Pineapple Broccoli and Tofu Stir fry

Pineapples have been on sale all week long. I think it's because Easter and I guess people need pineapples for Easter for some reason. Does Pineapple have anything to do with bunnies or Jesus? I think not. Pretty sure it has something to do with cake or ham or some shit, but I honestly don't care because I just like the fact that I can buy a few (like 3) pineapples without breaking the bank. (I think I am going to buy 3 more for the dehydrator) Plus it is always good to have a pineapple or 3 on the counter at home. You never know when you are going to need one. So lets give a shout out to the Easter bunny and  Jesus. Thanks for the cheap pineapples.  HA!

So now you are have those pineapples, you are going want to eat them. And maybe you don't want to eat them with cake or ham or some shit. You are going to want to eat it the best way...In a stir fry. 

This is by far one of my favorite stir fry combinations. Pineapple does amazing things when cooked a bit, especially with soy, broccoli, and tofu. This dish definitely let's pineapple reach it's full pineapple potential. It is so good that tI think I might even prefer my pineapple cooked along with savory stuff. It is just so right and seriously so freaking good. The mr even get excited for it and he is not the excitable kind of guy. Plus it's fast (especially if you have already cut up your pineapple) and easy because stir fry and that's what stir fries are. Fast and easy, just like..........(insert your favorite fast and easy person and then chuckle)

And don't try to use canned pineapple because no.  Just get the fresh one,even if it's not on sale. It's a must. 

The stuff. A pineapple (you are only going to need 1/3 of this, but you can never have too much fresh pineapple on hand), a big head of broccoli, a little cabbage, and some firm tofu.  Also need some soy, a few cloves of garlic, a little fresh ginger, a bit of oil, and pepper. 

Dice up the tofu into cubes and place on a clean dish towel to absorb some moisture. 

Grab the fresh pineapple. Cut it up the way you do, but the easiest way  for me is to cut in half the cut that half into fourths then cut the skin away. You are going to have a lot of extra pineapple so snack as you need too. I always eat like half of what I am cutting up and end up with pineapple gut. SO maybe watch yourself.  

Pour some soy into a cup and mince the garlic and ginger. 

Garlic, ginger, soy. Looking good.

Cut up about 2ish (or more if you want) pineapple into small mouth sized pieces. Break Broccoli head into small florets and shredded the cabbage. 

Tofu into a lightly oiled hot skillet with a splash of soy, cooked until a nice crisp brown on all sides.  Once it is cooked, remove from pan and set aside.

It's the broccolis turn. Add in the florets and a splash of water to start cooking down for a few minutes, it need the head start. 

Once the broccoli turns bright green and is slightly less raw, add in the pineapple and cook until the broccoli is slightly tender and the pineapple starts to caramalize which will take about 5-7 minutes. 

Add the tofu back in along with the shredded cabbage and dump the soy ginger garlic mixture all over.. Keep cooking and stirring around until everything is hot and the liquid has mostly been absorbed. 

That's some stir fry ladies and gentlemen. 

You might want some rice to accompany your stir fry so think about it and have it ready. Other then that, it's food to face time. 

Enjoy the best stir fry ever. 

Bye.

-C

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Pineapple Broccoli And Tofu Stir Fry 

serves 2

• 1/3 of a fresh pineapple (about 2 cups cubed)
• 1/2  block firm tofu
• a large head of broccoli (about 2 1/2-3 cups of florets)
• 1/4 head of red or green cabbage (about a cup shredded)
• 2-3 cloves garlic
• 3 tablespoons soy or tamari
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
• pepper
• Cooked rice to serve with (Optional)

Cube tofu into 1 inch pieces and either place on a dry towel to absorb the moisture or place the tofu into the microwave and heat for 2 minutes. When you take it out of the microwave there will be a lot of liquid...pour it off and pat the tofu dry. 

Cube fresh pineapple into similar sized pieces and break broccoli into small florets. Shred cabbage. 

Mince garlic and add to a bowl or jar with the grated ginger and soy sauce. 

Place a large skillet on the stove an medium heat. Drizzle in a little olive oil. Once oil is hot, place the tofu in with a splash of soy, cooking until all sides are a nice dark browned. Remove the tofu from pan and add the in the broccoli. Add a splash of water and cook for 5 minutes. Then add in the pineapple and cook for another 5-7 minutes or until the pineapple starts to caramelize and the broccoli os no longer raw.  Add the tofu back in along with the shredded cabbage and pour the soy garlic ginger mixture all over. Sprinkle with pepper to taste. Cook for another 5 minutes or until the liquid has cooked down. 

Serve with rice or quinoa and extra soy if needed.

