Vegetable Tortilla Soup

So today is the first day of fall and here in CO it was a rainy one. I felt it was time to make a nice homemade soup. It is getting colder and fall is definitely here. We have been eating lots of dips these last few Saturday's when watching football and Jimmy has been saving the crushed chips for me. This is something I have never made but he keeps asking me about it. I was not sure exactly what he wanted when he kept saying tortilla soup so I looked up a few recipes today and new this would be something I could make my own and would be simple. Plus we bought a crock pot a few weeks ago and I have been dying to use it. It was absolutely delicious and I would totally make it again on a nice cold day. Our crock pot is small so I made a half recipe which made about 2 big bowls. If you want more just double all the ingredients. I hope you enjoy this one!

Ingredients

1/2 yellow onion (diced)

1/2 red, yellow orange or green pepper (diced)

2 gloves garlic (minced)

1 can whole kernel corn (rinsed)

1 can black beans (rinsed)

1 can diced tomatoes

1 medium tomato (diced)

jared jalepenos diced (to taste)

2 cups vegetable stock

2 tablespoons cumin

2 tablespoons paprika 

hot sauce (to taste)

crumbled tortilla chips

salt/pepper

vegan cheddar cheese (optional)

vegan sour cream (optional)

Directions

1. Combine all your ingredients except the crushed chips into a crock pot. Mix them together and turn on high for 4-5 hours or low for 6-7 hours.

2. Add your tortilla chips about 10 minutes before you are going to serve. 

3. Place into a bowl and garnish with cheddar cheese and sour cream if you want. The sour cream helps with the spice. Serve with some extra tortilla chips as well. The crunchy factor adds a little extra to the dish!

ENJOY :)

Sautéed Zucchini

Man o man has third grade kept me busy. We will be starting week 3 of kids tomorrow and I can not believe how fast it is going. I have an amazing class overall. I am up to 21 8 year olds and they seem to always keep me on my toes. They are a great bunch though and I do no have much to complain about! 

SInce being back we have been trying to eat a lot healthier. We did really well the first 2 weeks but once the kids came things have begun to change. Over all we are still eating a ton of vegetables so we haven't completely fell of the wagon. On Tuesday nights there is a little farmers market here in town and they have tons of fresh vegetables. We have been buying corn and lots of Zucchini. I have made this a few times as the main part of our meal but it is also a great side. My mom actually use to make this exact recipe in the summer times. I love that this is hers because she does not cook all that much but I can say that this is HER recipe. So thanks mom and sorry I am stealing it and putting it on my blog! LOVE YOU! well anyway this is pretty quick and very tasty. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients

1 medium onion

1 large zucchini

1 can diced tomatoes (drained) 

garlic salt

McCormacks steak seasoning

Mrs.Dash

italin seasoning

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup mushrooms (optional)

1 medium yellow squash (optional)

***the picture has mushrooms in it and not squash but you can definitely use both or neither it is up to you, I have made it both ways*** 

Directions

1. Cut your onion in to half sized pieces and add to pan with olive oil. Turn on medium heat and sauté for about 5 minutes. 

2. Cut your Zucchini and/or squash in half and then into thin slices. Add to pan with onions and cook for another 5 minutes. 

3. If you are using mushrooms dice and add to pan. Cook for 3 more minutes.

4. Drain your can of diced tomatoes but leave just a little juice in it. Add to pan and mix together. Add all your spices to taste and sauté a few more minutes until it is all hot. 

5. Serve hot and enjoy! :)

Corn & Black Bean Salsa

WOW! It has been way to long since I have been able to add to this.I hope everyone had a great summer.  I have been in Michigan the last few weeks and did not have a computer. So many things have happened since I last wrote. My BIG news is that I am going to be a 3rd grade teacher this year which I am extremely excited about! Orientation starts tomorrow and I can not wait! Anyway while in Michigan I made a few recipes I may eventually add to this but for now I am going to share the first thing I made once I got back to Colorado. This is inspired by my bestest Colynn. She made Jimmy and I something very similar but much more simple when we were visiting her in Ohio for the 4th of July. I was so hungry yesterday and this most definitely filled me up. It is light yet very filling and filled with different flavors and textures. It is perfect for a hot summer day. I hope you enjoy! 

Ingredients

1 can black beans 

1 can whole kernel corn 

1 can garbanzo beans(chick peas)

1/4-1/2 red onion

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

1/2 package good seasonings dressing 

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette 

salt & pepper

tortilla chips 

***if you would rather use Italian dressing instead of good seasonings you will not need olive oil of the balsamic vinaigrette***

Directions

1) Drain and rinse your black beans, corn and garbanzo beans. Place in large mixing bowl.

2) Finely chop your onion and cilantro and add to bowl.

3)Prepare your good seasonings dressing. Add dressing to bowl with all ingredients.

4) Mix until everything is evenly coated. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

5) Serve at room temperature or place in fridge if you are using it later. Serve with tortilla chips of your choice.

Vegan Boxed Macaroni and Cheese!!!

