Healthy, Whole Foods, Plant-Based Vegan Recipes
Farro is a whole grain with nutty flavor. Similar to rice, it has both a hearty texture and starchiness. It that works well for risotto-style cooking. Paired with mushrooms and green peas, this is plant-based comfort food. An oil-free vegan dish with Italian inspiration.
5 Minute Lemon Tahini Potato Bowl – Healthy, Gluten-Free, Oil-Free, Quick, Easy, Microwave, Vegan, Dinner for One Recipe Easy | Servings: 1 | Ready In: 5 minutes | Yield: 1 Massive bowl Healthy sweet potatoes, bok choy, and shiitake mushrooms come together in this delicious Asian Power Bowl. Low-fat flavor comes from ginger, red chili, and gluten-free tamari for a quick, satisfying dinner for one. Enjoy leftovers over rice or quinoa for a satisfying lunch. This oil-free, plant-based vegan recipe is a must-have for your healthy-eating lifestyle. Ingredients 2 small Sweet Potatoes 3.5 oz container Shiitake mushrooms 1 bunch Bok Choy (about 7-8 stalks) 1 thumb of ginger (about 1 inch) 1 teaspoon red chili flake 1 teaspoon tamari* How it’s Done To make the Asian Power Bowl: Preheat a medium sauté pan over high heat. While the pan pre-heats, trim the ends off the sweet potatoes and cut into bite-sized chunks. Once the pan is hot, add the sweet potato to the pan. Spread into a single layer. While the sweet potatoes brown, remove the stems off the shiitake mushrooms and cut into ½-inch strips. Add to the pan with the sweet potatoes, stir to combine, and spread everything into a single layer. Peel the ginger and chop into small pieces. Trim the base (root end) off the bok choy and discard. Cut the leaves off the bok choy and set aside. Slice the bok choy stalks into 1/2-inch strips, about the same width as you sliced the
Okra is quickly sauteed with tomatoes and fresh herbs for this easy, oil-free side dish. T oss with whole wheat pasta for a satisfying, plant-based dinner or enjoy cold leftovers tossed with cannellini beans for a vegan lunch.
This oil-free recipe for Vegan Lemony Kale Rigatoni Pasta combines dark kale with creamy white beans and crunchy pistachios. Whole wheat rigatoni works great to hold the lemony white wine sauce, but you can also use brown rice pasta shells for a gluten-free version. A quick and satisfying weeknight dinner!
Easy | Servings: 2 | Ready In: 10 minutes | Yield: 2 big bowls A healthy, vegan bowl in under 10 Minutes? Yes. A quick mix of sautéed vegetables, Italian spices, and hearty lentils come together for this easy, delicious dinner for 1 (or 2). Watch and learn how to make this oil-free, plant-based meal a part of your go-to fast weeknight meal. Ingredients 1 onion, peeled and diced 3 cremini mushrooms, sliced ½ teaspoon each: dried basil, oregano, thyme, and red chili flake* 1 tomato, diced 1 clove garlic, minced 1 cup frozen leaf spinach 1 (15-ounce) can lentils, drained and rinsed 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast How it’s Done: To make the Italian Lentil Bowl: Preheat a medium sauté pan over high heat. While the pan pre-heats, dice the onion and slice the mushrooms. Once the pan is hot, add the mushrooms and onion to the pan. Spread into a single layer. Now leave them alone! Let them brown 1-2 minutes before stirring. Stir, spread into a single layer again, and let them keep browning. The browning will take about 3-4 minutes total. While the onions and mushrooms brown, dice the tomato and mince the garlic. Once the mushrooms are brown, add the dried Italian spices. Cook just 20-30 seconds, until the spices become aromatic. Add the diced tomato and minced garlic, along with 1 cup of water. Use your spatula to scrape up any bits from the bottom of the pan. Let the mixture come to a boil
This oil-free, Asian Quinoa Fried Rice recipe uses quinoa in place of rice for a healthy, protein-packed plant-based dinner. Use any of your favorite vegetables or throw in a bag of a frozen stir-fry blend for even easier work. Add in edamame, tofu, or tempeh for extra protein. This makes for a great budget-friendly, one pan dinner that can feed the whole family. No more need for greasy take-out!
