Monthly Archives: January 2012

Slow Cooker Minnesota Wild Rice Soup (Vegan)

Posted on by

I’ve been missing home-sweet-home, good ‘ole Minnesota lately, so as an ode to my nostalgia I decided to make Minnesota wild rice soup this week. There is a lot to like about this recipe, but the fact that it is made in the slow cooker, makes me so happy! It’s like cheating!! Anyways, I searched high and low for a healthy, vegan version and as luck would have it I found one on the blog The Domestic Vegan. Now you can certainly add chicken to this (if you must) or use regular butter, milk, etc. but I am telling you, this was delicious as is! It makes A LOT though so I suggest either cutting the recipe in half or be prepared to eat wild rice soup for about a week!

Slow Cooker Minnesota Wild Rice Soup – Yields: 6-8 servings

Did anyone spy that sweet, handsome boy in the background? He loves to watch his mama cook :)

Ingredients:

  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 2 carrots, sliced
  • 2 stalks of celery (leaves included – they’re great for flavor), sliced
  • 8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced (approx 2 cups)
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1 cup wild rice, dry/uncooked
  • ¾ cup flour
  • 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 2 tsp dry rubbed sage
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • ½ tsp mustard powder
  • ½ tsp curry powder
  • Lots of fresh black pepper
  • 8 cups broth
  • 2 Tbsp nondairy butter (can be omitted but adds a nice richness)
  • 2 generous cups cooked chickpeas
  • 1-2 cups unsweetened nondairy milk
  • Optional: ½ cup slivered almonds

Directions:

Add all ingredients, except nondairy milk, to slow cooker.  Cover & cook on LOW for 8-10 hours.  About 30 minutes before serving, stir in milk & let warm through.  (Depending on how much water has soaked into the rice & evaporated during cooking, you may have to add more milk or broth to get it to your desired texture)

Taste for seasoning, and add salt & pepper as desired.  Serve.

Share this article

Feel less guilty with this low-fat chocolate chip cookie!

Posted on by

My sweet tooth is rearing it’s ugly head again. It doesn’t very often, but when it does – Look. Out. I’ve tried store bought low-sugar cookies and they just don’t do the trick for me. I’ve tried a lot of Gina’s recipes from Skinny Taste so I knew I could trust her! This is a slight adaptation of her recipe, they turned out great!
Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup NuNaturals stevia sugar (you can use regular sugar if you don’t have Nustevia)
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp butter, melted (or butter substitute)
  • 1 egg white
  • 2 tbsp apple sauce (not pictured; you can also use butter if you don’t have applesauce – it goes without saying that the apple sauce is healthier)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (I only had regular sized so I used less than 1/2 cup)
  • Optional: 1tbsp of Chia seeds

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.  Line two cookie sheets with baking liners, tin foil or lightly spray with cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt and chia seeds (if using) and stir to blend. In another bowl, whisk the sugars, butter, egg white, applesauce and vanilla together until light and fluffy.

3. Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in two additions until the batter is well blended. If the batter looks too dry add just a drop of water at a time (ONLY if needed) until it smooths out.

4. Fold in chocolate chips. Space cookies apart according to size and bake until golden brown. (The directions said 8-10 minutes but since mine were bigger it took significantly longer than that, I just kept an eye on them)


Share this article

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Posted on by

I’ve been on quite a soup-kick lately. There is something about a warm bowl of soup that is so comforting on a cold winter day. Making them healthy is tricky sometimes though since a lot of my favorite soups are loaded with cream and fat. While this recipe has a lot of cheese, I was able to supplement the half-and-half for skim milk and wheat flour that gives it that creamy texture without all of the added calories. I also added some red pepper flake for a little added heat which was pretty tasty.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup (adapted from Food Network)

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup yellow onions or sliced leeks (white parts only, well rinsed)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  • Pinch nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon thyme
  • 3 tablespoons whole wheat flour
  • 3 cups low-sodium stock, I used vegetable
  • 1 (16-ounce) package frozen broccoli, thawed and separated (or same amount of fresh, I think fresh tastes better so I used about 3 small bundles)
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 1/4 cups shredded medium Cheddar
  • Optional: a few shakes of red pepper flake for heat and crushed croutons, for garnish

Directions:

1. In a medium pot, saute the onions (or leeks) until soft, about 3 minutes and season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the garlic and thyme cook, stirring, until fragrant, for 20 seconds. Add the flour and cook, stirring until the mixture is well blended and smells fragrant, 2 minutes. Slowly add the stock, whisking constantly, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Add the broccoli and cook, stirring, until tender, for 10 minutes.

2. Remove the pot from the heat and puree in a food processor or blender in batches and return to the pot.

3. Add the milk and bring to a simmer to heat through. Add the cheese and cook over low heat, stirring, until melted. Here you can add some butter for added flavor, however I skipped this step :)

4. Remove from the heat and ladle the soup into bowls. Optional, sprinkle croutons over the top for garnish and serve immediately.

 

Share this article