Lentil Oat Loaf

Ingredients: 

2.5 cups of water
Small onion, chopped
1 stock celery finely sliced
4 cloves of garlic, minced, 
Half cup dry brown lentils
Bayleaf 
3/4 cup steel cut oats
1 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon dry oregano
1 teaspoon dry basil
Half teaspoon ground thyme 
Salt and pepper to taste
3 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 tablespoon of tahini
1 tablespoon of molasses
1/2 cup of barbecue sauce, divided 
2 egg whites
1 tablespoon flaxseed meal 

Instructions: 

1.) Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. 

2.) Saute the onion, garlic, and celery in a small amount of water for a few minutes. 

3.) Add the water, bay leaf, and lentils and simmer until the lentils are cooked. 

4.) Remove the bay leaf, add the oats, spices, soy sauce, tahini, molasses, and half of the barbecue sauce, and cook another 10 minutes. 

5.) Stir in the egg whites and flaxseed meal and pour the mixture into a 9" x 5" bread pan. 

6.) Top with the last 1/4 cup of barbecue sauce, then bake for 25-30 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before slicing. 

Spinach and Quinoa Bars

1.) Cook 1 cup of dry quinoa. (Simmer, covered in 2 cups of water for 20 minutes.) 

2.) Defrost 18 oz frozen spinach. 

3.) Mix 2 tablespoons of flaxseed meal with 6 tablespoons of warm water. 

3.) Mix the quinoa, spinach, and flaxseed mixture together with: 

• 1.5 cups nonfat cottage cheese
• 4 green onions, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• Four drops of liquid smoke (optional) 
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

4,) Spray a 9" x 12" pan with canola oil, pour it in, and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. 

Butternut Squash with Apples and Cranberries

Mix together: 

1 butternut squash, peeled and chopped
2 large, tart apples, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon salt

Bake in a 9" x 12" pan for 40 min at 400 degrees. 

Spinach Potato Balls

I found these healthy and delicious dinosaur-shaped, nugget-sized vegetable snacks in the frozen food aisle at Aldi. They were from Aldi's SimplyNature line of foods, called Spinach Bites and Broccoli Bites. Pop 'em in the oven for a few minutes, and a great side dish full of veggies and very low in fat that my kids loved. Alas, they were there one time, and I haven't been able to find them again, even after checking out three different Aldis and searching online. 

So I developed my own, similar treat. They aren't dinosaur-shaped, but little bite-sized balls of food are still pretty cute and particularly appealing to kids. 

Ingredients: 
16 oz frozen spinach
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
6 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 tablespoon of flaxseed meal mixed with 6 tablespoons of warm water 
2 tbsp whole wheat flour
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon salt

Directions: 
1.) Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 

2.) Peel, chop, and boil the potatoes until soft, then strain and mash them. 

3.) Saute 16 oz of frozen spinach and 4 cloves of minced garlic in the soy sauce. 

4.) Mix together the potatoes, spinach, and other ingredients. 

5.) Form the mixture into 2-3" balls and bake on a baking sheet for 15 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before eating. 

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

A fat-free muffin recipe for autumn: 

Dry Ingredients:
1.5 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon honey

Wet Ingredients: 
1 cup pumpkin purée
2 tbsp flaxseed meal mixed with 6 tbsp warm water
1/4 cup apple butter
1/4 cup apple cider

1.) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

2.) Mix up the wet and dry ingredients separately, then together. 

3.) Scoop the mixture into a standard size muffin pan for 12. 

4.) Bake for 25 minutes. 

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

Another fat free pancake recipe. I made these for breakfast this morning. Seasonal and very delicious, especially with apple butter and maple syrup. 

Wet Ingredients: 

1.5 cups almond milk
1 cup pumpkin purée
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp honey 
2 teaspoons flaxseed meal and 1/4 cup hot water (mix together first, then add to the rest of the wet ingredient mixture.) 

Dry Ingredients: 

1 cup whole wheat flour 
1 cup all purpose flour 
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1.) Mix the wet and dry ingredients separately, then together. 

2.) Cook a few minutes per side in a frying pan or on a griddle on low heat using spray canola oil. (Or just use a non-stick pan if you want to be totally fat free.) 

Roasted Kabocha Squash

Trader Joe had Kabocha squash at a good price this week. I only first heard about these squashes this year, and this was only the third time I've cooked with them. It's a lot like an acorn squash, and I imagine you could do this recipe with acorn or butternut squash with similar results.

1.) Cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds. Then cut it into 1-2" chunks, cutting off the discarding the rind.

2.) Toss the chunks in a bowl with:

• light spray of canola oil
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• 1 teaspoon of curry powder
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• half a teaspoon of chili powder
• dash of salt

3.) Spread the chunks out on a pan (as shown in the photo) and roast for 35 minutes at 400 degrees.

Chili with Black-eyed Peas and Quinoa

My favorite food blog is by far that of Susan Voisin at Fat Free Vegan. I used to regularly make recipes from her blog even before I was doomed to having to eat this way for health reasons. Tonight I was planning to make her Black-eyed Pea Chili with Quinoa. But I didn't have all the ingredients, and I don't like following recipes to the letter anyway. So here's my modified version. (I'm sure hers is better, but if you need an excuse to use a jar of Sofrito tomato cooking base, here you go.) 

