Steel Cut Oat Bean Chili

One of my favorite vegan chefs out there, Chef AJ, shared a recipe on Facebook for a Steel Cut Oat Bean Chili. The picture itself oh so appetizing. The recipe was super simple. It looked like it would come together is around 30 minutes. The temperatures have been dropping all week and today .. snow was coming down in gentle flurries all day long. It was a perfect day for a bowl of chili. I even had all the ingredients on hand. It was meant to be :) 

Adapted from: www.sheknows.com (original recipe in OATrageous Oatmeals, by Kathy Hester)

Prep Time: ~25-30 min

Ingredients (Serves 4):

1. 2 cups water 
2. 1.5 tsp Better than Bouillon Vegetable Base 
3. 1/2 cup steel-cut oats
4. 1 tbsp Oregano
5. 1.5 tbsp Ground Cumin
6. 1 tsp Smoked Chipotle Chili powder
7. 1 tbsp Minced Garlic
8. 1 (14.5 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed 
9. 1 (14.5 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed (or 1-1/2 cups homemade)
10. 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
11. 1 cup frozen corn
12. 1.5 tsp Liquid smoke
13. 1 tsp Freeze-dried Cilantro leaves (or fresh)
14. Juice of 1/2 a lime (optional)
15. Salt, to taste

Directions:

I pretty much followed the directions on the sheknows.com website with the exception that I did not wait for the oats to be completely cooked before I added the rest of the ingredients. I let everything cook together which blended the flavors much better in my opinion. Bring the water and vegetable base to a boil in a heavy cast iron pot (I used my Le Creuset). Add oats, bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium and allow to cook for a couple of minutes. Then stir in remaining ingredients, bring to a boil again and reduce heat to low, cover with a heavy lid to prevent excessive evaporation and serve when the oats are completely cooked (about 20 min). I forgot to use the lime juice listed in the original recipe. And with the vegetable base I used, I didn't even need to add salt to this recipe. It turned out great!!

My Assessment: This chili was really good. I love using different grains in my chili recipes and hadn't used Oats until now. The recipe was so simple, even with my couple of substitutions and additions, anyone could throw it all in a pot and have a wholesome dinner in half an hour!! A+++ 

Nutrition Facts (Per Serving): Calories 242 (Fat Calories 19)
Total Fat 2.1 g; Carbohydrates 44.7 g; Fiber 9.8 g; Sugars 3.5 g; Protein 12.0 g


If you liked this recipe, be sure to check out my Recipe Index for more Whole-Food, Plant-Based, No-Added-Oil recipes. You can also like Rugrat Chow! on Facebook. Thanks!

Chickpea Hash

As part of a whole-foods lifestyle, it is my attempt to reduce our overall consumption of processed grains and grain products, especially white rice and white pastas. My husband is not a big fan of brown rice. He loves barley and bulgur but the mention of brown rice usually elicits a long face ;-) !!! So I'm always looking for different ways of substituting white rice in my recipes. Today, as I was getting ready to prepare dinner, I decided to switch white rice with potatoes. My initial thought was to just serve my chickpea recipe over steamed potatoes, but then I decided to try something different. And the result was actually phenomenal. Tony has 2 bowls full :) despite his initial reservations.  

Prep Time: 20-25 min

Ingredients (Serves 4):

1. 2 x 15oz cans Chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
2. 1 Small Red Onion
3. 4 Medium Roma Tomatoes
4. 4-5 Small Russet Potatoes
5. 2 tsp Garlic Powder
6. 2 tsp Onion Powder
7. 2 tsp Italian Seasoning
8. 1 tsp fresh diced or freeze-dried Basil
9. 1 tsp Paprika, to taste
10. 2 cups Water or Home-made Vegetable Broth 
11. Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:

