Category: Vegetarian

Veggie Burgers

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VeggieBurger1 small onion, finely minced
2 cloves garlic, finely minced

4 dates
1 Tbsp chia seeds
1 (19 oz) cans black beans, drained

1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cumin
½ tsp mustard powder
½ tsp chili powder
½ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground pepper
½ tsp cayenne pepper

1 egg

½ cup cooked quinoa (or rice)

  1. Sauté the onion and garlic. Set aside to cool.
  2. Meanwhile, finely chop the dates in the food processor. Add the beans and pulse until they are broken up, but not pureed.
  3. Transfer the bean mixture to a bowl. Mix in (in this order) the spices, the chia, the eggs, the onion and garlic mixture, and the quinoa.
  4. Form into (5) patties about ½ cup of mix in each. Freeze until you’re ready to cook them. I freeze them on a cookie pan and then transfer them to a Ziploc bag for storage.
  5. Cook on medium heat in an oiled frying pan, or on the BBQ.

Notes: If you like spice, add more. These pair nicely with avocado or guacamole as a topping.

Macaroni Salad

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2 cups uncooked macaroni noodles
1 can tuna or salmon, drained (save the liquid)
½ cup celery, chopped
3 green onions, chopped
½ green pepper, chopped*
1 large carrot, grated
2/3 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup tuna water or oil
2 Tbsp vinegar

  1. Boil macaroni until tender. Rinse with cold water until it is completely cooled. Drain.
  2. Mix in a large bowl the mayonnaise, tuna water and vinegar to make a dressing.
  3. Add the noodles, tuna and all the vegetables. Toss until completely coated with dressing.
  4. Season with salt, pepper and parsley.
  5. Chill until ready to serve.

* If you don’t have green onions, substitute with red onion. Adjust the amount according to your taste.

Spinach salad

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For now, measurements are estimated. Use your judgement.

6 cups baby spinach
½ cup honey-mustard vinaigrette (store bought or mix it up yourself)
1 cup sliced strawberries (or canned mandarin slices, or pomegranate seeds depending on the season)
¾ cup goat cheese
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup red onion, diced (optional)
¾ cup candied pecans*

  1. Place spinach in a large bowl. Add dressing and toss completely.
  2. Top with the rest of the ingredients.

* To make candied pecans, place pecans in a small pot. Add a couple tablespoons of brown sugar and water. You can add some chili pepper too, if you like a bit of heat to them. Stir over medium heat until the pecans are candied. Leftovers can be stored in a jar at room temperature.

Spinach Dip

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1 (300g) pkg frozen spinach, thawed, squeezed dry and chopped
2 cups sour cream
1 cup mayonnaise
1 (40 g) pkg Knorr vegetable soup mix
1 (10 oz) can water chestnuts, drained and chopped
3 green onions, chopped

  1. Mix all the ingredients, except the bread, and refrigerate.
  2. When ready to serve, hollow out the bread and break into bite-sized pieces. Fill the bread cavity with the spinach mixture.
  3. Place on a serving tray and surround loaf with the bread pieces.

* If you don’t like pumpernickel, you can use a loaf of round white bread instead.

Orange & Honey Glazed Carrots

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½ cup water
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp honey
1 tsp salt
1 tsp minced ginger
2 lbs carrots, peeled and cut in 1” slices (about 5 cups)

1 tsp grated orange zest
½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

  1. Place the water, butter, honey, salt, and ginger in a large sauté pan and bring to a boil.
  2. Add the carrots, cover, and simmer over medium-low heat for 5 minutes.
  3. Remove the lid and continue to cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until all the water has evaporated.
  4. Add the orange zest and orange juice to pan, tossing with carrots.
  5. Simmer uncovered for about 5 minutes, until the carrots are al dente (tender, but still resistant when you bite into them) and the sauce glazes the carrots.
  6. Add the pepper and more salt to taste.

