Cooking in Season - Baked Fennel & Onion

Fennel is definitely something that is passed over at farmers markets. My sister calls it the "funky onion" because it has an onion-like bulb with long stalks covered in greens that look a lot like Dill, and it smells like licorice! Fennel is actually a member of the celery family and is a great source of Vitamin C. It is also a very good source of dietary fiber, potassium, calcium, iron and folate. 

But how do you fit something that smells like licorice into a meal for your family??! 
I know, right?! But stick with me here, I've got a great recipe for you to try and it only takes about 25 min to pull together!

Baked Fennel & Onion

(adapted from an old Better Homes and Gardens recipe)

4-5 Fennel bulbs

1 medium yellow onion

2 large cloves garlic

1/2 cup unsweetened Almond milk

1/8 cup vegan Parmesan (store bought or make recipe here)

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1 T vegan butter

pinch nutmeg

bit of salt

pinch of pepper

pre-heat oven to 425*

 get a big pot boiling on the stove and add a pinch of salt. 

spray a shallow baking dish with non-stick spray.

slice up onion and fennel into big-ish slices. boil them for about 5-6 min. 

drain onion and fennel and spread out on bottom of baking dish.

grate the garlic cloves over top, sprinkle pinch of salt and pepper and nutmeg. 

pour almond milk all around on top.

sprinkle vegan parmisan all over on top. 

dot the 1T vegan butter around on top.

bake for 15-20 minutes (until milk is bubbling and edges a slightly browned)

sprinkle chopped walnuts over  top and serve!

**This dish is great over a grain or a pasta. My favorite with it is Farro! **

Helpful tip-How to chop up Fennel:

cut off the stalks on top of the bulb. slice bulb in half and then cut out the core (the core is the small hard area in the bottom-center of the bulb). Then slice up similar to how you would slice up an onion into long strips.

Sauces and Dips

These three sauces are staples in our house. They have made some cameos in previous posts on this blog, but I thought it might be helpful to have them all in one place. They are in an endless rotation cycle in our fridge because I absolutely must have at least one waiting for me at a moments notice at all times. They really don't take too much time to make...it's just a matter of measuring out the ingredients and whisking them up in a bowl (or blending in the vitamix)...but when hunger strikes...sometimes I don't want to measure and whisk, I want to EAT! 

They are so versatile. All three go wonderfully with any kind of roasted, steamed, raw veggie and/or greens. They are all spectacular in a grain-bowl and veggie dish. They all go wonderfully with noodles....AND they are all awesome DIPS for veggies, nuggets, fries....you name it! 

Pick any one of these three and try them out for yourself and your kiddos! I'll give you a little taste description below to help you choose (although it would be totally fine to make all three at one time too!!!) :

The Peanut Sauce leans more toward an Asian feel because it has coconut aminos and ginger. It's sweet and peanuty.

The Red Pepper "Cheese" Sauce is smooth and mild and tastes similar to creamy nacho cheese. The creaminess comes from soaked cashews and the flavor from the rest of the (totally good for you) ingredients.

The Sweet Miso Sauce is not mine. It's Angela's from Oh She Glows and it's completely delicious. It's sweetened with orange juice and maple syrup. If you have never tried a miso sauce on a salad or veggies or quinoa or...whatever....try this one now! It's so sweet and quite irresistible.

WHY DO YOU NEED SAUCES? 

DON'T THEY JUST ADD UNNECESSARY FAT AND SALT??!

Probably the sauces that we are all used to do. Dressings and dips that you buy pre-made at the store have all kinds of nasty stuff in them. Making your own sauces and dips at home allows you to know what you're putting in them...and you'll be able to pronounce all the ingredients, won't have to add preservatives, extra salt....etc. And they taste way better.

WHAT THESE THREE SAUCES HAVE GOING FOR THEM:

(Nutrition Info)

Peanuts and Cashews are good sources of protein, have those good unsaturated fats as well as vitamin E, Folate, Calcium and Magnesium.

Miso is fermented soy beans and therefore contains protein and fiber. The fermentation process breaks down hard to digest oils, proteins and carbohydrates found in soybeans, so we can more easily digest the nutrients. It also provides vitamin B2, vitamin E, vitamin K, calcium, iron, and potassium.

Garlic, Onion and Ginger are healing super foods that provide anti inflammatory benefits as well as aid in digestive health.