Dice onion and 2 tomatoes and set aside. Puree the remaining 2 tomatoes in a blender until smooth and set aside. Peel potatoes and shred to match stick fries or hash brown thickness using a food processor or julienne using a mandolin slicer (about 2 cups). I used a mandolin today as I already had it out for the baked chips I made earlier. Set aside until ready to use. Line a heavy pot with water and add onions. Saute on medium-high heat until onions are translucent and add tomatoes and garlic and onion powders and saute until almost all the water has evaporated and the tomatoes take on a deep red color from the caramelizing sugars. Add a splash of water and add hash potatoes. Toss well making sure that the potatoes don't stick to the bottom or burn. Once well mixed, add 2 cups of water or broth, and add chickpeas. Add remaining seasonings, mix well, cover and simmer on low for 10 min, or until potatoes are fork tender. As the potatoes cook, they'll release some of their starches and make the broth rich and creamy and starchy. Garnish with fresh basil and freshly cracked black pepper. Enjoy! 

My Assessment: This was a great way to sub out rice or even pasta in this dish. Loved the starchy feel of the potato and the shredded/julienned potato almost had a pasta like consistency in this dish. Tony loved it and so did I. :)

Nutrition Facts (Per Serving)*: Calories 271 (Fat Calories 17)
Total Fat 1.9 g; Carbohydrates 55.3 g; Fiber 16.2 g; Sugars 5.7 g; Protein 13.4 g

* Nutrition facts are provided for the water option as vegetable broth calorie content can vary.

If you liked this recipe, be sure to check out my Recipe Index for more Whole-Food, Plant-Based, No-Added-Oil recipes. You can also like Rugrat Chow! on Facebook. Thanks!

Mushroom, Barley and Herb Risotto

Someone on Facebook posted a picture of their lunch - Creamy Mushroom Barley from Happy Herbivore Abroad. I decided I needed just that for dinner. Unfortunately, I'd loaned my book to a friend and didn't want to call and ask for a recipe ;) lest they feel like I was pressuring them to return the book. So I decided to Google a Mushroom & Barley risotto. I found a recipe online which I ended up adapting to the WFPBNO way. 

Mushroom, Barley & Herb Risotto

Adapted from: American Diabetes Association - My Food Advisor

Prep Time: 30 min

Ingredients (Serves 4):

1. 1 cup Barley (Hull-less, whole berries)
2. 2.5 cups Vegetable Broth (or water)
3. 10-12 White Mushrooms, stemmed and halved. 
4. 1 Medium White Onion, diced
5. 1 tbsp Minced Garlic
6. 2 tbsp Low-Sodium Soy Sauce, or Bragg's Liquid Aminos
7. 2 tsp Better than Bouillon Mushroom Base
8. 2 tsp fresh minced Oregano
9. 2 tsp fresh minced Parsley
10. 2 tsp fresh minced Basil
11. Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:

Rinse barley until the water runs clean. Transfer barley to a pressure cooker with 2 cups Vegetable broth and mushroom base and cook on high for 22 minutes. Release steam (or allow to self-dissipate if you have the time). Meanwhile line a deep pot with more vegetable broth, turn heat to medium-high, and add onions and garlic. Saute until garlic is fragrant and onion is cooked down. Add soy sauce, and minced herbs and toss well. Then add mushrooms and cook for another 2-5 minutes. You want the mushrooms to warm up nicely but don't want them to cook down completely. 

Once barley is done, turn heat on medium-high and slowly transfer any liquid in the barley to the mushroom mixture first. Allow liquid to evaporate, not completely, but almost gone. Then add barley in slow scoop-fulls tossing everything in between, until all the barley is transferred. Allow any excess liquid to dry up completely. Serve warm with freshly cracked black pepper. 

My Assessment: We loved it!! Tony had 2 servings!! We both loved the chewy texture of barley in this dish and enjoyed the lovely mushroom flavor imparted by the fresh mushrooms as well as the mushroom base. A+ !!! Next step - when I get my book back, I'll need to compare it to the HHA version. I'd imagine it would be quite similar, as I have adapted my cooking style to match Lindsay's quite closely. (**Note: My barley was a little soupy (added too much water while PCing) so I added some pre-made Brown rice to the risotto to get it dried up and onto the table - we were starving!**). 