Sweet Potato Chickpea Hash with Lemon Tahini Sauce

Easy quick dinners are no joke because sometimes life happens and then you are hungry, then hangry,  then maybe yelling and or tears start and nothing is ever going to be good again. And then you eat and everything is A OK, but that time between tears and food can be long, especially when you just can't think so one should have a least a good 2 or 3 good dinners up there sleeve (besides pasta) that can be made quick and easily to avoid the fallout of food deprivation. This bowl of goodness here is one of those. And sure some people might not always have a sweet potato, tahini, or chickpeas is the house  (I ALWAYS have a sweet potato or some type of winter squash and tahini and chickpeas... they are staples here) but with a tiny it of foresight, you can make these things happen too. And then you will make it and realize that you must have these ingredients on hand at all times because yeah, a good go to meal that will prevent the tears.

Admittedly I have made this for the mr but he is not that into it. Says he is not a huge fan of sweet potatoes. (what the fuck is wrong with him?) But me, I eat is and I eat it all.. The sweet potato/chickpea/tahini combination is classic fantastic. This hash is sweet potato sweet, a little chickpea crunchy, salty, savory, and creamy citrusy.  It's all sorts of goodness. I tossed this hash on a big bed of kale (any sturdy green would be good) and only good things happen in my mouth. So the mr. might not like it but I am starting to realize (after 15 years) that my taste is far superior to his. Haha. (but really)  Quick and easy (and healthy) and good.  Make it once and it will turn into on of your go to dinners, unless you don't like sweet potatoes. In that case there is pasta. 

The stuff. Chick peas (I had just made a batch but if you don't have any made already, grab a can) a sweet potato, an onion, a lemon, some tahini, and garlic Also some cumin and chili powder, olive oil, and salt and pepper. 

Preheat your oven and chop up the onion and sweet potato into mouth sized pieces. 

Toss the chopped stuff onto a baking sheet with the chickpeas.

Drizzle the whole shebang with olive oil and toss with cumin, chili powder, and salt and pepper.  

Into the oven it goes.

Half hour later it is all roasted and ready.

Oh quick, make this before the stuff is out of the oven. Tahini, minced garlic, a dash of salt, a bit of the liquid from the chickpeas and the juice of a lemon. Just stick it all in a cup or bowl and mix it around. Then it's done.

Scoop the hash into a bowl (I like a large pile of greens underneath) and cover with the tahini sauce. 

Eat is all to your face.

-C

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Sweet Potato Chickpea Hash With Lemon Tahini Sauce 

dinner for one, a side for two. Very easily doubled or tripled. 

• 1 sweet potato
• 2 cups or 1 can cooked chickpeas drained but liquid reserved 
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• salt and pepper
• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoon tahini
• 1 lemon
• 1/4- 1/2 cup of aquafaba (chickpea liquid)
• 2-3 cloves garlic

Preheat oven to 425

Chop sweet potato and onion into mouth sized cubes and place on a baking sheet. Add the drained chickpeas and drizzle with olive oil and toss around. Sprinkle on the cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper, and toss that around again. When the oven is preheated, slide the baking sheet on in. 

While the stuff is baking, mince the garlic and place it in a bowl with the tahini, the juice of a lemon, and a pinch or two of salt to taste. Add in 1/4 cup of aquafaba and mix it all around. If to thick for your liking, add a little more of the aqaufaba until its a good consistency. 

Check the stuff in the oven after 20 minutes and give it a toss.  Keep baking for another 5-10 minutes or until the sweet potato is cooked and starting to brown. Remove from oven and dump into a bowl (maybe on a bed of greens or rice) and drizzle all over with the tahini sauce.

Eat

Butternut Squash and Lentil Tacos with Jalapeño Avocado Mousse

There are just some things in life that are always right, like puppies, rainbows, human decency, or the smell of  springtime flowers. And tacos. Tacos are always right. Seriously, have you ever meet someone that doesn't enjoy a taco of some sort, of some variety? Everyone has a taco, that is a fact. (Even if you skip the tortilla and go straight for all the fillings like me.)

And if you are like me, lentils and butternut squash are always right too. So are all the veggies and  the avocado. Together all this goodness makes for one amazingly fantastical, very right taco. 

We all need a little bit rightness in our lives right now. Why not start with dinner. 

The stuff. You got to get lenitls, butternut squash, cumin, chili pepper, salt and pepper, and olive oil. Also kale, red onion, cabbage, avocados, a jalapeño, limes, and garlic. And you need something to stick it all in, so flour or corn tortillas. 

Start with making the veggie slaw. Basic here, just chop up the kale, onion, and cabbage into small thin pieces.

All that veggie goodness goes right into a bowl with a sprinkle of salt and the juice of a lime. Give it a good toss to coast it all and set aside to do it's magic. The longer it sits, the better it gets.

