Tom Kha Ghai

It's funny, I've never been a fan of coconut. It's probably the texture of dried coconut. We had those baby coconuts on a dessert on our honeymoon and I picked around them. However, over the last year or so, as we've had more pan-asian meals, the flavor has grown on me, in a subtle way.  I'm not sure I'll ever be a fan of Almond Joy or Mounds (sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't...) but coconut milk with other flavors is nice.

 We've made Tom Kha Ghai a couple of times. We've finally tailored it to our tastes and food restrictions.  It's nice and light and honestly I could just drink the broth and be happy.

To make 6 or so servings you need:
6 cups broth,
1 stalk lemongrass bruised and chopped into 2" pieces
3 kaffir lime leaves, torn
4" ginger peeled and sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 T siracha or red curry
1 can light coconut milk
baby corn, cut into 1" pieces
water chestnuts, sliced
sugar snap peas, cut into 1/2-1" pieces
broccoli, small florets
cremini mushrooms, sliced
carrots, thinly sliced
fresh lime wedges

1. In a pot simmer broth, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, ginger, and onion for 30 minutes then strain and discard the solids.
2. Add the coconut milk and chili sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.
3. For softer vegetables, add those for the last few minutes, or pour the broth over vegetables in a bowl for firmer vegetables.
4. Serve with a squeeze of lime

Honey Siracha (Cauliflower) Wings

DH was really really excited about this recipe. It eliminates everything about chicken wings I can't handle: fried coating and the chicken itself. It doesn't help that we never found a chicken wing source here before my food restrictions increased. There was some skepticism on Facebook but these were a really big success. Aside from kind of missing the texture of chicken (we were a bone-in kind of people, not boneless wings) DH didn't have any complaints. I made it a little spicy for me but we quickly polished off a whole head of cauliflower (and quickly paid for it with stuffed bellies, I might recommend Bean-o before and peppermint tea after, and some sort of ant-acid.)

DH had them on a bed of carrot matchsticks and celery chunks. I had them on a salad with thin celery half-moons and carrot shreds. We did find a "zero calorie" ranch-like dressing but can't 100% endorse it since it didn't fulfill the burn-cutting quality you want a wing dip to have. If you have no issues with milk or milk derivatives, just buy what ever you prefer - buttermilk ranch, blue cheese, whichever. There are number of dairy-free recipes out there on the internet, if you want to try that instead. 

Note, this is not your traditional buffalo wing sauce. I'm not a fan of the flavor of vinegar-based buffalo sauce but again you can find a recipe out there if you really want or just buy Frank's RedHot Buffalo Wings Sauce. I like the sweetness to cut the spice. Maple syrup would a good substitute for the honey if you so desire.

Pad Thai Summer Rolls

 Summer rolls take me back to college. One of our default after church lunches was at Clay Pot, by the time we moved DH had been going there for something like 8 years. Part of the lunch special was starting with goi cuon ga with a peanut dipping sauce. I usually followed it with a chicken clay pot (I'm not a huge pho fan) but DH would get the lemongrass chicken, extra spicy.

These rolls are pretty much a full meal, maybe could fit in more vegetables but otherwise, fairly balanced. If you want to include the spread in the rolls or not is up to you, we found it less messy but we ate them right away. If you plan on waiting a little while you might want to thin it out and use it as a dipping sauce so it doesn't overly soften the wrappers.

White Bean and Mushroom Soup

This is my take on SkinnyTaste's Tuscan White Bean and Roasted Garlic Soup. Developed the flavor a bit more to fit Zoe's Kitchen's Braised Beans which I have an unhealthy love for (seriously, I need to just get a to go thing of it instead of getting those unnecessary extras like salad or veggie kabobs -which are good but not as good.)  I'm seriously considering using thermos-type tumblers to make my own to-go soups for work and at the barn (need to remember to check to see if there's a microwave in the lounge.)

Festive Shredded Kale Salad

Made this for a lighter option at the church party. It went over really well- as long as I didn't mention at first what leafy green was in the salad until after they tried it.  It's nicely balanced to serve as a main course if you're so inclined. Sliced radish might nice in here, something crunchy. The favorite part seemed to be the dressing. It's a nice all around dressing so it can used on most salads, I would think.

I would definitely eat this the day of. I tried to have leftovers for dinner the next night when DH went to the church's chili cook-off but the garlic was too pungent. If you really like garlic, go for it but even I have my limit and I think garlic bread is the best thing ever (as long as there's no cheese.) I think baking the pecan crumbles into a crouton might be nice, or it might be overkill. That's an experiment for another day.

