Archives for posts with tag: vegetarian

Roasted Veggie Rice

January 26, 2016 //
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One of my go to ways to cook veggies is to roast them. There is something perfectly yummy about a nice roasted vegetable, am I right? No? Just me?!? Ha! I am sure if you are reading this then perhaps, you too are a veggie fan. This is a recipe I have been perfecting over time. It started out a bit different. A hit, but different. Most recently I created this version and it was bananas good! My nearly 5 year old (9 more days!!) said it was the best thing I ever made. Let me repeat that so it can sink in, my 5 year old said something that consisted of ROASTED vegetables and brown rice, was the best thing I have ever cooked! When a 5 year old tells you that, you just quit right then and there. You cannot create anything as delicious as that ever again. Your work here is done. You may retire. Without further ado, I present to you the best recipe I have ever made, according to Jackson.

(If you hate it, don’t worry, the toddler (16months) wouldn’t even let me put one scoop in his mouth. You can join his team.)

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Roasted Veggie Rice

For the roasted veggies:

  • 1 red bell pepper
  • 1 orange pepper
  • 2-3 zucchini
  • 2-3 cloves garlic
  • 1 container grape or cherry tomatoes
  • 1/3 cup olive oil

For the rice:

  • 2 cups (or one bag) of Volcano Rice. You can use brown rice as well, 2 cups. Cook per directions
  • 1 small package basil, chopped
  • handful chives, chopped
  • 1/3 cup pine nuts
  • 2 lemons, juiced
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • fresh black pepper to taste
  • feta cheese to taste and optional

Preheat oven to 425. Combine the roasted veggie ingredients in a large bowl, mix/toss well. Lay evenly on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake until the veggies are cooked through and are slightly brown.

Meanwhile, prepare rice to package directions. The Volcano Rice takes about 30 minutes to simmer. Adjust your prep according to the rice you use, brown rice takes longer.

Add the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper to a small bowl. Whisk well. When the rice is done, transfer to a large serving bowl. Pour the dressing over the rice and mix well. Add the basil, chives, and pine nuts, again, mix well. When the veggies are done add them to the rice mixture. Combine well. Serve with feta. I keep that on the side because Jackson is not a big feta fan.

It is a simple recipe and was a big hit. I was very happy with how it turned out. Jackson said the zucchini felt good on his teeth. haha He is a veggie lover though. Tonight he has requested broccoli because and I quote “I just love the way you cook it mommy.” I hope you enjoy this roasted veggie rice as much as he does.

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Categories Uncategorized

Pasta Primavera

June 26, 2015 //
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Here is my take on pasta primavera. I do love veggies oh so much. There is something particularly delicious about roasted or grilled veggies. I could just eat those every single day of my life.

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Pasta Primavera

  • 1 lb whole wheat pasta
  • 1 large zucchini
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • 1/2 sweet onion
  • 1 carrot (you could add two. I only had one left!)
  • 1 Tbsp Herbes de Provence
  • Olive oil spray, to taste (I use a sprayer that I fill myself)
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • black pepper to taste
  • 2 vine ripe tomatoes
  • Balsamic vinegar, to taste

Preheat oven to 450. Line a baking pan with parchment paper.

Cut the zucchini, pepper, onion, and carrots into pieces. Arrange neatly on the baking pan. Spray with olive oil until all pieces are coated. Shake the Herbes and sea salt over the veggies. Set in oven. Keep an eye on them. Roast until they begin to brown and the veggies are tender. I even added another coat of olive oil and flipped them around while they cooked.

Meanwhile prepare the pasta. Chop the tomatoes into chunks. When veggies are done add everything to a large bowl and mix to combine. Drizzle balsamic vinegar over and mix again. This is to taste. I prefer to be generous because the sweetness of the vinegar really pulls this dish together!

They made yummy leftovers. I just reheated it all in a pan adding a touch more balsamic vinegar and olive oil.

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Categories Uncategorized

Arugula Balsamic Tomato Pizza

April 16, 2015 //
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Last night was build your own pizza and grill it night. We use Flatouts for our crusts because they are thin and small enough for a little personal pizza. We love doing this because everyone gets to eat exactly what they want. I am not one to eat heavy pizza very often. So, I especially love this because I can keep my toppings fresh and my cheese to a minimum.

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Arugula Balsamic Tomato Pizza

  • 1 Flatout pizza crust
  • Olive oil for brushing
  • 1 vine ripe tomato
  • 5 small balls fresh mozzarella, cut in half
  • 1 Tbsp Fig Balsamic Vinegar (or any balsamic vinegar of your liking)
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • Handful of baby arugula, chopped

Follow the instructions on your flatout pizza crust. I grilled the crust, plain, for 1 minute. Seriously, 1 minute. Then I added my toppings. I brushed with olive oil. Laid the sliced tomatoes on the crust. Added the 10 halves of mozzarella. Drizzle the balsamic vinegar over the whole pizza. I placed mine on a baking pan because my grill gets very hot very fast. This keeps the crust from getting too burnt. While allowing the cheese to melt. The vinegar seems to soak through a touch, so watch the pizza and every few seconds use a spatula to lift under the crust.

