** Lentil Vegetable Crockpot -- vegan, whole food, delicious

The smell of this dish while cooking is out of this world. I'm such a sucker for the combination of cumin and paprika. I adore lentils. This is wonderful with brown basmati, or by itself. Huge hit with everyone. Simple, comforting, unpretentious food that cooks itself while you do something else.

equipment needed:

6 quart crockpot
knife
cutting board
sieve for rinsing lentils
measuring cups
measuring spoons



ingredients:

1 onion, chopped ( 1  cup)
2 cups chopped green cabbage
3 cups rinsed green lentils, not cooked

1/2 cup sliced dried mushrooms

2 cups chopped celery (I use the hearts for this)
2 cups diced carrot
2 cups diced asian sweet potato

4 tsp sea salt
black pepper
2 tbsp marjoram
2 tsp paprika (sweet)
2 tsp ground cumin)

1/2 cup dried apricots -- sliced

8 cups boiling water


set crockpot for 5 hours on high

Chickpea Vegetable Soup

Well, Papa is coming over for dinner, and we're going to have a houseful for his birthday. So, in addition to eatables such as lasagna and chickpea flour flat bread, we'll rock this vegan crockpot.  Simple and delicious. Old fashioned diced veggies and chickpeas. Super delicious. And since it feels like fall, perfect really. We all enjoyed it.

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, finely diced
1 cup green cabbage, very finely chopped

4 cups soaked chickpeas -- not cooked

1 tsp sea salt

2 cup diced carrots
2 cups diced celery
1 diced kohlrabi

1 tsp sea salt

4 cups diced white sweet potato

1 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp marjoram
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp chill powder

9 cups water

1 tsp sea salt


directions:

1. turn crockpot on to high, and set for 6 hours
2. layer ingredients in the order listed
3. let cook for 6 hours. I used dry chickpeas that had been fully soaked but not cooked. If you use canned or cooked chickpeas, you can reduce the cooking time
4. stir and taste, add seasoning if needed.

A chickpea and vegetable 'pot' dish

'Pot' as in cooking vessel, not as in marijuana. I recently read Michael Pollan's cooked. I am a Michael Pollan fan, and in his description of learning to cook in his book, I was inspired to make a dish that used very finely chopped vegetables as a base, and to let those vegetables sort of cook down into nothingness. Nothing, that is, except for flavour. As is my wont, I used a crockpot instead of a stove top pot. I layered finely diced vegetables, with the onions and garlic right in the oil at the bottom of the pot where they would get the most heat, then proceeding with the cabbage, then carrots and celery. The layers of chickpeas and sweet potato went last, and then enough water to come up to the chickpeas.  The chickpeas and sweet potato, being largest as well as farthest from the heat  will breakdown the least. Which is just what we want!! Even with very very little seasoning (only a bit of salt), this is a very richly flavoured dish. Perfect with socca-ish ...

ingredients:


2 tbsp coconut oil

1 1/2 cup very finely chopped onion
2 cloves of finely chopped garlic

1 cups finely chopped celery
2 cups finely chopped carrot

4 cups finely chopped cabbage

4 cups soaked chickpeas

3 cups diced sweet potato -- if possible use a firm dry variety (I love bonita. others are kyushu and murasaki, also called 'asian sweet potatoes' or 'oriental sweet potatoes') Chop 'em so they are about the same size as the chickpeas


3 tsp sea salt

2 to 4 cups water


directions:

1. turn on the crockpot to high, and add the coconut oil
2. chop the veggies. In the interest of time (I had very little) I used the food processor and did a fine chop.
2. once the oil has melted and the crock is hot, spread the onion and garlic over the bottom, and the cabbage right on top.
3. spread the carrots and celery bits on top of this
4. evenly spread the soaked chickpeas over this
5. sprinkle a couple of tsp of sea salt over the chickpeas
6. spread the diced sweet potatoes over the chickpea layer
7. sprinkle one more tsp of sea salt over the sweet potato

Samosas in February

Part 1) dough

ingredients:

1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil

2 cups kamut pastry flour (finely ground, whole grain)

1 cup blanched almond flour

1  tsp sea salt

3/4 cup filtered water

directions:

1. put the flours, salt, and oil in a food processor. pulse a few times to thoroughly combine.

