Lentil Kale & Potato Soup

Posted on September 7, 2017 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
Tried a new recipe today,
kept it very basic and super simple. The soup turned out fabulous and it is a very flexible kind of soup. I hope you enjoy it because I sure did.

Lentil Kale and Potato Soup
Created 09/07/17

LentilKalePotatoSoup

This makes 4-5 servings, freezes well

2 Carrots, diced
2 Celery stalks, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium onion, diced
2 medium red potatoes or 1 large sweet potato, diced
2 tablespoons of olive oil, vegetable broth, or water
1 cup lentils, picked through and cleaned
2 heaping handfuls of kale roughly chopped
1 bay leaf
4 cups of organic low sodium vegetable broth or chicken broth
Salt and Pepper to taste
Vegan Worcestershire Sauce (3 or 4 dashes optional)

In stock pot, saute the carrots, celery, onion. garlic for 5 to 8 minutes to soften the vegetables. Add the lentils, bay leaf, salt, pepper, and broth. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer for at least 15 minutes. Add the potatoes and cook for another 15 minutes. The lentils and potatoes should be cooked through. Add the kale and cook for another ten minutes.

Toppings: Add grated cheese of choice, gluten free chicken sausages all optional.

CLICK HERE TO PRINT THE RECIPE

Filed under: Clean Eating, Diabetic Friendly, Gluten Free, MS Friendly, Simply Healthy Recipes, Soup and Stew Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: , , | Leave a comment »

Versatile Sloppy Joes

Posted on August 5, 2017 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
This recipe works well with 3 different types of proteins. This dish has been made with lentils, vegetarian crumbles or grass fed ground beef. Loving the tangy flavor with the tartness of the vinegar, along with adding fiber, and vegetables creates this into a very healthy recipe. What’s so great about this? Tweaking the ingredients to suit your taste buds is the key in making this recipe most excellent!!

Pam’s Very Versatile Sloppy Joe’s
Created 3/20/17

IMG_4678

Basic Sloppy Joes Ingredients (for all the proteins) 
Prepare the proteins first before adding all the ingredients
2 tablespoons of olive oil, coconut oil, or vegetable broth
1 additional cup of water or vegetable broth
1/2 or 1 chopped large onion (depending on the protein used, ground beef – large onion, other proteins – 1/2 onion and it depends on how much onion-y flavor you want)
1 medium carrot
4 minced garlic cloves or 2 tsp garlic powder(For picky eaters, put carrot, garlic, and onion in food processor and mince, these things can be hidden well)Salt/Pepper (optional)
2 cups of organic ketchup
1/8 cup dark molasses (if not have, use brown sugar)
2 to 3 teaspoons apple cider vinegar (can use what you have in house)
2 or 3 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce 

Pick your protein
1 lb of protein (grass fed ground beef, vegetarian crumbles, or 1 cup of green lentils)

  • For ground beef or vegetarian crumbles add – 1 can of pink beans, drained. If you want, put beans in with vegetables in processor. If your family likes beans, no need to process the beans. Brown the ground beef with onions in oil or broth until cooked. Add the vegetables with or without the beans and cook until translucent about 7 to 10 minutes.
  • For lentils, cook the lentils with oil or the broth, vegetables with or without the beans, cook until translucent about 7 to 10 minutes.  You will need to add broth or water to soften the lentils with the other ingredients. You may need more liquid because lentils absorb liquids quickly.
  • For the vegetarian crumbles, cook with oil or the broth, vegetables with or without the beans and cook until translucent about 7 to 10 minutes. Broth or water may need to be added to prevent sticking.

Add all the rest of the ingredients with the water or broth, mix well. Adjust the flavors, as needed. Simmer for 20 minutes until all the flavors are combined and cooked. For the lentils, cooking time can be up to 30/40 mins.

