Potato Pot Pie

While we were adjusting to life with a new born a friend brought us a chicken pot pie for dinner one night. I wondered as I ate it (it was yummy, by the way), how I could make a veggie version and still retain the yummy flavor of a pot pie. After a mediocre first attempt, I came up with this recipe. My hubby agrees--it was delicious!

Ingredients:

• 2 carrots, sliced
• 2 stalks celery, sliced
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 large potato, diced small (you can choose to leave the peel on or take it off)
• about 1 Tb. olive oil
• 1/2 c. frozen peas
• 1/2 c. frozen corn
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• about 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp thyme 
• 1/4 c. flour
• 1 c. rice milk (or milk, or other milk substitute)
• 1 c. vegetable broth
• 2 Tb. fresh chopped parsely
• 2 pre-made pie crusts (or you could make your own)
• 1 egg white
• 1 Tb. water

Directions:

1. Saute carrots, celery, onion, and potato in the olive oil for 10-15 min. You want the potatoes to start getting tender.
2. Meanwhile, prepare an 8x8 baking dish by putting the first crust down on the bottom of the dish.
3. Once the veggie mix has cooked for about 15 min. add the peas, corn, salt, pepper, and thyme. Stir into mixture and cook a few more minutes.
4. Add the flour and stir to coat.
5. Pour in the rice milk and veggie broth. Simmer until thick.
6. Add the parsley.
7. Pour/spoon the veggie mix into your prepared dish. Cover with the 2nd pie crust. Mix one egg white with 1 Tb. of water. Brush the egg wash onto your pie crust. Place baking dish onto a baking sheet (just to be safe if there are any drips as it cooks). Bake at 425 degrees for about 25 minutes. If the crust is browning too quickly cover it with foil.

September is for Salads!

What salad combinations do you love? What do you reach for first to add to those delicious leaves? Fruit? Nuts? Other veggies? Send me your favorite salad recipes/combos and a picture!

During the month of September I would like to do as many posts as possible on salad. I think salads can easily become too routine and so I want everyone to share what you love in your salad. And if you have a homemade dressing you love, send those recipes my way as well!

Help others spark some out-of-the box salad thinking for their families!

Bean Tostadas

(Left: without the lettuce, Right: with the lettuce)

These are delicious and super simple to prepare! 

Ingredients:

• Tostada shells
• Avocados, diced
• Tomatoes, diced
• Romaine lettuce, chopped
• Cheddar cheese, shredded
• Cilantro, chopped
• Mushrooms, sliced
• Onions, diced
• 1 can refried beans

Directions:

1. Saute mushrooms and onions in a little olive oil until onions are translucent.
2. Meanwhile, heat oven to 400 degrees. Place tostadas on a pan and heat for 3-5 minutes.
3. Microwave refried beans until hot.
4. To assemble, spread refried beans on tostada, then top with all the toppings (whichever ones you want, that is).
5. Enjoy!

Veggie Lentil Soup

This is another meal my mom, Tracy G., made for us while she was in town meeting the newest grandbaby. We needed something to supplement our salad and rolls, and we had some left over lentils from a different meal. This was delish! She whipped it out of no where so that is why some of the ingredients have a range in the measurement; just add how much you prefer!

Ingredients:

• 1 onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 3-4 stalks of celery, sliced
• Herbs/seasonings of your choice, to taste
• thyme
• sage
• oregano
• salt
• cracked pepper
• 2-4 cups vegetable broth or water, depending on how thick you want your soup
• 1 can of green beans (no salt added), or frozen
• 1/2 can of corn, or frozen
• 3-4 potatoes, cubed
• 1-2 carrots, sliced
• 1 or 2 cans of diced or stewed tomatoes
• Your choice cooked legumes, about 1 cup
• lentils
• black beans

Directions:

1. Peel & cube potatoes and carrots. Cook in a pot of boiling water till just cooked. Set aside.
2. Blend tomatoes in blender till smooth.
3. Saute onion, garlic, and celery in a tiny bit of olive oil till onion is clear. Add herbs and seasonings of your choice. Cook for 1 more minute, then add vegetable broth/water, green beans, corn, cooked potatoes and carrots, blended tomatoes, and legumes. 
4. Simmer about 15 minutes.

Vegan Black Bean Soup

(Picture from Allrecipes.com.)

This recipe was sent in by Katie W. She found it at Allrecipes.com.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 pinch black pepper
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 4 (15 ounce) cans black beans
• 1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed tomatoes  

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Saute onion, celery, carrots and garlic for 5 minutes. Season with chili powder, cumin, and black pepper; cook for 1 minute. Stir in vegetable broth, 2 cans of beans, and corn. Bring to a boil.
2. Meanwhile, in a food processor or blender, process remaining 2 cans beans and tomatoes until smooth. Stir into boiling soup mixture, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 15 minutes.

Notes about this recipe:

1. I'm not a huge fan of celery so we leave that out. 

2. I usually use chicken broth instead of the veggie broth and stewed tomatoes just because that is what we have on hand.

3. I add a can of hominy since my husband loves the stuff. 

4. The best part is that you can pretty much make it all out of canned goods so it's great for food storage too.  

5. It's really great by itself with or without cheese, with or without tortilla chips and also really good on salad.

Spaghetti Squash

Remember this post with the recipe sent in by Liz T.? Well it was recommended AGAIN by a different friend, Nicole B. She sent her picture along with it and said "I do a fruit and veggie co-op and got a spaghetti squash. Really not my favorite but I found this recipe and loved it!"

Check out the original post or the recipe link above and try it out!

Naan Bread Pizza

 

(Left: Pesto version; Right: Pizza sauce version)

So this month has been pretty busy with the arrival of our 2nd baby, which is why there has only been one new post a week for over a month. My mom came to town to help us get adjusted and she made us this fabulous dinner.

Ingredients:

• Pesto or pizza sauce, whichever you prefer
• sliced mushrooms
• onions, diced
• tomatoes, sliced (cherry or small roma are my recommendations)
• black olives, sliced
• artichoke hearts, canned in water (not the marinated kind), sliced
• avocado, sliced
• any other veggie you like eating on pizza
• Pre-made naan bread (can be found at grocery stores such as H.E.B., or Harmon's)

Directions:

1. Saute the sliced mushrooms and onions in a tiny bit of olive oil.
2. Spread the pesto/pizza sauce on the naan bread.
3. Add the toppings, except the avocado.
4. Place on a baking sheet and broil for 3-5 minutes.
5. Add sliced avocado.
6. Cut into pieces and serve!

Notes about this recipe:

1. There are no measurements because it's all about how much you like on your pizza. Add as much or as little as you want!
2. You could add cheese if you want. The pesto already has cheese in it, and the pizza sauce version makes for a great lactose-free recipe.
3. If you can't find pre-made naan bread you could always make your own. The pre-made makes for a super easy meal, though.