Roasted Vegetables and Shrimp with Mushrooms in a Sun Dried Tomato Marinade

Ingredients:

• 2 sweet potatoes
• 2 zucchini
• 2 large handfulls of green beans
• 2 cups of mushrooms
• 1 bag of shrimp, defrosted if frozen, peeled and deveined
• 6 sun dried tomatoes
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 Tbsp basil
• 1/2 cup of olive oil, separated into two 1/4 cup portions
• 1 Tbsp butter
• freshly ground pepper, about 1/2 Tsp or to taste
• sea salt, about 2 Tsp or to taste

Directions:

1. Rehydrate the sun dried tomatoes by soaking them in boiling water for 15 minutes.
2. In a food processor, puree the rehydrated tomatoes, 1/4 cup of olive oil, garlic, basil and pepper.
3. Spoon the tomato mixture over the shrimp and marinate for 30 minutes.
4. Peel the sweet potato, and slice into 1/2" disks.
5. Wash the zucchini and slice into 1/2" disks.
6. Wash and trim the ends off the green beans.
7. Place the sweet potato, zucchini and green beans into a large tupperware container and drizzle with 1/4 cup of olive oil. Sprinkle with sea salt, cover the container and shake to coat. Marinate for at least 15 minutes.
8. (Since your veggies and shrimp probably still need some time to marinate, now would be a good time to pour yourself a glass of wine).
9. Spread sweet potatoes, zucchini and green beans onto separate parchment-lined cookie sheets and roast in a 400 degree oven. The sweet potato should go in first, followed by the green beans 10 minutes later, and the zucchini 5 minutes after that. Rotate the cookie sheets every 5 minutes, and flip the veggies over at least once in the roasting process. After the sweet potatoes have been roasting for about 25 minutes, all the veggies should be cooked perfectly.
10. While the veggies are roasting, clean and quarter the mushrooms.
11. In a pan over medium heat, melt butter and add the mushrooms and shrimp, along with any remaining marinade. Saute until shrimp is opaque and mushrooms are softened and begin to release their juices.
12. As the shrimp are just finished cooking, remove the veggies from the oven and plate them, then spoon the shrimp and mushrooms on the side. Serve with a dry white wine (assuming there's any left over after step # 8) and enjoy!

Hearty Vegetarian Chili

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp. butter


• 3 cloves of garlic


• 2 celery stalks, thickly sliced


• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped


• 1 sweet onion, roughly chopped


• 1 pkg of Ground Round


• 2 cans of mixed beans, drained and rinsed


• 1 can of lentils, drained and rinsed


• 1 can of chopped tomatoes


• 2 cups of vegetable broth

Spices:

• 3 Tbsp Chili powder


• 2 Tsp paprika


• 1 Tsp cumin


• 1 cinnamon stick


• 1/2 Tsp cocoa powder


• 1/2 Tsp chili flakes (or more, to taste)

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan over medium heat brown the chopped onions in butter until just softened. Add the garlic, celery and carrots and cover. Cook until carrots begin to soften, approximately 5 minutes.


2. Add Ground Round to the frying pan and cook for an additional 2 minutes.


3. While the Ground Round releases it's flavours, turn a large crock pot to high and pour in the beans, tomato and all ingredients on the "spices" list.


4. Add the vegetable mixture from the saucepan into the crock pot, and place the pan back on the stove over low heat.


5. Deglaze the frying pan with vegetable stock, scraping the bottom of the pan to pull up any caramelized onion and browned veggie bits. After heating through, add the broth to the crock pot.


6. Cook chili in the crock pot for 3 hours on high heat or 5-6 hours on low heat, stirring occasionally. Remove the cinnamon stick near the end of the cooking time.


7. Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream and whole grain nacho chips for a warm and hearty meal on a cold winter evening!

Spinach Salad with Fresh Fruit and Candied Almonds

Ingredients

• 6 cups of baby spinach, washed and dried
  
• 1 cup of fresh berries such as strawberries or blueberries
  
• 1/3 cup whole blanched almonds
  
• 1/4 cup superfine white sugar
  
• 2 green onions
  
• 1/3 cup crispy chow mein noodles
  
• Lemon Poppyseed Dressing

Directions

1. Pour sugar into a non-stick skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently until it melts and becomes golden in colour.
   
2. Add the almonds, stirring quickly with a non-stick spatula to coat. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the almonds onto a small sheet of parchment paper to cool. 
   
3. Once almonds have cooled (about 5 minutes), break the candied almond clumps apart with your fingers.
   
4. Remove the stems from the strawberries, wash and quarter them and set aside. If using blueberries, simply wash and set aside.
   
