“Aaaaaah...the lentil. The humble, earthy, slightly frumpy, a bit dowdy, no-I'm-not-looking-for-a-date-I'm-staying-home-and-washing-my-Birkenstocks lentil. And brown, so very broooooowwwwwwn is the lentil. But! With a little love, a few spices, and a bit of simmering the humble lentil becomes something entirely different.” (beanplate blog)
I LOVE THE LENTIL. I don’t know what it is about this simple little….thing. I mean, what is it? A bean, a grain, a veggie….what? http://www.pea-lentil.com/consumer.htm.
Well, for those out there who don't like beans, the lentil is only a cousin of the bean family. Kind of like a family reunion. You know your all somehow related, you even look like some of them but the line is still a bit blurry. Though they are distant cousins, eating the lentil feels like coming home! Lentils are just great! They’re versatile, inexpensive and they get the job done!
This recipe is for Lentil Sloppy Joe’s. Now, before you gawk at it, give it a try. It really does taste good, and the nutritional benefits are fantastic! In one cup of dry lentils (which is way more than I can eat....) there are 230 calories, 1 g of fat and 18 g of protein! http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts/legumes-and-legume-products/4338/2. Gram for gram that’s more protein v. fat than a beef steak! So try enjoying this old favorite with a healthy twist.
Sloppy Joe's
1 cup lentils
2 cup water
1 minced onion
1 minced green pepper
1 pkg sloppy joe seasoning
1 small can tomato paste (or a can of sloppy joe sauce)
In your lovable rice cooker cook the lentils till tender, but not mushy. Sautee onion, green pepper till soft, and add to the lentils. Add dry ingredients and tomato paste.
Serve on whole wheat rolls. Makes excellent leftovers and freezes very well!!! I make a bunch and freeze it to pull out for a quick meal. You can also use leftover lentils from lentil tacos for this.
For more fun than a lentil should supply check this out!!!
http://www.pea-lentil.com/kids_page.htm
At my house as a child we had what was lovingly referred to as "clean out the fridge" meatloaf. When the fridge was over-run with leftovers my mother would blend them all up in the food processor, add a pound of ground beef and whatever spices she thought it could handle, say a prayer as she put it in the oven, and bake it. My mother is a genius in the kitchen and often her concoctions turned out to be fabulous. But, because it depended on the leftovers, her meatloaf was NEVER the same twice. I believe our favorite was leftover macaroni and cheese, onion soup, and homemade rolls as the breadcrumbs. Others were less then desirable (which might be a contributing factor to why I am now vegan....I'll have to explore that later) but being my mothers daughter, I do find myself in concoction mode on a regular basis - my husband may say a little too regular. This recipe is owed to my "creative" mother.
Meatloaf
leftover Hawaiian Chili
leftover rice
2 c plain lentils
1-2 c cooked barley
2 large cans mushrooms drained (fresh is always best)
1 pkg onion soup mix
oats
garlic powder (to taste)
salt (to taste)
In a blender or food processor blend up your leftover hawaiian chili till smooth. Now blend the rice, barley, lentils, and mushrooms. Add to the chili. Add onion soup mix, garlic powder and salt. Mix that together. Now mix in enough oats so you can form it into a small meatball and it holds together (tender but not falling apart). Fill a greased bread pan and bake on 350 for about 40 minutes or till you can insert a knife and it comes out clean. Let it sit out of the oven for a few minutes to firm up. Serve with chili sauce or gravy. If you have more "meat" left over they make great meatballs!
Ahhh....The bean burrito, savior of many a starving college student. Less than a buck, cooks in under a minute, AND you can eat it on the go. Where can you go wrong? Well, for starters, how about the calorie count? I'm very sorry to be Johnny rain cloud but truth cannot be silenced. I won't go into the details about the evil temptings of the burrito but, to be a ray of hope, I offer a healthier solution. By eliminating the oils and fat from the cheese, AND beans (pig lard) you can turn a vegans nightmare into a vegans dream, that, even carnivore's will love. Here's some proof. Even my Samoan friends came back for thirds!
Now, The Bean Burrito contains one very important ingredient....Beans. If, in your shopping, you grabbed the vegetarian can of refried beans then please read on. If you bought bulk pinto beans then click here for FRIJOLATION! (i.e. how to make homemade refried beans)
Bean Burritos
12 flour tortillas
1 lb brown lentils
refried beans
1 Taco seasoning packet
In a rice cooker cook the lentils with double the amount of water to lentils, then add the packet of taco seasoning. You may have to add more water as you go along and you may have to go for 2 cycles till they are soft. On each tortilla spread the refried beans then the cooked lentils. wrap up burrito style and place on a cookie sheet. Bake in the oven on 350 till heated through. You can also heat these up in a pan on the stove.
These are great served with chips and fresh salsa! Finger food works great with kids, no pesky forks to wrestle with, and they freeze exceptionally well. So you can pull them out, nook em (if your still into that - Matthew has even forbidden use of the toaster due to some sort of ionnisticatinng emitting waves) and go....so easy even a college student can do it!
I grew up (some may be arguing with me already) in a very carnivorous family. Roast on Sunday, eggs for breakfast. Basically, it wasn't a meal if there wasn't meat in it. As a Samoan friend told me recently, "no meat, no eat."
My long road to veganism I'm sure will unfold over the next weeks and months. As For now, my husband Matthew and I are vegans, living in Amerikan Samoa of all places and we have found some pretty creative ways to minimize the meat. These recipes are a result of the creative juices that have flowed.
There are 3 things in this world that I love - food, family, and my rice cooker....in varying order. Having lived in many studio apartments I have come to love my husband, from being in very close courters with him, and, I adore my rice cooker. Also, when I take the time to cook I hate to see my efforts go to waste so many of the recipes are remakes.
As for the "weak" one. I must admit, sometimes I see a cheese pizza or I hear about my moms baked Salmon and I realize the flesh is weak (hmm....take that one how you will). My hope is that these recipes will be "adapted to the weak and weakest off all."
With that said, here is week 1 -
WEEK 1
Monday: Cookin Quinoa
Tuesday: Fried Rice
Wednesday: Bean Burritos
Thursday: Hawaiian Chili & Rice
Friday: Oodle soup
Saturday: Pai "le fala"
Sunday: My Momma's Meatloaf
Obviously, mix and match, use them as you will. These are just suggestions. Be creative! As you'll see, I can't stand using recipes! I love cookbooks but usually I read a recipe, get the general idea and then run with it. I'll try to be as specific as possible for my loved ones that are cullinarily impaired.
Grocery List
Quinoa (if you can, always buy in bulk.)
1 lemon
extra virgin olive oil
red onion
4 bell pepper (at least 1 of a different color)
Brown Rice
1 bag of frozen veggies
soy sauce or liquid aminos
Flour tortillas
brown Lentils
2 can vegetarian refried beans or bulk pinto beans
2 pkg taco seasoning
bulk black beans
bulk kidney beans
1 can corn
1 can stewed tomatoes
2 onions
5 lb bag of potatoes
1 lb bag of carrots
1 stalk celery
1 stalk Leeks (optional)
Whole Wheat Flour
Baking Powder
garlic powder
Vegetable oil
Non sweet "Milk"
Salt
Oats
Okay, I know that seems like a lot but I would bet you already have a lot of these things in your cupboard already. If there is something you don't like or you're allergic to feel free to substitute or leave it out. Now, these recipes usually are for 2-4 people. I often try to make at least enough for another meal when I cook so I can freeze or use it up in something else.
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