2. turning the machine on, slowly trickle in the water until the ingredients clump together and form a dough. If it seems too dry, add more water whilst the processor is on, a teaspoonful at a time. You do not want to add too much water, because then the dough will be very hard to work with. Too little water and the dough will be too crumbly.

3. take the dough out of the food processor, wrap it in parchment and put it in a plastic bag, or wrap it in plastic wrap. Set the dough aside to rest. (you can also make it ahead of time and put it in the fridge. However, it will need to come to room temperature before you can use it.

Part 2) filling

ingredients:

2 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil

1 onion finely diced
4 cups split chickpeas, already cooked

2 medium sweet potato, finely diced

1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp turmeric

directions:

1. saute  the onions, and add the chickpeas and some of the salt and the cumin, and cook until the onions are translucent

2. add the cabbage, and sauté

3. layer in the rest of the ingredients, sprinkle with salt, and cover to cook for a while
4. stir to fully combine, and finish cooking

Part 3) samosas

directions:

1. take the fully rested dough, and divide into 20 g balls using a kitchen scale. Or if you are not as ocd as me, just make ping pong ball size dough balls. Try to make them even. Using the kitchen scale method, I got 35 balls this time. You could make 'em a touch bigger and get 24 balls, but I like this size best. Keep the balls covered by a piece of parchment topped by a damp towel to keep them from drying out. This is very very important!

2. one by one, roll the dough balls into circles, put some filling in the middle, and fold three sizes to make a triangular package. You should probably roll the dough on baking parchment or a mat of your choice. I find this dough easy to work with and somewhat forgiving.

3. place the samosas on a lined baking sheet. You don't need to leave a lot of space between, but you also don't want them to touch.

4. here, you have to make the decision to bake or to freeze. If you elect to freeze your bounty for later, put the baking sheet fully loaded into the freezer. Once the samosas have frozen solid, put them in airtight freezer bags. They can be baked right from frozen in about 40 minutes at 345.

5. If you choose to bake them now, put your baking sheet in the oven at 345 for about 25 or 30 minutes, until they seem adequately brown for your liking. If you want to bake them in a few hours, cover the samosas on the baking sheet with a piece of parchment topped by a damp towel.

Warming Winter Vegetable and Lentil Crockpot

I was going to be at work all day, and Papa and Nana were coming to play. So, knowing that Papa is a huge lentil fan, I loaded up my crockpot with a bunch of goodies. The resulting concoction is so flavourful and sweet and sour and savoury and spicy. The flavour is not overwhelming, but rather symbiotic. Everything about it is comforting and delicious. Try it. You'll like. The sweetness of sweet potato with the brightness of lime and sundried tomato, and the warmth of ginger. I kinda, you know, love it already. My husband made garlic toast out of our almond flour/coconut flour bread to go with this and it was fab beyond all reckoning.

ingredients:

1 cup finely chopped shallots
1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion
2 cups very finely chopped green cabbage
1/4 cup finely chopped sundried tomatoes

2 cups massoor lentils

2 cups frozen green peas

1/4 cup almond butter
1/4 cup coconut butter

1 cup diced celery hearts
2 cups diced carrots


4 cups diced sweet potatoes


4 tsp sea salt
2 tbps oregano
black pepper
1 tsp chile powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground ginger

9 cups water (I add boiling)

2 tbsp lime juice


directions:

1. layer the ingredients in the order listed. I combine the almond butter, coconut butter, lime juice, and seasonings with 1 cup of boiling water and pour it on, then pour on the rest of the water.
2. cook (I did it on High for 6 hours)
3. turn off and after stirring thoroughly, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, and add water if needed
4. serve or let the flavour mature and serve the next day
5. Today we are serving this with garlic toasts made from our 'almond flour and coconut flour bread'.

Christmas Vegetable Soup

We always have a big family brunch on the 25th, with lots of people around and good times. By the end of the day, we have Papa and us, and a big pot of soup for a warming sup after a walk-about to see the christmas lights in the neighbourhood.