Filed under: Clean Eating, Gluten Free, Paleo, Simply Healthy Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: , , | Leave a comment »

Baked Tofu

Posted on July 23, 2017 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
This is a great recipe for vegans, vegetarians or a meatless meal with a salad and beans. This is also good in wraps with sliced tomatoes, pea shoots, shredded carrots, sliced cucumbers and drizzled with olive oil. For me, I think that baked tofu has better flavor than stir fried or deep-fried tofu. I used Non-GMO, organic tofu for this recipe. Enjoy!

Baked Tofu
Made October 15, 2015

BakedTofu
Prep:
Drain water from the packaged tofu. Wrap the tofu in paper towels to remove the excess water, put on a bowl, then top with a plate and something heavy to help squeeze out the excess water, for approximately 1 hour.

While tofu is being prepped, make the marinade in a bowl.

3 tablespoons Braggs Amino Acids
1/4 cup raw honey (for vegans can use maple syrup instead)
1 teaspoon dried red chili flakes
1 tablespoon olive oil

Mix well, and place marinade in a gallon Ziploc bag or a container with a lid. Slice the tofu in even 1” slices and place the tofu in the Ziploc bag or container with a lid, and marinate for 4 hours. Overnight is better, brings out the excellent flavor, when baked.

Put tofu on parchment lined cookie tray or Pampered Chef stoneware bar pan. Bake 350 degrees for about an hour till center is springy to touch.

CLICK HERE TO PRINT THE RECIPE

Filed under: Gluten Free, Simply Healthy Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: , , , | Leave a comment »

Kale and Mushrooms Baked Spaghetti

Posted on March 10, 2015 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
I am always looking for good healthy recipes to test. This recipe is very easy to make and the pasta choices can be gluten or rice free. I found this on another food blog I follow called http://www.hummusapien.com and I tweaked and added to the recipe only because I know that I want these flavors in this dish. What is so great about this is there are no eggs or cheese needed. I loved the idea completely. My next dish will be with spaghetti squash instead of pasta. Watch for that one. Enjoy!

Kale and Tofu Baked Spaghetti
Created on 3/10/15

Kale and Tofu Baked Spaghetti

For the Tofu Filling
16 oz. extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
½ cup of hummus (I made a huge batch in the beginning of the week so I used that)
¼ cup nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1 teaspoon of dried oregano
1 teaspoon of dried basil
½ fresh squeeze lemon juice and 1 teaspoon of the zest

Press and drain the tofu for approximately 15 minutes. You can put the tofu on top of the colander, and put a plate with a heavy can to press all the water out of the tofu. Crumble the tofu in a medium size-mixing bowl. Add the hummus, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano and basil, and lemon juice and zest. Mix using your hands or a fork, the mixture will look like ricotta cheese. Set the bowl aside.

For the Baked Spaghetti
12 oz of spaghetti pasta (Gluten Free, Corn, Wheat or Rice Free whichever works for you)
32 oz jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce (I used Simply Organic Tomato Basil from Kroger)
2-1/2 cups of water
8 oz button mushrooms sliced
½ onion sliced
½ bunch of kale, chopped
2 tablespoons of water or olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In medium sauté pan over medium-high heat up water or oil and add mushrooms and onions. Sauté until the onions and mushrooms are soft.

In a greased 9 x 13-casserole dish, layer the uncooked spaghetti on the bottom. If using a stone, no greasing is needed. Break the noodles in half and cross over the pasta so the noodles do not stick while baking. Add the spaghetti sauce and water. Use a spoon and mix on top of the spaghetti. It will look very watery. Top with the cooked mushroom and onion mixture and the chopped kale. Sprinkle the tofu filling on top evenly.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour, remove from the oven, and let the dish set for 10 minutes before serving.

