Ancient Grains with Veggies Pilaf

This was really tasty but a bit of a pain to make... probably due to the fact that you have to cook each grain separately and I only own two saucepans. LOL.. I used to have a bunch but purged all the old crappy Teflon ones so now I'm down to two non-huge stainless steel ones. Plus, I needed one for DH's dinner.. The time it takes is worth it just for the amazing amount of protein in this dish!
At least I know for next time to make them all in advance!

You could really use any combination of grains and veggies that you have on hand. Rice would also work. In fact, the original version of this recipe called for brown rice; I chose to use quinoa instead in an attempt to cut back on cooking time.

The pilaf is really filling so I'd say this amount would feed 2; 4 as a side-dish.

**Note: Soak the spelt for at least 6 hours prior to cooking.**

Ingredients:
1/8 cup whole spelt grain
1/2 cup water

1/8 cup bulgur
3/4 cup water

1/8 cup quinoa
1/4 cup water

1/6 cup couscous
1/4 cup water

1-2 tbsp. olive oil
1/8 cup onion, finely chopped
1/2 stalk celery, diced
1/8 cup carrots, finely diced
1/8 cup sweet potato, finely diced
1/8 cup parsnip, finely diced
1/8 cup mushroom, diced (I used portobello; any mushroom would work)
1 large clove of garlic, minced
1/8 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 green onion, sliced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Fresh ginger (as much as you like; I think I used 1/2 tbsp.)

Method:
1. Start with the spelt. Drain the soaked spelt then add it to 1/2 cup of water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and let it simmer, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes or until it is cooked through. Spelt will not get too soft/it remains quite firm.

2. Cook the bulgur by bringing 3/4 cup of water to a boil. Add the bulgur grains and then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer 10 minutes or until cooked through.

3. Cook the quinoa by boiling 1/4 cup water. Add the quinoa grains and then lower the heat and cover. Simmer 10-15 minutes or until the water has been absorbed and the white "germ" is visible.

4. Cook the couscous. Bring 1/4 cup water to a boil. Add in the couscous, cover, and remove from the heat. Let the pan sit for 5 minutes or until all the water has been absorbed.

After each grain is cooked, set it aside while the other grains and the veggies cook (you can combine them in one bowl).

5. Heat 1-2 tbsp. olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Saute the onion, garlic, carrot, parsnip, mushroom, celery, and sweet potato until tender. Add the grains then add the soy sauce, green onion, ginger, and parsley. Cook and stir until everything is warmed through.

Reference:
This is based on the recipe "Ancient Grain Pilaf" from The Whole Foods Market Cookbook.
My Changes:
I added the parsnip, sweet potato, ginger, and mushroom. I used green onions in place of scallions and used quinoa in place of brown rice.

Root Vegetable Enchiladas (with Mole!)

I really need to learn how to make the “e” at the end of mole have an accent mark over the top of it because every time I type mole without it, it looks like I'm talking about eating sauce made of small animals who don't see very well! Um, no... DH loves enchiladas so I’m always looking for new and exciting vegetarian versions of this yummy treat. I really enjoyed these ones with roasted vegetables. The combination of the sweet veggies and the chocolate in the mole sauce along with the peppers was amazing! I know not everyone goes for that sweet-spicy combination but if you’re like me, you have to give these a try!

I do have to work on the cashew cream, though.. I think it needed more water! In my defense, it was my first time using nutritional yeast so maybe that’s the part that needs work! I would have tried a second batch since I really wanted to drizzle some over the top of the mole sauce but I just ran out of time… it’s hard when I’m trying to focus on a brand-new recipe while making chicken enchiladas for DH (just leave a comment if you ever want the chicken enchilada recipe – I have it saved and would be happy to share it. M always raves about it!) Next time, I’ll make the cashew cream first and just store it in the fridge. That should give me extra time to make more if needed.

On to the recipe! : )

Makes 2 very generous servings (4 enchiladas/2 each) You could almost get away with doing 1 enchilada per person and serving it with some seasoned rice, black beans, and/or salad (or some combination of those three sides). When I do enchiladas we have enchiladas and that’s it! They are just so filling!

Oh, before I go on… enchiladas freeze really well! Make a bunch; they are great to have on-hand and just pull out and re-heat when you need a quickie dinner.

Ingredients:
Jalapeno-Cashew Cream
1/2 cup raw cashews
1/2 cup water
1/2 jalapeno pepper
1-1/2 tbsp. nutritional yeast (see if you can find it in the bulk aisle - tubs of it are a bit spendy!)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Method: 1. Place all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulse on the "puree" setting until smooth.

Mole Sauce
Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 1/2 tbsp. garlic, minced (I actually think I just used 5 cloves)
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 1/4 tbsp. chili powder
1 1/2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 oz. dark chocolate, chopped

Method:
Heat 1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat.

2. Add the onion, garlic, oregano, cumin, and cinnamon to the hot oil. Cover and cook until onion is almost tender (about 10 minutes). Stir occasionally during the cooking process.