This is delicious, and definitely hits the spot after some slightly more naughty indulgences. The spices are simultaneously warming and anti-inflammatory, and the whole thing just tastes great.

ingredients:


2 cups onion, finely diced
4 cups green cabbage, finely chopped
2 cups whole masoor lentils (uncooked)
2 cup frozen green peas

2  cups celery, stalks and leaves, finely diced
2 cups carrots, diced

3 cups sweet potatoes, diced

3 or 4 tsp sea salt -- depends on how salty your salt is ...
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ginger
10 cups water




directions:

1. layer up the crockpot with the ingredients in the order listed -- do not stir
2. cook for 6 hours on high
3. stir
4. add any salt and pepper you need after tasting, and if it's too thick, more water!

Vegetable soup with 4 kinds of sweet potatoes

Yummy. I love a wonderful clear broth soup so full of flavour and goodness. Good for what ails you.

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil
2 medium onion, finely diced
4 cups green cabbage, finely chopped
2 cups dry lentils -- (I used black caviar lentils, but any whole lentils will be fine. Dupuy, masoor etc. Don't used split or they will reduce to complete disintegration)
2 cup frozen green peas

1  cups celery, stalks and leaves, finely diced
2 cups carrots, diced

3 cups sweet potatoes, diced -- I used 4 kinds -- 3 different asian (murasaki, kyushu, and some white ones), and also the iconic orange beauregard variety

3 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp ginger
8 cups water


directions:

1. layer up the crockpot with the ingredients in the order listed -- do not stir
2. cook for 6 hours on high
3. enjoy with green noodles, or alone

Creamy Leeks and Limas with Sweet potato

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 cup finely diced cabbage
4 cups giant lima beans, soaked
1 bunch leaks, finely sliced (wash well, use only the tender parts. Save the tough parts for making soup broth or stock
4 cups sweet potatoes, diced

1 tbsp sea salt
1 tbsp rosemary
1 tbsp marjoram
1/2 cup coconut butter
2 cups water

Split Chickpeas and Sweet potato -- vegan, delicious, and comforting

Well, it feels like autumn today. And this hit the spot.  Slooooooooow food. My reliable workhorse of a crockpot rides again. So to speak. This is one of the most flavourful veggie stews ever, and it definitely is one I'll make again soon. My five year old waxed enthusiastic about the veggies in it, and devoured it in record time. Usually, if it ain't pasta or pizza, it lingers a little longer. The sweetness of the sweet potatoes is comforting with the depth of flavour and richness encouraged by the dried mushrooms and coconut butter. A vegan triumph of culinary satisfaction, my friends.

ingredients:

2 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil
1 medium onion finely diced
1/4 cup dried mushrooms, finely crumbled
2 cups green cabbage, finely diced
4 cups split chickpeas, soaked but not cooked (or sub in 4 cups whole chickpeas cooked or canned and well rinsed)
1/2 cup coconut butter

2 cups carrot, finely diced

4 cups sweet potato, finely diced

1 tbsp sea salt
1 tbsp marjoram

4 cups water


ingredients:

1. layer the ingredients in the order listed in your crockpot, then sprinkle the seasonings and pour on the water so the seasonings get distributed. Sprinkle a little salt on top after everything else for good measure
2. cook for about 6 hours, or until the chickpeas are melt in your mouth, and everything tastes fabulous
3. serve with an awesome salad or whatever else pleases you.

Samosas with Friends August 2013

My friend's sister is a newbie vegan, and was asking for some cooking suggestions to feed her somewhat particular young son. This is what we will make together. That's right, I am now a cooking instructor. Huh. The thing that is great about this recipe is that it is adaptable. You can sub in whatever vegetables you like. You can use different beans instead of chickpeas. In fact, you can eat the filling just by itself. So it's a good starting point. Another friend of mine once told me her son refused to eat broccoli. She steamed it and served it plain. When they were over for dinner, we did a light saute (almost like a steam) using coconut oil and some sea salt. He devoured it. I find with my own son that a little seasoning has endeared a whole lot of things to him he wasn't super keen on when they were plain. Raw spinach leaves are fine, but dressed with a little avocado oil, a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and a sprinkle of sea salt and black pepper and suddenly they are delicious. Throw some diced avocado and tomatoes in there and forget about it! Amazing. Even when my son was a brand new eater, he was much more interested in food that had some pizzazz. And I'm not telling you to go crazy with the seasonings, but just the right about of seasoning can really bring out the natural deliciousness of beautiful ingredients. And don't forget not to fear the fat!! Many of the nutrients in vegetables are fat soluble. So judicious application of coconut oil for the hot ones or avocado oil for the cold ones is a great idea. If you are a butter lover, use butter. Just make sure it's organic so you don't get stuff you don't need. The chemical load in fat is far higher than in any produce. 

