Lentils: A Hero in Disguise

I think lentils must be the unsung heroes of the legume world.

These little pods are truly a nutritional powerhouse. For every cup of lentils, you're packing 16 grams of fiber and 18 grams of protein.

It's like music to my fiber-lovin' heart.

Plus, lentils are super versatile. You can use them as a base in veggie burgers, toss some into a pasta dish, or jazz 'em up for a lovely side dish.

Unfortunately, I feel like these guys are often forgotten in the vast world of beans, legumes, and other vegetarian protein sources. Their blase color leaves much to be desired, am I right?

But friends, don't judge a book by its cover. It's time to get over the boring lentil look and look inside for the all the wonders this rockin' legume has to offer.

My friend Diane recently emailed me a recipe for her family's Favorite Lentils--they're cooked in veggie broth and spices, and seasoned with a sherry-mustard vinaigrette. Seemed simple enough.

So I made the lentils. I ate the lentils. I promptly fell to my knees and shouted "Hallelujah for lentils!" This is the best lentil dish I've ever eaten, friends.

Need proof? I actually made them again the next night. I repeated the recipe the very next day. We just couldn't get enough of Diane's fabulous lentils.

Now it's your turn. Make, eat, and shout "Hallelujah for lentils!"

Warm Lentils with Sherry Vinaigrette
(adapted from Diane T.'s recipe)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup lentils
• veggie broth
• 3/4 tsp. - 1 tsp. dried rosemary
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 small onion, minced
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 carrots, finely diced
• 1 - 2 stalks celery, finely diced

Vinaigrette Ingredients:

• 3 TBSP sherry wine vinegar
• 2 TBSP dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 - 3 TBSP olive oil

Directions:
1) Place lentils in a large pot and cover with veggie broth (about 3 cups). Add remaining lentil ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 - 30 minutes, or until the liquid is mostly absorbed.

2) To prepare the vinaigrette, whisk ingredients together in a small bowl. When lentils are done cooking, pour vinaigrette on top and stir to combine.

Birthday Rice

Our family has a long-standing birthday tradition: The birthday person provides their ideal dinner menu to my mom--who joyfully prepares it--and we all enjoy the feast packed around my parents' dining room table.

This tradition has been around for as long as I can remember--as a kid, I picked French Toast as my birthday meal every year. The mere thought of dinner involving buttery fried bread buried under powdered sugar was absolutely exhilarating for a 9 year old Kylie.

My older sister, on the other hand, always had much more sensible choices: salmon cakes, lasagna, and the like. Older sisters are so much more reasonable, aren't they?

In celebration of the Hungry Spoon Sis's 32nd year, we enjoyed a family birthday feast this past weekend. On the menu? Spinach and Black Bean Enchiladas, salad, and Spanish Rice.

My mom tried a new Spanish Rice recipe that was apparently designed to feed a high school football team. Fortunately, that meant there were plenty of leftovers for me to sneak into Tupperware and pack away in my purse.

Let's be honest, folks: They don't call me the Hungry Spoon for nothing.

Bonus: This recipe is totally vegan.

Happy Birthday, Sis :)

Spanish Rice

(recipe from Hungry Spoon Mama)

This recipe pairs nicely with quesadillas, burritos, or enchiladas (of course!). Or, as pictured above, it makes a great dinner all on its own.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup brown rice, uncooked
• 2 - 1/2 cups veggie broth
• a dash of olive oil
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1 can of diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/2 cup salsa

Directions:

1) Place rice and veggie broth in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer (covered) until all of the liquid is absorbed--about 20 - 30 minutes.

2) Meanwhile, heat a dash of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add bell pepper and onion and saute for 3 - 4 minutes, until tender. Add garlic and chili powder and saute for about 1 - 2 more minutes.

3) In a large bowl, combine rice, pepper and onion mixture, diced tomatoes, and salsa. Season with salt and black pepper as needed.

How Easy is That?

When it comes to eating healthy, you've got to keep it simple.

A few veggies here, a dash of olive oil there, a sprinkling of seasonings and....voila! Dinner is done.

In the words of Ina Garten, "How easy is that?"

Tonight we invited our friend Alli over for an evening of vegan-style feasting: Quinoa Burgers, roasted veggies, and Peanut Butter Blondies (straight from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar). This menu alone provided reason #347 why you shouldn't be afraid to prepare vegetarian meals for your meat-lovin' pals.

They'll love the food just as much as you do. Promise.

