Vegan Quinoa & Sweet Potato Chili

I've been a vegetarian all my life, and never tasted meat (of any kind) until I accidentally bit into a pork egg roll at a Thai restaurant a few years after college.  (For the record, it was delicious and yes, I finished it.)  However, even as a vegetarian I enjoyed a few animal products such as cheese, eggs, and milk. 

As a result of my obsession with nearly everything dairy, the term "vegan" has always scared me.  I once bit into a vegan chocolate cookie riddled with carob chips assuming it was real chocolate and was so severely disappointed and surprised I had to spit it out.

In recent years, though, "vegan" has come to be a widely popular buzz word in foodie land, and no one knows that better than those of us who live in the greater Portland, Ore., area.  Over the years I've come to acknowledge that vegan doesn't have to mean gross; I've had plenty of vegan meals that were blow-me-out-of-the-water amazing and I've even made a few myself.

These days I'm not so skittish of the idea of cooking or eating without dairy products in my food, and I am so glad because...all of this is to say that I may have been turned off by the name of this recipe in a previous life, and I hope if you've made it this far into my blathering post you'll keep reading and discover the delicious combination of ingredients that is this amazing chili.

Photo: tastyhealthythriving.blogspot.com

Ingredients
2 cans black beans (or make your own from dried - you'll need about 30 oz)
1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
4 cups vegetable stock
1 onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
1 cup dry quinoa
Salt
Pepper

Optional
Avocado, cubed
Cilantro, chopped
Non-dairy sour cream

Directions
Heat the oil in a large heavy soup pot over medium low heat.  Add onions and cook until soft and browning (about 10 min).  Add garlic and cook for 2 additional minutes; add tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, and oregano and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Add the beans, stock, and potatoes, and season to taste with salt and pepper.  Cook for about 5 minutes, then add quinoa.  Continue cooking for about 15-30 minutes, stirring frequently, until quinoa and potatoes are cooked through, and the chili has thickened.  (Add water if the chili becomes too thick for your liking.) 

If desired, top with avocado, cilantro, and/or non-dairy sour cream.

NOTE: This can also be done in the crock pot; simply toss everything in and cook on high for 4-5 hours.

Do you have a favourite meat-free chili recipe?
 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Bites

Admit it: Your mouth is watering just after reading the title of this post, isn't it?  It's okay, I just wiped some drool off my keyboard, so we're even.

I'm addicted to sweets.  Chocolate is especially dangerous, as is ice cream.  This is why I'm 100+ pounds overweight and trying to change my lifestyle, but even so, I refuse to completely give up sweet things; I just want to move past the addiction part.

One of my favourite naughty things to do is snitch semi-sweet chocolate chips from the freezer when no one is looking (the crinkly packaging tends to give me away, though).  I keep them in the freezer because for some reason the cold chocolate is more satisfying to me than room temperature chocolate.

Photo: momsneedtoknow.com

Anyway, eating handfuls of chocolate chips randomly throughout the day is never a good habit to get into.  And I've been doing it since I was a kid.  Then my friend suggested chocolate peanut butter banana bites.  They are a little time-consuming to make, but definitely worth the effort.  Plus, they're big enough to satisfy a sweet tooth craving but come in easy-to-grab single servings so you don't over-indulge.

A note on the peanut butter: I recommend using a more natural peanut butter such as Adam's, or even fresh-ground from your local health food store such as Trader Joe's or New Seasons.  Skippy, Jif, and other popular brands are tasty, but there's a reason for that - they're full of sugar!  For an effectively healthy treat/snack option, go for the low-sugar, low-sodium varieties.

Ingredients
Bananas
Peanut Butter (I used creamy, but crunchy would add texture and protein)
Dark chocolate chips (the darker the better - the darker it is, the less sugar it has)

Directions
Slice the bananas into relatively thick slices and line them on a wax paper lined cookie sheet.  Place the cookie sheet in the freezer until they are no longer sticky.

Working quickly (to avoid creating a sticky mess), spread a generous dollop of peanut butter on top of each banana slice.  Replace them in the freezer.

While you wait for the bananas to freeze, put the chocolate chips in a double boiler (you can create one by filling a larger pot with water and placing a smaller pot inside it for the chocolate) and begin melting them over med-low heat.

Once the chocolate is melted, pull the bananas out of the freezer and drop them one at a time into the chocolate.  Use forks to roll them until they are completely covered, then replace them on the cookie sheet.

Place the sheet once again in the freezer, and once they've all completely hardened, pull them from the wax paper and place them in a gallon Ziploc freezer bag and put them back in the freezer.

What healthier suggestions do you have for avoiding over-indulging on sweet snacks?

