Ginger infused quinoa with chick’pieces in a creamy leek & green pea sauce Ⓥ

On a night when I didn’t have many fresh vegetables left, I took whatever I found in my fridge, freezer and pantry to whip up this yummy dinner. It was nutritious and filling. You can substitute the vegan chick’pieces by tofu or tempeh, but make sure to marinate it at least 30 minutes before using it (as to soak up the flavour of your sauce).

Ingredients (2-3 persons)

• 1 cup of quinoa (I used different colors)
• 2 cups of water
• 2 cm of fresh ginger root
• 200 g frozen green peas
• 1 medium-sized leek
• 200 ml soy cream
• 1 package (160g) of ‘chick’ pieces (vegan chicken breast – I use “Greenway”) or tofu
• turmeric, salt & pepper
• 1 tbsp tamari soy sauce
• 2 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
• coconut oil

Preparation

• Rinse the quinoa, set aside.
• Peel and cut the ginger root in small pieces.
• Cut the leek (rings) and wash (sieve).
• Boil 2 cups of water (for the quinoa).
• Fry the ginger for 1 minute, add the rinsed quinoa and stir fry for another minute. Add 1 tsp of turmeric, a pinch of salt, stir.
• Add 2 cups of boiling water and let it simmer for about 15 minutes until the quinoa is perfectly dry cooked.
• In the meantime cut the vegan ‘chick’pieces in smaller strips, add the tamari in the package and stir to evenly coat all the pieces.
• Heat up some coconut oil in a frying pan or wok and add the ‘chick’pieces, stir fry for a few minutes until golden.
• Add the leek and stir fry for a few minutes.
• Add the soy cream.
• Stir in the frozen green peas, leave it to simmer for a couple of minutes until the peas are cooked.
• Add nutritional yeast, salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve the quinoa and add the sauce on top.

Vegan recipe: quinoa & lentils with roasted cauliflower & tahini dressing Ⓥ

On a lazy sunday evening I decided to cook some soul food. Hence I came up with the following recipe. You can replace the parsley with cilantro or mint. You can replace the cauliflower by broccoli or kale. The quantities are estimates, I used these and have enough food for 3 to 4 meals :-).

I’ve shared the recipe for the roasted cauliflower before here.

You can make the tahini dressing in a larger quantity, it stays well for a couple of days (or even a week) if you keep it in the fridge and tastes great on a variety of dishes (in wraps, on salads, …).

Ingredients (4P)

• 1 cup of quinoa
• 1 cm ginger root (or more)
• 1 or 2 garlic cloves (optional)
• Coconut oil
• 1 cauliflower
• Spices mix (garam masala, turmeric, cinnamon, paprika, cumin, …), about 1 tsp of each of the herbs of your choice
• Black pepper
• Salt
• Olive oil
• Fresh parsley
• 1 cup of lentils (I used brown lentils)
• 1 tsp of summer savory (dried herbs, to improve digestion)
• 2 tsp of tahin
• Juice of 1/2 a lemon (1 to 2 tsp)

Preparation

1. Cut the cauliflower in florets (equal size) and wash
2. Prepare the spice mix for the cauliflower: mix enough olive oil with the spice mix to coat all the cauliflower florets, add some salt & pepper, leave to soak in the spice mix for about 15′
3. Rinse the quinoa
4. Rinse the lentils
5. Boil water (2 cups for the quinoa and the lentils each)
6. Preheat the oven at 180°
7. Put the cauliflower florets on a baking sheet in the oven for about 30′, turn the florets after about 15′
8. Meanwhile, add 2 cups of boiling water to the lentils, add the summer savor herbs and leave to simmer until all the water is absorbed (about 20′), add salt only when the lentils are cooked
9. Peel and cut the ginger & garlic, stir fry in some coconut oil
10. Add the rinsed quinoa and stir for 1 or 2 minutes, add some salt (if desired)
11. Add the boiling water to the quinoa mixture and leave to simmer until all the water is absorbed (about 20′)
12. Wash the parsley and cut using scissors
13. Mix the tahin with 1 or 2 tsp of lemon juice and 2 to 4 tbsp of water to obtain the desired consistency. If it’s too thin, add more tahin, if it’s too thick, add more water. You can add a pinch of salt & some pepper
14. Blend the lentils in with the cooked quinoa, add the parsley, decorate with the roasted cauliflower florets and sprinkle the tahini dressing on top.

Health benefits of tahini

1. t’s rich in minerals such as phosphorus, lecithin, magnesium, potassium and iron.
2. It’s a good source of Methionine, which aids in liver detoxification.
3. It’s one of the best sources of calcium out there.
4. It’s high in vitamin E and vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5 and B15.
5. Helps to promote healthy cell growth.
6. Prevent anemia.
7. Helps to maintain healthy skin and muscle tone.
8. It has 20% complete protein, making it a higher protein source than most nuts.
9. It’s easy for your body to digest because of its high alkaline mineral content, which is great for assisting in weight loss.
10. It is high in unsaturated fat (good fat!)

Vegan stuffed red bell peppers Ⓥ

I adapted this recipe from a french recipe by Marie Laforet  from her latest VEGAN cookbook that I absolutely love.

Ingredients

• 1 cup of quinoa
• 250 g firm tofu, drained, in cubes
• 2 big or 4 small red bell peppers
• 1 tbsp fresh ginger
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• tamari soy sauce
• a couple of twigs of fresh parsley
• half a zucchini
• (Himalayan) salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• a pinch of Cayenne pepper
• Coconut oil (or some other vegetable oil of your choice)
• A baking dish.