CLICK HERE TO PRINT THE RECIPE

Filed under: Casserole Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a comment »

Honey Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Posted on December 8, 2014 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
Every year on Thanksgiving, I see my beloved Sweet Potatoes / Yams traditionally swimming in fattening things like butter, marshmallows, and brown sugar. Sorry, for the bluntness but I always think to myself, what a terrible way to ruin a perfect healthy food. This recipe I found on the Food Network with Chef Tyler Florence so I cannot take credit for this one. I was thrilled to see this recipe because it is Gluten Free and Vegan. It could be Paleo friendly too, if honey is on the Paleo list. I am still learning the Paleo way so this recipe may not be Paleo friendly. The sweet potatoes sweetened with just right amount of honey and the cinnamon really makes it wonderful. I love this recipe and it is definitely worth keeping.

Honey Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Created on 11/18/14

image9

Ingredients
Serves 4 people, Preheat oven to 375 degrees
(Double this, it is worth it for leftovers)

4 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
¼ cup of olive oil or coconut oil
¼ cup of honey
3 teaspoons of cinnamon

Toss all ingredients well in a bowl and spread single layer on a cookie sheet or a Pampered Chef Large Stoneware Bar Pan. (Cook Note: invest in the Pampered Chef Large Stoneware Bar Pan – it is worth it and you will use it all the time). Roast for approximately 25 to 30 minutes until sweet potatoes caramelize from the honey. Serve with any meal. It does not have to be Thanksgiving. Most Excellent!

CLICK HERE TO PRINT THE RECIPE

Filed under: Gluten Free, Holiday Recipes, Paleo, Simply Healthy Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: , | Leave a comment »

Vegan Cashew Cheese

Posted on December 8, 2014 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
This is the first time I made this and I was impressed. I am a huge fan of cream cheese but because my diet is changing, I decided to try this Cashew Cream. I found this recipe on “luminousvegans.com” I modified the recipe because of taste. I wanted more flavor than the original recipe. What an amazing thing to make. It is wonderful on toast, in mashed cauliflower and on crackers. I highly recommend this.

Cashew Cream

Created on 11/19/14

image1
 
2 cups of raw cashews (soaked for 4 hours)
4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons almond milk
2 tablespoons tahini
1-tablespoon onion powder
1-teaspoon kosher salt

Drain cashews from water and put in a high-speed blender. Add the remaining ingredients and process on high until smooth. Adjust the seasonings to your liking. Store in a container for up to a week in the refrigerator.

CLICK HERE TO PRINT THE RECIPE

Filed under: Cheese, Simply Healthy Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: | Leave a comment »

Banana Oatmeal Raisin Bites

Posted on October 4, 2014 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
The not eating gluten, sugar and keeping my food plan simple is a daily challenge but I will not give up. Today, I had a really terrible craving for cookies and have seen this posted a few times on Facebook and Pinterst. This recipe grabbed my interest so I went ahead and made the snacks. It is not sweet like I pictured but to keep things clean in my food plan it was good for me to try this. I cannot take full credit for this as the recipe has been floating around for a while. Enjoy!

Banana Oatmeal Raisin Bites

Created on 10/04/14

 

Banana.Oatmeal.Raisin.Bites

Ingredients
3 ripe bananas mashed well

2 cups of oatmeal

1/3 cup of applesauce

1/4 cup of Almond milk

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1/2 cup of raisins

Directions
Mix all ingredients well and put tablespoon size bites on a cookie tray. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 mins.

Note: you can substitute raisins with Vegan chocolate chips

CLICK HERE TO PRINT THE RECIPE

Filed under: Desserts, Gluten Free, Holiday Recipes, Simply Healthy Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: , , | Leave a comment »

Vegan Lentil Walnut Loaf

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
I have been looking an awfully long time for a decent Lentil Loaf that does not have cheese, gluten (wheat bread crumbs), and eggs. I was browsing the web and came across this recipe from Oh She Glows website and modified some ingredients to match my food plan. I cannot take credit for this, Oh She Glows rocks! This Lentil Walnut Loaf is just simply amazing. The texture reminds me so much of meat loaf, I ate 2 slices in one sitting. My only regret was not having enough glaze to dip the loaf in when I was eating it. Definitely making double glaze next time. I do not think I will ever try another lentil loaf recipe again and will attempt to make burgers out this recipe. Will keep you all posted! Enjoy!!

