Arugula Quinoa Salad with Roasted Garlic Dressing

Ingredients
5 ounces baby arugula
8 ounces cooked chicken or tempeh, diced
1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
2 oranges, peeled and cut into sections
2 ounces crumbled goat cheese (or nut cheese)
1/4 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Roasted Garlic Dressing
1 head garlic
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

 Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice the top off the garlic head and place in aluminum foil. Drizzle
with olive oil. Bake for 35 minutes, until tender. Allow to cool slightly.

Gently squeeze garlic from head and place in your blender. Add vinegar, mustard, maple syrup, salt
and pepper and process for 15 seconds.

With the blender on, slowly add olive oil in a steady stream.




Combine salad ingredients and toss with the desired amount of dressing.


from: http://w w w .cookingquinoa.net/arugula-quinoa-salad-roasted-garlic-dressing-dixie-quick

Arugula Salad with Peaches and Mozzarella

Yum! Sweet, fresh peaches are the star of this salad. They pair perfectly with mozzarella and balsamic vinegar.

Total Time: 10 min.

Prep Time: 10 min.

Cooking Time: None

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

8 cups arugula (or mixed salad greens)
2 medium ripe peaches, sliced
1 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese, thickly sliced
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
3 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar


Preparation:

1. Place rocket on a large serving plate.
2. Top with peaches and cheese.
3. Drizzle salad evenly with oil and vinegar.
4. Serve immediately.

from The Beachbody Blog

Garlic-Kale Mashed Potatoes with Carrots

3-4 Medium potatoes, roughly chopped

1-2 medium carrots

           1 medium onion (optional)

          4 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp. olive oil

           2 cups Kale, chopped

1/2 cup milk (regular, soy or almond milk, depending on your preference)
2 tbsp. butter or Earth Balance
 Salt to taste (or 1 Tbsp. tamari soy sauce)

           pepper  (to taste )

           Bonus: For vegan mashed potato lovers, the addition of 1/4-1/2 c. nutritional yeast gives this dish a rich, almost cheesy flavor!                 

In a large pot of water, boil the potatoes and carrots until they can be pierced easily with a fork. In a medium sauce pan saute the onions and garlic in the oil on medium heat until the onion becomes translucent. Add the kale and cover the pan with a lid. Lower heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes or until kale becomes soft. Add water or veggie broth if necessary. Set aside. When potatoes and carrots are ready, drain and place them in a large bowl. Mash together with milk, butter/Earth Balance, salt and pepper. Stir in the kale mixture and mix together well.
Makes 4-6 servings

from the book: How It All Vegan

Warm Beet and Chard Salad

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 6 medium beets (any kind)
• ½ red onion, sliced
• 3 cloves of garlic and/or some garlic scapes if you still have some
• 1 bunch of swiss chard
• 1 cup cooked garbanzo beans
• 1.5 tablespoons of quality olive oil
• goat cheese

Instructions

1. Roast the beets: Wrap beets in foil two and two together, place on a baking sheet in the middle of the oven and roast at 375 degrees for about one hour. Take the beets out of the oven to cool in the foil for a while. (Keeping them in the foil will help loosen the skin.) When cold enough to handle, remove the skin and slice beets in big pieces. Keep aside in a bowl.
2. Sauté the onion and garlic on medium heat for about five minutes. Add roughly chopped chard, stems removed, and cook until the chard is done (5-10 minutes). Add the garbanzo beans and beets and heat for a few minutes.
3. Add in the goat cheese and serve.
4. Salt and pepper as needed

from the Roots Down Community Farm newsletter

Roasted Beets with Caramelized Onions and Feta

1 pound beets

1 tablespoon oil

1 pound onions (sliced)

1/2 cup feta (crumbled)

1 tablespoon grainy mustard

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Wrap the beets in aluminum foil.