Hearty Cajun Stew

I'm sure some would argue that this really isn't Cajun but I used blackening seasoning and the Cajun Holy Trinity so good enough for now, I guess. I used Serious Eat's Hearty Winter Vegetable as a base. This recipe produces a stew that I'm pretty happy with just broth (it would probably be better if I used SE's suggested broth recipe but I didn't want to buy more produce.) It definitely benefits from a nice sit after the vegetables all cook.

Empty-the-Crisper Soup with Pesto

I had a craving for a broth-y soup after feeling pretty run down. It was toward the end of the week so the pantry and crisper was starting to look a little bare. So this is a sort of everyday, empty the pantry sort of soup. It is exactly the sort of soup I crave when getting sick too, bonus it's low in FODMAPs so less likely to upset my GI.

Smokey Quinoa Chili

I've been on a soup kick the last few months. We almost always have 2-8 (yes, really) types of soup in the freezer for lunches or a pick-a-soup dinner. This chili has been made quite a few times - at home, at my parents, on vacation with my extended family, for a potluck fiesta going-away party for church (talk about mixing cultures there.) It's not your typical chili, it has beans and no meat so it violates the Texan definition of chili (and the fiesta was for a couple moving back to Texas, oh well, I wanted something that I could eat.) All the same, it's very good, very filling, and I've even added some suggestions in the end to bulk it up even more that start to take it away from chili-land and into Tex-Mex stew land.

Slow Cooker Dal with Chickpeas and Wild Rice

I've started developing a taste for at least mildly spicy food. I can't handle "Vietnamese Hot" level of spicy as we called at one of our favorite Waco restaurants (which now delivers! That would have been dangerous when we lived in the area, although there's nothing terribly unhealthy there) but one chili pepper level, maybe two. You can play around with the chiles, curry powder, and mustard powder for a spicier dish. I didn't want to have to make a separate pot of rice, so I include it here. It's probably not authentic but it works for a weeknight meal. I really like the texture of soaked chickpeas in this and the crunch of wild rice (the brown rice is for DH.)

Moroccan Shepherd's Pie (Vegan and Traditional Versions)

I think I've mentioned before how fantastic our local farmer's markets are. The one we go to is in Falls Church and always has great produce and several stands for fish, meat, cheese, bread, pickles, yarn, and even two soap/skin care stands. We've rarely gotten anything outside of produce but there's a Mennonite family who has a baked goods and meat stand that I knew stocked lamb and DH loves lamb. I've gotten whoopie pies from them before when I didn't want to bake a whole batch but had a craving. I was very pleased, tasted A LOT like home. They also have sticky buns, which are apparently a regional thing? Anyway, lamb, DH loves it, they had it, this seemed the perfect recipe to make that allows us each to have our dietary preferences.

Eggplant Rollatini with Roasted Vegetables

Influenced by Veggie Belly's Vegan Eggplant Rollatini with Couscous and Pinenuts. I can't leave well enough along and wanted more fiber, protein, and texture to the dish. DH wasn't thrilled about the fiber idea, he had a bad run-in with Thai Spaghetti Squash dish I need to tweak a little more, but in the end it worked out. I was going to serve a salad on the side but I think with the all the vegetables in the middle, that's just overkill for the two of us. If I were to make this for a dinner party or for family, I would add a side green salad, maybe some sort of crusty bread, and maybe a chickpea salad.

Baked Falafel and Homemade Tzatziki

I've tried fried falafel, both homemade and at restaurants and while they're good - the oil upsets my stomach (no surprise there, what doesn't these days.) There are a number of recipes out there for falafel both baked and fried, so I cobbled a number together to make a mostly baked version. DH and I both liked the result. I had mine on a salad but DH had his on tortilla (I know pitas are traditional but I didn't want the extras hanging around the house and we needed tortillas for another meal that week.) Using Tori Avey's notes on cooking chickpeas, I used only soaked chickpeas for this recipe to let them have a better chance of holding together. I've made this with canned as well but tried frying them, let's just say our frying technique needs a little (lot) of work, not something we'll probably get around to improving unless I'm really craving fasnachts one year.

Spaghetti Squash with Oyster Mushrooms and Artichoke Pesto Tomato Sauce

We had this as a first dinner after getting back from Labor Day. While we didn't eat as unhealthy as we usually do on family vacations*, it was nice to have something healthier and lighter and full of veggies when we got home. It's not the prettiest because of the mushrooms darkening the sauce to a muddier color but this isn't a dinner party meal anyway.

This recipe is a bit seasonally confused. Winter/fall spaghetti squash and artichokes, summer tomatoes and seasonless oyster mushrooms.  Our Harris Teeter stocks spaghetti squash year round and with the freezer and canning most stores stock artichoke hearts in some form. The tomatoes came from my aunt's garden and the mushrooms from the HT produce section but normally I would use mushrooms from the mushroom stand at the farmer's market (found out it is/was ranked top in the country in it's size category- totally deserved, it has a fantastic selection.)