Vegan Lentil Walnut Loaf
(From Oh She Glows, modified)
Created on 9/30/2014

Walnut.Lentil.Loaf
Ingredients
1 cup dry lentils, washed and picked through for stones, twigs
3 cups low sodium vegetable broth
3 tablespoons of ground flax seed
2 tablespoons of olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
½ of a large onion, minced
1 large celery stick chopped, fine
1 large carrot, peeled and grated
1 medium apple, grated – I used Golden Delicious
1 cup toasted walnuts, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon of flax seed meal
½ cup gluten free oats grounded into oat flour with food processor
¾ cup GF breadcrumbs – 2 slices of gluten free bread, toasted and processed with food processor

For the glaze
3 tablespoons organic ketchup
1 tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar
1 tablespoon maple syrup

In a medium pot, cook the lentils with vegetable stock. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for about 40 to 45 minutes until all the stock is absorbed. Stir often so lentils do not stick to the bottom. When the lentils are cooked and the stock is absorbed, set aside and cool.

While lentils are cooking, toast walnuts in the oven at 350 degrees for approximately 6 to 8 minutes and cool. Prepare the flax egg, in a measuring cup add 3 tablespoons of flax meal with ½ cup of warm water, stir well and set aside. The flax meal will thicken some into a gel-like consistency.

In a large skillet, heat up olive oil over medium heat and add the onions, garlic, carrot, celery, apple for about 5 minutes and add the walnuts. Season the sautéed vegetables with salt, pepper and thyme. Set aside.

Mix the processed oats, breadcrumbs and the 1 tablespoon of flax seed meal in a large bowl. Add the cooked vegetables and ¼ of the cooked lentils in the bowl. In the food processor, add the 3/4 of the cooked lentils and process until fairly smooth – there will be some lentils still whole. Add the mixture to the bowl. Add the flax egg meal and stir everything well. Use your hands to mix if need to.

In a lined with parchment paper loaf pan, dump the lentil mixture and press down well with fingers. Smooth out the top.

Mix the glaze ingredients together and top on the loaf. Bake in 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. Remove from the heat and let the loaf set for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and slice into 8 or 9 nice thick slices.

Note: Oh She Glows had ¼ cup of raisins in her loaf and 1 tablespoon of apple butter mixed in the glaze. I did not have these ingredients in my pantry and just added another tablespoon of ketchup instead. I still thought the loaf was ahhmazing!!

CLICK HERE TO PRINT THE RECIPE

Filed under: Gluten Free, Holiday Recipes, Simply Healthy Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: | Leave a comment »

Vegan Corn Zucchini Stuffed Shells

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
Stuffed shells are one of my favorite foods. But, they often tend to be on the unhealthy side with the different cheeses and sometimes meat. Because I am slowly changing my eating habits, I decided to try and make vegan stuffed shells instead. I have to admit I was a little skeptical. The stuffed shells to my surprise were delicious. I used organic vegetables, non-GMO tofu and whole grain pasta. At first, I thought that maybe the extra-firm tofu was not a good idea, but the tofu worked well in the recipe. Enjoy!

Vegan Corn Zucchini Stuffed Shells
Created 7/10/14

corn.zucchini.stuffedshells

1 cup of organic corn (cut off the cob, or frozen and thawed)
1 large zucchini, chopped into bite size pieces
½ of a medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons of vegetable stock or olive oil
1 garlic clove minced
1 package (15.5 ounce) organic non-gmo extra firm tofu
1 (8 ounce) bag of Dayia shredded Mozzarella cheese
¼ cup of fresh minced parsley
Zest of a lemon and the juice
3 tablespoons of nutritional yeast
1 jar of tomato basil marinara sauce
Salt/Pepper for flavor
28 large pasta shells cooked and drained

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a pot of boiling salted water, add the pasta shells and cook for approximately 6 to 8 minutes. The shells need to be firm and not soft as they will continue to cook in the oven.

