Spring Roll Salad

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Working full time again has made it hard for me to keep up with my blogs!!  I feel so behind...but teaching again has really kept me busy and here in Saudi, that's such a good thing.  I must admit, I am amazed at how difficult it is to be a mom, wife and full time teacher.  Talk about trying to find balance in your life!  I'm so thankful I have a husband who is supportive and helps out...a lot.  
Of course, it's also taken a toll on my cooking style.  Thankfully, another lady who recently moved sold me her crock-pot.  What a lifesaver!!! (they don't exist here in Saudi...trust me, I've looked and looked!)  I've been scouring the web for amazing slow cooker recipes. 
In the meantime, I will try and get caught up with past recipes that I've been making.  

Another fab find from Pinterest.  It's my go-to cookbook now.  :)  
This was a great salad.  I made it to take to a pot luck and there wasn't nothing left at the end.  (which made me kind of sad because I was hoping for leftovers)
I had to alter the recipe based on what I could actually find here, but the end result was still delish.  

By the way....what's your favorite slow cooker recipe?

Wild Rice w/Butternut Squash and Pomegranate Seeds

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My mom had brought us some bags of rice when she met up with me in Italy.  (because all we have here is Basmati and Arborio- and without wine, Arborio just isn't the same)  Anyway, I thought the rice she brought me was black rice (I mean it looked black to me!)  So, I googled recipes for black rice.
Let me just say, there aren't many choices out there.  Guessing black rice is hard to find.  But, still, thinking I had black rice, I chose to make this dish.
I just happened to have purchased a pomegranate a few days before and then all I needed was the squash.  The recipe is from Cooking Light and the reviews were a bit mixed.  But, it was the best recipe I could find, so I went with it.
Turns out my rice was just wild rice (really good wild rice, though, from Trader Joes)  I had no idea what this was going to taste like...and I was surprised how much I enjoyed it.  The kids kinda liked it, they weren't jumping up and down or anything.  But the hubby gave the dish two thumbs up.  I kept with what a review said and served the dish warm.  Great weeknight meal that didn't take long to prepare.  Not to mention, extremely healthy and vegan!  :D

• Ingredients:
• 2/3 cup black rice*
• 1 pound butternut squash
• 1/2 teaspoon sweet smoked Spanish paprika*
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 tablespoon maple syrup
• Pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons sliced green onions
• 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds

Sweet Potato Burgers

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Hi, my name is Staci.  I'm addicted to Pinterest.

There, I said it.  No denying it now, it's out there for the world to see.  Sigh...I wish I could say that it's a horrible addiction, but its totally not.  I love the things I've found on that website.  Everything from food to teaching ideas.  And thankfully, I found this awesome recipe on there as well.

We are trying to detox our bodies of the mass amount of carbs we ate while in Italy, therefore, this "burger" is missing it's bun.  But, I didn't miss eating it.  These little burgers are fabulous and you get to enjoy the crunch of the panko and raw onion without some silly bread getting in the way.  (well, that's what I told myself)  

I altered the original recipe a bit (one was leaving out the bun) and created something the entire family loved.  The sweet potatoes we get here are not the bright orange kind...so I didn't get the deep color I was hoping for, didn't effect the taste though!  

We had leftovers and the next day I just threw a bit of oil in a skillet and browned them up a bit more, then popped them in the microwave to heat them all the way through.  They still had a nice, crispy outside.  

I've never been a big fan of raw onion, but somehow it tasted amazing on these burgers.  Nice thick slices of avocado and a drizzle of a sweet & spicy chili sauce topped it off perfectly.  We served them with a side of oven roasted cauliflower.  Filling, healthy, vegan....killer dinner.

Roasted Pasta Primavera

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Ciao!!!  Okay, so yes, I've been gone forever...well, 6 weeks.  It was Ramadan here in Saudi (their holy month where they fast from sunup to sundown) and that meant it was time for me and my girls to skip out of town.  We've been in Italy for the past 6 amazing weeks.  It was an incredible trip and I was able to spend time with my mom, stepdad and even my aunt and uncle.  I was apart from the dear hubby for 4 weeks until he met up with us.  We spent time in Lake Como (touring all the towns like Bellagio, Varenna and Menaggio), Lucca, Pisa, Venice and ended in Positano on the Almalfi Coast.  
And now, here I am, back in Saudi.  (hoping that sounds more enthusiastic in words than it does in my head)  Ah, but if it weren't for living here, I wouldn't get to go on these amazing trips.  :)
While in Italy, I had rented a house and got to do quite a bit of cooking, so the next few posts will all be Italian style meals.  And it also means that I had very little choice (if any) of which plates to use for each dish....so, yeah, they all look the same.  ah well.    
First up....this super tasty pasta primavera.  Roasting the veggies brings out fantastic flavors and turns a simple dish into something spectacular.  This recipe is from Giada De Laurentiis, I had to tweak it a little because I couldn't find all the ingredients she called for, still...it was a great meal.  :)  Leave out the cheese and you have yourself a fab Vegan dinner!