This is something I do not normally eat but I found it at Whole Foods last week and while being home I do not have the ability to cook all my own food. I figured this would be something simple for my dad and not make him feel like I was being a pain. It cooks just like any old macaroni and cheese. You boil the water, cook the pasta and add the cheese and milk substitute. It is quick and easy. I thought it was good (not as good as my own) but like I said its quick and easy. So if you ever need to make a side really quickly I would suggest this. They have a few different flavors as well. I bought an Alfredo sauce one but I have yet to try it. I am very interested to taste it though. I used almond milk but you can use any milk substitute you would like or just use water. The box recommends either so it is up to you. Just follow the instructions on the back and enjoy :)

Eating Out: Prima Stella Pizzeria

So for Father's  Day this year I took my dad out to dinner. We went last night to this local pizza place here on Long Island. It is right up the road from my house and has a very nice atmosphere. On Mondays & Wednesdays they have a special "Pasta Night". For $10.95 you get garlic bread, a house salad one of MANY pasta choices and a cannoli. I can't eat cannolis so it just means that my dad got two cannolis haha. It is such a great deal and the food is really good. I have been there a few times and enjoy trying different things each time. This is what I had this time!

The ingredients in this dish include linguine, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, diced sundried tomatoes, fresh garlic, sliced mushrooms and fresh parsley. The sauce is just olive oil. 

Here is the website so you can check out some other options that they have. I always just make sure I say "no butter" please! Just oil :)

http://www.thepizzaweb.com/primastellarestaurant.html

Cornucopia Natural Food Market

Crazyyy few weeks! We surprised my mom by coming home early. Boy was she shocked! It was hilarious :) Since then I have been helping them at work and spending as much time with them and my friends. We finally made it on the boat last weekend and had wonderful weather on Saturday! I love it there and wish I could be there every weekend. Well, since being home I have not cooked much and what my dad has made me is nothing really all that new. Today my friend Maria came into work (she use to work here) and we went to lunch. She brought me to this little market that has all natural foods and has a little deli in the back with tons of Vegan options. I decided I would share them with you. They were all equally delicious and I hope I can go back before I leave. I took picture of everything to share with you and I hope one day I can make it home made.

So I tried tp take pictures of all the ingredients but it was through a glass case. They did not come out as wonderful as I was hoping. So I will tell you about all of them.

1) The first one is called Quinoa Salad. It is gluten free, dairy free, and completely vegan. Its ingredients include Quinoa, olive oil, peas, cranberries, cashews, date, zucchini, chickpeas and parsley.

2) The second one is Tropical Broccoli Salad. It is all gluten free, dairy free and vegan. Its ingredients include fresh broccoli, coconut milk, coconut, pineapple, almonds, agave, currants, and himalayan salt.

3) The third one is called Unchicken Tempeh. Again it is gluten free, dairy free and vegan. Its ingredients include tempeh, gluten free tamari, brown rice vinegar, cranberries, carrots and scallions.

All of these were absolutely delicious but I think my favorite is the Quinoa salad. I really enjoyed the "unchicken tempeh" though because I have never had or made anything quite like it. I may eventually get the courage to try cooking with tempeh after tasting how delicious it was. I was nervous about the broccoli one because it was also fruity but the combination of fruits and fresh vegetables with coconut milk was absolutely delicious. I recommend all of these recipes though :)

You can also visit their website if you would like.

http://www.cornucopiahealthfoods.com 

Homemade Vegan Potato Salad

YUMMMMM!!!!! This is something my mom has made since I was a little kid. I use to pick all the veggies out but I still love it. It is one of those things that we never made in the winter time but as soon as summer rolls around we are always eating potato salad or macaroni salad. I have turned both into vegan versions (which is really not very difficult to do). I am sharing my version with you because I like the vegetables that go into it and I like the "secret" spices as well. It is a perfect side to many different dishes.

Makes: 2 servings

Cook time: 30-40 minutes

Ingredients

4 large red potatoes 

4 green onions

2 cloves garlic

1/4 yellow onion

1/4 red onion

1 stalk celery

1/2 red, orange, or yellow pepper

3-4 tablespoons veganise mayo

garlic salt

steak seasoning

mrs.dash

Directions

1. Cut your potatoes into medium square leaving the skin on. Place in a medium pot with water. The water should be about an inch above the potatoes. Slice your garlic as thing as possible and place in water. Cut your green onions and place in pot as well. Bring water to a boil and then turn down to medium heat. Cook them until the potatoes are soft. It will probably take anywhere from 20-30 minutes. You can check them by removing one and when you can cut it in half with no problems they are done. Drain and place all ingredients back in pot. Let cool for at least 5 minutes. They should no longer be steaming.

2. Slice your celery, pepper and onions into VERY small pieces. Once potatoes are cooled place chopped vegetables in with potatoes. Add your veganise mayo and spices to taste. Mix until potatoes are evenly coated with the mayo. You can add as much of the spices and mayo as you would like. 

3. Serve warm or place in fridge and serve later on. :)