Nutrition Facts (Per Serving)*: Calories 204 (Fat Calories 11)
Total Fat 1.2 g; Carbohydrates 40.7 g; Fiber 9.4 g; Sugars 2.4 g; Protein 8.4 g

* Nutrition facts are provided for the water option as vegetable broth calorie content can vary a lot.

3 Rice, 3 Berry, 3 Herb Salad

Summer Days call for chilled salads, Summer Days are Berry Days, and Summer Days are Fresh Herb Days as well. We had a 3x Birthday party in the family today and I wanted to make sure I had a plant-based dish to take along. I wanted to try Chef AJ's Quinoa Salad with Currants and Pistachios - but our niece is allergic to nuts and I wasn't sure if she'd ever been tested for Quinoa. But now, my mind was hooked on to memory of that salad :) !!! I decided to make a variation of it. Here's what I came up with. 

3 Rice & 3 Berry Salad

Prep Time: Overall 30 min, or so in 2 stages.

Ingredients: 

1. 1/2 cup White Basmati Rice
2. 1/2 cup Brown Basmati Rice
3. 2-3 tbsp Long grain Wild Rice
4. 2-3 tbsp Raisins
5. 1 cup fresh Red Raspberries
6. 1 cup fresh Blackberries
7. 1 cup fresh Strawberries
8. 2 tbsp Agave Syrup, or Honey
9. 1/8 cup Soy milk
10. 2 tbsp fresh chopped Basil, 
11. 2 tbsp fresh chopped Mint 
12. 2 tbsp fresh chopped Oregano

Directions: 

Boil rice, all 3 kinds together, in ample amounts of water until tender. Add the raisins to the boiling water for the last 2 minutes (this helps plump them up!). Drain and spread thinly on a cookie sheet and put in the refrigerator for 30 minutes (chill completely). Meanwhile wash and drain berries and slice strawberries and set aside. Put Agave syrup (or honey) in a small microwave safe bowl with the non-dairy milk and heat for 10 seconds to dissolve it in the milk. Once rice is chilled, move to a mixing bowl, add agave/milk mixture and toss well. Add chopped herbs and berries and give a final toss. Do a quick taste check - the rice should be just slightly sweet - add more 'agave in milk' if needed.

Cover and chill until ready to serve. The longer it sits, the better the flavors combine - the berry flavors and juices penetrate the rice, the herbs release their essential oils and flavor the rice and the berries! This is a salad where the wonderful aromas invite you to dig in.

My Assessment:  Loved it. What's not to like! The family liked it too :)

Herb Fresh Quinoa Pasta

I started a herb garden this year and right now, despite constant and very regular pruning, I've got an herb-garden-gone-wild situation. An abundance of Basil, a ton of oregano, insane amounts of mint and spearmint and a sage bush :) The only 2 that aren't going so crazy are the rosemary and the cilantro. Anyhow, I knew that I wanted to use a lot of 'something' for dinner tonight, and this is the concoction I came up with. Pretty darned good if I may say so myself!! :)

Prep Time: 20 min

Ingredients: 

1. 1 10oz Pk Ancient Harvest Quinoa Spaghetti
2. 1 16oz bag of frozen french-cut Green beans (or use fresh beans).
3. 1 tsp minced garlic
4. 1/2 to 3/4 cup non-dairy milk
5. 1/8 cut fresh chopped Basil and Oregano
6. 1-2 tsp white Miso
7. 1/4 cup Daiya Mozzarella style shreds
8. Salt & Pepper, to taste

Directions:

Boil spaghetti according to package directions and set aside. In a skillet, add a third of a cup of non-dairy milk and add minced garlic and Miso. Once the milk begins to boil and the miso dissolves, add green beans and cook on medium until tender.  Then add the remaining milk and bring to a quick boil. Add most of the cheese to the milk and allow a minute or so to melt. Then add spaghetti and give it all a good toss. Cover and let sit for a few minutes to allow the spaghetti to absorb any remaining liquid. Uncover, mix chopped herbs in and give another quick toss. Garnish with freshly cracked black pepper and salt, if needed, and top off with mozzarella shreds.  I didn't add any salt at all today as the Miso provided quite a bit and the dish had a slightly sweet refreshing flavor of the fresh herbs. I tried Miso for the first time today and loved the sharp cheesy flavor it imparted to the dish. Um Um Good!! 