Ingredients

• 3 carrots, peeled and cut into thin strips
• 2 medium zucchini or 1 large zucchini, cut into thin strips
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon dried Italian herbs or herbes de Provence
• 1 pound spinach flavored penne pasta
• 15 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

On a large heavy baking sheet, toss all of the vegetables with the oil, salt, pepper, and dried herbs to coat. Transfer half of the vegetable mixture to another heavy large baking sheet and arrange evenly over the baking sheets. Bake until the carrots are tender and the vegetables begin to brown, stirring after the first 10 minutes, about 20 minutes total.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente, tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

Toss the pasta with the vegetable mixtures in a large bowl to combine. Toss with the cherry tomatoes and enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Season the pasta with salt and pepper, to taste. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and serve immediately.

Roasted Eggplant, Red Bell Pepper, and Garlic Soup

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My friend loaned me a cookbook...full of soup recipes.  Not sure if she's going to get this one back any time soon!  
I've found so many wonderful recipes and I've been having a great time trying out new soups.  This one is one of my new faves.  Roasting the veggies creates a wonderful smokey taste while the roasted garlic adds creaminess.  The recipe called for a drizzle of basil oil, but I wasn't able to find any (or make any in time for the soup); however, I bet it would add a great finishing touch.
We ate this soup as our main dish with a side of crusty bread.  A nice salad with perhaps some chickpeas tossed in (for the protein aspect of the meal) would round out the whole dinner.  
Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant
4 red bell peppers
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 garlic bulb; halved horizontally
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 red onion cut into wedges
2 cups vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce
a handful of fresh oregano leaves
salt and pepper
to serve:
fresh basil leaves
basil oil


Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees (190 Celsius)
Put the whole eggplant and peppers in a large roasting tin.  Sandwich the thyme between the garlic halves, drizzle with oil and wrap in foil.  Add to the roasting tin.  Roast in preheated oven for 35 min.
Remove the garlic from the oven and check for tenderness.  Set aside to cool.  Remove the peppers, place in a ziploc bag, seal and leave to cool.
Add the onion to the roasting tin with the eggplant and cook for another 20 minutes or until the eggplant is tender. **(note:  my eggplant was done much sooner, so keep an eye on yours)
Meanwhile, peel the skins off the peppers and discard.  Transfer the flesh (seeds and all) to a blender and liquidize with a third of the stock until smooth.  Transfer to a sauce pan.  
Squeeze out the soft flesh of the garlic and add to the blender.  Spoon the flesh out of the eggplant and add to the blender along with the onion and another 1/3 of the stock.  Blend until smooth and then add to the saucepan with the pepper puree.
Add the tomato sauce, oregano, remaning stock, bring to a boil and season to taste.
Divide between 4-6 bowls, scatter with basil leaves and drizzle with basil oil.  Dig in!

Black Bean and Butternut Squash Stew

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Always on the lookout for great soups and stews...and now, more than ever, ones that feature mostly veggies.  This is a great low budget stew that just bursts with flavor.  

Quick to put together and on the table in under and hour (prep included)  Expand your veggie world with this wonderful stew...

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp. coconut or extra virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 a small head of cabbage, chopped (heaping 2 cups)
3 cups cubed butternut squash (sweet potato would be good too)
3 cups low sodium vegetable broth
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. cocoa powder
pinch of chipotle powder or cayenne pepper
2 cups cooked, black beans (about one can, rinsed and drained)
salt to taste

avocado, for garnish (we couldn't find any ripe ones...hoping to get some the next time)
cilantro, for garnish 

to make tortilla crispies:

3 corn tortillas
scant 1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. sea salt 

Directions:

In a heavy bottomed pot, warm the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and saute until just beginning to brown, about 6-8 minutes. Add the garlic, cabbage, squash and broth. Turn the heat down to a gentle simmer, cover the pot and cook for about 15-20 minutes for the vegetables to cook. 
Add the spices and the beans and stir. Let everything continue to cook another ten minutes for the flavors to blend. Salt to taste. At this point, you can do a few pulses with your immersion blender through the soup, in case you want to thicken up the broth a bit. This is optional, but makes it seem a bit thicker. You could also, run just a bit of the soup through a blender or food processor, and add it back in to the pot. OR a sprinkle of cornmeal will help thicken it as well. 

For the tortilla crispies, preheat the oven to 375'. Stack them and slice into thin matchsticks. Spread on a baking sheet, dirzzle with the oil, sprinkle the salt and toss gently to coat. Spread them in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for about 10-15 minutes until they are light brown and crispy, giving the pan a shake halfway through. 

Garnish each both with some diced avocado, a handful of chopped cilantro and some of the tortilla crispies! 

Recipe from Sprouted Kitchen