Thai Broccoli Bowl

Many of us are still reeling from the amount of holiday eating and drinking we did this past week. Hop on the Meatless Monday band wagon and make a bowl of veggie and tempeh awesomeness to get you and your family back on tract. Today's recipe is a remake of a restaurant favorite of mine, Thai Peanut Tofu, from Sunrise Cafe   . This is one of my "go to's" that I make at least once a week. I change the veggies to incorporate whatever I have on hand. To ensure that quick meals have tons of flavor using fresh garlic and ginger are key. To keep ginger root fresh store it in the freezer and pull it out whenever you need it! 

1 cup short grain brown rice

2 tbs olive oil

3 garlic cloves chopped

2 tsp fresh chopped ginger root

Place rice and other ingredients into a medium sized sauce pan. Toast rice for 2-3 minutes on medium to high heat. Add 2 cups water to rice. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes until rice is tender. 

2 cups fresh broccoli florets

Add broccoli to the pot of cooking rice when there is around 5 minutes left of cooking. 

1 package tempeh sliced into small chunks

Saute tempeh in a bit of olive oil to brown

Combine the rice with broccoli and tempeh in a bowl. Top with liquid aminos    , has a similar flavor to soy sauce, and 1 Tbs of Mrs. Chuns Thai Peanut Sauce  . It's easy to go overboard with sauces, with this specific one I like to add 1 Tbs of the peanut sauce to 1 Tbs rice wine vinegar. This makes it seem like I'm getting more with the same calorie amount!

Apple and Onion Stuffing

Having a go to stuffing recipe is a must for the holidays. This one combines a sweet and savory combination of ingredients that mixes together so well to create a hearty side dish. Apples, onion, sage, butter, and veggies come together and fill the house with the warm smell of Thanksgiving. I use vegetable stock in my version but can easily be made with chicken or turkey stock. 

Take 1 loaf of gluten free or any style of bread that you like and leave it out or dry it in the oven so it is stale. Rip it into small pieces and place it in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.

Place in a pan:

-1 Tbs butter (to keep vegan use an extra Tbs of oil instead)

-2 Tbs olive oil

-1 large onion chopped 

-2 stalks celery chopped

-2 carrots chopped

-2 garlic cloves chopped

-1 large sweet apple such as Honeycrisp chopped

-1 tsp salt

-1 tsp pepper

Saute until all ingredients are tender, about 5 minutes. Add in 1 tsp dried sage, and 2 tsp poultry seasoning. Mix to combine. Transfer to the large mixing bowl of bread. Gently stir to combine. Add in  the low sodium vegetable stock straight from the container it comes in by the cup full. This will moisten the mixture and make it easier for it to mix together. Add about 3-4 cups (could be more or less depending on the consistency you like). Finish by placing your stuffing in an oven safe dish and bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes or until browned and bubbly!

Pumpkin Pancakes

Continuing to get my fill of pumpkin this season with these beautiful pancakes. Using oat flour keeps them soft and spongy while giving you a good dose of fiber. Oat flour is easy to make on your own with the help of a food processor or magic bullet, or you can buy it already ground down. If you don't have buttermilk make your own by adding 1-2 tsp of vinegar ( I used apple cider vinegar) to every cup of milk you need. Let it sit for a few minutes before using.

Quick, easy, yummy. Perfect for the up coming weekend!

Dry: 

2 cups oat flour

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp baking powder

Wet:

2 large eggs

2 Tbsolive oil

3/4 cup pumpkin purée

1 Tbs molasses

3/4 cup to 1 cup low fat buttermilk

Mix all wet ingredients together well, except buttermilk. Add dry to wet alternating with the buttermilk until all combined. Ladle onto a well seasoned and buttered griddle. Flip when bubbles form in the center of each pancake! Makes 6-8 large pancakes, or a bunch of small ones:)