Red Peppers are high in vitamin C and contain vitamin B6, vitamin A and magnesium.

Tahini has iron and calcium

Nutritional Yeast has the all important vitamin B12

Chia seeds act as the thickener in the cheese sauce but are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, fiber and antioxidants.

RECIPES:

Peanut Sauce:

4 T peanut butter

3T coconut aminos

1t minced fresh ginger

1 minced garlic clove

1t sesame oil

1/4 cup water

mix it all together with a wisk!

Red Pepper "Cheese" Sauce:

(adapted from PPK recipe for red pepper cheese)

1 medium onion

1 large clove garlic

1 roasted red pepper

3/4 cup cashews (soaked at least 4 hours in water)

2T nutritional yeast

1T tomato paste

1T tumeric

2 cups vegetable broth

1T mustard

1/2 t salt

4T chia seeds

Chop up onion and garlic and saute in a bit of olive oil over medium heat until translucent. Add to blender. Drain cashews and add to blender along with all other ingredients. blend until smooth.

Sweet Miso Sauce:

This recipe is Angela's Orange-Maple Miso Dressing found here. 

The Perfect Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Summer is coming and that means LOTS of reasons to celebrate! Pool parties, Birthday parties, Picnics at the park... and I don't know about you, but when I celebrate I like to do it with CUPCAKES!! :)  My all time favorite cake is carrot cake, but most of the recipes that taste the best have tons of refined sugar in them...until now! I have perfected the carrot cake cupcake! Complete with vegan cream cheese frosting (thanks to ourfourfork's amazing vegan cream cheese frosting recipe...I'm obsessed!).

Recipe:
(makes 12 large cupcakes)

2.25 cups flour (i used a mix of unbleached organic white and whole wheat)

2 teaspoons baking powder

3 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup applesauce

1 cup almond milk

 2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup dates

 3/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup canola oil

 2 cups grated carrots

remove pit from dates and soak in warm water for 1 hour. preheat oven to 350* and line cupcake tins with paper (or grease). In large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. In food processor, add the applesauce, soaked dates and maple syrup and process until dates are broken down and it's a syrup consistency. Empty syrup into separate bowl and mix in almond milk, vanilla and oil. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix. fold in carrots and stir until just combined. Bake for 30 minutes. 

Click HERE for Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting. Seriously, even if you don't make the cupcakes, whip up some of this frosting just to have on hand for those moments when you need a spoonful of frosting! It's made with cashews, coconut water (or milk) and maple syrup!

Light and Crispy Oatmeal Waffles

 

Light and crispy waffles that will nourish your body without weighing you down. These waffles come together in no time at all and with ingredients you always have on hand.

Recipe:

1.25 cup oats

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

pinch cinnamon

1 mashed banana

1 cup almond milk

1 flax egg

Turn on waffle iron to medium-low so it can heat up. Place about 1.25 cups oats in food processor and buzz them into coarse powder. This should yield about 1 cup buzzed oats. Mix together ground oats, cinnamon and baking powder. Add mashed banana, flax egg and milk and stir to combine. Start making waffles! Make sure to spray the waffle iron before pouring batter so they don't stick. Also make sure the iron is on medium-high setting so they crisp up. Enjoy! We usually eat waffles with black strap molasses for an extra boost of iron, but these are sweet and delicious on their own or an absolute dream with maple syrup!

Nutrition:

Oats are a wonderful way to start the day. They nourish your central nervous system and provide your body with more essential vitamins, minerals, fiber and phytonutrients than most other processed grains. Eating oatmeal also supplies you with energy, protein and healthy fat

Cooking with a toddler

If you read my last post, you know how important I think it is to include your kiddos in meal preparation. It's a huge opportunity for them to explore tastes and smells and different foods and to start building their healthy recipe repertoire.

If you read my last post, you may also be thinking, "what?!? cooking with a toddler?! that would be the opposite of helpful!!"
...I know, right?! But it's easier than you'd think to keep them safe, helpful and most importantly entertained in the kitchen.

Most toddlers want to help. I let Owen chop and peel and be my little taste tester! I ask him questions like, "here, taste! Do you think there's enough spinach in this curry or could we use another handful...?" and then I let him put the handful in! It doesn't matter if they are at a stage where they are saying 2 words or over 500 words...they'll get what you're saying and LOVE the time with you.

Here are some tips that have been helpful in my kitchen: 

When I'm chopping vegetables, I give Owen a knife of his own and a section of the item I'm chopping.