3. Mix in the chili powder and flour. Stir three minutes.

4. Gradually mix in the broth and increase the heat to medium-high. Boil until reduced (it took mine about 15 or 16 minutes). Stir occasionally. Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate.

Enchilada Filling
Ingredients:
1/3 to 1/2 cup each sweet potato, red potatoes, and parsnip (peel the parsnip and sweet potato), diced
1/2 onion, diced
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. sea salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 recipe jalapeno cashew cream (above)
Flour tortillas
1 recipe mole sauce (above)

Method:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

1. Toss the vegetables, cumin, onion, olive oil, salt, and pepper together in a large bowl. Spread the veggie mixture onto the cookie sheet and roast 45-50 minutes or until they are soft and lightly browned, stirring once or twice during the roasting time. Reduce the oven heat to 350 degrees.


**Make the mole sauce while the vegetables roast.**

2. Remove the vegetables from the oven and let them cool a little. Once cooled, toss them in a large bowl with 1/2 cup of the jalapeno cashew cream. Scoop the vegetable filling into the tortillas and roll each one into an enchilada.

3. Pour a little mole sauce into the bottom of a baking dish. Place each enchilada on top of the mole. Cover the enchiladas with additional mole sauce. If desired, use the remaining cashew cream to drizzle over the mole-covered enchiladas.

4. Bake the enchiladas, uncovered, for 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Reference: The jalapeno cashew cream and the enchilada filling recipes are based on "Roasted Root Vegetable Enchiladas" and "Chipotle Cashew Cream" from the Nov/Dec 2008 issue of VegNews magazine.
Changes for the enchilada filling included adding in the red potatoes and using the mole sauce in place of red or green enchilada sauce. I was going to add some corn, too, but completely forgot! Oh well... next time :)
The only change I made to the cashew cream was to use a regular un-roasted jalapeno in place of the chipotle pepper.
The mole sauce recipe is from Recipezaar. I just change it by adding a little extra chocolate and using veggie broth in place of chicken broth.

Anthos Lentil Soup

I found this recipe in Cooking Light and tagged it as a "must-try" :) I love lentils! This has a nice tangy taste from the vinegar and the veggie combination is really yummy (yeay parsnips!) Enjoy :)

I didn't take a picture because it really wasn't very attractive! It did taste really good, though!

Changes I made from the original recipe:
*I made it vegetarian/vegan by switching the chicken broth for vegetable broth.
*I used onion in place of shallots.
*Since I didn't have sherry vinegar (and wasn't about to go hunt some down for 1.5 tbsp...), I used 1 tbsp. of white wine vinegar and 1/2 tbsp. of sherry.

This made enough for about 3 servings (I had two large bowls of it!)
Ingredients:
1 tbsp. olive oil
3/4 cup baking potato, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup sliced carrot
1/2 cup chopped celery
3/8 cup chopped parsnip
1/6 cup chopped onion
1 tbsp. white wine vinegar
1/2 tbsp. sherry
3 cups vegetable broth
3/8 cup lentils
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
A little sprinkle of sea salt

Method:
1. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the potato, celery, parsnip, and onions to the pan; saute for 7 minutes or until tender.

2. Add the sherry and vinegar to deglaze the pan. Scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen the browned bits. Add the veggie broth, lentils, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer 45 minutes or until the veggies and lentils are tender. Discard the bay leaf.

3. *I skipped this bit because it would have been just one more thing to clean.. lol so lazy!* Transfer half the lentil mixture to a blender. Remove the center piece from the blender lid to allow the steam to escape; secure blender lid. Place a clean towel over the opening in the blender lid. Blend until smooth, scraping the sides of the blender. Return the lentil mixture to the pan; stir in pepper and salt.

Reference:
I found the original recipe in the January/February 2008 issue of Cooking Light magazine.

Mixed Vegetables al Forno

Like the minestrone I made, this is another great one for cleaning out the fridge! It was really good but I think it could use a little more "oomph!" Maybe some basil? White wine? I'll have to experiment with the seasonings on this one a bit! I served it with rice tonight but have leftovers that I'll have with couscous for lunch tomorrow.

This would also make a good side dish for a chicken or fish meal.

Serves 2

Ingredients:
1/2 medium onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium yellow crookneck squash, diced
1 medium zucchini, diced
3-4 medium-sized white mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup green beans
2 tomatoes, seeded and cut into 8 pieces each
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 parsnip, peeled and sliced
1 stalk celery, chopped
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/4 tsp. sea salt
2 tsp. olive oil

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Put all vegetables in a Dutch oven or other lidded oven-proof pot. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Stir. Cover and bake for 1 1/2 hours. Serve hot over rice or couscous.

Reference:
This is based on the Mixed Vegetables al Forno recipe from The Occasional Vegetarian.
The changes I made included adding the parsnip (forgot how much I LOVE parsnip!), carrots, and celery. I used regular white mushrooms in place of a portobello and used regular tomatoes in place of plum tomatoes.