Bean Salad

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1 (16-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained
1 (16-ounce) can chick peas, drained
1 (16-ounce) can black beans, drained
½ cup onion, minced

½ cup sugar
½ cup cider vinegar
½ cup avocado oil (or another kind of oil you prefer)
1 tsp salt

  1. In a large bowl, combine the beans.
  2. In a small microwavable bowl, combine the dressing ingredients and microwave for 60 seconds on high. Stir until the sugar dissolves.
  3. Toss with beans and onion to coat.
  4. Refrigerating for at least six hours will blend the flavours.

Quiche

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1 pie crust*
2 cups chopped veggies of your choice (roasted red pepper, fried mushroom, onion, spinach, hot peppers, corn…)
1/2 cup Bacon bits (optional)
5 eggs
¾ cup milk
Salt and pepper
1 cup cheese (of your choice)

  1. Put the veggies and bacon in the bottom of the pie crust.
  2. Mix together the other ingredients (except the cheese) and pour into the pie crust.
  3. Sprinkle the cheese on top.
  4. Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes.

* Feel free to cheat and use a store-bought pie crust. Or make it without the crust and call it a frittata.

Basic White Bread

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This recipe can be made without a mixer, but is much easier if you have a Kitchen Aid mixer and use the dough hook.

2/3 cup warm water
½ tsp sugar (or honey)
4 tsp yeast

1 cup warm water
4 Tbsp sugar (or honey)
2 tsp salt
5 Tbsp oil
6 cups flour* (approximately)

  1. Dissolve the yeast and (½ tsp) sugar in (2/3 cup) warm water and let sit for 10 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, measure (1 cup) warm water into a mixing bowl. Add (4 Tbsp) sugar, salt, oil and the yeast mixture.
  3. Gradually add the flour, mixing well until it forms a soft dough.
  4. Form dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top.
  5. Cover and let rise somewhere warm (like in the oven with the light turned on) for 1 to 1.5 hours or until doubled.
  6. Punch down, knead for several minutes and shape into two loaves and place in greased loaf pans. Brush tops with oil.
  7. Cover and let rise for another 1 to 1.5 hours.
  8. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes until the loaves are golden brown on top.

Makes two loaves.

* Note: You can substitute 2 cups of whole wheat flour. If doing so, add it first, and then finish by adding the all purpose flour.

Carmelized Onions (Instant Pot)

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Caramelized-Onions12 cups onions, sliced (not too finely)
4 Tbsp butter
2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp pepper

  1. Mix together all the ingredients.
  2. Sauté for five minutes in the instant Pot.
  3. Cook on high pressure for 20 minutes. Then do a quick release.
  4. Sauté (while draining excess liquid occasionally) for about ten more minutes until the onions have a nice caramelized appearance.
  5. Freeze in small portions to use in future recipes.

Note: I got four cups of caramelized onions and one cup of liquid.

Whole Wheat Bread

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¼ cup warm water
½ tsp honey
1 Tbsp yeast

1 ¾ cups warm water
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp molasses
¼ cup oil

1 egg, beaten
1 Tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp salt
3 ½ cups whole wheat flour
1 ½ – 2 cups all-purpose flour

  1. Dissolve the yeast and (½ tsp) honey in (¼ cup) warm water and let sit for 10 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, measure (1 ¾ cups) warm water into a mixing bowl. Add (2 Tbsp) honey, molasses, oil, egg and lemon juice. Add yeast mixture. Mix well.
  3. Gradually add 2 ½ cups of the whole wheat flour, beating vigorously after each addition.
  4. Let stand 15-20 minutes until mixture is very light.
  5. Stir salt into remaining 1 cup of whole wheat flour and stir into the dough (adding enough all-purpose flour) to make a soft, workable dough.
  6. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface (or using a Kitchen Aid mixer) for 10-15 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic.
  7. Form dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top.
  8. Cover and let rise somewhere warm (like in the oven with the light turned on) for 50 minutes or until doubled.
  9. Punch down and shape into two round balls.
  10. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes.
  11. Form into two loaves and place in greased loaf pans. Brush tops with oil.
  12. Cover and let rise for another 50-55 minutes.
  13. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes.

Makes two loaves.