Preparation

1. Heat up the oven to about 180°C.
2. Boil twice the amount of water as the amount of quinoa you are using (in this recipe: 1 cup). Rinse the quinoa & add it to the boiling water, let it simmer (don’t stir).
3. Cut the tofu in small cubes, peel & cut the ginger in small pieces. Add enough tamari soy sauce in a deep bowl to coat the tofu, add the ginger, the sesame seeds and the tofu, mix it well and set aside, season with salt & pepper.
4. Cut the zucchini in small cubes.
5. Cut the parsley.
6. Cut the bell peppers in half, remove seeds, wash and put in an baking dish.
7. Heat up the coconut oil in a skillet, add the tofu and the remainder of the seasoning from the bowl and stir fry until slightly golden, add the zucchini, the parsley and Cayenne pepper and stir fry for a couple of minutes.
8. Add the tofu mixture to the ready quinoa and mix well (of the heat source).
9. Add the remainder of the quinoa/ tofu mixture in the baking dish around the bell peppers.
10. Add the mixture in the bell peppers and put in the oven for about 30 minutes until the bell peppers have softened somewhat.

Serve with a green salad with a light olive oil, mustard & lemon juice vinaigrette.

Tip: depending on the season, you can replace the vegetables with other seasonal vegetables and you can replace the quinoa with another type of grain of your liking.

Yogi recipe : vegan eggplant-quinoa roast

This delicious recipe combines eggplant, quinoa, a red pepper & zucchini with a lemon, ginger & tamari sauce.

It’s a real yogi recipe as it doesn’t contain any garlic or onions or other stimulants & is taken from the Sivananda  Yoga Cook Book, a highly recommended cook book (available on Book Depository, free shipping, mind you not all recipes are vegan)!

Over the years since first making this dish, I’ve added onion and garlic to the recipe. It’s up to you to decide whether you like these ingredients or not.

Ingredients

• 2 cups of quinoa
• 2 to 3 medium sized eggplants, cut into equal long slices
• 1 (purple) onion, diced
• 1 large red bell pepper (paprika/ poivron rouge), cut into small cubes
• 2 zucchini, coarsely grated (or cut into small cubes)
• Parsley sprigs, to decorate
• Vegetable oil (I like to use sesame or olive oil)
• Coarse salt
• Black pepper

Ingredients baking sauce

• 3 tablespoons tamari (or other soy sauce you may have at home)
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• 3/4 cup (filtered) water
• 2 tsp (or more 🙂 ) grated fresh ginger root
• Optional: 2 cloves or garlic
• Black pepper

Preparation

1. Wash & prepare all vegetables.
2. Prepare the baking sauce: mix all ingredients together in a small bowl.
3. Heat the oven to 180°.
4. Arrange the slices of eggplant in a single layer in a baking dish. Pour the baking sauce over the eggplant slices. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes. Turn the slices over and bake for another 15 minutes or until the eggplant is soft.
5. Rinse & cook the quinoa according to instructions (mostly it’s 1 volume of quinoa requires 2 volumes of boiling water).
6. Add the onion in a skillet with some vegetable oil and stir fry for a few minutes.
7. Add the red pepper and zucchini and sauté until soft. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Add the cooked quinoa, mix well, and spoon over the eggplant in the oven dish.
9. Return to the oven and bake for about 10 minutes.

Serve hot decorated with parsley sprigs & a green or tomato salad on the side.

 

Om shanti –ॐ शान्ति

Leftover lunch with eggplant quinoa roast.

Yogi recipe: vegan yellow lentil & pumpkin soup with quinoa

This is an ideal meal when you are pressed for time and still want to eat a healthy and filling meal: right after your yoga practice or at lunch for example. The soup can be eaten as a full meal on its own or served with a cooked grain (quinoa, millet, …), potatoes from the oven, some bread or chapatis, … You can also choose to eat it with seasoned and stir fried or oven-baked tofu or tempeh. Use your imagination to adapt it to your favorite tastes with some chili, some other herbs or spices of your liking.

Ingredients

• 2 cups of chopped up pumpkin
• 1 cup of yellow (brown, orange, …) lentils
• 0.5 cup of other seasonal veggies
• 3 cups of filtered water
• 1 or 2 cm of ginger root
• 1 tbsp of mustard seeds
• 0.5 tbsp of coriander seeds
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 tsp of turmeric powder
• 1 tsp of garam masala (or curry) powder
• Salt & pepper
• (Coconut) oil
• Fresh parsley

Preparation

• Wash the vegetables & cut in ~2cm cubes.
• Peel the ginger root & grate it or cut it in small bits.
• Thoroughly rinse the lentils until the water runs clear.
• Heat some (preferably coconut) oil in a frying pan (wok).
• Add the mustard & coriander seeds; wait until they ‘pop’. 
• Add the ginger root; stir for 2 minutes.
• Add the garam masala & turmeric powder; stir for another minute. 
• Add the pumpkin and other seasonal vegetables of your liking (I added some celeriac); stir fry for a couple of minutes. 
• Add the lentils; stir fry for another 2 minutes.
• Add the filtered water & the bay leaves; leave it to boil.
• When it boils, lower the heat & let it simmer for approximately 25 minutes or until the vegetables and the lentils are tender. 
• You may have to add some water depending whether you want a soup or more thick sauce type of dish. 
• Add salt ONLY at the end (as it’ll prolong cooking time) & season with pepper. Take out the bay leaves before serving & serve with the fresh parsley on top.

Serving suggestion
Serve with quinoa, millet or some other whole grain you like.