Grilled Med Salad with Greek-inspired Dressing

During this diet change, I've discovered I really like international foods more. Sure before, we had Chinese take out and went to Bangkok Royal and Clay Pot in Waco but I always got Pad Thai and the Chicken Clay Pot. Even "Mediterranean", which admittedly isn't often that crazy as far as difference goes, was snubbed beforehand. I still don't have a container of pomegranate molasses in the pantry but we do have two overflowing racks of spices on the counter now. I will say going mostly vegan has caused a greater appreciation for the use of spices.

Grilled Mediterranean Salad, based loosely off of http://cravingsomethinghealthy.com/mediterranean-grilled-vegetable-salad/ 

 This is not a pretty salad once all combined but it tastes fantastic, it also looks much nicer when just the veggies are laid out fresh off the grill. I did make quite
 a few changes to the recipe to reflect our tastes and where I saw some gaps.

First things first, thanks to the Oh She Glows cookbook, we've started marinating veggies for at least 30 mn before grilling to get better flavor. So usually around mid-afternoon I'll chop or slice the vegetables as needed and pour the dressing over everything and let them stew, turning carefully every hour or so, as time allowed.

We discovered the other week that we love artichoke hearts. It's a sweeter vegetable and tastes *fantastic* grilled so we doubled the amount of artichoke hearts.

The dressing I made is based off of Zoe's Kitchen but minus the canola oil and with a lazy herb mix. 

Instead of using just plain chickpeas, I make spiced roasted chickpeas using the same spice blend as the dressing. 

I also tossed the farro in garlic and salt. 

Smokey Barbeque Chickpeas and Zucchini Corn Fritters

I'm proud of this recipe. I took a couple of recipes floating around and tweaked them, especially for the fritters. The chickpeas were based off a recipe from The Salad Ninja. I bulked up that recipe with onions becuase why not? The fritters remind me of a no-cholesterol version of Texas Corn Pudding (which I miss so much.) One of the nice thing about cutting out meat and eggs is I rarely have to worry about cross contamination or E.Coli from undercooked eggs (E. Coli is a concern with mung beans, sprouts, and similar though.)

This isn't a super quick meal unless you prep the fritter batter the night before. Definitely drain the onion and zucchini well. Extra liquid makes it hard for the fritters to hold together. 

Philly Portobello Steak Sandwich

Starting off again with a recipe that should make both veggie lovers and people like my dad (who rose a fuss if a meal doesn't clearly contain MEAT, in all caps) happy. I say should because some people just can't be pleased. 

This is based off of Veggies Don't Bite's Philly Portobello Steak Sandwich, though I didn't change that much from the original recipe in all honesty.

DH had a mushroom craving so he really wanted this, especially since it was easy to un-veganize (he added provolone slices to his sandwich.) I never had a taste for the real cheese steak- never being a steak fan and not agreeing with cheese so I can't really compare to the real deal (I also don't like going into Philly so...)

We used Harris Teeter wheat rolls but I found them dry and not crusty enough to hold up. I think a whole wheat french loaf or some sort of hearty bread would be a better option. Next time I think I'll use a modified version of the Basic Bread from the Soup and Bread Cookbook.  Made a whole wheat oatmeal loaf variation the other day that had a fantastic crust.

Butternut Squash and Sage Pasta

Historically, I haven't been the biggest squash fan. I was talking to the other intern the other week who is vegetarian and she was appalled. I decided to give it another try. And now I love it.

Tomato, Broccoli and Shrimp Pesto Pasta

This is a pretty easy, quick meal. Very few dishes, lots of flavor and not that unhealthy. What's pictured made 5-6 servings.  Note, this is very garlic-y. I like garlic though so it works for us.

Make-Ahead Pasta alla Formiana

I'm on the hunt for reasonably healthy recipes to help DH's diet and keep my GI happy (thankfully are very complimentary concepts, those plus keeping DH's appetite happy are slightly different.) One recipe I came across was Picky Eater's Pasta alla Formiana, which she advertised as a healthier baked ziti. I like baked ziti, I like cheese but it violates #2 on my most wanted list so a healthier and potentially cheese free option was fantastic. Unfortunately, it was also vegetarian. DH likes meat, I'm indifferent. We had a 1/2lb of extra lean beef left over since TJ only stocks 1lb packages so I snuck it in.

Stuffed Tomatoes

Barely Adapted From The Shiksa in the Kitchen

We obviously are not under any dietary rules other than what I get sick eating so I felt okay combining sausage and goat cheese.
Anyway, it's pretty healthy- even with the addition of sausage, they're about 250 calories a piece. We usually have at least one left over for lunch the next day.