I f**king Cook

Veggie Couscous

chasingl — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 20:17:09 +0000

Here’s another recipe that I followed (almost) exactly, as it was my first time making it. It was absolutely delicious. I strongly suggest purchasing french couscous by the pound. You can usually find this at a Whole Foods or any grocery store that carries organic and/or health foods. The french couscous is SO much better than the boxed couscous that you buy at the grocery store. Even if you don’t add anything to it it’s fluffy and buttery–the boxed couscous not so much. I topped this veggie couscous with some pine nuts and it was a nice touch.

Click on the photos in the gallery below for the full effect!

Quinoa Veggie Paella

chasingl — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 20:08:28 +0000

For the recipe…click here. I followed the recipe exactly. I strongly recommend chopping everything prior to starting the recipe. It can get a bit overwhelming.
Click on the images below for a full visual of this delicious meal.

Vegan split pea soup

chasingl — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 19:53:44 +0000

While it may not look particularly appetizing (or even sound particularly appetizing), this vegan split pea soup was easy to make, delicious and very nutritious.
1/2 pound of dry split peas (rinsed)
5 cups of vegetable broth
1/2 cup of almonds (puree with some of the vegetable broth)
7 cloves of garlic (puree with almonds and veggie broth)
1 cup of chopped carrots
1 onion (sauteed)
3 tablespoons of dried oregano

Cook all ingredients except onion and carrots in crockpot on high setting (6 hours). Add sauteed onion and carrots about 1 hour before the soup is finished.
Serve with salad and quinoa.

Quesadilla with a spicy side of ginger rice

chasingl — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 22:09:29 +0000

I made the perfect pot of brown basmati rice today. Under normal circumstances rice is my nemesis. But today it was pure success.

1 cup of brown basmati rice

3/4 cup of chopped ginger (add 5 large garlic cloves finely chopped to the mixture)

Saute 1/2 cup of garlic-ginger mix and a tablespoon of adobo in a tablespoon of olive oil for two minutes,
add rinsed brown basmati rice and saute for another 2 to 3 minutes
add 2 cups of water, bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover until all of the water is absorbed (I never time anything so don’t ask how long)
add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a frying pan and lightly fry remaining garlic-ginger mix (set on a paper towel once it’s brown to absorb excess oil)
top rice with fried garlic and ginger

The quesadillas are made with vegan cheese. I cooked in the black beans in the slower cooker for 6 hours. (Cooked in 3 cups of chardonnay, 2 vegetable bullion cubes, 6 cloves of garlic and one large vidalia onion…all seasoning was pureed)

Check out the whole gallery of tonight’s dinner by clicking on the thumbnails below!

egg sandwich with a sweet side

chasingl — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 21:11:59 +0000

Gazpacho and Risotto

chasingl — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 01:53:59 +0000

Gazpacho has been my go to meal this Summer. This cold soup made from cucumbers, red peppers, tomatoes, onions and whatever other veggies strike your fancy is easy to make and delicious. I started with this recipe, but over the Summer I’ve made substitutions to avoid extra trips to the grocery store. It’s easy to make and absolutely delicious when served with a huge piece of fresh bread. The risotto was a random addition to this (traditionally Spanish) meal, but it was delicious nonetheless!

Black-bean, Sweet Potato Burgers

chasingl — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 01:36:54 +0000

This was a recipe suggested to me by a good friend. The homemade vegan burgers are delicious. I may never eat any veggie burger from a box again. The original recipe calls for caraway seeds and cilantro, but my friend strongly suggested that we skip those ingredients, as it’s an overwhelming experience for the taste buds– especially for first-time veggie burger chefs.

I served the burgers with leftover gazpacho! Delicious!

Breakfast for Dinner

chasingl — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 00:58:48 +0000

Quinoa and Shakshuka

chasingl — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 00:13:41 +0000

The recipe for the Shakshuka, a spicy tomato sauce (that I occasionally serve as soup), came from Smitten Kitchen. I substituted the feta with provolone cheese and skipped the egg. (I was trying to avoid a trip to the grocery store.

The quinoa was sauteed with 1/2 a tablespoon of butter, salt, pepper, a quarter cup of onion puree and quarter cup of lemon juice. Once sauteed (for just a few minutes), quinoa was prepared normally. I roasted a red pepper and stuffed it quinoa for myself. Eric prefers to skip the red pepper.
The meal was served with a side salad topped with ginger dressing and crispy onions.