Now to roast the squash.  Dice it into small mouth sized pieces. I usually don't peel, but most people do and the mr has been avoiding he peel when he eats the squash so I peeled it (and roasted it and ate it myself) 

Toss the squash in a drizzle of olive oil and the cumin and chili powder and a little salt and pepper. 

Raw squash goes into a preheated skillet (or baking sheet) and roasted until browned and tender. 

Squash meets lentils and it is good. So so good. 

And don't forget the jalapeño mousse. . Dice the jalapeo and the garlic and toss into a blender (or jar to use an emulsion blender) with the avocado, juice of a lime, a sprinkle of salt,  and a little bit of water.

Ready for moussing. 

A pillowy cloud of green goodness. 

You got all the stuff, you know what to do.

Fact. Tacos = happiness. Now get on it. 

-C

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 Butternut Squash and Lentil Tacos with Jalapeño Avocado Mousse

make about 6 tacos 

• 1 1/2 cups cooked french lentils
• 1/2 of a small butternut squash (about 3 cups cubed)
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder 
• salt and pepper
• olive oil
• 2-3 large kale leaves
• 1/4 head of cabbage
• small red onion
• 2 limes
• 1 large or 2 tiny avocados 
• 2-4 tablespoons water cup
• 1 jalapeno
• 2 cloves garlic
• 6 small  flour or corn tortillas 

Grab the kale, cabbage, and red onion and thinly slice and dice into small pieces. Place into bowl, sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and add in the juice of a lime. Give it all a good mix around and set aside. 

Preheat oven to 450.  Place your cast iron skillet or baking sheet in oven while preheating.

Take squash, peel the skin off (if you want) and cut into cubes about an inch big. Place in a bowl and toss with a little olive oil and the cumin and chili powder. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper in and toss it all around. When the oven is preheated, carefully remove the pan and dump the squash in it. Evenly disperse the squash then place the pan back into the oven and roast squash until browned and tender, which takes about 25 minutes. 

When the squash is done, remove and dump into a big bowl along with the lentils.

While the squash is roasting you can go ahead and make the avocado mousse. Scoop avocado fruit into a bowl  or blender and add in the jalapeño (seeds and ribs removed) and the garlic. Add in the juice of a lime and 2 tablespoons water. Blend until smooth. Add in more water to thin out to desired consitancey. 

Now you have everything ready to taco. Grab your tortillas and heat them up if want and start to pile it all on. Lentil squash mixture, a good handful of the veggie slaw, topped with a dollop or two of the avocado mousse. Now you got yourself a taco and it's ready for your face. 

Butternut Chickpea kale coconut casserole topped with hazelnuts

Casseroles are a winter staple. So versatile, easy to make, can feed a few or feed a crowd, and best part is you can stick one into the oven and and kind of forget about it for a while. On a cold day having the oven on is always welcome, and timing with these things, well you can keep it in the oven for a little while longer then it needs because the worst thing that will happen is that it will get a little more crispy, and that is only an added bonus because the crispy bits are the best.  And what I really love about casseroles is left overs. If you are smart you make it bigger then needed so you have some left over to either eat the next day or freeze for a meal later. Leftover casseroles are the best. 

This casserole is a nice, hearty, stick toy your bone with our feeling heavy and gross casserole. Coconut milk and butternut squash give a creaminess, chickpeas for protein and goodness, kale because, and hazelnuts for a nice yummy crunch. All the flavors pair well together and also pair well with many different types of seasonings. I was going to go curry, then I was thinking rosemary, but ended up keeping it simple without any spices which was really nice because the flavors were all rich and clean. But really, you could go a bunch of different ways with this because its a casserole and thats what casserole do. 

The stuff. You will need a can of chickpeas, a can of coconut milk (I used light coconut), some kale, an onion, and a butternut squash (you will only need about 3 -ish cups cubed so your squash doesn't need to be as big as mine was). Also need some garlic, raw hazelnuts, olive oil, coconut flour, and salt and pepper 

Start by chopping the onion into small pieces and mincing the garlic. Add to a big pot with a little olive oil and get it on a medium heat to start to cook it all down. 

While the onions and garlic are cooking,  cube the squash. You probably only need the neck, so cut the bottom off (save for later) and peel the skin (also save for later , for soup or stock). Cut the peeled squash into mouth sized cubes. 

And by the time you are done with the squash, the onion and garlic have had enough time cooking. Add in the can of coconut milk and the coconut flour. Stir in the flour and bring the pot to a boil, then turn heat down to medium again and let cook for a few minutes until it starts to thicken a bit.

Remove from heat and add in the squash, the chickpeas, and salt and pepper. Mix it all around.

Pour directly into the casserole dish filled with kale and give that all a good mix around.

Level it all out and top with the chopped hazelnuts.  Now into the oven it goes. 

And hour or so later, you have yourself a casserole ready for for your face.