5. Slice the green onions into either long thin strips or small rounds and set aside.
   
6. Fill a serving bowl with the clean, dry spinach and sprinkle the almonds, berries, and green onions on top.
   
7. Serve with chow mein noodles for crunch and lemon poppyseed dressing for an extra splash of flavour.
   

Chinese Hoisin Stir-Fry

Ingredients:
* 3 tbsp hoisin sauce

* 1 tbsp oyster sauce
* 1 tbsp sesame oil+ 2 tbsp
* 2 tbsp soy sauce + 2 tbsp
* 1 tbsp rice vinegar
* 2 tbsp sugar or liquid sweetener
* 3/4 cup vegetable broth
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 tsp fresh ginger, minced
* 1 tbsp corn starch
* approx. 1 cup tofu, chopped into 1 inch pieces
* 3-4 green onions, chopped
* 1 red or yellow bell pepper
* approx 2 cups broccoli, chopped

Preparation:
1. In a small saucepan, whisk together hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, 1 tbsp sesame oil, 2 tbsp soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, vegetable broth, garlic, ginger and corn starch over medium heat. Allow to simmer until mixture thickens, about 5-7 minutes, then remove from heat and set aside.
2. In a large wok or skillet, stir-fry tofu in 2 tbsp sesame oil and 2 tbsp soy sauce until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Add onions, pepper and broccoli and stir-fry another 2-3 minutes.
3. Add sauce mixture to the stir-fry and combine well, allowing to cook another 2-3 minutes, until broccoli is tender-crisp.
4. Serve your Chinese vegetable stir-fry over cooked rice or noodles, if desired.

Curried Squash Soup

Ingredients

• 1 large Hubbard squash, cut into large chunks (5” x 5” works well)


• 1 large sweet onion, cut into wedges


• 1 head of garlic


• 1 ¼ cups of coconut milk


• 3 cups of vegetable broth


• 2 cup of apple juice


• ¼ tsp cinnamon


• 2 ½ tsp curry powder


• ¼ tsp ginger
  

Directions

* Preheat oven to 375. Cut the top ¼” from the head of garlic, exposing the cloves within. Drizzle with olive oil and wrap in aluminium foil. Arrange squash cut side down on a foil-lined cookie sheet along with onion wedges, and roast in the oven with the head of garlic for 45 minutes to an hour.
* Remove from the oven and once cooled, scoop the flesh from squash pieces into a mixing bowl. Add the roasted onion, discarding any pieces that appear burnt. Using gentle pressure from the bottom of the head of garlic, squeeze the roasted cloves out of the head into the bowl with the squash and onion. Mix roughly with a large spoon and set aside.
* In a large pot, combine and simmer the vegetable broth, apple juice and coconut milk over medium heat. As the liquids begin a rolling boil, whisk in the cinnamon, curry powder and ginger.
* Reduce the heat to medium-low and gradually add the squash mixture, using a hand blender to puree the squash, onions and garlic into the stock base until fully incorporated.
Cover and simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 20 to 30 minutes to allow flavours to combine and deepen. Serve with rustic bread on a cold autumn or winter evening!

Cheese Enchiladas in Green Sauce

Ingredients

Sauce

• a 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• 2 cups 10% cream
• 6 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 3 green onions, minced
• 2-3 diced green chilies
• 1 3/4 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
• 2 cloves minced garlic

Enchiladas

• 12 tortillas - I use whole wheat
• 3 cups grated pepper jack cheese
• 1 1/2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese
• 1 can refried black beans
• 1/2 cup finely chopped sweet onion
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

• 1/2 cup sour cream

Directions

For sauce: Defrost the frozen spinach according to package instructions, drain well and set aside. Melt butter in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add flour and stir mixture 2 minutes; do not brown. Gradually whisk in the 10% cream. Simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir in spinach, cilantro, green onion, chilies, garlic, cumin, coriander and dried red pepper. Puree in batches in processor until almost smooth. Season with salt and pepper if desired, and set aside.

For enchiladas: Combine cheeses in large bowl; set aside 1 1/2 cups for topping. Combine onion and cilantro in small bowl. Spread refried beans over tortilla, then sprinkle 1/4 cup of cheese mixture on top. Spread 2 teaspoons onion mixture over. Roll up tortilla. Place seam side down in large glass baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas, beans, cheese and onion, using 1/4 cup cheese for each.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Stir sour cream into sauce; pour over enchiladas. Sprinkle with reserved 1 1/2 cups cheese. Bake until cheese melts and enchiladas are heated through, about 35 minutes.