Discovery: Greek Yogurt

Several recipes labeled "healthy" I ran across on Pinterest recently have utilized Greek yogurt.  I am not at all a fan of yogurt - the texture makes me gag because I feel like I'm eating a spoonful of slime - but after seeing the versatility of Greek yogurt (and hearing many testimonials as to its delicious nature and nutritious qualities), I decided to bite the bullet and give it a try.

Photo: stonyfieldfarm.com

The first thing I made with it was naan (Indian flat bread) which turned out amazing and is definitely filed under "Do This Again And As Often As Possible."  Then I bought avocados and decided to make guacamole.

When I was a kid my mom made guacamole by adding mayonnaise, salsa, onion, salt, and cayenne pepper.  This time I decided to create my own, healthier (hopefully) version of my mom's delicious guacamole by substituting the Greek yogurt for the mayo.

I was floored when I tried it.  It tasted exactly like the original but the fat content was quite a bit lower than what I was used to.  I think I took this to heart a bit too much and overcompensated by eating extra with my chips that evening, but even my husband (the kids don't eat guacamole yet - though they have tried it multiple times) enjoyed it and agreed it tasted no different than the mayo version.

A few nights ago I was inspired to make fancy dessert for my family.  Usually this treat is reserved for the weekends (when it happens at all), but thanks to a friend's post on Facebook and an incredible sale on fresh strawberries at Fred Meyer, I was in the mood for crepes.

I found a recipe for a sweet cream filling but it was very high fat, using an entire brick (8oz) of cream cheese, a cup of sour cream, and a cup (!!!) of powdered sugar.  In an effort to make this dessert a little less heart-attack-worthy, I cut the cream recipe in half for the same number of crepes (so they only had half the filling the recipe called for), AND...I substituted Greek yogurt for the sour cream.

The first bite just about blew me out of the water, so to speak.  My eyelids literally dropped and I began chewing slowly, savoring the heavenly dish I had created.  Husband was no less impressed.

So, my newest healthy option discovery: Greek yogurt!  It can replace sour cream, oil, butter, mayonnaise, and a host of other things to cut down on unhealthy fat in your favourite recipes.

As a sidenote, I tried it on my breakfast burrito on Sunday in place of sour cream and it wasn't an experience I enjoyed...but I think I could get used to it if I never had sour cream on my burritos again.

How do you use Greek yogurt?

Herbed Quinoa with Beans

I recently discovered why everyone has been talking about the amazingness known as quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) for the past couple of years.  It seems there is always some catch-food (similar to a catch-phrase: everyone is using it and any business possible tries to incorporate it into what they're doing so to draw people in because of said food's reputation, warranted or not) and once we got over acai we moved on to quinoa.  (Is one requirement of catch-foods that its name be impossible for the average American to pronounce?)

My first introduction to this nutrient-packed grain was through a salad a health-savvy friend of mine made.  It was quinoa, spinach, cilantro, cherry tomatoes, garbanzos, red onions, and avocado with a lemon juice/olive oil dressing.  Amazing.  After I seared the inside of my mouth with too much lemon juice from eating this salad every day for a week (almost), I began to hunt for other quinoa recipes.

Photo: foodnetwork.com

I found this one on foodnetwork.com and cut the amount down so it would be just enough for me to take in my lunch the following day.  The only thing I did differently was that I used dried herbs rather than fresh, and when  it was done I added about a cup of seasoned pinto beans I cooked and seasoned myself (read: not out of a can).

I enjoyed this recipe so much I've made it three times now, with a couple of different add-ins.  I'll include my variations at the end of the quinoa recipe.  (NOTE: The recipe below is the full one found at foodnetwork; I divide everything by four to make just enough for myself for a meal.)

Ingredients

2 3/4 cups low-sodium vegetable stock
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 1/2 cups quinoa

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons lemon zest

salt and pepper

Directions

In a medium saucepan, add the stock, lemon juice, and quinoa. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pan, and cook until all the liquid is absorbed, about 12 to 15 minutes.

In a small bowl (I use a clean baby food jar so I can just put the lid on and shake it), mix together the olive oil, lemon juice, basil, parsley, thyme, and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the dressing over the quinoa and toss until all the ingredients are coated. Transfer the quinoa to a bowl and serve.

Variations

Beans: Place dried pinto beans in a pot with plenty of water and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and let soak for at least one hour.  Return to boil, then reduce heat to med-low heat to simmer.  Add your choice of seasonings (my favourite combo: Cayenne pepper, Mexican seasoning, and garlic and onion powder) and let simmer for one hour (make sure there are small bubbles rolling on the surface otherwise they won't cook completely).  Once cooked, add to quinoa recipe above.

Vegetables: Place sliced zucchini, diced red pepper, and corn in a frying pan.  Add dried onion flakes (or fresh onion if you prefer) and any desired spices/seasonings.  Sautee (do NOT add oil) over med-high heat until soft.  Toss with quinoa recipe above.

 

Do you have a favourite quinoa recipe to share?