One Pan Mexican Rice

This is a great main dish to eat with salsa chips and avocado or to roll up in a burrito or wrap. It freezes fairly well and you can cook the rice in it or use left over rice. If you are using leftover rice substitute 2 cups cooked rice for the raw rice and vegetable broth.

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 sweet onion diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup rice* and vegetable broth OR 2 cups cooked rice
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (14.5 oz) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 cup corn kernels, frozen, canned or roasted
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
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• 1 avocado, halved, seeded, peeled and diced
• Juice of 1 lime
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Drain and rinse the black beans and corn if using canned and set aside.

*If using raw rice, drain the diced tomatoes saving the juice in a 2 cup measuring cup. Add enough vegetable broth to equal two cups. 

*If using cooked rice just add the tomatoes, juice and all to the pan. 

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until the onion is transparent. Add the chili powder and cumin and cook until fragrant. Add rice, raw or cooked and cook and stir until the rice is coated with spices. All all beans, tomatoes, corn. 

RAW RICE: Add tomato/vegetable broth mixture and bring to a full rolling boil. cover with lid and set aside for 15-20 minutes until rice is cooked. 

COOKED RICE: Cook and stir until all ingredients are heated through. 

Add avocado, squeeze on lime juice and cilantro leaves if desired. Eat with chips and salsa, wrap in a tortilla or just eat it with a spoon? 

Vegan Cheese Sauce AND Vegan Shephards pie

Made with potatoes and carrots! 

Great over noodles for mac and cheese, baked potatoes with broccoli (we add meatless chili too). Keeps for about a week in the fridge. 

AMAZING (NONDAIRY NO NUT) CHEESE SAUCE

• 16 oz Yukon Gold Potatoes (about 3 medium)
• 2 large Carrots
• 3/4 to 1 cup Water (used to boil potatoes) or Almond milk
• 1/3 cup Nutritional yeast
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• 2 tsp Lemon Juice
• 1 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp Onion Powder
• 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
• 1/2 tsp Brown Mustard (Yellow mustard works great too)
• 1/8 tsp Turmeric

Scrub potatoes and remove any eyes. Cut into halves or quarters to expedite cooking. 

peel carrots and break in half. Put in a sauce pan and cover with water. 

Boil potatoes and carrots in water pan until soft - about 10 minutes. Allow to sit in hot water with lid on for a few more minutes while you combine the rest of the ingredients.

Add all ingredients to high powered blender or magic bullet. Blend until smooth. 

Here is one recipe that uses half a recipe of cheese sauce! 

GARDENERS PIE (VEGAN SHEPHARDS PIE)

Cook 1 1/2 - 2 lbs of red potatoes either along with the potatoes and carrots for the sauce or you can microwave them if you already have the sauce made. I like to cook a few extra to have with broccoli and meatless chili and cheese sauce later in the week. 

While the potatoes are cooking, chop and sautée in a pan:
1 sweet onion chopped
2  carrots peeled chopped 
1 bell pepper chopped
4-5 mushrooms
2 zucchini or yellow squash peeled and chopped 
2 cups broccoli, cut into small flowerlets and steamed (you can steam them in a colander over the boiling potatoes)

Season with 2-3 tsp season salt. 
Add 1/2 recipe cheese sauce, put in a deep 2 quart baking dish.

Mash the potatoes with a little vegan butter (I can't believe it's not butter, it's vegan is really good). Add almond milk and salt. I like them a bit chunky. Spread them with a fork over the  veggie/cheese mixture. Cook at 375 for 30 minutes until potatoes are golden and the cheese bubbles around the edges. 

Amy's Most Amazing Pizza Dough

*I totally copied this from Amy's photo blog so I could have one place for the recipes I am looking for... I hope that's OK Amy....

This is seriously the best pizza crust I have ever had. I won't make any other kind and it beats out any pizza I could buy. It isn't really labor-intensive, but you do have to be home at certain times during the day for rising/punching down. You definitely will not regret making this! Thanks to my dear friend, Elizabeth, who posted about this on her blog!



Recipe adapted from here.

