Category: Vegetarian or Vegan

root vegetables blue cheese-3

Roasted Root Vegetables with Blue Cheese Vinaigrette

November 6, 2011 Filled under Fall, Light, Sides, Vegetarian or Vegan, Winter
8 Comments

My schedule has been crazy lately and I’ve been living more or less on take out. It’s amazing how a diet like that leaves me craving vegetables! When I had recent a Saturday all to myself, I knew I wanted to make a “real” meal full of veggies.

Variations on this roasted root vegetable and blue cheese vinaigrette dish have been flying through my head ever since I saw something similar in this month’s issue of Food+Wine. I loved how colorful it was and also how it used both the roots and the greens of the beets. But more than that, I loved how it’s made from ingredients that can be found at the farmer’s market throughout winter – well after the growing season is over. Read More

vegetarian chili cheese fries-2

Three Bean Crockpot Chili

October 23, 2011 Filled under Light, Mexican and Southwestern, One Pan, Soups and Stews, Vegetarian or Vegan
11 Comments

I’ve recently developed a dinnertime problem that will surprise friends and family that I have known me for a long time: I haven’t had time to cook as much as I’d like to because I’m too busy exercising. I know.

I’m the girl who grew up hating gym so much that she joined the tennis team just to get out of it; the girl who managed to fall in love with a form of dance where you only move half of your body. I don’t know what’s gotten into me, but I’m suddenly obsessed with yoga and hulafit. Which means that, two nights a week for the past few months, I haven’t gotten home until 8:30. And when I do get home, I’m starving and don’t want to spend time actually cooking.
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Three Bean Crockpot Chili

Yields 6 servings
 Prep Time: 15 minutes

With only three steps this may be one of the easiest chilis that I’ve made, but it isn’t lacking in flavor: Crimini mushrooms add an earthy note, chipotles in adobo and fire roasted tomatoes add a smokey complexity, and carrots add a touch of unexpected sweetness. It makes delicious chili cheese fries, but it’s also great over rice, scooped up with baked tortilla chips, or on its own.

Like most chilis, this one is best after it’s had a chance for the flavors to meld in the fridge. I cook it in the crock pot overnight (it thickens while I get ready for work) and then reheat it at dinner time.

Ingredients

  • 1 can (15.5 oz) Black Beans, drained
  • 1 can (15.5 oz) Pinto Beans, drained
  • 1 can (15.5 oz) Kidney Beans, drained
  • 1 can (15.5 oz) diced Fire Roasted Tomatoes
  • 2 ounces Crimini Mushrooms, chopped
  • 3 Carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 2 Green Bell Peppers, chopped
  • 1 Onion, chopped
  • 1/4 cup Red Wine
  • 1 Chipotle Pepper plus 1 Tablespoon Adobo
  • 2 Anaheim Peppers, minced
  • 1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
  • 2 cloves Garlic, minced
  • 2 Tablespoons Corn Starch

Preparation

  1. Combine all ingredients except corn starch in crock pot.
  2. Cook covered on low heat for 8 hours.
  3. Spoon about a quarter cup of cooking liquid into a measuring cup. Whisk the cornstarch into the reserved cooking liquid until it is smooth, then stir it back  into the pot. Bring to a boil and cook uncovered for 30 minutes, or until the chili has thickened.