DDD #111 – The Ivy Copycat Grilled Vegetable Salad with Lime Vinaigrette

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Posted on August 10, 2018

All Photos © Christine Elise McCarthy 2018

Follow @celisemccarthy

To see images of my past posts & get links to the recipes – look on my Pinterest board – HERE.

Click the image above to watch the video.

The Ivy Copycat Grilled Vegetable Salad with Lime Vinaigrette

serves 2 as an entree

INGREDIENTS

for the dressing

Juice of 1-2 limes

match the lime juice with an equal part of olive oil so it is 50/50.

Add about 1 TBS each of balsamic vinegar (or other vinegar) and agave

Season to taste with S&P.

Combine & taste. Tweak to suite your palate.

for the salad

Your choice of greens – or a mixture (arugula, romaine, butter lettuce, watercress, field greens – your call)

1 zucchini

1 yellow squash

2 ears fresh corn – in the husks

1 bunch asparagus – tough bottoms trimmed

1 red bell pepper – seeded

1/2 cucumber – diced

1 handful cherry tomatoes – haved

3-4 radishes – chopped

1/4 small red onion – diced

1 avocado – chopped

OPTONAL – chopped herbs (basil or cilantro), protein (chickpeas, black beans, vegan chicken or any other protein you desire)

DIRECTIONS

Make the dressing while the veggies are grilling.

Slice the zucchini & squash in 1/4 inch thick slices & grill until softened & there are grill marks – turning a few times. Do the same with the red pepper & asparagus. Set aside. Grill the corn in the husks until blackened on the outside. Cool & throw the husks away then cut the corn from the cobs.

Now – just assemble the salad the way you would any other. If there are going to be leftover veggies – do not dress them. They will stay fresher in the fridge undressed.

Serve & enjoy!!!

DDD #95 – Vegan Vietnamese Chicken Banh Mi Sandwich with Pickled Vegetables & Sriracha Mayo

DDD #78 – Vegan Red Lentil Curry or Soup (Instant Pot or Slow Cooker)

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Posted on February 2, 2018

All Photos © Christine Elise McCarthy 2018

Follow @celisemccarthy

To see images of my past posts & get links to the recipes – look on my Pinterest board – HERE.

Click the image above to watch my thwarted efforts at making a curry for rice.

Slow cookers. Mmmmmm! So satisfying. Coming home to a house filled with the aroma of a fresh cooked meal is the next best thing to having a wife. Or a husband. Because the dogs just never seem to get motivated enough to cook. Or maybe they do – but they just eat it all up themselves. This recipe can be made either as a curry for over rice or as a soup. If you are doing a version for rice – use a slow cooker. I cannot figure out how to cook something as delicate as red lentils in the Instant Pot Pressure Cooker unless I want it to be a soup – which is how I salvaged this potential disaster.

This could also be made stove top in just the time it takes to cook the lentils but you might want to saute the onions a bit first to soften them.

Vegan Red Curry Lentils

feeds at least 2 very well with rice or — make the soup

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups lentils

1 TBS olive oil or coconut oil

10 oz can of Rotel or other diced or strained tomatoes

1 small onion – diced

1 TBS garlic cloves – minced

1 TBS fresh grated ginger – I used jarred

1 tsp ground cumin

2 TBS red curry paste

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp salt

1-2 tsp cayenne pepper (according to your tolerance for heat)

1 tsp garam masala (recipe below if you cannot find it as garam masala)

1 TBS harissa or other hot sauce – like sriracha

2 cups water

1 (6 oz) can coconut milk

Chopped cilantro as garnish (and cook some rice to serve the lentils over if you did not make soup – I used brown Basmati). A bit of vegan sour cream might be nice to stir into the soup – if you went that way.

DIRECTIONS

SLOW COOKER CURRY (for rice)

Just stick all the ingredients into a slow cooker & set it on low. Go away for 8-10 hours. Or set it on high and it should be done in 2-3 hours. Serve over steamed rice. Garnish with cilantro & maybe additional hot sauce.

INSTANT POT SOUP

On the saute setting, saute the onion until soft. Add everything else & cook on manual for 8-10 minutes. Add more water to thin it to taste.

Serve with vegan sour cream & Sriracha & cilantro.

Garam Masala

INGREDIENTS

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/4 tsp ground cardamom

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

DDD #75 – Vegan Spicy Citrus Black Beans

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Posted on January 17, 2018

All Photos © Christine Elise McCarthy 2018

Follow @celisemccarthy

To see images of my past posts & get links to the recipes – look on my Pinterest board – HERE.

Click the image above to watch the video.

These are as easy as putting everything into a slow cooker & walking away. I did not even pre-soak the beans. You could speed this process up either by using canned beans or soaking dry beans overnight or quick soaking them or cooking them on a higher setting – or by doing it stove top. These are mildly spicy & mildly citrusy. You could ratchet either of those flavors up or down – according to your preferences.