Allow tonight's recipe to serve as motivation for anyone who has set a 2011 "healthy living" resolution. This roasted veggie dish is colorful, flavorful, and heavy in the vitamin department (Please step away from that bottle of Flintstone Chewables. Who needs a pill when you can enjoy your vitamins roasted and peppered?).

You can serve your roasted veggies as a filling side dish, as a hearty salad mix-in, or on a toasted hoagie bun with cheese. Bottom line: Cut 'em, Roast 'em, Eat 'em and...Keep it simple :)

Roasted Veggies (for your New Year's Resolution)
(adapted from a recipe given to me by Mike G., my former boss and veggie-loving buddy)

Feel free to mix it up with the veggies. The original recipe calls for brussel sprouts, pears, and beets, which I didn't have on hand tonight. So, I just improvised with the bell pepper and apple. Turned out lovely just the same!

Ingredients:

• 4 sweet potatoes, or 1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed
• 2 bell peppers, sliced
• 1 large onion, sliced
• a drizzle of olive oil
• a drizzle of pure maple syrup
• a sprinkling of dried rosemary
• salt and pepper to taste
• Pecans, toasted and chopped for garnish

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray.

2) Toss veggies together in a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and maple syrup and toss to coat. Sprinkle with rosemary, salt and pepper; toss to coat. Arrange veggies in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, toss veggies, and return to oven to bake for another 15 - 20 minutes, or until thoroughly roasted. Top each serving with toasted pecans.

Post Holiday Cooking

The remnants of Christmas are still lingering.

A box of decorations is sitting by the stairs, waiting to be packed away in the attic.

A Christmas nut roll, half-eaten, is waiting on the counter to be devoured.

And then there's that penguin-shaped hand-soap I can't bear to pack away yet. He has a bell on his Santa hat for crying out loud! Who doesn't want to look at something that cute when you're washing up for dinner?

While the holiday baking has been a blast, my body is begging for some vege-head normalcy, so yesterday we enjoyed a huge bowl of Edamame Succotash for dinner. I absolutely love this stuff. My mother-in-law first made it for us during a visit in July, and I've made a repeat creation several times since. It makes an awesome after-work snack, too :)

Edamame succotash makes a great side dish, or you can enjoy it as a main course as we did (we ate a dish of stir-fried carrots and bell pepper on the side. Talk about a vegan delight!).

Enjoying any fun eats during this post-holiday week?

Edamame Succotash

Ingredients:

• 1 bag (1 lb.) of frozen edamame, thawed
• 1 bag (1 lb.) of frozen corn, thawed
• 1 small red onion, finely diced
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Consume copious amounts, guilt-free :)

Bell Pepper-French Fry Impostors

Last week I curled up on the couch during one of my lunch breaks and watched an episode of "30 Minute Meals with Rachael Ray."

Wrapped up all cozy in a blanket, I watched Rachael make Baked Chili Fries with Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing. Typically, I would barely eye an episode like this. I'm not a fan of hot peppers, and I've never been wild about Ranch (yes, I know: it's completely un-American of me). Plus, even with the word "baked" tacked onto the beginning, "Chili Fries with Ranch Dressing" doesn't exactly sound like something that will be gracing the cover of Clean Eating Magazine anytime soon.

However, this was no ordinary day. A strange wave of baked-chili-fry fever came over me, and I haven't been able to shake it since. I've literally been fantasizing about this dish. Someone help me--I need some baked fries (or some cowbell) to cure my fever.

Tonight, fantasy became reality when I made them, ate them, and promptly added them to my list of favorite french fry impostors. We used green bell pepper instead of chilis (what can I say? I'm a hot-foods wimp). These guys were to-die-for! And no wonder I've never liked Ranch dressing--I've never had it homemade. My goodness. We gobbled these suckers up in no time.

Rachael made them as part of a tail-gating sports party theme, but you certainly don't need to. I watched Glee while I ate my fries...can you think of anything less athletic?

French Fry Impostors, here we come!

Baked Bell Pepper Fries with Buttermilk Ranch

(adapted from a Rachael Ray recipe)

Despite their healthy-baked cooking method, these guys will still cure your fried food craving. And the ranch dressing is just not optional. Unless of course you decide to make some blue cheese dressing, in which case I would totally approve.

