Breakfast of Champions

There are days when traditional breakfast food just isn't my thing.

On those days one of my favorite things is a stir-fry with some starchy carbs, greens & protien.

There is no recipe for this, I just search my vegetable crisper for whatever looks good or is on it's last day, and some staples that I keep on hand.

Today's breakfast looked like this....

1 Baby Bok Choy coarsely chopped
1/2 cup coarsely chopped Baby Portabellos
2 green onions cut on the diagonal
3 oz thinly sliced tofu (I always press it, freeze it, thaw it for a chewier texture)
1/2 cup pre1cooked noodles (these are ramen style)

Throw it all in a non-stick skillet and toss with a little tamari, a sprinkle of sesame oil and a little garlic salt.

Stir fry at medium heat until veggies are crisp tender and noodles start to stick & brown a bit.

No need to use any oil.

Red, White & Greens Soup

I love a good Tuscan White Bean Soup, so this is my rendition. I hope you like it.

Red, White & Greens Soup

Combine and simmer together for about 15 minutes or until potato and onion are softened:
4 Cups Basic Vegetable Stock
1 Can Diced Peeled Tomatoes
1 Russet Potato chopped in 1/4 to 1/2 inch dice
1/2 Cup Sweet Onion chopped in 1/4 to 1/2 inch dice
1 palm full of Parsley
1/2 tsp Thyme
1 tsp Basil

Add greens, stir and simmer gently for 5 minutes:
1 Cup chopped Kale, stems removed
2 Cups chopped Spinach

Add remaining ingredients and let rest to fully develop flavors:
2 tsp Sea Salt
1/2 tsp Lemon Pepper
1 1/2 tsp Balsamic Vinegar
1 cup cooked Quinoa pasta shells
1 can small white beans, drained and rinsed

Basic Vegetable Stock

Preparing 12 cups of Vegetable Stock is the first thing I do at the beginning of each week. It serves as the base of most of my recipes and also can be used when preparing rice, cooking lentils, barley or farro.

Basic Vegetable Stock

Fill large stock pot with:

1-2 large carrots scrubbed & broken up into several pieces
1/2 celery heart coarsely chopped or broken up, including the root & leaves
1 Vidalia or sweet onion quartered, skin and roots included
1 - 2 handfuls dried wild mushrooms or 6 oz fresh mushrooms
1 corncob (shave corn off & use later for soup)
1 large palm full of Italian Herbs (oregano, basil, parsley)

Fill stock pot close to top with water and simmer for a couple hours. Let stand until cool. Strain into refrigerator safe, tight sealing container.

Chickpea Fried Rice

Is there anything you CAN'T do with chickpeas? They are a great meat replacement in almost any dish. I make this recipe for one, and it's great hot or cold, as a side or a main dish.

1 clove garlic minced
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 stalk celery sliced
4-5 mushrooms chopped
1/4 cup frozen green peas
A few grates of fresh ginger
1/2 cup cold cooked brown rice
1/2 cup chickpeas(garbanzo beans)
1 carrot julienne cut or shredded
1/2 cup shredded cabbage (I use Napa or Savoy)

Season to taste with:
Sprinkle of garlic salt
Sprinkle of white pepper
Dash or two of sesame oil
A few splashes of Tamari or Soy Sauce

Using a large non-stick skillet, start on medium high heat and add the ingredients in the order listed giving the onions, celery & mushrooms a few minutes to soften before adding the other ingredients. If the food is sticking to the pan you can add a little Tamari/Soy Sauce or some vegetable broth to keep the food moving around. Stir fry until food begins to brown a little.

Curried Lentil and Barley Soup

This soup is so thick it's almost a stew. Serve with warm Naan or crusty bread.

3 cups vegetable stock
1 15 ½ oz can diced tomatoes
1 cup dried lentils (rinsed)
1 small red potato diced
1 stalk celery diced
½ cup onion diced
½ cup dried wild mushrooms diced
½ - 1 tsp crushed red pepper

Combine all ingredients in soup pot
and bring to a boil.

Cover and simmer for 15 minutes

1 ½ cup diced raw white mushrooms
1 carrot shredded into fine julienne

Add fresh mushrooms and carrots ingredients, return to boil, cover and lower to simmer until lentils are tender (10 – 15 minutes)

Add:
1 cup cooked pearl barley
1 ½ tsp curry powder
Splash of balsamic vinegar
Sea salt to taste (2-3 tsp)

Let soup sit covered to allow flavors to blend. Adjust seasonings to taste

Garlicky Hummus

Take the time to make this hummus from scratch if you can....the difference is amazing!

To cook chickpeas from dry:  Cover 1/2 pound of dried chickpeas with a couple inches of water and soak overnight.

Drain, rinse and cover chickpeas with new water, bring to boil and simmer with 1/2 tsp turmeric until tender (al dente).





Add to Vita Mix or Blender
Juice 1 lemon
3 Tbsp Tahini
4 large garlic cloves peeled
1 - 2 Tbsp parsley
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Blend for a few seconds to combine and liquefy Tahini.

Add 1 3/4 cups cooked chick peas (substitute one can drained if necessary)

Process until smooth adding reserved liquid from chickpeas.

Serve with Pita Chips or Bread, Naan, fresh veggies, tortilla chips

Vegetableful Soup

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Every Monday I make a big pot of soup or stew to eat during the week. It seems to taste better the next day, and the next and the next....













Chop lots of vegetables.
1 large carrot
1/2 big Vidalia onion
1 clove minced elephant garlic, or 4-5 cloves regular garlic
1 cup chopped celery including leaves
1/8 head or about 1 1/2 cups green cabbage
4-5 cups fresh spinach

1 can Rotel tomatoes with green chiles
6 cups vegetable stock
1 can black beans drained & rinsed
1 can garbanzo beans drained & rinsed
1 cup cooked rice
1 tsp basil
1/2 - 1 tsp turmeric
Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

Add vegetables to stock pot with about 6 cups vegetable stock and 1 can Rotel tomotoes with green chiles, or 1 can diced tomatoes if you don't want it too spicy.  I add 1 tsp basil, carrot, onion, garlic & celery first and simmer for 10-15 minutes until they are starting to become tender.

Add cabbage and zucchini and simmer for another 5-10 minutes until they taste just right to your teeth.

Throw in spinach, 1 can black beans, 1 can garbanzo beans, 1 cup cooked rice.  Let the soup come to a boil, then cover and turn off the heat.  Taste and add salt & pepper to taste.  I use about 2 tsp salt.