My day starts at 5am with a full day of work plus a 2 hour round trip commute. When I get home at 4:30 I do not want to spend my night in the kitchen. My requirements for a weeknight meal are quick, easy & healthy. I especially love one-pot meals that require little cleanup.
Here are some of my go-to meals as well as a directory of websites I frequent for ideas. Of course what I share here will be plant based. I promise if you are veg or not, these meals will satisfy.
Crockpot 3 Bean Chili
A great way to use of some of those dry beans from my last post. This is a recipe I made up so the measurements are my best estimation. This makes a HUGE batch, enough for my husband & I to both take in our lunch for a week. You can eats this for a few nights, take for lunch or freeze some for another week. I have listed cans of beans but I use dry. 1 can = 1 ½ cups.
2 cans black beans, drained & rinsed
2 cans kidney beans, drained & rinsed
2 cans garbanzo beans, drained & rinsed
1 can diced green chilies
28 oz can
1 bottle favorite BBQ sauce, I use Trader Joe’s
1 small can tomato paste
1 Tbsp cumin
1 tbsp oregano
1 cup quinoa
1 bell pepper, any color, cored & diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups water or vegetable broth
Throw everything together in crockpot & cook on high 4 hours or low 6-8 hours.
BBQ Pizza w/Caramelized Onion & Pineapple
Yes, there is such thing as delicious pizza without cheese. This is one of my favorites. Even my husband exclaimed, “I don’t usually like caramelized onions, but for some reason when you make them I do.”
1 prepared pizza dough of choice, I’ve used both the refrigerated one from Trader Joe’s and frozen varieties
½ cup BBQ sauce
½ cup diced pineapple, fresh or canned
1 onion, thinly sliced
1-2 Tbsp water or broth for sautéing onions
Prepare pizza crust per package instructions. Meanwhile, sauté onions over medium high heat until soft & yellowed, add additional water as needed to keep them from sticking to the pan. Top crust with BBQ sauce, onions & pineapple & bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes until edges are browned.
Lentil One Dish
After chopping some veggies, it couldn't get any easier than this! Throw everything together & leave it alone for a bit. Apologies that I do not recall the original source of this recipe.
1 cup uncooked lentils, rinsed
3 cups sliced carrots
1 lb kale, destemmed, & chopped
1 lb swiss chard, destemmed & chopped
1 packet onion soup mix
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup uncooked brown rice
3 cups water
1 tsp dry basil
Place all ingredients in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover & cook until rice is done, 20-30 minutes.
Stir-Fry
This is a loose recipe for stir fry. Choose 3 or more of your favorite vegetables, cut into bite size pieces:
Broccoli
Zucchini
Carrots
Bell peppers
Bok choy
Cabbage
Mushrooms
Water Chestnuts
Onion
Green onion
Asparagus
Snow peas
Stir fry in a wok or large pan over medium-high heat until veggies are tender. I like to keep my sauce simple with a bit of low sodium soy sauce & garlic, sometimes ginger. I do not use oil to stir-fry & instead add a bit of water or broth to the pan. Keep adding a bit more if the veggies begin to stick.
Serve over a whole grain like brown rice or quinoa. Or sauté with Field Roast brand vegan sausage. It is a Seattle based company that makes delicious whole ingredient sausages in Mexican, Apple Sage & Italian flavors. They are very delicious & flavor the whole dish; eliminating the need for soy sauce.
Also see my posts for Black Bean Balls & Avocado Pesto Pasta which are super easy.
Short on ideas? Try these websites & blogs. I never run out of inspiration.
fatfreevegan.com
www.eatingwell.com - not just veg recipes, well rounded site
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