The selection of vegetables today is based entirely on what looked nice at the Sunday Farmer's Market. Yep, you've discovered my secret. I'm an impulse shopper. Anyway, it's fun figuring out what to make based on the ingredients you can find. That's how the cool kids do it, I imagine.

Part 1) dough

ingredients:

1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil

2 cups kamut pastry flour (finely ground, whole grain)

1 cup blanched almond flour

1  tsp sea salt

3/4 cup filtered water

directions:

1. put the flours, salt, and oil in a food processor. pulse a few times to thoroughly combine.

2. turning the machine on, slowly trickle in the water (and vinegar) until the ingredients clump together and form a dough. If it seems too dry, add more water whilst the processor is on, a teaspoonful at a time. You do not want to add too much water, because then the dough will be very hard to work with. Too little water and the dough will be too crumbly.

3. take the dough out of the food processor, wrap it in parchment and put it in a plastic bag, or wrap it in plastic wrap. Set the dough aside to rest. (you can also make it ahead of time and put it in the fridge. However, it will need to come to room temperature before you can use it.

Part 2) filling

ingredients:

2 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil

1 onion finely diced
3 cups split chickpeas, already cooked

3 leaves green cabbage, finely diced
1 carrot, finely diced

1 large sweet potato, finely diced

1 very large pattypan (or 1 large zucchini) finely diced

1 or 1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cumin powder

directions:

1. saute  the onions, and add the chickpeas and some of the salt and the cumin, and cook until the onions are translucent

2. add the cabbage, and sauté

3. layer in the rest of the ingredients, sprinkle with salt, and cover to cook for a while
4. stir to fully combine, and finish cooking

Part 3) samosas

directions:

1. take the fully rested dough, and divide into 20 g balls using a kitchen scale. Or if you are not as ocd as me, just make ping pong ball size dough balls. Try to make them even. Using the kitchen scale method, I got 35 balls this time. You could make 'em a touch bigger and get 24 balls, but I like this size best. Keep the balls covered by a piece of parchment topped by a damp towel to keep them from drying out. This is very very important!

2. one by one, roll the dough balls into circles, put some filling in the middle, and fold three sizes to make a triangular package. You should probably roll the dough on baking parchment or a mat of your choice. I find this dough easy to work with and somewhat forgiving.

3. place the samosas on a lined baking sheet. You don't need to leave a lot of space between, but you also don't want them to touch.

4. here, you have to make the decision to bake or to freeze. If you elect to freeze your bounty for later, put the baking sheet fully loaded into the freezer. Once the samosas have frozen solid, put them in airtight freezer bags. They can be baked right from frozen in about 40 minutes at 345.

5. If you choose to bake them now, put your baking sheet in the oven at 345 for about 25 or 30 minutes, until they seem adequately brown for your liking. If you want to bake them in a few hours, cover the samosas on the baking sheet with a piece of parchment topped by a damp towel.

Sweet potato muffins v 2.0 -- coconut sugar instead of coconut nectar

You know me, I like to mix it up. Here's another recipe for sweet potato muffins, this time using coconut sugar instead of coconut nectar. My husband loves these too. My son has said they are his favourite -- yes, chocolate has been dethroned ...

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1 cup raw whole milk
1 cup water
2 organic eggs (use 3 if they are tiny)

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tbsp ground vanilla bean


2 cups fine kamut flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cup shredded sweet potato


1. combine the ingredients in the order listed
2. scoop the batter into 24 prepared muffin cups -- optional: sprinkle a little extra coconut sugar on top of each muffin before baking. Just for fun ...
3. bake in a preheated oven at 345 for 35 minutes

Sweet Potato muffins

Now that my husband can't eat any fruit except for sweet potato, delicious apple muffins are out. However, delicious sweet potato muffins aren't. These are loved and loved well by all who have tried them.