This makes enough for our family of two adults and one toddler (our 7-month-old doesn't eat this yet) to have for dinner plus a little for leftovers the next day.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cup warm water (105°F to 115°F)
• 3 teaspoons dry yeast (from 1 envelope)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 3 1/2 cups (about) unbleached all purpose flour

Directions:

1. Pour 1 1/2 cup water into large bowl. Sprinkle yeast over; stir to blend. Let stand 10 minutes to dissolve yeast.
2. Add oil and salt, then 3 cups flour. Stir until well blended (dough will be sticky).
3. Turn dough out onto generously floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, adding just enough flour to prevent dough from sticking, about 5 minutes (dough will be soft).
4. Shape dough into ball; place in large oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover bowl with kitchen towel. Let dough rise at cool room temperature until almost doubled, about 2 hours.
5. Punch dough down; form into ball. Return to bowl; cover with towel and let rise until doubled, about 3 hours.
6.Preheat oven to 500°F. Punch down dough. Form into ball, roll out to desired thickness and place on cornmeal-lined baking sheet. Let rest 30 minutes.
7. Add toppings. Bake on topmost oven rack for 12-15 minutes.

Enjoy!

Quick Chicken Tortilla Soup

My husband is a picky eater, but he loves this soup--which is saying something. It is such an easy soup to make...and delicious! Plus, you can use your food storage...

Ingredients:
1 can black beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can creamed corn
1 can chicken broth (14.5 oz)
1 cup cream of chicken soup
1 can diced chicken
1 t. cumin
1 t. garlic powder
1 t. chili powder
1/2 c. sour cream (I always substitute plain yogurt in)

Directions:
Heat soup-simmer (I will put the tomatoes in the blender since neither my husband or I like tomato chunks in soup). Add sour cream. Top with tortilla chips and cheese.

Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:
2 cans chicken broth (or 3 cups water with bouillon cubes)
2 cups cooked diced chicken
2 cups chopped carrots
2 cups chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped onion
4 cups egg noodles
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can evaporated milk
1 cup milk
Flour
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Cook carrots, celery, and onion in broth. When tender, add noodles & cook.
2. In blender, mix cream of chicken soup, evaporated milk, and milk. Add to soup.
3. Add flour until desired consistency is reached.
4. Cook until boils and thickened. Add chicken. Season with salt and pepper.

Makes about 2 1/2 quarts, or 10 one-cup servings.

This is fabulous with some breadsticks!

Enjoy!

Is it Spring yet?

Pasta Salad

This is a favorite at my house, and they look for leftovers the next day.
Note: you can use any veggies, meats or cheeses you like to tailor this for your family.

Get a large pot of water boiling while you chop the veggies.

I chop equal amounts of carrots, broccoli and cauliflower in small pieces.
(think too small to be picked out easily and too small to overpower a spoonful.)
You could add any veggies, thawed peas, halved cherry/grape tomatoes, leftover cooked chilled asparagus, chopped sweet peppers. Whatever you family likes.

All together you should have about three cups of vegetables.
Place in a large bowl.

Next chop about 5 stalks of green onions and add it to the other veggies.

Some time in here your water should be boiling. Add about 12 oz of your favorite pasta and cook according to package directions. We like small shell and bowtie pasta the best but corkscrew in any of it's varieties works great as does penne.... really, whatever you have on hand works (maybe not spaghetti but who knows).

Time to chop some meat - this is a great use for leftovers, chicken (grilled is especially good), beef, ham... the thicker sliced lunch meat works fine too. Cottage cheese is also really good.

Chop some cheese, string cheese is a favorite but you could do Colby jack, Parmesan, feta, shredded cheese (you get the picture).

I always keep the meat and cheese separate and allow people to add their own - or not. The salad as a whole keeps better this way.

When your pasta is done, drain it and then put ice cubes in the bottom of the pan. Mix the ice cubes, hot pasta and some cold water in the pan and allow to sit for a few minutes as you get everything together. Stir the pasta occasionally to cool evenly.

Drain the pasta again making sure the ice cubes are melted or removed and mix pasta with veggies. (There should be roughly equal amounts of each).

Serve with the cheese and meats as well as a variety of salad dressings on the side.
Serves 4-6.

Hawaiian Haystacks

I love this because you can please anybody with it!

2 c. white rice (or brown)
2 large chicken breasts, boiled & shredded (I just use a can of chicken)
1 can cream of chicken soup

Topping Ideas:
Chow Mein Noodles
Shredded Cheese
Tomatoes
Corn
Peas
Water Chesnuts
Pineapple
Celery

Cook rice according to directions. Set aside. Combine cream of chicken soup with 1/2 to 3/4 c of water or milk according to desired sauce thickness. Stir in chicken and simmer on low heat. Put toppings in separate bowls.

When it is time to eat, each person builds their own "haystack" by taking a scoop of rice, pouring some chicken mixture on top, and adding whatever toppings desired.