First saute:

• 1 big yellow onion
• 1 red Bell pepper
• 1 green Bell pepper 

Next, cook 3/4 cups of dry quinoa (I do this in a rice cooker. Ratio of quinoa to water is 1:2, simmer for 20 minutes. 

Put all that in a crock pot with: 

• 12 oz jar of Goya Sofrito tomato cooking base
• 2 cups water
• 2 cans black eyed peas
• 1 cup frozen corn (I used the roasted corn from Trader Joe's)
• 1 15 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon jarred, minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon chili powder 
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• Half a teaspoon liquid smoke.

Cook in the crock pot on low for 6 hours. 

I suggest adding some hot sauce. I only left it out for the kids, and then added it individually to my bowl. 

Broccoli Penne

This is a heavy pasta dish with almost no fat and that went over well with the kids. It also has the advantage of being quick and easy to prepare. 

First, blend in the a blender: 

• 1 15 oz can of chickpeas, rinsed 
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 tablespoon tahini
• 1 broccoli crown, chopped and steamed beforehand 

Afterward put it in a pot over a burner to heat. 

Then cook up a 13 oz package of whole wheat penne. 

After straining the pasta, toss it with the sauce and half a cup of nutritional yeast. 

No Fat Cabbage and Noodles

I can no longer eat fatty foods due to health issues, and this includes the bacon and Parmesan cheese I used to add to my cabbage and noodles. Messing around in my kitchen, I came up with this alternative, which I found largely satisfying. 

Ingredients: 

• Large onion, chopped 

• 1 tablespoon jarred, minced garlic 

• 2 tablespoons soy sauce

• Medium head of cabbage, sliced (as you can see from the picture, I happened to have a purple cabbage. But you can use green ones too if you want.) 

• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

• 1 teaspoon lemon juice 

• 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke 

• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast 

• salt and pepper to taste 

• 16 oz bag egg noodles (I used yolk free, but if you're not eating eggs, just get whatever broad noodles you like.) 

1.) Sautéed onion and garlic in the soy sauce for 10 minutes. 

2.)  Add cabbage and all of the other ingredients except the nutritional yeast and noodles, simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

3.) In the last 10 minutes, boil the noodles then rinse (don't let them get mushy!) 

4.) Stir in the nutritional yeast with the cabbage, then gently stir in the noddles. 

Quinoa Salad With Beets and Cucumbers

1.) Cook 1 cup of dry quinoa. I cook mine in a rice cooker since it is a the same ratio of grain to water and same time as for cooking most white rice. But if you don't have a rice cooker, just boil 2 cups of water, add the quinoa, then simmer at low heat with a lid on it for 20 minutes.

2.) Put aside the quinoa to cool. If in a hurry put it in the refrigerator. You don't want hot salad.

3.) Once the quinoa has cooled at least to room temperature, add:

• 3 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 3 medium beets, peeled, cooked and chopped (I buy these already ready to go in the refrigerated section of Trader Joe's.)
• 1 small cucumber, peeled and chopped
• 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste.

Tangy Lentils Over Toast

I made this recipe with truRoots sprouted lentil trio that I picked up in a big bag at Costco, but I think it could be done successfully with just about any lentils.

1.) Cook 1 cup of dry lentils according to the package's instructions.

2.) Add to it:

1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
1/3 cup of BBQ sauce (I used Sweet Baby Rays Vidalia Onion because it is slightly sweet but not spicy, and I was feeding my kids.)
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon jarred minced garlic

We ate this over toasted hearty, multigrain bread, but over rice or some other grain or just by itself would be good, too.

Breaded and Roasted Cauliflower

When I'm feeling lazy or don't have much time I just spread out cut-up cauliflower on a baking pan, do a quick spray of canola oil and sprinkle of salt, and roast them for 30-40 minutes (until just starting to brown on the edges) at 400 degrees.

But last night I felt slightly more ambitious.

After preheating the oven at 400 degrees, I mixed up:

1/2 cup very warm water
2 tablespoons flaxmeal

I then tossed the cut up cauliflower pieces with this mixture. If you don't have flaxmeal, you could use a couple egg-whites or 1 egg instead.

Then I sprayed the pan briefly with canola oil, and coated each wet cauliflower piece in bread crumbs. (I added a little salt to the breadcrumbs before doing this.)

Cooked them for 40 minutes. It was the only item on the dinner plate that my kids finished.

Plus there was enough left over for me to enjoy with lunch today. Yum.

Spinach Squares

This is a healthier take on the Betty Crocker spinach squares that I grew up with. My two little ones gobbled them up.

Spinach Squares: 

Crust:
1 cup whole wheat flour 
1/4 cup ice water
1/4 cup olive oil

Filling:
8 oz (2 cups) shredded cheese (I like to use sharp cheddar) 
3 eggs
14 oz tofu
18 oz frozen spinach
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Salt (to taste) 
1 small onion, chopped
Breadcrumbs 

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix together the ingredients for the crust, form into a ball, then spread evenly in the bottom of a 9" x 12" casserole dish.
3. Mix together the cheese, eggs, tofu, spinach, onion, and spices. Pour it on top of the crust.
4. Dust the top with breadcrumbs.
5. Bake for 45 minutes.