His plastic knife from IKEA. Safe and effective! ;)

 When I'm doing something at the stove that needs my full attention like pouring hot liquid, I'll give him a task that will keep his attention and keep him out of harms way. For example: I'll set his stool on the far end of the counter for him to stand on or have him sit on the floor and either peel garlic or peel an onion. both of these tasks take a while... Don't worry if you don't need the garlic or onion for the meal you're working on. I have a bowl on my kitchen window sill of garlic cloves that are ready when I need them! ;)

Takes a while to get those cloves out of the head of garlic! ;)

If you have more tips to share I'd LOVE to hear them! Tell me what has worked for you in the comments below!

A meal that they helped with is a meal they will be proud to eat!

A Week of Toddler Lunches

A Week of Toddler Lunches

(and why I don't think I'll ever have to say, "you can't leave the table until you eat all your veggies!")

Lunchtime is one of my favorite times of the day. Not only because I get to eat food....but because my son really loves playing in the kitchen with pots, pans and real food (as opposed to plastic food in his play kitchen). Ever since he started eating solid foods, we've been making lunches together. He's either on my hip looking down over the cooking process or he's standing on his stool chopping or pouring or concocting right along side me. 

This time together has, i'm sure, had a big impact on his relationship with food and his little toddler palate. We are a whole-foods, plant-based home, so the word "veggies" is pretty much the same as the word "food." If we're sitting down to a meal, you can pretty much bet that veggies are playing a starring role. That's what we eat, so that's what my son knows. 

Much different than the way I grew up: meat, starch and a veggie on the plate. And the veggie was never the star but rather an afterthought that is only there because we have to eat our veggies ...know what I mean?? 

Nutrition is so important to all bodies, but especially growing bodies that are being exposed to different germs for the first time. Each meal is an opportunity to pack their little tummies full of good vitamins and minerals, proteins, fats and carbohydrates that will help them to feel their best and fight off germs.

I took a picture of our lunches last week: Monday through Friday. 

 Monday

Veg curry (recipe found here) with added peas

 Tuesday

brown rice, french green lentils, butternut squash and spinach with a homemade sweet miso sauce found here. (mine was over lettuce)

 Wednesday

This was a to-go lunch packed into a tupperware: chickpea salad in tortilla with orange slices

Thursday

steamed sweet potato, french green lentils, steamed carrots, steamed beets, roasted zucchini with peanut sauce found here. cashew cheese on toast.

 Friday

roasted brussels sprouts, green beans and potato over quinoa with sweet miso sauce (recipe found here), sunflower and pepita seeds

These lunches come together pretty quickly with a little prepping done once a week during nap time. Here's an example of a prepping hour and what the fridge looks like. All yummy foods at your finger tips!

cooking: brown rice, french green lentils, veggie stock. already roasted butternut squash and zucchini. up next: steam the beets and wash the beet greens.

the fridge: everything easy to see in clear containers with labels.

Vegan Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

 Even vegans like a little meat sauce on their spaghetti.

Toddler edition/Mommy edition (only difference: I cut up his noodles)

I started something new a couple weeks ago. Instead of just planning the menu each week based on what sounds good/looks good at the grocery store, I broke down the days into themes. Check it out:

Monday = Taco night

Tuesday = Indian night

Wednesday = Italian night

Thursday = Grain bowl night

Friday = American night

The weekends are when Chuck and I cook together, so those are a little more creative and spur-of-the-moment. It's been pretty fun having these themes! Taco night can mean anything from lettuce wraps to enchiladas; Indian night could be a lentil loaf or a quick and easy curry...etc. Each night gives me the flexibility to either do a super quick meal (spaghetti) or a more time-consuming meal (stuffed shells or lasagna).

Spaghetti is a go-to quick and easy meal for a lot of us right? And it can be pretty boring...but adding just one ingredient will change a simple tomato sauce into a nutritious and delicious meat sauce! Walnut meat! It gives a really nice meaty bite with each fork full and provides protein and omega-3s.  Check out how easy this is:

recipe:

Your favorite spaghetti sauce (or make your own with this recipe)

3/4 cup to 1 cup chopped walnuts

2 big handfuls spinach (optional)

heat up sauce in sauce pan. Add chopped walnuts and spinach. stir until spinach wilts a bit. Add favorite spaghetti noodle. Enjoy.