2. Bake the beets in a preheated 375F oven until soft, about 1 to 1.5 hours.

Adapted from closetcooking.com  (makes 4 servings)

Swiss Chard Tagine

2 lb. swiss chard
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
3 T. oil
1 t. paprika
1 med. onion, finely chopped
1/8 c. long grain rice
4 T. chopped fresh cilantro
4 T. water
salt and pepper

Separate the leaf part from the thick ribs of the chard. Shred the leaves coarsely and slice the stalks into 1/2 inch strips.

Warm the oil in a heavy flameproof casserole, add the chard stalks and the garlic, cover and cook gently for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the paprika, stirring for 30-60 seconds, then the onion, chard leaves, rice, cilantro, water and seasoning.

Cover with a very tight-fitting id and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes until the rice is tender; if necessary add more water.

The lid must fit really well so no steam can escape! (seal with foil to be sure)

Recipe from: North African Cooking, by Hilaire Walden

Mixed Vegetable Tagine

3/4 c. chickpeas, soaked overnight then drained
3 T. olive oil
4 small carrots, sliced
2 onions, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 green pepper, sliced
2 zucchini/summer squash - thickly sliced
1 t. ground coriander
1 t. ground cumin
3 tomatoes, chopped
2 1/2 c. broth
salt and pepper
juice of 1 lemon
2 T. chopped fresh parsley
chopped green onions to garnish

1/2 c. raisins - optional, but more authentic


Cook the chickpeas in plenty of boiling water until tender.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a pan, add the carrot and fry until browned. Remove and reserve. Add the onion and garlic to the pan and cook gently until soft and golden. Add the pepper and zucchini and cook until softened. Stir in the spices and cook until fragrant, then add the tomatoes, carrots, broth and seasoning. Bring to boil.

Drain the chickpeas, add to the vegetable mixture, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender. Stir in the raisins, if using, and lemon juice. Sprinkle parsley and green onions over dish.

Serves 4

Ed. note: A tajine or tagine is a historically Berber dish from North Africa that is named after the type of earthenware pot in which it is cooked.

Recipe from: North African Cooking, by Hilaire Walden

Sesame Peanut Noodles

1 pound dry spaghettini or thin spaghetti pasta
1 cup snow peas, sliced vertically, optional
½ cup chunky or super-chunky peanut butter
¹⁄₃ cup rice wine vinegar
¹⁄₃ cup sugar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon toasted, Asian-style sesame oil
¼ cup Thai sweet chile sauce (see note)
1 ½ teaspoons finely minced garlic
1 teaspoon finely minced ginger
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, lightly toasted in small pan or in oven
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 large carrot, cut into tiny matchsticks
2 cups bean sprouts
4 green onions, thinly sliced
½ cup salted roasted peanuts, chopped

Note: Thai sweet chile sauce is a sweet and hot sauce that has a translucent quality about it. The label usually says “for chicken” or has a picture of a chicken on it. It is available at well-stocked Asian grocers. This is not the same as the extremely spicy, hot Chinese chile paste.

Break spaghettini in half and cook in boiling water according to package directions until just cooked. Drain pasta and rinse in cold water. Drain very well and set aside.

Bring small pan of water to boil. Add snow peas and count to 5. Drain immediately and rinse in cold water. Drain well.

In large bowl, whisk together peanut butter, vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, water, sesame oil, chile sauce, garlic and ginger until smooth.

Add cooked pasta, snow peas, sesame seeds, cilantro, carrot, bean sprouts, green onions and peanuts to dressing. Toss together, coating pasta and vegetables well with dressing. Makes 10 servings.

Per serving: 350 calories; 12.5 g fat (2 g saturated fat; 32 percent calories from fat); 49 g carbohydrates; 9 g sugar; 0 mg cholesterol; 494 mg sodium; 12 g protein; 4 g fiber.

Recipe from Foodnetwork.com

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140626/LIFESTYLE05/306260022#ixzz36Q86C3h9