Chickpea Stew

Last night Kevin was coming over for dinner and I had no groceries and no idea what I was going to make. The only thing I knew was that I wanted chickpeas in it. This awesome chickpea stew was created freestyle and I think it turned out pretty good. :)

Chickpea Stew

Ingredients

2 398ml cans chickpeas

1 onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 inch piece ginger, minced

2 jalapenos, minced

3 carrots, diced

2 yams, diced

2 celery, diced

4 tomatoes, diced

1/2 bag spinach, chopped

1/4 bunch cilantro, minced

2 cups water

2 cups veggie stock

1 lemon, juiced

2 tsp cumin

2 bay leaves

1 tsp agave nectar

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp chili flakes

Directions:

Saute the onions, garlic, and ginger in 1/4 cup water (or olive oil) until translucent. Add the carrots, yams, and celery and cook for 5 minutes. Add all the remaining ingredients except for the cilantro, spinach, lemon and agave nectar and cook on med-high temperature for 30 minutes or until carrots and yams are soft. Add the last few ingredients. Remove the bay leaves and serve with brown rice, or a side salad.

TIP: the longer it cooks, the better the flavour. I let mine cook for a total of 1 hour but it would probs be pretty amazing if done in the crockpot. Yum!

Big ole pot of stew

Red rice

I served it with red rice. I try to switch it up with my grains. Brown is my go to and I eat a lot of quinoa but red rice is really good and a nice change. Its a longer grain but a little 'stickier' than brown rice.

YUMMY!!!

Dinner for two. Aw

Of course the stew is loaded with goodness to nourish your body. Its got some greens in it as well as some root veggies and such but its not enough green veggies for me so I roasted up a head of broccoli. I usually just roast it with just lemon juice but I only had one lemon left and that was for the stew, so I just stole a few squeezes and then used a tsp of grape seed oil, cayenne, garlic powder and paprika. YUMMM. Paprika on roasted veggies is super good. SUPER. lol

There was ALOT more but I gobbled it up before I snapped a pic. Ooops. But we all know what broccoli looks like. Lol. But if you're looking for an easy way to get in your greens, this is it. Put some tin foil or parchment paper on your cookie sheet and roast away. I put them in for 20-30 minutes. I like em crispy so just take a look at 20 mins. Roasting is awesome because you can just set it and forget it. Less maintenance and you can just go about your biznass while they cook away. DO IT!

This meal will satisfy any meat eater. Its hearty, warm and filling. Its not that spicy either but do a taste test before you add the chili flakes. I like my food spicy so my tolerance is pretty high.

Peace

xoxo

K

(Un)Fried Rice Thai Styles

Last week I whipped up this gem of a recipe. It was super easy and delish. I am a big lover of Thai food. I adore cooking with coconut milk and do so pretty often. When I was first cooking up this (Un)Fried rice I had no plans to make it with coconut milk, but as soon as I added it, the dish was complete.

(Un)Fried Rice Thai Styles

Ingredients

2 cups brown rice, cooked according to pkg

2 cups red beans, soaked and cooked

2 carrots, diced

2 inch piece ginger, minced

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 red Thai chili peppers, minced

1 cup frozen corn

1/2 lemon, juiced

2 tsp mirin

3 tsp soy sauce

1/2 cup veggie stock

3 tsp chili flakes

160ml can low fat coconut milk

Directions

Saute garlic, ginger, Thai chili peppers, and carrots in 1/4 cup water for 5 minutes covered. Add all remaining ingredients except for coconut milk and cook for 15 minutes stirring often. Pour in coconut milk and stir until well combined. Enjoy with on its own, with steamed veggies with tofu, however you like your rice!

I had a ton of leftovers so I tossed that into a portobello mushrooms and baked it. Served that along with some roasted broccoli and steamed veggies and voila! Perfect meal. Yum.

I love portobello mushrooms!! So full of flavour. It went very well with the (Un)Fried rice. The steamed veggies was celery, collard greens, sui choy and spinach. I just steamed them and tossed them in lemon and a little soy sauce. Nice and light.

Peace

xoxo

K

Oil Free Fried Rice

I had a hankering for fried rice the other night and a boat load of green veggies in my fridge. I didn't write a recipe down so I don't have exact measurements, but I know the ingredients and can guesstimate. Also, I feel that fried rice is like pasta, just use what you have.

Oil Free Fried Rice
2 cups dry brown rice, cooked
1/2 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 celery stalks, chopped small
kale, chopped or processed in food processor
spinach
bok choy, chopped small
sui choy, chopped small
edamame
corn

Sauce
soy sauce
sweet soy sauce (thai)
garlic powder
hot sauce
sesame seeds

Directions
1. Put celery, onion and garlic into a wok or big pan and pan fry for 3 minutes or until fragrant and translucent. Use about a quarter cup of water to prevent sticking.
2. Add remaining veggies and cook for 8 minutes.
3. Add rice and fold together until mixed fully. Turn the heat down to med-low.
4. Add the "Sauce" to your liking. I did not measure this at all, just dumped it in. But don't put too much, it just needs to season it not drown it.

Serve over a bed of steamed greens. I chose steamed gai lan which I tossed in sesame seeds, soy sauce and garlic powder.

Green veggie HEAVEN!

Yummy, greens, my life blood

Oh yah! Japanese spices

Steamed gai lan w/ soy and sesame seeds

The finished product

It was seriously yummy. Tasted super delicious, healthy, and wholesome. I got rid of my craving for fried rice and also got tons of protein, iron, calcium, and vits. TONS in fact. 

Have you ever cooked with no oil? You should try it. Its not that hard, you just need to use water and adjust the temperature you cook at. I also use a stainless steel wok. Its much healthier to eat without the added fats, especially saturated fat. 

I saw Mission Impossible last night and I gotta say I was a little disappointed at Tom Cruise's physique. He was a little soft. He usually buffs up for these flicks. I'm not a huge fan anyways, but it was entertaining. Action flicks always are. And def better to see them in the theatre. Next up is Sherlock. Also wanna see the Marilyn Monroe one too. 

Peace

xoxo

K