Tuesday, January 15, 2013

"Healthy in a Hurry" Cooking Demo

So I'm slowing trying to get back into my blog, it has been neglected...but the tide is slowly turning.

Last night I ventured out in to the cold to my local Whole Foods, attending a $5 cooking demo. Plus it gave me a reason to wonder the aisles looking at all the yummyness!




The class was instructed by two lovely ladies Amanda and Heather. Now I've taking this classes before, its actually where I learned about canning and sparked my desire to preserve my own food. Tonight, following their healthly living, all the recipes are vegan.



First, was the Sweet Potato Chipotle Black Bean Taquitos. These were very simple to make and assemble, plus I love the idea that they can be frozen.
It was served with salsa, very yummy. Second, was the Orange rice and black bean salad. This tasted a little bland to me and I'm not crazy about celery. However, I think that I would add some orange juice to the dressing and some salt. The walnuts suggested in the recipe would also be fantastic.



Then came the Pasta con Broccoli, which is an adapted recipe from "Appetite for Reduction: 125 Fast and Filling Low-Fat Vegan Recipes". This was a very tasty, garlicky dish, plus it is perfect to add different or more vegetables to the dish.



Lastly was dessert, Mango-Lime Sorbet....oh ya. This was really good and super fast to make. You could also make and put into popsicle containers.

Overall it was a great class and left me excited to attend the now once a month class, next time I won't eat dinner before hand.

Now I'm sure that everyone is craving the food from by beautiful phone photos... well here they are. Enjoy and let me know what you think.



Sweet Potato Chipotle Black Bean Taquitos
Makes 12
1 baked sweet potato, skin removed
½ tsp. chipotle chili powder (or to taste)
Pinch of each: cinnamon and cumin
1 c. cooked black beans
1 pkg of corn tortillas

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium-mixing bowl, using a potato masher, mash sweet potato with chili powder, cinnamon, and cumin. Add black beans to bowl and fold into the sweet potato mixture with rubber spatula. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Heat a small non-stick skillet on the stovetop on medium high heat. Warm corn tortillas flipping often until they are warm and flexible, but not crispy. Use tortilla immediately. Spoon about 3 to 4 tablespoons of the filling into the middle of the tortilla and roll up. Place seam side down on baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas.
Bake taquitos in the oven for 10-15 minutes until crispy. Let cool for a few minutes before serving with salsa.
Note: These will freeze well to save for a quick snack later. After baking place taquitos on a cookie sheet in the freezer and freeze over night. Place in ziplock bags and store for later. Reheat in microwave for 30-45 seconds.

Orange Rice and Black Bean Salad
½ c. canned black beans
¾ c. cooked brown rice
½ c. finely chopped celery (about 1 stalk)
½ c. peeled and sliced orange
¼ c. chopped scallion
1 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
Salt (optional) and pepper
1 Tbsp chopped walnuts (optional)

Dressing:
¼ c. plus ½ tsp orange juice
1 Tbsp cider or balsamic vinegar
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
In medium bowl, combine the beans, rice, celery, orange, scallion, and cilantro.
In a small bowl, combine orange juice, vinegar and cinnamon.
Pour dressing over the rice salad and stir thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with walnuts

1 serving.


Pasta con Broccoli
Serves 4
½ lb. whole-wheat linguine
Few tbsp of veggie broth or water for sautéing
¼ c. thinly sliced garlic
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried thyme
1 c. vegetable broth
½ c. dry white wine
4 c. broccoli, tops cut into florets, stalks sliced thinly
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and prep all your ingredients while the water boils, because the dish comes together in no time. Once the boiling, add pasta and cook according to package directions, usually for about 10 minutes.
Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Saute the garlic, red pepper flakes, and thyme with veggie broth or water (add more as needed) for about a minute, be careful not to burn them. Stir in veggie broth and wine. Add the broccoli, turn up the heat and simmer and cover the pan. Cook for 8 to 13 minutes, depending on how soft or firm you like your broccoli, stirring occasionally.
When pasta is done cooking, drain and add it to the pan using a pasta spoon to toss it around for about 3 minutes, making sure to get everything coated. Mix in balsamic vinegar. Season with salt and pepper.
Note: this is also fantastic with a sprinkle of toasted pine nuts on top.
Recipe Adapted from : Appetite for Reduction: 125 Fast And Filling Low-Fat Vegan Recipes; by Isa Chandra Moskowitz


Mango-Lime Sorbet
4 c. frozen mango chunks
½ c. honey (optional)
¼ c. fresh lime juice
Fresh raspberries to garnish

 Thaw mango chunks for 15 minutes, Place in blender or food processor and puree with honey and lime juice. Transfer to shallow glass or metal bowl, and place in freezer. Freeze 30 minutes, stir puree 15 minutes until ready to use.

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