Vegan Spicy Citrus Black Beans (Instant Pot, Slow Cooker or Stove Top)

Feeds 6 with rice

INGREDIENTS

1 lb dry black beans

5 cups water or stock (1 cup only if using drained, canned beans)

Juice of 2 limes

juice of 1 large lemon

juice of 1 large orange

6 garlic cloves – minced

2 (or more or less) chipotle chilies in adobo – minced

1 onions – diced

3 serrano (or jalapeno) peppers – minced (or to taste)

1 TBS ground cumin

2 TBS dry oregano (or fresh – chopped)

2 bay leaves

2 tsp dry sage

1 tsp of salt

Squirt sriracha

Garnish – cilantro & cooked rice & maybe citrus wedges to squeeze

DIRECTIONS

SLOWCOOKER

Put it all in a slow cooker on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours. Cook uncovered longer if they are too wet – add water if they are too dry. If they seem too runny – maybe puree a small amount of the beans & return them to the pan.

STOVE TOP

Put everything in a very large stock pot & bring to a boil & simmer until the beans are tender (90 minutes or more or until the beans are tender). Boil longer if they are too watery. Add water if they get too thick. If they seem too runny – maybe puree a small amount of the beans & return them to the pan.

INSTANT POT

Put it all into the Instant Pot & cook on manual for 25 minutes. Drain in a colander if they are too wet. Add water if they get too dry. If they seem too runny – maybe puree a small amount of the beans & return them to the pan.

All of these methods will go much faster with beans soaked overnight and, in the case of canned beans, the only times required is maybe an hour to let the flavors meld.

Garnish with cilantro & serve with rice. Maybe squeeze a bit of lemon, lime or orange juice onto the beans.

DDD #74 – Ayurveda Kitchari – Vegan Mung Bean Stew to Detox & Cleanse (Instant Pot, Slow Cooker or Stove Top)

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Posted on January 13, 2018

All Photos © Christine Elise McCarthy 2018

Follow @celisemccarthy

To see images of my past posts & get links to the recipes – look on my Pinterest board – HERE.

Click the image above to watch the video.

My friend, Katie, turned me on to kitchari. Apparently, you can eat it – JUST IT – for 1-7 days straight & it calms your digestive tract & detoxes you system but with the added benefit of feeling like decadent comfort food. Also – mung beans are dirt cheap. (Articles on the subject are linked at the bottom of this post). This recipe makes about 7 quarts which is a fuckton so – unless you are feeding a lot of people or want to freeze some – consider reducing the recipe.

I used an Instant Pot to make mine but this can be done in a slow cooker or stove top. I really recommend Instant Pots, though, because they steam, pressure cook, slow cook, cook rice, cook cakes, saute, cook eggs & clean windows. I got my huge one HERE for just over $100 & I am VERY happy with it. I can now get rid of several other appliances.

***NOTE – I soaked my beans on the counter overnight & in the fridge a second night but this is not necessary. If you want to move more quickly – boil some water, add your beans & let them soak for an hour.

Ayurveda Kitchari – Vegan Mung Bean Stew

Caters a party so be ready for a lot

INGREDIENTS

3 cups mung beans (I used half whole green & half split green – as seen above) – soaked (see ***NOTE above)

1-2 TBS coconut oil or olive oil

1 onion – chopped

6 garlic cloves – chopped

1 TBS turmeric

1 TBS ground cumin

1 TBS (or more – to taste) salt (I used pink Himalayan)

1 TBS ground mustard

1 TBS ground coriander

1 TBS ground pepper

1 TBS ground fenugreek (optional)

1/4 tsp asafoetida

1 (15 oz) can coconut milk (I used lite)

6 TBS minced ginger

1 cup cilantro

Vegetables are optional. Use any you prefer but I added:

5 small turnips – diced

5 small golden beets – diced

1 large sweet potato – diced

5 oz baby kale

1 tomato – diced

6 cups water

2 cups basmati (or other long grain white rice)

(If you are making your rice separate from the stew, as I did, it is nice to add a tsp cumin SEEDS & 6 green cardamom pods to it as it cooks but that is not necessary.)

GARNISH – coconut butter, cilantro, crushed red pepper

DIRECTIONS

Quick soak your beans (see note above) if you did not soak them overnight or for 2 days, as I did.)

Traditionally, the rice is cooked in the same pot with everything else. My Instant Pot was not large enough so I cooked it separately. This is your call – or maybe your pot size will determine your choice but it does not matter much either way.

Rinse the rice. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a very large pot (or your Instant Pot – my pot is 8 Quarts) and soften. Add the garlic & spices & stir to combine.

If you are using a slow cooker, transfer the onions & spices to it. Everything else is the same no matter whether you are slow cooking, Instant Pot cooking or going stove top. Only the cooking time will vary.

