzle with salt and pepper in advance to develop some flavor)

1 package of mushrooms of any type sliced 3 large carrots peeled and sliced in 1/2 inch pieces 1/2 yellow onion chopped 3 garlic cloves chopped finely 1/2 bunch of parsley chipped finely (reserve a little bit for the presentation at the end)

A tea spoon of fresh rosemary and fresh thyme leaves chopped

1/3 cup of heavy cream (or nut cream)

1/3 cup of white dry wine such as Pinot Grigio

3 table spoons of butter (or vegan butter)

1/3 cup of all purpose flour

Preparation:

Heat oven to 350′; Butter a deep medium size backing dish and set aside; In a Dutch over heat up the butter and cook onions till translucent (3 mins). Add carrots and let it cook for another 3 mins, add mushrooms and garlic and cook for another 2-3 mins stirring once in a while. Add wine and let it cook for a while so the alcohol is reduced. Stir in flour slowly until it’s completely incorporated (whisk it into mixture). Add the ‘chicken’ or meat substitute and the cream and the herbs. Cook for another minute and remove from heat. Mix two packages of buttermilk biscuits with water until they reach a rustic mixture. It only takes one minute. I used one package and it was not enough, maybe 1/2 will do. You probably will want about 8 biscuits! Distribute the veggie/chicken mixture on top of buttered baking dish. Spoon biscuits on top of the veggie and gravy mixture until it’s covered with dumplings/biscuits. Leave a little space in between the scoops because they spread a little. Bake for 30-35 mins until biscuits are cooked and browned. Sprinkle left over parley and serve!

Hearts of palms ‘Escondidinho’

This is a typical seafood dish in Brazil that I have changed the main ingredient: crab 🦀 and substituted for delicious hearts of palms! Hearts of palms when shredded have the same consistency of crab!

The dish is called ‘escondidinho’ which means ‘a little hidden’ in Portuguese and it’s normally when something (meat) is hidden under puréed potatoes or yucca root! It’s divine!

Ingredients:

1 can of hearts of palms shredded to imitate the consistency of crab meat

1/2 green, red and yellow or orange bell peppers cut in small cubes

1 large tomato deseeded and cut in cubes (I normally squeeze the seeds out of the tomatoes)

1 small yellow onion chopped finely

3 garlic cloves chipped finely

1/2 bunch of cilantro chopped finely

I cup of mashed potatoes made with 2 large Yukon potatoes cooked and mashed (put some salt on the potatoes)

1/2 cup of veggie broth

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup of bread crumbs (Italian style works well but any type works. If making this Gluten Free use GF crumbs which is normally corn based).

Olive oil

Preparation:

Heat oven to 350′

Butter or brush olive oil on baking dish and set aside.

Sautée the onions in olive oil till translucent. Add garlic and let it cook for one minute. Add the bell peppers and cook until soft.

Season with salt and pepper and add the hearts of palms and 1/2 of the cilantro and tomatoes. Add 1/2 of the veggie broth. Simmer on low for 4-5 minutes mixing once in a while.

Add more broth, salt and pepper as needed.

Remove from heat.

Move veggie mix to baking dish. Cover it with mashed potatoes. Sprinkle bread crumbs and Parmesan on top. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 mins. Remove aluminum foil and bake for another 10 mins. Serve hot with a green salad or over rice.

Sprinkle the rest of cilantro on top of dish right before serving! Voila!

Enjoy!

Batalhoada

Batalhoada is a take on bacalhoada which is a Portuguese dish made with bacalhau (dried cod), potatoes and bell peppers. Since I am trying on the vegetarian take on it I made with hearts of palms and no fish. It’s a hearty and a very nice dish to serve to a large group or for a cozy supper on a cold day! As with many dishes in the Brazilian/Portuguese culture it’s served over white rice. But you can substitute for brown rice or quinoa for a healthier take. It can also be made vegan if you omit the eggs.

This is truly a delicious dish and your guests will ask for seconds! At least mine did!!

Ingredients:

6 round potatoes or 3 large russet one peeled and sliced in thick slices (1/2 inch).
3 bell peppers sliced in strips without seeds
2 tomatoes sliced
1 large red onion sliced
1/2 can of hearts of palms sliced in thick pieces
1 can or bottle of coconut milk
3 eggs boiled hard and sliced (omit if making this dish Vegan)
1/2 yellow onion diced finally
2 cloves of garlic diced finely
1 bunch of cilantro chipped finely
15-20 kalamata olives

Boil the potatoes in salted water until al dente (approx 10 mins) drain the potatoes and set aside.
At the same time cook the eggs by putting them into water and bringing water to boil. Turn water off and let eggs sit in hot water for 12-15 mins then drain and let it sit in cold water for about 10 mins, peel and slice them.
Sauté yellow diced onions and garlic in olive oil untill translucent and add the coconut milk and 1/3 of cilantro. Add salt and pepper to taste. Turn heat off and set aside.
Get a a large glass (or metal) baking dish and layer with slices of onions, follow it with slices of potatoes, hearts of palms, bell peppers, tomatoes, kalamata olives and spoon half of he coconut milk mixture.
Sprinkle some of the cilantro and a dash of salt and pepper and repeat with one more layer.
Top the dish with more cilantro and drizzle good olive oil all over.
Cover with aluminum foil and cook for 30 mins on 350′. Remove the foil and cook for another 15 mins.