Pepper Ingredients:

• 2 green bell peppers, sliced
• 1 cup flour, divided
• 2 eggs
• 2 TBSP dijon mustard
• 1 cup breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup Asiago cheese, grated
• plenty of ground black pepper
• salt to taste

Ranch Dressing Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup non-fat or low-fat buttermilk
• 1/2 cup low-fat sour cream
• 1 TBSP white wine vinegar
• 1 - 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 TBSP fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 tsp. (or more to taste) dried dill weed
• 3 TBSP fresh chives, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a baking sheet (or two) with cooking spray and set aside.

2) Set up three plates/bowl: one plate with flour only, one bowl with the egg, dijon mustard, and 2 TBSP flour (whisked well), and one plate with the breadcrumbs, cheese, salt and pepper mixed together.

3) For each slice of bell pepper, first dip it in the flour, then the egg mixture, then the bread crumb mixture. Place on the baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, or until browned.

4) To prepare the dressing, combine all ingredients in a bowl.

5) Dip those tasted pepper slices into the dressing, and say "thank you" to dear Rachael Ray :)

B-Sprouts: Re-Mixed from the 1980's Version

Did anyone else have less-than-desirable experiences with brussel sprouts as a child?

Although my mom truly rocks at most everything she creates in the kitchen, I have to admit that brussel spouts just weren't her strong point. Those mini cabbage heads were boiled in water and served straight from the pot just as they were. Needless to say it wasn't the most popular side dish at the dinner table.

When I brought this topic up with a few of my friends though, I found that perhaps the unpalatable brussel sprout issue wasn't mom, but rather it was the prevailing method of cooking B-sprouts at the time. My girlfriends indicated they had the similar sprout experiences when they were growing up.

Moms: We don't blame you. You were victims of the time period. Let's move forward though: It's time to redeem yourselves.

I've found in recent years that I LOVE roasted brussel sprouts. Seasoned just right and slightly crispy on the outside, they're a wonderfully seasonal dish this time of year. While they're delightful on their own (as we had them for dinner tonight), they also make a great add-in to a meal-sized salad.

Tonight we tossed in a chopped sweet potato when we roasted our brussel spouts (leftover from Tuesday's soup). After the veggies roasted, Adam made a homemade Honey Mustard Garlic dressing to drizzle over the top. Bonus: The dressing is almost completely fat-free (and you'd never know it from the taste). It was definitely as good as it sounds--incredibly scrumptious!

Today, re-discover your love for brussel sprouts. Mom: This one's for you :)

Have you discovered a love for a food that you didn't like as a child?

Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Honey Mustard Garlic Dressing

(vinaigrette recipe from Moosewood Restaurant's Low-Fat Favorites)

Divine. That's all there is to say about this recipe. Simply divine.

Veggie Ingredients:

• 1 pound of brussel sprouts, halved
• Optional: 3 (very) small sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• a little drizzle of olive oil
• a little salt and pepper

Honey Mustard Garlic Dressing:

• 4 - 5 cloves of garlic, minced and sauteed in a tiny bit of olive oil (just to soften the bite of the raw garlic)
• 2 TBSP Dijon mustard
• 2 TBSP honey
• 3 TBSP cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup apple cider
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 425 degrees and coat a baking pan with cooking spray.

2) Drizzle just a little olive oil over the brussel sprouts and sweet potatoes. Toss to coat, and season lightly with salt and pepper. Place veggies on baking sheet and roast for about 30 minutes, or until nicely browned and tender (stir the veggies after 20 minutes).

3) To prepare the dressing, whisk together the ingredients in a small bowl.

4) Drizzle a little dressing over individual servings of veggies.

Simple Side Dish: Take 2

I know what you're thinking:

"Another simple side dish? Another post that centers around celery?

Come on, lady. We're looking for a culinary creativity. Vegetarian masterpiece. Not Cooking 101 with the world's most stringy vegetable."

Trust me. I hear ya.

But sometimes, the days get so busy that you only find time for a simple veggie dish to round out your day.

Tomorrow I'll bring you Artichoke Lasagna. So give me a pass on today, and let's talk celery and walnuts.

I made this salad last night, knowing that today wouldn't provide time for dinner-cooking. I ate so much out of the serving bowl last night, you probably could have counted it as my fourth meal. Bonus: It takes 10 minutes to prepare.

Celery isn't often prized as the centerpiece of a delicious dish. More often it plays the role of supporting actor. However, in this awesome dish, celery is paired with a full cup of toasted walnuts, a little salt n' pepper, and some grated Parmesan for a powerful flavor punch (the non-violent kind).

Wow. Fourth meal.