Coder Household Assessment: Li'l Nik loved it!!  More than the pasta, he picked green beans from his plate. Tony had enjoyed this dish so much the first time I made it that he actually requested I make it again today!! Overall, a hit!!

What is Miso? Happy Herbivore has done a couple of different posts about it. Here's a link. 

Mung Bean Sprout Chaat

Growing up in India, our diet was primarily vegetarian, with the occasional indulgence in meat. Our diet however, was never lacking in protein. Everyone that eats a plant-based vegetarian diet gets asked that question "... but where do you get your protein?" - the answer is quite simple: Vegetables, Leafy Greens, Grains, Lentils, Beans ... all have wonderful amounts of protein. And we don't need to eat 600% of the RDA of protein like most people on a Standard Western Omnivorous diet. 

One of my uncles (Bade Dad), was very conscientious and made sure all of us kids ate a healthy diet. He was a wonderful cook and was often found in the kitchen futzing around with various recipes. One of the things he often did was soaked lentils or beans so that my aunt and mom knew what to cook for the next meal. He often also had them make mung bean sprouts. We typically ate this dish for a snack or even for breakfast. It has no added fat and is full of nutrition - protein, minerals, vitamins and even Iodine from the red onion ... all that fun stuff!!

Prep Time: 2 days for sprouting the beans; 10 min of actual dish prep time.

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 cup Mung Beans
2. 1 medium Cucumber, Seedless, diced
3. 1 medium Red Onion, diced
4. 2-3 tbsp minced, mixed, fresh herbs
5. 1 lemon/lime (juice of).
6. 1-2 tsp Chunky Chaat Masala, to taste (optional).
7. Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:

The first step of this recipe requires some patience. Rinse mung beans and transfer to a large bowl. Soak overnight in ample amounts of water:

Time = 0 hours

The next morning, the beans should look nice and plump:

Time = 12 hours

Fill the bowl with tap water and rinse the beans again. The plump beans should rise to the top and any that did not absorb water will sink to the bottom (discard those).

Line the bottom of a colander with a folded paper towel or cheese cloth. transfer the beans and allow the excess water to drain out the bottom:

Soak another large piece folder paper towel, or cheese cloth with tap water and cover the beans completely. Place the colander in the same bowl, and cover the whole set up with saran-wrap or aluminum foil. This will prevent the beans from drying out. Leave the bowl on the kitchen counter. 

Time = 24 hours

After another 12 hours, remove the top cover, run a gentle stream of tap water over the beans. By this time most beans should have a small seedling (2-3 mm). Once the water drains out, replace the wet cover and saran wrap. 

Time = 36 hours

After another 12 hours, repeat the steps above. Most beans at this stage should have a 8-10 mm sprout. 

Time = 48 hours

On the second day, the sprouts should be close to 15mm long and that is when we typically stopped growing them further. After sitting for 2 days at room temperature, despite repeated washes in between, there is a chance for fungus etc. so I didn't want to risk it anymore. A lot of oriental dishes have sprouts that are far longer. I soaked the beans at this stage in a fresh bowl with a lot of tap water, and picked up the floating sprouts and transferred them to a fresh colander. Once well drained, I kept them overnight in the fridge. 

This evening, I transferred the sprouts to a pressure cooker and steamed them for less than 2 minutes. Bring 1/2 cup water to boil, add the sprouts and close the lid. Start the timer and as soon as 2 minutes is up, whether or not full pressure has been achieved, take the cooker off the stove and release the steam and drain immediately (mine were a little over-done today!). 

Meanwhile, dice onions and cucumbers:

And then in a large bowl, toss everything together. For fresh herbs, I used basil, cilantro, mint, oregano, thyme and spearmint, all chopped finely. I used Chunky Chaat Masala in my recipe, but if you don't have it, this is equally as enjoyable with just salt, pepper, and lemon/lime juice. 

