My friend Kris posted a great recipe in her blog. It offers a lot of what I love in this world: ease of assembly, spinach, red onions, and quinoa. I made a double batch of it tonight–yes, double, even though it was the first time I tried it, because I just had a hunch it was going to be a good one. And it is. And you have to try it, too. Thanks, Kris–this one’s a winner!
http://goodnessandgoodies.blogspot.com/2009/01/soup-glorious-soup.html
Most potato soup recipes call for milk and usually butter–and certainly if they have the word “creamy” in the title! But this one doesn’t need any animal products at all to be creamy and flavorful. I’ve adapted this from a recipe I got from Alissa Wilkinson. You’ll need:
4-6 gold potatoes (you could use another kind but I like these for their texture)
3 leeks, chopped (the white part, y’all!)
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
6 c. water or broth
1/2 bunch kale, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Put everything into a crock pot except for the kale and salt and pepper. Cook on low for about 8 hours or high for about 4. Then puree it all. An immersion blender works well for this purpose. Then add the kale. At this point, you could cook it in the crock pot for a while until the kale is done–or you could do what I did and dump it all into a pot on the stove, bring to a boil, and cook for about 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper and serve with a crusty bread.
- Four 10-oz. cans of baby clams
- Four 14.5-oz. cans of Italian style diced tomatoes
- Four 14-5 oz. cans of crushed tomatoes
- 6 carrots, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 8 gold tomatoes, cubed
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1/4 cup clam juice
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 1 1/2 tablespoons dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 3 drops hot pepper sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- salt to taste
- ground black pepper to taste
Combine tomatoes, clams, clam juice, wine, sauces, and herbs in a large pot. Simmer about 30 minutes. Add vegetables and simmer 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally, or cook in a crock pot on low for 6 to 8 hours. Salt and pepper to taste.
The gold potatoes have a great texture with this soup. It’s good fresh, but better the next day. This recipe makes a ginormous batch! Yes, I know this is not vegan because of the clams, but it is fast friendly.
Adapted from http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Manhattan-Style-Clam-Chowder/Detail.aspx
Okay, here’s the deal: I roasted some kale in the morning. In the evening I made a variation of Rachael Ray’s sherry cherry tomatoes (I did it all on the stovetop and didn’t mess with the oven) and decided to toss in the leftover kale, along with some cannellini beans. The result, served over brown rice, was rather scrumptious. Rather than roasting the kale in advance, however, I think you could safely skip that step and just add fresh kale. You’ll need:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 bunch fresh kale
1 15-oz. can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar or dry sherry wine
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Salt
Preheat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil, garlic, and onions; cook for two or three minutes and then add the tomatoes, tossing them with the oil. Then add the sherry, sugar, pepper flakes, and salt. Toss again and cook for about 15 minutes. Then add the kale and beans and cook for another five minutes or so, or until the tomatoes sort of collapse. Serve over pasta or rice or as a side dish.
Here’s the original recipe from Rachael Ray: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/sherry-cherry-tomatoes-recipe/index.html
ETA: I used the leftovers the next day. I put them straight from the fridge onto sourdough bread with tuna and it was amazingly good. This is definitely a favorite! (I realize tuna is not vegan, but it is allowed on certain fast days.)
1 sweet potato, cut into 1/2″ pieces
1 green pepper, diced
1 med. onion, diced
1 zucchini, cut into 1/2″ pieces
1 can – diced tomatoes (14 oz can), undrained
1 can – garbanzo beans, drained & rinsed
3/4 cup – vegetable broth
1 1/2 tsps curry powder
1/2 tsp cumin
Saute the fresh vegetables in a little olive oil for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until browned. Add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, then simmer for about 10 minutes or until vegetables are fork-tender.
Serve on top of cooked brown rice.
Thanks to Melanie S. for the recipe!
3/4 cup lentils
5 cups water
1 large garlic clove, minced or pressed
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (more or less to taste)
1 can chopped tomatoes
8 oz. frozen chopped spinach
1 1/2 teaspoons of salt (more or less to taste)
Wash lentils. Place lentils and water in a large saucepan. Bring water to a full boil, then lower the heat to medium and cook, covered, for twenty minutes. Reduce heat to low. Stir in the garlic, tomatoes, salt, and pepper flakes. Cover the pot, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add spinach, cook 1 or 2 minutes more until spinach is thawed. Remove from heat. Serve with rice. Serves: 4
Adapted from http://vegweb.com/index.php?action=printrecipe;topic=15546.0
2 cups diced yellow onions
2-3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1 cup dry lentils
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 16-ounce cans chopped tomatoes (fire-roasted if you want, canned)
1 1/2 cups quartered artichoke hearts (15-ounce jar, drained)
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Water as needed
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
Add onions to large sauce pan or soup pot and sauté on medium heat for about 5 minutes, until golden. Add the garlic and spices and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the lentils, bay leaf, lemon juice, tomatoes and tomato liquid, artichoke hearts, and crushed red pepper (if using) and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Add water if sauce becomes too thick. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve over pasta of your choice.
Adapted from http://www.fatfreevegan.com/stews/1148.shtml
My mom threw this together for us the other night. It’s not vegan, as you can see with the clams, but it is fast friendly and very good. The squash gives you a shot of veggies and the clams bring protein. You’ll need:
2 zucchini, grated
3 cups spaghetti sauce
1 10-oz. can clams, drained
1/2 c. black olives, sliced
Cook the squash in a saucepan until soft. Add the remaining ingredients and cook until hot. Serve over your favorite pasta.
(Lebanese Chickpea Soup)
1 Lg. or 2 Med. Onions, Diced
1 Head Garlic, Minced
2 Carrots, Diced
2-3 Stalks Celery, Diced
1 Squash, Zucchini or other, Diced
2 – 3 Potatoes, Diced
A bit of oil
1 Box or Several Cans Vegetable Broth (or better, homemade vegetable stock)
1 Med. Can Diced Tomatoes & Juice
4 Cans Garbanzo Beans & Juice
1 or 2 Cinnamon Sticks (3 – 5″ long)
1 Tsp. Thyme
Salt & Pepper, To Taste
Fresh Parsley, Curly or better, Italian, Minced
Juice of 1 Lemon
1 Lg. Bag Baby Spinach
Red Pepper Flakes, Optional – A pinch in each bowl for those who like it.
Sauté onion and garlic in a bit of oil. Add other vegetables & sauté until softened. Add vegetable broth or stock, tomatoes, garbanzos and cinnamon stick. Add spices. Cook for 1 hour or more, until flavors meld. Just a few minutes before serving, add parsley, lemon juice and spinach. Stir in well. Allow to cook until greens are wilted. Serve with Pita on the side, or over rice.
This normally contains chicken, but it was altered into a vegan dish.
Okay, this is pretty good. I adapted it from a recipe my sister-in-law gave me.
Lentil Soup with Red Wine Vinegar
8 oz. dried lentils
5 c. water
2 c. spaghetti sauce
2 bay leaves
Dried oregano (if desired)
Red wine vinegar (to taste)
Just dump it all in a pot, except the vinegar. Simmer about 90 minutes, or until the lentils are done. You may need to add a little more liquid. Add the vinegar at the end, to taste. (I like a fair amount. The vinegar makes this soup.)
We ate it with crumbled tortilla chips. You could reduce the liquid and make it a nice little dip. Dip or soup, I think it would be great with some cheese on non-fast days.