Now, add everything else to the pot. If your pot is easily deep enough to hold the rice, too, add that. If you are cooking the rice in the same pot – add 4 additional cups of water to the 6 cups used if you are cooking the rice separately (assuming your rice directions ask for 2 cups water per 1 cup rice. Adjust accordingly if your rice has different directions). Or – just cook the rice separately as the package directs. If you are making your rice separate from the stew, as I did, it is nice to add 1 tsp cumin SEEDS & 6 green cardamom pods to it as it cooks but that is not necessary.

Slow cooker – cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.

Stove top – bring to a boil uncovered for 5 minutes. Reduced heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes or more or until everything is tender.

Instant Pot – seal & cook manually for 10 minutes.

If it is to thick, thin it with extra water. If it is too thin, let is simmer, uncovered, for a while longer.

Serve with rice (if you cooked it separately) and garnish with coconut butter (burns fat & lowers cholesterol) and lots of cilantro & maybe some crushed red pepper.

Here are some articles for more info on kitchari & using it to detox:

What is kitchari? – https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/info/blog-the-banyan-insight/details/what-is-kitchari-why-we-eat-it-for-cleansing

3-Day Cleanse – https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/info/ayurvedic-living/living-ayurveda/cleansing/a-very-simple-three-day-cleanse/

How to do a kitchari cleanse – http://www.krissyruddy.com/how-to-do-a-kitchari-cleanse/

DDD #72 – Vegan New Year’s Day Hoppin’ John & Collard Greens for Instant Pot or Not

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Posted on December 26, 2017

Follow @celisemccarthy

Hoppin’ John is a traditional southern dish, typically served on New Years Day to bring a prosperous new year. Here is WIKIPEDIA’S explanation. I didn’t add peas to mine but you certainly can & I love the idea of serving each bowl with a coin beneath it to ramp up the good fortune.

This is CRAZY easy to make & tastier than you might guess. I made these in my Instant Pot with dried beans but these can be done very quickly on your stove top with canned beans or with dry beans in a slow cooker.

Click the image above to watch the video.

Vegan New Years Day Spicy Hoppin’ John

Serves 4 very well

INGREDIENTS

1 lb dried black eyed peas (or 2 lbs canned – drained & rinsed – if you are going stove top)

1 medium onion – diced

3-6 garlic cloves – diced

4 celery stalks – diced

1 red bell pepper – diced

1 4oz can diced green chilies or jalapenos (optional)

2-3 chipotle peppers in adobo – diced (more or less – to your taste)

1 TBS ground cumin

1 TBS olive oil

4 cups vegetable stock

S&P to taste

GARNISH OPTIONS:

Diced tomatoes

Scallions – sliced

Fresh Italian parsley – chopped

Fresh cilantro – chopped

Red onion – diced

Avocado – sliced

Tabasco, Crystal (or other hot sauce)

COINS (Pennies – silver dollars? Your call) – for placement under each serving dish

Cooked rice

DIRECTIONS

Cook your rice according to the package instructions.

INSTANT POT: Using the saute setting, heat 1 TBS olive oil & saute the onion, celery & bell pepper until soft. Add the garlic & saute one minute. Add the rest of the ingredients & cook, sealed, on the manual setting for 45 minutes.

SLOW COOKER: If you are using dried black eyed peas – bring a pot of water to a rapid boil. Add the black eyed peas & boil for ten minutes. Turn off heat, cover & let stand for an hour. Drain & RINSE WELL.

In a large saute pan, heat the olive oil & saute the garlic, onion, red pepper and celery until the vegetable are soft.

Once your vegetables are sauteed, you simply combine the already partly cooked beans with the vegetables, chipotle, green chilies, cumin, and S&P with 4 cups of veggie stock to your slow cooker. Heat on high for 5 hours.

STOVE TOP:

Use canned beans. Heat 1 TBS olive oil & saute the onion, celery & bell pepper until soft. Add the garlic & saute one minute. Add a cup of vegetable stock and the rest of the ingredients & simmer until heated through & al the flavors meld. Add more stock if the get too dry. Cook on high if they are too watery.

Folded Money Collard Greens

INGREDIENTS

24 oz collard greens – trimmed, chopped & washed

1-2 TBS olive oil

1 large onion – diced

6 (or more) celery stalks – diced

6 garlic cloves – diced

1 TBS crushed red pepper

3 cups veggie stock

1 tsp smoked paprika (optional)

1/4 tsp liquid smoke (optional)

2 tomatoes – diced

Hot sauce as garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Heat olive oil in a pan. Saute the onions & celery until they soften. Add the chopped garlic & crushed red pepper. Saute another 1-2 minutes.

Add the stock and collard greens & smoked paprika, stock. Bring to a boil & then reduce heat to low, cover & simmer – covered – for about 20- 30 minutes. Add chopped tomatoes & liquid smoke. Stir in & let sit on low heat – or removed from heat – for about 30 minutes. Don’t add salt…unless you really like being dehydrated & being unable to remove your rings. Somehow – this is QUITE salty just from the stock.