Another way is prepare this dish is to wilt the onions in a skillet, with just a little bit of water, and then add the sprouts, and spices. Toss everything together for a couple of minutes, remove from heat, transfer to a large bowl and toss in fresh diced cucumber (and even tomatoes). Enjoy!!!

My Assessment: This is comfort food for me ... miss you Bade dad! 

Wilted Broccoli Rabé w Kale

So after a few days of eating comfort foods like daal-chawal and peas pulao and other tried and tested and true recipes, I tried something new today. New Veggie #31 is Rapini (or  Broccoli Rabé).  I mixed it up with some kale (New Veggie #23) and made wilted greens this evening. The result was quite outstanding, if I may say so myself. 

Prep Time: 15-20 min

Ingredients:

1. One bunch Rapini
2. One bunch Kale
3. 4 cloves of Garlic, diced
4. 1 tsp turmeric
5. 1 tsp mustard seeds
6. 1/4 cup Vegetable broth
7. 1-2 tsp Tamicon, to taste
8. 5-6 leaves of fresh Basil
9. Salt, and pepper to taste.

Directions: Tear large leaves of rapini and kale into smaller pieces. Cut off heads of rapini buds and add to the mix as well. As you get closer to the center of the flowering kale, the leaves and stems get softer and I just kept those whole. Transfer all the greens to a large bowl of water and rinse well and drain. 

Line a skillet with vegetable broth and on medium heat, add garlic, tamicon, turmeric and mustard seeds. Tamicon is basically concentrated tamarind paste, which can be made at home by soaking tamarind pods in water and then squeezing out the pulp and separating it from the seeds and other non-edible parts. Tamarind paste adds a sweet tangy flavor to the dish. If you don't have tamarind on hand, you can use lemon/lime juice as well. Once the broth comes to a boil, and the garlic becomes fragrant, add the greens, cover and reduce heat. Cook until greens are wilted. I like my kale nicely wilted but if you're into eating it raw, make the spice mix in the least amount of vegetable broth and then simply toss the raw kale with the spices. Add chopped basil leaves as a fresh garnish. I love the minty flavor of basil. I served mine with a baked sweet potato and pearl cous-cous. 

Mushroom & Barley Stew (Take 2)

So last week when i posted pics of my Mushroom & Barley stew, one of our friends commented that it wasn't a stew because the pics didn't look soupy enough :) .... well, it was soupy, but more on the dry side. So I decided to make it again, with modifications of course, and for Jeanne, I made it soupy too!! 

Mushroom & Barley Stew, Take 2.

Prep Time: 20 min  

Ingredients:

1. 1/2 cup barley (New Veggie #29)  
2. 1/2 cup Bob's Red Mill TVP crumbles (optional; use additional 1/2 cup barley instead).
3. 3 cups of vegetable broth, and more, as needed. 
4. 8-10 large mushrooms, sliced.
5. 4-6 stalks of celery, diced.
6. 4-5 Slices of Field Roast Wild Mushroom Deli Slices, diced. (optional; Substitute with Italian sausage crumbles)
7. 1 cup of sliced fresh/frozen carrots.
8. Garlic salt, to taste.
9. 2-5 fresh Basil leaves, sliced.
10. 5-7 fresh Oregano leaves, whole.
11. Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste. 

Directions:

Cook barley according to package instructions in advance, or use instant barley for this recipe. In a deep sauce pot, add vegetable broth and barley and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Meanwhile slice mushrooms and celery and add to the pot. Continue to simmer. Next add the wild mushroom deli slices (or sausage crumbles) and continue to simmer. Add more broth as needed, to keep a good soupy consistency. Lastly add carrots, and herbs and simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Garnish with a sprig of basil and freshly cracked pepper. Serve steamy hot!! 

My Assessment: Still LOVE barley! I love the nutty, very slightly chewy flavor of barley. I highly recommend that everyone try it at least once. The inclusion of celery and carrots added a whole other dimension to this soup. Um Um Good!!