Medium | Servings: 4 | Ready In: 90 minutes (+ soaking beans) | Yield: 6 cups Stew Tagine gets its name from the Moroccan conical cooking vessel in which it is traditionally made. This gluten-free recipe just requires one pot, making it an easy way to impart unique, international flavors. This healthy, vegan, fat-free stew is nourishing comfort food. Ingredients 1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked overnight* 1 medium onion 1 carrot 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric 1 cinnamon stick 1/4 cup dried apricots 1/2 cup red wine 3 cloves garlic 2 bay leaves 2 cups vegetable stock 2 cups water 1/4 cup fresh parsley 1/4 cup fresh cilantro 2 Roma tomatoes 1/4 teaspoon salt How it’s Done: To soak the chickpeas: Cover the chickpeas with a few inches of water and soak for at least 8 hours, or overnight. After at least 8 hours, drain the soaked chickpeas and rinse thoroughly under running water. To make the Tagine: Peel and dice the onion and carrot. In a medium pot, combine the onion carrot, ginger, cumin, turmeric, and cinnamon stick. Cover and cook over medium-high heat, 5-7 minutes. Meanwhile, chop the dried apricots. After about 5-7 minutes, the spices will be aromatic and the onions start to brown. Add the wine and scrape up any bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook 2-3 minutes, until the wine cooks off. Add the rinsed chickpeas, diced apricots, bay leaves, garlic, vegetable stock, and water. Cover, bring
Easy| Servings: 6 | Ready In: 30 minutes | Yield: 8 cups soup Chana Masala literally translates to “Chickpea Spices”. A warming, comforting mix of aromatic spices like cumin, ginger, and turmeric flavor this classic Indian dish. This oil-free vegan recipe is full of healthy protein for hearty satisfaction. Use this easy recipe to start exploring Indian flavors – and also enjoy a delicious gluten-free, plant-based vegan dinner. Ingredients 1 Onion 1 tablespoon ground Cumin 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced 3 Cloves Garlic 2-3 Small Green Chilies, minced with seeds (Indian Chili or Serrano) 1 tablespoon ground Coriander 1 teaspoon Paprika (or Indian red chili powder) 1 teaspoon ground Turmeric 2 15-oz canned Chickpeas (Garbanzo Beans) 1 Bunch Cilantro, Chopped 1 28-oz canned Diced Tomatoes 1 teaspoon Garam Masala 1/2 teaspoon Salt How it’s Done: To make the Chana Masala: In a medium pot, combine the onion and cumin. Cover and cook over medium heat 5-7 minutes, until the onions are soft and the cumin becomes aromatic. If the onions start to burn, reduce the heat and add a splash of water. While the onions soften, make your spiced paste. In a food chopper, combine the ginger, garlic, green chili, coriander, paprika, and turmeric. Roughly chop until you get a paste-like consistency. Once the onions are soft, add the spiced paste to the pot. Sauté for 1-2 minutes, until you can smell the ginger and the heat of the green chilies. Drain and rinse the Chickpeas. Roughly chop the
As a student in culinary school, I first learned how to develop delicious flavor. I learned to let nothing go to waste, to honor history and location. I then learned about the environmental impact of our food choices and how to balance nutrition and budget. Now it’s time to take what I’ve learned as a Chef and grow. It’s time to Start Pushing the Limits. My Responsibilities as a Chef Part Three: Pushing the Limits Seventh Responsibility: Engage in the Sexual Revolution There [is] plenty … that women have to deal with in kitchens. It’s like you have an extra part-time job on top of your intense and difficult job; that’s dealing with the emotional fallout of being a woman and having to be a little resistance fighter to get what you want. The kitchen can be such a competitive environment, and there’s almost a toxic masculinity a lot of times in kitchens. — Splendid Table Podcast: Conflict and Comradery in Restaurant Kitchens There is a revolution underfoot. Some call it #metoo. Some call it liberation. Whatever the label, we can agree that women are finally starting to get the recognition we’ve merited for generations. This voice is even becoming louder in the kitchen, but it needs more. The cooks and wait staff who serve you, fellow industry professionals who live in this world, know that it’s mostly a boys club. Even if your dining room is full of females in black skirts, it’s often men with big
In my first post about My Responsibilities as a Chef Part One, I talked about the history of the culinary arts. My training in culinary school gave me the foundation to respect the history of this art. I learned to make everything delicious. I learned to waste nothing and to respect season and location. This has been at the core of my cooking. But there is more… The Role of Chef is Evolving My Responsibilities as a Chef Part Two: Respecting Nutrition, Environment, Budget Fourth Responsibility: Respect Nutrition It’s amazing how meaty cauliflower can be. — Chef Alex Guarnaschelli Change has been coming. The past few decades have seen a huge shift in the focus of food. Rather than just flavor, nutrition has entered the picture. There has been fights over macronutrients and complex carbs. While classic French cooking had us making confit pork shoulder in vats of rendered pork fat, now we know more. As chefs, we have a new responsibility to our diners. We return to the question: If these people ate our food every night, how would their health be impacted? Chefs can’t force people to eat kale, but on a menu of 20 beef and chicken entrees, they can at least offer a quinoa salad. They can train their wait staff and cooks to cater to requests for “something lighter…steamed vegetables…plant-based”. Building on the notion that we have a responsibility to share local, seasonal produce, chefs also have a responsibility to explore healthier options. We