Once the cheese is a bit melted and the tomatoes have softened (3-4 minutes) remove from grill and add the arugula. Drizzle the lemon juice over the whole thing. Enjoy!

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Categories dinner

Citrus Mango Black Bean Salad

April 14, 2015 //
2

Here is a great meatless Monday (or any day!) meal. I just happened to make it on a Monday. I know that there is the meatless Monday trend right now. I am not rigid about never eating meat on Monday specifically, but I have no issue with skipping meat for a meal or two throughout the week. This just happened to work out. It was so lovely outside yesterday. I did not feel like dragging the boys to a grocery store. I wanted to just hang out outside as much as we could. Which is what we did!

This is a great summer flavored meal. I also have to give a special thanks to my cute sous chef. We were discussing what I should put in this recipe. I almost went with pineapple. He said “no let’s do mango, it’s my favorite!” Which is true. The child loves to eat mangoes. I went with his suggestion and the flavors were a yummy combo.

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Citrus Mango Black Bean Salad

  • 2 red bell peppers, chopped
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp lime zest
  • 1 lime, juiced
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • 1/2 orange, juiced
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 cup frozen corn
  • 1/2 Tbsp Orange Blossom vinegar
  • pinch of sea salt
  • 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
  • Several large handfuls of spinach, chopped
  • 1 generous cup of diced mango
  • 1/2 cup chopped green onion
  • Cilantro to taste
  • Whole wheat pitas

Saute the red peppers in the olive oil until they begin to get tender. Add the frozen corn, lime juice, lemon juice, orange juice, lime zest, cumin, vinegar, and sea salt. Continue to cook for another few minutes until the corn is also tender. Add the black beans, mix well, heat through. Add the spinach and let it begin to wilt. Turn off heat and add the green onion and cilantro, mix well. Let it stand for a couple minutes. Add the mango and mix. Scoop onto mini whole wheat pitas.

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Categories Recipes

Roasted Purple Cauliflower and Red Potatoes

April 12, 2015 //
1

Jackson begs me to buy cauliflower all of the time. He is also known for just tossing a bag of fresh green beans into our cart without knowing if I had it on my list! When he saw that I was cooking the purple cauliflower he stopped in his tracks to exclaim his joy. If your veggies are this fun of a color, what’s not to love? This recipe is a great side dish. I made my Lemon Pepper Chicken to go along with this dish. I skipped the pasta and the green beans. I didn’t have and green beans. I added two shortly zoodled zucchinis and a couple handfuls of spinach instead. They went together very well!

I was supposed to get this posted yesterday but I have found my laptop to be in use all of the time lately. Jackson has discovered AbcMouse. A wonderful learning site. We signed him up the other day. It is the first thing he asks to do in the morning. Yesterday he started his morning at 6am. Very early for my chronically late sleeper. That is my normal writing time. Better late than never, though. Hope you get to squeeze this yummy side dish into your week.

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Roasted Purple Cauliflower and Red Potatoes

  • 1/2 head purple cauliflower (approximately)
  • 4-5 medium/small red potatoes
  • 2 Tbsp lemon olive oil. I used this
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt

Preheat oven to 405

Cut up potatoes into bite size pieces. Break apart cauliflower florets. Add all to a large bowl. Add the olive oil, Italian seasoning, and sea salt. Mix/toss well until all pieces are coated. Pour onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake for around 30 minutes.  Serve!

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Categories Recipes, Side Dishes

Roasted Eggplant, Zucchini, and Red Bell Pepper with Lemon Balsamic Sauce

March 27, 2015 //
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Veggies veggies veggies. Vegetables are where it’s at for me. Not a day goes by where I don’t consume them. This recipe is one I adapted last second from another tried and true recipe of mine. I actually haven’t posted that one yet. I have shared it with other people personally. It is one of my meals that my mom is nuts over. Last night this twist turned out just as yummy. It was different, but delicious. It is always great to have more veggieful recipes in your arsenal.

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Roasted Eggplant, Zucchini, and Red Pepper with a Lemon Balsamic Sauce

  • 1/2 medium eggplant, diced
  • 2 small zucchini, diced
  • 1 large red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • Pasta of choice for serving

Preheat oven to 425. Start water for pasta of choice. Combine all veggie ingredients into a large bowl. Mix well to combine and cover all pieces with olive oil. Place parchment paper on a baking sheet, pour veggies on. Bake for 20-25 minutes. This will vary on the size of your diced pieces. Make sure they are tender and some have started to brown.

While veggies are roasting you can get pasta started.

Remove and scoop back into bowl, cover with foil and set aside.

Meanwhile for the dressing….

  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 large lemon, zested and juiced
  • 1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
  • 12 twists fresh black pepper
  • several handfuls of spinach
  • fresh chopped chives, to taste
  • fresh chopped basil, to taste
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts
  • Feta

Heat the garlic and olive oil. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add lemon juice, zest, balsamic vinegar, fresh pepper, and spinach. Cook until spinach is wilted. Meanwhile, add the chives, basil, and pine nuts to the bowl of veggies you have set aside. Mix well. Once spinach is wilted, pour the sauce over the roasted veggies and mix well to combine. Scoop over cooked whole wheat pasta of your choice. Top with a dash of feta.

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Categories dinner, Reicpes