Sweet Potato & Kale Stew

I've made this twice, to make sure it's "blog worthy" :)  I find it delicious.  Very tangy, thanks to the OJ you saute the onions & peppers in.  I buy kale and rip the leaves off the hard stem and measure them after that.  Typically getting a pound will yield the 6 cups of leaves.  Tonight I cooked 1/2 a cup of brown rice & added it to my bowl and it was fine.  Didn't change the overall flavor too much. 


2 pounds sweet potatoes - diced (I leave the peels on)
1 - 10 ounce red onion, finely chopped
2 bell peppers (not green!), seeded & finely chopped
2 - 15 ounce cans kidney beans
2 - 14.5 cans diced tomatoes
1 Tblsp. Chili Powder
2 tsp. smoked paprika (makes a big difference when it's smoked)
6 cups kale leaves
3 cups orange juice

In a large pot, saute onions & peppers in 1/2 of the orange juice (1 1/2 cups) until onion is soft & translucent. 
Add all remaining ingredients except kale.
Bring to a boil & then reduce heat to simmer 25-30 minutes until the sweet potatoes are soft but not mushy.
Turn off heat and stir in kale so it wilts.  Then serve.

Smoked Salmon Dill Spread

While at Trader Joe's, the nice lady helping me saw I had soy chorizo and meatless chicken strips in my hand, so when I asked for salmon, she smiled and said, "You're a pescetarian!?!?! Me too!"
Sortofpesco didn't jump out at me for a blog name though! :) 
12 year old didn't like this, (shocker!) but I thought it was quite tasty.  Since it's a "dip", I'm guessing it can be served with veggies or crackers, but I just ate it with a fork and it was great.  I used some dried dill because I didn't have fresh, but still came out great.  And compared to most dips (which usually seem to include dairy) it's really healthy. 

8 oz. boneless, skinless, all natural smoked wild Pacific salmon fillet, roughly chopped
1 Tblsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. orange zest
1 Tbsp. 100% orange juice
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
2 Tblsp. finely chopped fresh dill (or use dried dill to taste)

In a food processor, pulse salmon, oil, orange juice and orange zest, cumin, salt & pepper until finely chopped.  Transfer to a bowl and gently fold in dill.  Refridgerate until chilled.

Serving Size: 2 Tblsp.  50 calories, 3 grams fat, .5 grams sat. fat, 1 gram carb, .5 grams fiber, .5 grams sugar, 5 grams protein. 

Black Bean Lasagna

Not vegan, obviously, but when I can get my partner & daughter known collectively as "THE CARNIVORES" to eat a bean meal, then I consider it a victory!

9 brown rice lasagna noodles
1 large onion, chopped
1 tsp. oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cans (16 ounces each) black beans, drained & rinsed
2 cans (6 ounces each) tomato paste
1 cup water
2 Tblsp. fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
4 egg whites, lightly beaten
1 carton (15 ounces) part skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded, reduced fat Mexican cheese blend

Cook noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, cook onion in oil until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add the beans, tomatoes, tomato paste, water, cilantro and pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes or until slightly thickened.

In a small bowl, combine the egg whites, ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese and parsley.
   
Drain noodles. Spread 1/2 cup bean mixture into a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Layer with three noodles, a third of the ricotta mixture, a third of the remaining bean mixture and 2/3 cup cheese blend. Repeat layers twice.
  
Cover and bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes. Uncover; bake 10-15 minutes longer or until bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

Lentil & Sweet Potato Soup

One of my favorite soups.  Freezes really well.
1 Tblsp Olive Oil
1 garlice clove chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded & chopped
1 can diced tomatoes
4 cups vegetable broth
1 lb. sweet potato, peeled & chopped
1 carrot, peeled & chopped
1 cup lentils
salt & pepper

Heat oil in a large dutch oven.  Add the garlic and onion and cook over medium heat, stirring, for 3 minutes, until slightly softened.  Add the bell pepper & the tomatoes and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring.  Pour in the broth, then add sweet potatoes, carrots & lentils.  Season with salt & pepper.  Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender & cooked through.  Remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes.

Transfer 1/2 the soup into a food processor and blend until smooth.  Return to the pan with the rest of the soup and cook for 10 minutes. 

Ginger Shrimp with Swiss Chard and Bell Pepper

Made this tonight and enjoyed it.

2 tsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. rice wine vinegar
1 tsp. oil (I used Olive Oil because it was all I had; recipe recommends toasted sesame)
1 red bell pepper thinly sliced
8 ounces Swiss Chard, trimmed and thinly sliced
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
2 tsp. finely chopped peeled fresh garlic
8 ounces raw shrimp
1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce, vinegar & oil  Set aside
Coat a non stick skillet or wok with nonstick cooking spray and heat over medium heat.  Stir fry shrimp until pink and set aside in a bowl.
Stir fry peppers 2 minutes. Add chard & ginger & garlic and 4 Tblsp. water and stir fry until chard is wilted.
Stir in shrimp and sauce and stir fry another 2-3 minutes, until shrimp is heated through and bell peppers are crisp tender.
Divide rice onto two plates and divide shrimp mixture on top.

Quick Beans and Rice

This is much quicker than the chili if you are in a rush. 

2 Tblsp. Olive Oil
1 red onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
12 ounce package Trader Joe's Chorizo
1 can diced tomatoes (undrained)
1 can black beans (undrained)
1 can kidney beans (undrained - Trader Joe's brand has no sugar)
1 cup Instant Brown Rice
1 Tblsp. Oregano
1 tsp. Salt

In a stock pot or dutch oven, saute onions and pepper in olive oil, over medium heat until soft.  Remove casing from chorizo and add to onions and pepperes.  Cook 2-3 minutes.
Add remaining ingredients and stir.  Bring to a boil.  Cover pan, lower heat and cook for 10 minutes (do not remove lid)
Remove pan from heat and let stand 10 minutes (again, do not remove lid)
Remove lid, stir & serve.  Super easy!

Sweet Potatoes

This is not really a "recipe" per se and there's nothing particularly original here, but I've had a number of people lately ask me how I make sweet potatoes. 
Basically, I just wash and thinly slice unpeeled sweet potatoes and I layer them in a baking dish with cooking spray and salt on each layer.  I bake them at 400 degrees checking them until they are ready. 
What I've done differently recently is I've made sure that my baking dish has a lid and I bake the sweet potatoes with the lid, so where they used to be fairly soft, now they melt in your mouth.  Having the lid on seems to almost steam them.  And you can cook 1 cup of sweet potatoes or three pounds of sweet potatoes this way, just alter the size of the baking dish.  They keep well in the fridge if you make them the night before you are serving or eating.  If you are looking for attractive dish of sliced sweet potatoes keep a closer eye on them as they bake, because letting them bake until they are really soft will give you an absolutely delicious pile of orange mush (which I love).