It is important to drain the tofu well. Otherwise the filling will be very watery. I used an upside down colander and put the tofu on top, then a small plate weighed down with a heavy bowl to drain a lot of the liquid out. Drain for approximately 10 minutes.

In a large sauté pan, heat up the vegetable stock or olive oil over medium heat and add the onion. Sauté for about 5 minutes, add more stock if needed. Add the corn and cook for another 3 minutes. Then, add the zucchini and cook for about 5 minutes, remove from the heat and add the minced garlic. The heat from the vegetables will cook the garlic. Set aside and cool.

In a large bowl, crumble the tofu up with your fingers and add the nutritional yeast. Add ½ of the cheese, sautéed vegetables, zest, lemon juice, and parsley. Mix well.

In a 9 x 13 casserole dish, spread 1/2 cup of tomato sauce on the bottom of the dish. Set aside. Stuff the shells with the tofu mixture and lay in the casserole dish. After all the shells are stuffed, cover the top of the shells with the balance of the marinara sauce. Sprinkle the rest of the mozzarella cheese on the shells.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese has melted. Remove the foil and turn on the broiler for a few minutes to brown and bubble the cheese. Remove from the heat when done.

Serve with a lightly seasoned arugula or green salad.

CLICK HERE TO PRINT THE RECIPE

Filed under: Casserole Recipes, Simply Healthy Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: , , , | Leave a comment »

Lentil Burgers

Posted on July 3, 2014 by Simply Healthy Cooking with Pam
Vegetarian / Vegan (V) Burgers are a huge deal to me. I am extremely picky about burgers especially trying to cut the animal products out of my diet. Tofu (soy) I do not eat often and soy is often used as the main ingredient for (V) burgers. I am a researcher on a quest for healthy eating and nutrition. During my quest for (V) burgers I came across this recipe from a runner’s blog called scottjurek.com so I cannot take credit for this burger but I can praise this one to the moon and back. I modified the burger ingredients to suit my needs and taste. Enjoy!

Lentil Burgers

LentilBurger

Ingredients
2-1/4 cups cooked Lentils
3 garlic cloves minced
1-1/4 cups finely chopped shallots
¾ cup finely chopped walnuts
2 cups Old Fashioned Oatmeal (pulsed finely in food processor)
½ cup ground flax seed meal
3 cups finely chopped mushrooms
1-1/2 cups fresh coarsely chopped spinach (not baby spinach) you can also use Kale (just remove the stems from spinach or Kale)
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons stone ground mustard
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
½ teaspoon smoked paprika

Directions
Use a food chopper to finely chop the food that requires a fine chop. This is a huge time saver.

Combine the walnuts, oatmeal, flax seed meal, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, and paprika in a large bowl and mix well.

In a large pan sauté the shallots, garlic, mushrooms and spinach in olive oil for about 10 minutes, set aside. In another bowl, add the lentils, balsamic vinegar and mustard: mash with a potato masher or wooden spoon until a thick paste forms.

Add the sautéed vegetables, oatmeal mixture to the lentils and mix well. Cool in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or more.

With hands, form burger patties to the desired size and place on wax paper. Lightly fry in the large sauté pan the vegetables were cooked in. The burgers can be broiled or grilled. Cook the burgers until lightly crisp, approximately 5 minutes on each side.

Serve with your favorite toppings like lightly seasoned olive oil and vinegar arugula, Bibb lettuce, or spinach along with tomato and avocado.

Uncooked patties can be frozen between wax paper in plastic bags wrapped. This recipe makes about 10 nice size burgers.

CLICK HERE TO PRINT THE RECIPE

Filed under: Burgers, Gluten Free, Simply Healthy Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegeterian Recipes | Tagged: | Leave a comment »

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