Vegan

Cozy At Home Spicy Any-Veggie Soup

https://ohsheglows.com/2020/04/25/cozy-at-home-spicy-any-veggie-soup/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=cozy-at-home-spicy-any-veggie-soup

Hi everyone! It has been so hard to find the right words for this post as my heart is breaking for the world right now. I hope you are all staying safe and doing well. How are you doing? I’m wishing you all love and strength to get through whatever challenges may be coming your way during this pandemic. We’re about to start our 7th week of “sheltering at home” and are all doing well & taking things one day at a time.

A gift from my heart

We’ve been trying to do our part by helping the community in various ways, but I also want to do a little something personal for some of my blog readers who are working on the frontlines and in essential services during this pandemic. This idea is a small way for me to connect with you and say thank you for all that you’re doing! So that said, I’d like to mail a signed and personalized copy of my brand new cookbook (my very first hardcover….eek!), along with an Oh She Glows Recipe App download, to 15 frontline and essential workers located in Canada or the US. These gifts will be sent out as soon as my book launches early this fall. Side note: I almost nixed this idea because I worried there would be hard feelings if I couldn’t send one to everyone who reaches out (I will likely have a lot more than 15 emails), but I hope you’ll understand that even though I can’t send you all one, I’d still like to do this to bring a smile to some of your faces during this difficult time. (And I’ll be doing more cookbook giveaways for the entire OSG community in the late summer and fall, too, so there will be other opportunities coming up.) You can nominate yourself or someone you know. Please send a brief email along with your city, and province or state (or your nominee’s story and location) to [email protected] by May 1, 2020. We’ll select 15 frontline and essential heroes and I will cover all costs of shipping, the book, etc. Due to the volume of emails we anticipate receiving, we’ll only be able to reply to those who are selected, but I want to say a huge thank you in advance for sharing your story with me and to all of you out there who are making sacrifices for your communities every day.

A little about this soup

Today, I’m sharing a versatile, nutrient-packed, and pantry-friendly soup that I’ve been making for the past several weeks. I can’t tell you how much of a go-to recipe this has been while trying to juggle work deadlines and refereeing (oops, I mean parenting) and homeschooling. You can use virtually any veggies you have on hand as long as it totals about 8 cups (be sure to see the Tips in the recipe below for ideas). I’ve created both Instant Pot and stovetop versions for you as well. I love that I can throw everything into my Instant Pot, turn it on, and walk away! And the stovetop version is almost as simple…the only difference is that you’ll need to stir it a few times during cooking. I’m whipping this up twice weekly until the warm weather sets in. I hope it brings you some comfort during these trying days. I’d love to hear which veggie combos you use…my favourite combo so far is: broccoli, carrots, butternut squash, frozen green beans, and sliced cremini mushrooms. A nutrient powerhouse! I’m not joking when I say that I’m eating this daily for lunch…it helps balance out all the baked goods that I’ve been stuffing in my face…lol.

Sending you all love, good health wishes, and big virtual hugs,

Angela xoxo

Yield
8 cups (2 L)

Prep time
15 Minutes

Cook time
25 Minutes

Total time
40 Minutes

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon (15 mL) coconut oil or olive oil
2 1/2 cups (625 mL) water
1 (14-ounce/398 mL) can light coconut milk
1 (14-ounce/398 mL) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes*
3 cups (190 g) broccoli florets (1 1/2-inch florets)**
2 cups (270 g) peeled, seeded, and chopped butternut squash (1/2-inch cubes)
1 1/2 cups (195 g) chopped peeled carrots (1/2-inch thick coins)
1 1/2 cups (160 g) frozen cut green beans***
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes, or to taste****
1 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup (170 g) uncooked red lentils
2 tablespoons (30 mL) apple cider vinegar, or to taste
Herbamare, for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Stovetop method: To a large pot, add the oil, water, coconut milk, diced tomatoes (with juices), broccoli, butternut squash, carrots, frozen green beans, red pepper flakes, salt (starting with 3/4 teaspoon), garlic powder, and red lentils. Stir to combine.
Set the heat to high, cover with a tight-fitting lid, and bring the mixture to a low boil. Once it comes to a boil, remove the lid and reduce the heat to medium. Stir again, scraping off any lentils stuck to the bottom of the pot.
Simmer, covered, over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the lentils are soft and the veggies are just fork tender. The veggies should have a touch of resistance when pierced with a fork. The cook time will vary based on the type of veggies you use.
After cooking, remove the lid and stir in the apple cider vinegar, starting with one tablespoon and adding from there, to taste (we love 2 tablespoons for a lot of brightness). Sometimes, there may be a slight separation in the soup after adding the vinegar, depending on the brand of coconut milk used. This is nothing to worry about. Season with more salt, if desired (I add another 1/4 teaspoon of fine sea salt, plus a bit of Herbamare). I also enjoy adding a bit more apple cider vinegar to my individual serving because I adore its tanginess in this soup. Serve and enjoy. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 to 5 days.

Vegan

Summer Spinach Salad with Chickpea Olive Crumble

A fully loaded, flavor packed, protein rich summer spinach salad with an umami-packed crisp chickpea hemp seed olive crumble, nutrient dense greens, and creamy, vibrant tahini lemon dressing. A perfect hot weather dinner. (23g protein and 15g fiber per serving, (gluten-free, soy-free, nut-free, high protein)

This is a fantastically hearty summer spinach salad. It has so many textures and flavors, and it has 80 grams of protein for the entire salad. That’s 20 grams of protein per serving. For a salad!

There is protein from the chickpeas, from the hemp seeds, and from the nutritional yeast in the chickpea crumble. There’s also protein from the tahini in the dressing, the non-dairy yogurt (depending on the brand), as well as a little protein from the greens that you use in the salad. You can amp up the protein even more by sprinkling it with some hemp seeds before serving or adding some of my tofu bacon bits, or other high protein toppings.

fork taking a bite of summer spinach salad with chickpea olive crumbles

The salad has this creamy texture from the dressing, the crunch from the fresh veggies, and crispiness from the chickpea crumbles, which we bake until they’re crispy-crunchy. The umami comes from the olives and the sun-dried tomato, and the refreshing, fresh flavor comes from lemon zest, the cucumbers, and any other crunchy veggies and greens.

It’s just a fabulous combination of flavors and textures. The combination of tahini and yogurt helps mellow tahini’s strong flavor and makes for a rich, creamy dressing.

Why You’ll Love this Summer Spinach Salad

incredible combination of flavors and textures! Crunchy veggies, creamy dressing, and savory, crisp chickpea-olive crumble.
easy to make in about 30 minutes
packed with veggies and protein
naturally gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free