Pair this guy with any number of main course dishes. Or, play me for the evening and eat a massive bowl for dinner while you pre-cook lasagna noodles. I think I ate my weight in toasted walnuts.

Totally worth it. Fourth meal rocks.

Celery, Walnut & Parmesan Salad

(recipe courtesy of Cooking Light)

This side dish is so flavorful and filling--toasted walnuts give it the protein needed to bump it up to a filling "supporting actor" role. Don't forget to TOAST the walnuts. Absolutely necessary.

Ingredients:

• 5 ribs of celery, thinly sliced (about 3 - 4 cups)
• 1 cup of chopped walnuts, toasted
• 1 TBSP olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• Ground pepper to taste (we used A LOT!)
• Garnish with grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Super Simple: Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Stir, eat, enjoy. Repeat.

Simple Side Dish

Do you remember those first recipes you dabbled in when you were learning how to cook?

Good times, right?

My early-learning adventures in cooking began as a graduate student. At the time, I had never heard of cumin, I thought fat-free cheese was a perfectly acceptable substitute for the real deal, and I was unaware of the differences between margarine and real butter.

My first recipes included vegetarian chili, marinara sauce with spaghetti, and bean burritos. Once I learned to make these bad boys, they quickly became the three-meal rotation I cooked every week. Yep, every week. I've always been a creature of habit.

Also topping the list of "first foods" in my cooking journey was Carrot and Celery Amandine. Adam discovered it on Allrecipes.com (shortly after our discovery of the bean burrito recipe), and it quickly entered into the rotation. Soy sauce gives it a flavorful taste, and toasted almonds provide the crunch I need when I'm eating cooked vegetables.

Tonight, we returned to our early days of cooking and made Carrot and Celery Amandine to go with our leftover Tofu Sandwiches. Brings back memories :)

What were your first recipes when you began cooking?

Carrots and Celery Amandine

(courtesy of Allrecipes.com)

This simple side dish is the perfect accompaniment to a sandwich dinner.

Ingredients:

• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• a dash of olive oil
• 2 TBSP water
• 2 TBSP low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 1 - 1/4 cups chopped carrots
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1/4 cup chopped, toasted almonds

Directions:

Heat a little olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and saute until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and saute for one additional minute. Add the carrots, celery, water, soy sauce, and sugar. Stir to combine, cover, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook until vegetables are tender-crisp, about 5 minutes. Stir in chopped almonds.

Bean Bakin'

Actually, we won't be baking beans at all. We're doing the faster, easier, and super-delicious shortcut version of baked beans: it's all about the stovetop, friends.

The dish: Barbeque Vegetarian Stovetop Beans

We all know baked beans as a fixture in the traditional summer cookout menu. A cookout without baked beans would be as silly as Thanksgiving without pie. However, as president of the baked bean fan club (well, if one existed I would be), I'm all about enjoying baked beans year 'round.

This tasty side dish is requirement in our house anytime we make vegetarian sandwiches for dinner. I'm notorious for dipping my sandwiches in the beans before each bite. Sandwich night just wouldn't be complete without them. Thus, BBQ beans were on the menu as the perfect accompaniment to our Vegetarian Cheese "Steak" Sandwiches on Saturday night.

As with many Hungry Spoon recipes, the ingredient amounts listed below are quite flexible. If you prefer sweeter beans, add more brown sugar (or try molasses or maple syrup). If you prefer a sharper bite, add more vinegar or mustard.

Just because summer picnics are a distant memory, doesn't mean our summer cuisine must be. Celebrate the awesome-ness of BBQ baked beans...with a fork n' knife sandwich on the side.

Vegetarian Barbeque Stovetop Beans

(Inspired by a recipe found in Andrea Chesman's 366 Delicious Ways to Cook Rice, Beans, and Grains)

These beans are so flavorful, no one will even notice it's a vegetarian, bacon-less version.

Ingredients:

• One 15 oz. can of kidney beans
• One 15 oz. can butter beans
• One 15 oz. can diced tomatoes
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3 large cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 - 3 TBSP barbeque sauce
• 1 TBSP apple cider vinegar
• 1 - 2 TBSP brown sugar
• 2 tsp. dijon mustard

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a pot over medium heat. Add onion and saute until softened, 4 -5 minutes. Add garlic and saute for an additional minute. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Allow beans to simmer until flavors are thoroughly blended (10 - 15 minutes).

*Note: I've also made these beans in the crock pot. Adjust the amount of liquid (from tomatoes) as needed, and cook 3 -4 hours on low.