My friend made me this cold pasta salad one day. It was simple but delicious
Cook whole wheat pasta. Drain and cool. Dice up cucumber, bell peppers, tomatoes, shallots (in the onion family) and kalmata olives (a more meaty, salty olive bought in a jar.) Toss everything with lemon juice, salt and pepper and serve cold.
This soup is another one of my good friend's recipes. It's so simple but delicious!
Zucchini, diced
Asparagus, diced
Carrots, diced
Onions, diced
Diced Tomatoes (1 can or fresh)
Kidney beans (1 can)
Garbanzo beans (1 can)
Veggie broth
Oregano
Basil
Tortellini or other pasta
Lemon juice
Saute onions in the bottom of a saucepan. Add broth, spices and diced veggies. Simmer till vegetables are starting to soften. Add pasta and cook until done. Add a splash of lemon juice at the end of cooking.
Haven't gotten your oranges and reds in for the day? Here's a great soup with beets and sweet potatoes in it. I added a few things to the original recipe (it seemed a bit bland at first) found here http://fatfreevegan.com/blog/2010/02/26/beet-sweet-potato-soup/ and it turned out great.
1 can veggie broth
4 carrots, grated
4 beets, grated
Some beet greens, diced
1 onion, diced
2 cups carrot juice
1 cup celery juice
1 can tomato paste
2/3 sweet potatoes, diced
Garlic salt (or powder if you don't do salt) or minced garlic (I added it as an after thought so i just used garlic salt)
Whole wheat tortellini pasta, opt., cooked (I also added it as an after thought for my kids so it's not in the picture)
Add everything except the pasta to a saucepan and simmer until the sweet potatoes are cooked. Blend half of the soup in the blender and add back to the pan (makes the soup thicker.) Add pasta if wanted.
I learned to make pasta the other day. It was so simple and fun! I hadn't realized the many different pastas you can make. I asked the teacher if she had flax seed while we were cooking so I could see if it worked as good as an egg and it did! The carrot pasta I made with half wheat, half white flour and flax seed was voted the best, most complex flavor of the ones we made that day. Here are some of the recipes:
General recipe:
equivalent of 3 eggs = 3 T ground flax seed + 9 T warm water (let sit 3 mins)
1 1/2 t salt (optional)
2 c. flour (durham is whole wheat or you can use semolina which is "white")
Mound dry ingredients on the table. Make a well and drop in wet ingredients. Start to incorporate wet ingredients in (start with a fork and then use your hands) and knead until smooth and elastic. You'll most likely need to add more liquid sometimes or more flour other times. Consistency should be soft and firm but not stiff. (you can also do this easier in your bread mixer with a dough hook.) You can roll dough thin and cut out pasta. Or you can use a machine ($25?) that rolls dough through until it's thin and then cuts it.
Raw Carrot Pasta
2 c. grated carrots
the equivalent of 3 eggs = 3 T ground flax seed + 9 T warm water (let sit 3 mins)
1 T oil
2 1/2 to 3 c. flour
1/2 t. salt
In a blender combing carrots, eggs and oil. Puree about 30 seconds. Follow general directions for mixing and rolling and cutting.
Spinach Pasta
1 bunch of spinach
equivalent of 3 eggs = 3 T ground flax seed + 9 T warm water (let sit 3 mins)
1 T vegetable oil
2 to 3 cups flour
1/2 t. salt
In a blender combing spinach leaves, eggs, oil and salt. Blend completely and continue to follow general directions.
Italian Pasta (my friend made ravioli's out of this one, yum!)
1 egg (1 T ground flax seed + 3 T warm water - let sit 3 mins)
1/4 c. water
2 T vinegar
1 T oil
1 T Italian salad dressing mix
2 c. flour
Mix following general directions.
I also have the recipes for beet pasta, broccoli pasta, lemon pasta, onion pasta, and buckwheat pasta. Tell me if you would like them posted.
This is my new favorite I started making about a month ago. I love it! Even my non-veggie, non-tofu eating friends have loved it!
1 pkg AZUMAYA large square wrappers (or any other brand)
10 oz spinach
2 T oil
1 med onion, chopped
1/2 lb mushrooms, chopped
1 yellow squash, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
1 clove garlic
1/2 lb firm tofu, drained and mashed
2 T parsley, chopped or 2 tsp dried
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3 cups spaghetti sauce
1/4 c veggie mozzarella or monterey jack cheese, grated
Lightly steam spinach (I keep it steamed and chopped and frozen in ice cube trays in my freezer for such times as this when I need it), set aside. Sautee onion, mushrooms, garlic, yellow and zucchini squash; set aside. In a bowl mix together tofu, parley, salt and pepper. Mix in veggies. Oil a 8 by 11 baking dish and place a layer of uncooked wrappers on the bottom. build layers or veggie mixture, then spaghetti sauce then spinach, then cheese. (The final layer should be sauce and cheese) Cover with aluminum foil, bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 40 mins. Remove cover and cook another 10 mins.
Serve whole wheat spaghetti or rotini with spaghetti sauce topped with a garden burger (there are lots of different kinds). Or bread peeled eggplant slices with bread crumbs, cook at 400 degrees for 10 minutes (?) on each side till soft and serve on top. Also add cooked lentils to spaghetti sauce and serve.