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup coconut nectar
1 cup raw whole milk (or water if you prefer)
2 organic eggs (use 3 if they are tiny)

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp ground vanilla bean


1 3/4 cup fine kamut flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cup shredded sweet potato -- I use a hand grater (one with big holes, not tiny ones)


1. combine the ingredients in the order listed
2. scoop the batter into 24 prepared muffin cups
3. bake in a preheated oven at 345 for 30 minutes

Flavourful Vegetable Soup

Weary travellers arriving need simple and delicious fare that won't keep them up. This definitely fit the bill with a fresh loaf of spelt bread fresh from the oven.

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil

1 onion finely diced
1 cup  purple cabbage finely chopped
1/4 cup dried mushrooms, finely crumbled

3 cups split chickpeas, soaked but not cooked
3 cups green peas

1/4 cup amaranth
1/4 cup buckwheat groats
1/4 cup milllet

1 kohlrabi, peeled and diced (approx 2 cups)

1 large carrot finely diced (approx 1 1/2 cup)
3/4 cup celery finely  diced

2 cups zucchini diced
4 cups sweet potato diced

4 tsp sea salt
8 cups boiling water


directions:

1. layer all the ingredients in the crockpot and let it cook. Pour the water on after you've added the sea salt btw.
2. stir, and season to taste

Delicious served with fresh baked bread ...

Split Chickpeas

I live just down the street from Little India, and enjoy going into my local tiny supermarket. This week I  found both split moong dal (split mung beans) and split channa dal (split chickpeas). Always  fun to try new things. I cooked a pot of split moong dal seasoned with just avocado oil, dehydrated vegetables, and sea salt. It produced a thick creamy dish. Today I'm playing with the split chickpeas. I did a quick soak on them this morning, and will now see what fun I can have.

ingredients:

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 finely diced onion
4 cups finely chopped cabbage

3 cups split chickpeas -- soaked but not cooked

1/4 cup crumbled dried mushrooms

1 1/2  cup diced celery

3 cups diced sweet potato

4 cups diced zucchini

1 cup water

3 cups chopped broccoli florets -- lightly steamed, stirred in when the crockpot is finished cooking.

Crockpot July 2013

Moong dal is great because it completely breaks down and makes the stew nice and thick. Yummy!

2 tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, finely diced
1 1/2 cup moong dal
2 tbsp millet
2 tbsp buckwheat groats
2 tbsp amaranth
3 cups frozen green peas
1/4 cup crumbled dried mushrooms
2 cup finely diced carrot
2 cups diced zucchini
2 cups diced sweet potato

4 tsp sea salt
3 cups water

1 cup finely diced celery



3 cups chopped broccoli florets, slightly cooked


directions:
1. layer the ingredients in the order listed (except the broccoli) and cook on high in your crockpot for 5 hours
2. stir well then add the broccoli
3. stir well, adjust seasoning if needed
4. let sit for 1 hour
5. serve

Delicious Black Lentil and Sweet Potato Crockpot

Beluga lentils -- unlike their piscine homonym in caviar -- are vegan. They are tiny and black whilst uncooked, and become a little bigger and dark mahogany brown when cooked. They can also turn the ingredients they are cooked with darker in colour. They tend to keep their integrity even in sketchy situations such as over cooking. They have a lentil taste that is all their own. This dish is deletable, and I highly recommend it for lentil lovers and the lentil curious alike.


ingredients:

2 tbsp avocado oil

2 cups black lentils (caviar lentils)
1/4 cup amaranth
3 cups frozen green peas
1/4 cup dried sliced mushrooms crumbled up

1 1/2 cups diced carrot
2 1/2 cups diced celery
4 cups diced sweet potato

4 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp marjoram

6 cups boiling water


directions:

1. layer the ingredients in the order listed into your crockpot. Sprinkle the sea salt and marjoram before pouring the water all over
2. cook
3. stir and season to taste