Meatless Wonders and a Grown-up love for Vegetables

Ground Beef or Soy? Poll closes halfway through this post. :)

I tried baked tofu and made two mistakes, according to my vegetarian friend. #1 I used firm, not extra firm so it was kinda soggy. #2 I made the flavor simple so that the tofu could shine. Fyi, tofu has no flavor. It absorbs other flavors fabulously and is a great supporting actor but really doesn't like being in the lead. So I took the rest that I didn't eat that night, cut it into cubes and browned it...

...and threw it in with my favorite stir fry sauce and veggies.

deliciousness.

My stir fry sauce is simple. It has soy sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger, rice vinegar, water, red pepper flakes and cornstarch. It's written on a post it somewhere in my recipe box because I've fooled with it so much. haha

Hummus - serves 8
from Weight Watcher's New Complete Cookbook

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained (15 oz)*
1/2 cup plain fat-free yogurt*
2 Tb. fresh lemon juice
3 garlic cloves, crushed*
2 tsp olive oil
1 Tb. water
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp freshly ground pepper

I had to show off my ADORABLE new tsp/Tb. measure. I love my big one and freaked when AB pulled out this tiny little thing. Perfect for honey, peanut butter and measuring small amounts of liquids.

In a food processor or blender, puree all the ingredients until blended but still a little chunky.

Serve with bell pepper strips, cherry tomatoes, lightly steamed broccoli and baby carrots. Or...as shown here, with Stacey's pita chips! :)

NUTRITIONAL INFO Per serving (1/4 cup): 91 cal; 2 g fat (0 g sat, 0 g trans); 0 mg chol; 151 mg sod; 13 g carb; 1 g fib; 5 g prot; 54 mg calc

*I had a 19 oz can of chickpeas and used a 6 oz (3/4 cup) container of Greek non-fat plain yogurt (because I'm OBSESSED with Greek yogurt lol) for the increase. I would definitely scale back on the garlic. Good at first taste, but after sitting, WAY too garlicky!

Hearty Meatless Chili - serves 6*
from Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook

*I halved it and had three, very generous servings.

1 Tb. olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalepeno pepper, seeded and minced
1 can crushed tomatoes (28 oz)
1 package of frozen soy crumbles (12 oz) *couldn't find frozen, used refrigerated...
1/2 cup water
1/2 medium eggplant, unpeeled and diced *used zucchini instead
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp salt
1 can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained (15 oz)

Heat the oil in a nonstick Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, garlic and jalepeno; cook, stirring, until softened, about 8 minutes.

I always have tons of cans of diced tomatoes around and didn't feel like buying crushed...so I "crushed" them myself. :)

Soy crumbles! If hubby wasn't completely open to the idea of soy (he is more so than I am!), I could easily slip this in for meat and I don't think he'd be able to tell...it looks almost identical and like I said before, tofu/soy products soak up the flavor of the ingredients around them.

Add the tomatoes, soy crumbles, water, eggplant (zucchini) and spices. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.

Add the beans and simmer, partially covered, until all the vegetables are well softened, about 20 minutes longer.

Top with scallions and cheddar cheese. Serve with corn bread.

NUTRITIONAL INFO Per serving (a little less than 1 cup): 197 calories; 3 g fat (0 g sat fat, 0 g trans fat); 0 mg chol; 807 mg sodium; 28 g carbs; 10 g fiber; 16 g Protein; 105 mg Calc

I looooved this. It was super good!

 

The funniest thing about this recipe is that a vegetarian friend gave it to me a while back and I forgot about it. Then I was browsing one of my favorite sites, Eatingwell.com, and found a chilaquiles casserole. This made me think about the other recipe my friend sent me. So I went back and found it in my inbox...and they were the same recipe. How funny is that?! lol Needless to say, regardless of where I found this recipe...it was FABULOUS.

Chilaquiles Casserole - makes 10 servings (once again, halved it and had 5 servings. We both ate two that night and I had the extra for lunch the next day)
from Leah! and Eatingwell.com

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 medium zucchini, grated
1 19-ounce can black beans, rinsed
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
1 1/2 cups corn, frozen (thawed) or fresh
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 corn tortillas, quartered
1 19-ounce can mild red or green enchilada sauce (before you consider making your own, like I did...it's MUCH higher in calories...just grab a low sodium can)
1 1/4 cups shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese

1.Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly coat a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

2.Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in zucchini, beans, tomatoes, corn, cumin and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are heated through, about 3 minutes.

3.Scatter half the tortilla pieces in the pan. Top with half the vegetable mixture, half the enchilada sauce and half the cheese. Repeat with one more layer of tortillas, vegetables, sauce and cheese. Cover with foil.

4.Bake the casserole for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the casserole is bubbling around the edges and the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes more.
 
NUTRITIONAL INFO Per serving: 243 calories; 10 g fat (5 g sat, 4 g mono); 23 mg cholesterol; 30 g carbohydrates; 9 g protein; 5 g fiber; 338 mg sodium; 267 mg potassium
 
Next time, we'll prepare it a day ahead and let it sit in the fridge like AB does with his. It lets the flavors meld together or something. Either way, DELICIOUS.