Vegan Chili with Avocado

Vegan Chili with Avocado

Since moving downtown and kicking up the work hours, I have been finding myself spending less and less time in my gorgeous kitchen. Which is completely obvious by the lack of posts the last couple of months, right?

As the school year comes to a close and the realization that I am about to spend my summer living in dormitories hits me, I am racing back to my kitchen to kick it into high gear. However, I still don't have a ton of time during the weekdays. Thus, I am trying to prepare meals that can be reheated throughout the week. This one was a winner so I had to share.

Vegan Chili with (optional) Avocado - Serves 8

Ingredients
1 block of extra firm organic tofu packed in water (14-ounce package)
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 small red onions, chopped
2 lb frozen broccoli
5 cloves of garlic, diced
1 15-ounce can of no-salt added pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-ounce can of no-salt added black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-ounce can of no-salt added kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes
1 4-ounce can of chopped chilies
2.5 cups frozen sweet corn kernels
2 large zucchini, diced

Instructions
1. Freeze the tofu. Defrost it fully. Squeeze all excess water and crumble.

2. Lay bag of frozen broccoli out on table. Beat to death with a meat cleaver. Feel better about life and get lots of broccoli crumbs in the process. I guess you could also just defrost and dice it but that's not what I did. My method was both tasty and therapuetic ;o)

3. Heat large stockpot over medium-high heat and brown tofu with chili powder and cumin for several minutes.

4. Add onions and cook for several more minutes.

5. Add remaining ingredients. Stir well. Bring temperature down to a simmer. Cover and let cook for 2.5 to 3 hours.

I mashed up an avocado and spooned some of it on top for a creamy element. Nutritional Information does not include avocado because I'll be honest... I can't measure that goodness!

Nutritional Information for 1/8 of recipe: 296 calories, 2.9g fat, 47g carbs, 14.5g fiber, 17.5g protein
Nutritional Information for full recipe: 2364 calories, 23g fat, 378g carb, 116g fiber, 17.5g protein

Peanut Butter, Kidney Bean, and Yam Stew

Peanut Butter, Kidney Bean, and Yam Stew - Do you know how hard it is to photograph late at night?!?

I love a good stew and I love peanut butter, so this summer when I had an opportunity to try some peanut butter stew, I was in LOVE! The stew was made by one of the administrators at the residential debate camp I was teaching at and she made it in a slow cooker. I kept meaning to ask for the recipe and I am sure at one point she even told me where she got her inspiration... but as the summer wound down and school picked up, I forgot to ask. However, I never forgot that stew.

This weekend while in Alaska, I was reading Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's The 30-Day Vegan Challenge, I found a stew that sounds like it had a similar flavor profile as the stew I enjoyed this summer although slightly different. So I took the recipe from this book, along with what I remembered from the summer stew, and modified it for my slow cooker. The resulting stew was creamy, sweet, spicy, salty. A mouthful of flavor and texture that tasted even better the second day!

While you can probably sub in sweet potatoes (and in some parts of the country yams are more difficult to find), I am a fan of the drier and more starchy yam. According to the Library of Congress, here are the differences!

The stew in a different lighting attempt!

Peanut Butter, Kidney Bean, and Yam Stew
Makes 10 1-cup serving

2 medium yellow onions, peeled and chopped
2 red bell peppers, deseeded and chopped
3 yams, cubed (I keep the skin on and scrub them well before cutting them)
5 cups of water
2 cubes of vegan vegetable bouillon cubes (you can replace these and the water with 5 cups of vegetable broth)
1 can (15-ounce) of kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15-ounce) of diced tomatoes
1/2 cup of creamy peanut butter
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced ginger
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp sea salt

Mix all ingredients in slow cooker and cook on low for 8-11 hours (I say 11 because that's when I got home and enjoyed it!).

When I calculated the WW pointsplus points for the items that have points (yams, bouillon, kidney beans, peanut butter, brown sugar) I got 5 points per serving.

Thai Creamed Mustard Greens

I rarely hit the center aisles of the grocery store. I saw a great post on Twitter the other day that called it the "Black Hole" of the grocery store. And while I think the intention of steering folks away from the over-processed that find their home in those colorful center aisles, I think we often miss some great nutritional bargains when we refuse to venture into the pit. If I hadn't explored this abyss, I would have missed the 60-cent can of mustard greens that made my evening meal memorable.

Let me apologize first, for the lack of a photo. Trust me when I say I tried to capture this side dish in all it's gooey green goodness. But I just couldn't manage to find this brown and green creamy mass in a way that would make you want to eat it. So you will have to trust me that it is delicious but not feeling the close-up! Plus, according to Whole Foods, mustard greens are ridiculously good for you with high amounts of vitamins K & A.

I labeled it Thai because it reminds me of a creamy spicy peanut sauce served with chicken satay and spinach at a local Thai restaurant. It's simple and easy to make and would be great accompanying chicken or shrimp. I enjoyed it paired with 3 ounces of Wildwood Organic Royal Thai Baked Sprouted Organic Tofu and a half cup of Kashi Seven Whole Grain Pilaf.

Thai Creamed Mustard Greens
1 tsp Garlic Gold olive oil or a tsp of olive oil sauteed with a clove of crushed garlic
1 can of mustard greens, drained
1 tbsp of crushed red pepper (less if you aren't a spicy food fan)
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp creamy peanut butter, I used Earth Balance natural peanut butter

Heat oil in a medium sauce on medium high. Add mustard greens and heat through. This will take about one to two minutes. Add red pepper, sea salt and peanut butter and reduce heat to medium. Let cook for another minute or two, stirring peanut butter in to melt.

Makes three half-cup servings at 89 calories, 7 grams of fat, 2.5 grams of fiber, 4 grams of protein


Mustard Greens