Grab a bowl and dig on in.

-C

P.S. We realized as we are eating that a really goof vinegary hot sauce or lime juice are perfect addition to this dish. So do that. 

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Butternut Chickpea Kale Coconut Casserole Topped with Hazelnuts 

serves 3-5

• 1 can light coconut milk
• 1 can chick peas drained 
• 3 ish cups cubed butternut squash
• 1/2 bundle of kale (like 5 big handfuls chopped up)
• 1/2 cup chopped raw hazelnuts
• 1 onion
• 2 tablespoons coconut flour ( can sub regular flour)
• 4-5 cloves garlic
• olive oil
• salt and pepper 
• Either vinegary hot sauce or a lime wedges (optional for serving)

preheat oven to 375

Start by chopping the onion into small pieces and mincing the garlic. Add to a large pot with a tablespoon of olive oil and place on a medium heat to start cooking. 

While the onions are going, peel and dice your squash. The easiest way to do this is to cut the neck off and then peel that. (save the peels and the base for soup) Dice the peeled squash into mouth sized cubes and set aside.

Once the onions are lightly cooked, whisk in the canned coconut milk and the coconut flour. Bring mixture to a boil then return to a medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the milk starts to thicken a bit. Add in the squash, the chick peas, and a teaspoon of salt and pepper. Mix together. Add in the chopped up kale and mix that it then dump it all into 3 quart casserole dish. Level it out and top with the chopped hazelnuts. Place the casserole into the oven and bake for 1 hour ( or a little longer for the crispier crunchy parts. 

Once you remove from oven, let sit for 5-10 minutes to set up and then call it ready. 

Serve with hot sauce and or lime wedges.

Any left over is great for a meal  within then next few days or frozen for a meal down the road 

Summer Bounty with Lentils Salad

All at once is how it goes. The garden is all star fantastic and just won't quit.  I find myself picking 4-6 cucumbers and the same in squash every morning. The tomatoes plant are a freaking jungle and there are so so so many tomatoes, all just about to ripen. The kale is doing it's thing, growing big and green and I pick a few handfuls a day. And then there are all the beets and carrots and cabbage,chard, and kidney beans. It's big, and prolific and amazing. I am much proud of myself for growing a shit load of awesomeness.

And then there is the farm share. I get all my garden stuff times 10. Tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, kale. Not to mention the corn, onion, carrots, and herbs and all the flowers. The food keeps on coming.  I live in a house, with a big kitchen, with lots of counter and a full sized fridge, yet I still don't have a place for it all. The squash overflow has now made it's way to the dinning room. But I am not complaining.

The new rule that I have instated in the house. Every meal must contain at least two tomatoes, a cucumber, and some kale. Want a snack, grab a zucchini. You thirsty? well eat a cucumber. No joke. I get a little stressed out about how much food is around that needs to be eaten or canned, but that is good stress. I am on the lookout for a chest freezer to help with the stress. I promised myself that I would have one by now so I need to get on that asap.

Summer harvest. This is the time of year that I gain a few pounds. It's a zucchini tomato belly for sure.

And this salad. I am a huge fan of the B.A.S (big ass salad). A big ass bowl of all the goodness from farm and garden plus some lentil protein and a little good avocado fat. Fresh and clean and delicious. Makes you feel all good when you eat it.  So go for it. Eat yourself a B.A.S. you wont regret it.

The stuff. Cucumbers (that is a white cucumber and it's really tasty) tomatoes, some kale, parsley, and cilantro. Also need some onion, cooked lentils, and at least half an avocado. Salt. pepper, and red wine vinegar for the finish.

Kale. parsley, and cilantro get a good rough chop and then tossed into a big ass bowl.

Cucumber, onion, and tomatoes get their turn next and chopped into mouth sized pieces. Into the bowl as well.

Top it all with cooked lentil, some avocado, and a glug glug of vinegar. Season with salt and pepper.

Toss it all around.

Now all you need is a fork.

All the summertime in a bowl. Here's to summer bellies!

-C

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Summer Bounty with Lentils Salad

• 2 cucumbers
• 2 small or 1 large tomato
• 1/2 of an onion
• 1 cup cooked lentil
• 1/2 an avocado
• 3-4 large kale leaves
• handful fresh cilantro
• handful fresh parsley
• red wine vinegar
• salt and pepper

First off, grab a really big bowl. Take herbs and kale and chop into small pieces. Place in bowl. Next dice up you onion, tomato, and cucumbers into mouth sized pieces and toss those into bowl. Dump the cooked lentils on top of that and dice the avocado (I used half but you can use whole one) into little pieces and through that on too. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper and a glug (about a table spoon or two) of vinegar.

Now mix until all combines. Taste and if needed, add more salt, pepper, and/or vinegar.

Now its done. Grab a fork and eat to your face.