Monday Meal Menu

Well...after we stopped getting the reclaimed produce boxes, we started getting weekly boxes of vegetables from a local co-op.  It was fun, but we decided that we could get a better bang for our buck if we just purchased it ourselves (or grew it!!)

I have been busy prepping and planting in the garden.  So far, we have carrots and beets growing strong, kale and swiss chard from summer plantings, as well as the green onions, lima beans, peppers, green beans, and okra from this summer.
So far this fall, we've planted more beets, radishes, peas, turnips, more kale, lettuce, more swiss chard, and spinach.

I planted a package of bok choy seeds...though they were definitely not bok choy.  It's some kind of lettuce...not sure what it is, so we just call it not-bok-choy. :)  It's actually a really nice and buttery lettuce. :)

So...I'm not sure if you saw my ridiculous pepper harvesting that I've been doing, but I've harvested 3 batches of peppers this large in September alone!  My freezer is filled with bags of peppers (not to mention all the fruit I froze over the summer, the corn, the kale I've been freezing, the beans that I make in huge batches, or the 27 bags of candy roaster pumpkin I have in there! :) ).

I was laying in bed this morning and I was craving Baked Beans! I told you I LOVE them. :)  So, that's dinner tonight.  Baked beans, potato wedges, and salad.

Yesterday I chopped up a ton of peppers to rotate through the freezer on cookie sheets to freeze before bagging.  I pulled out the bowl from the fridge this morning and I suddenly realized I should make Black Bean and Corn Salsa!  It would go great with the left over rice from yesterday's Red Beans and Rice.   Well, I threw it all together this morning, so now tomorrow's dinner is already done!

Then I was thinking about the huge container of spinach I bought on an impulse last week and the $1 mushroom containers I picked up also.  Then I thought - yeah, Lentil Loaf! :)  We love Rip's from My Beef With Meat.  So lentil loaf and roasted veggies sound perfect for Wednesday.  The lentil loaves taste even better when they are made a day or two in advance, so they are in the oven as I type this.  It smells amazing in here!!!  

Now I felt like I was on a roll so I was thinking about what to have the rest of the week, I'm going to try Fat Free Vegan's Mac and Cheese with a salad on Thursday.  I'm so excited about it!!

That brings us to Friday - which is our anniversary, so I'm thinking we'll go out to eat. :) If not, I think Pad Thai would be delicious.

Saturday will be left overs.

Sunday I think some Sweet Potato Chili that I have in the freezer sounds fantastic.  And that gets me through the week!!! :)

And dinners are actually made for every day except one - heck yes to free time in the fall to enjoy the beautiful weather with my Te-Man!!  :)

It was good while it lasted!

The end of the Reclaimed Produce has arrived.  :(

Produce Guy informed me a few weeks ago that his company had recently released new guidance on changes to store policies and included in that memo was that the produce and bakery departments are no longer allowed to give away food to anyone other than a registered food bank.

He was so apologetic and really felt terribly.  I assured him that I understood completely and that I appreciated being able to pick up the produce that I was able to over the past almost year.

So....now that grocery budget that I was so proud of reducing......well that's about to go through the roof! UGH.

We eat a TON of plants around here.  I mean - a ton!  When I go to the grocery store and get asked if I am a caterer or if I own a restaurant - I think that tells you how many vegetables and greens I buy - and that's with having a garden!

So...out comes the Menu Planner.   It was so hard to use it when I didn't know what food I would be getting each week in the boxes, so it was always a "fly by the seat of my pants" kinda thing when it came to planning dinners.  We've only been using it again for 2 weeks and this thing saves me so much money!!!

I "liked" BackYard Produce on facebook a few months back and I love their recipes/ideas they post all the time.  They also deliver customizable boxes of fruit/veggies/meat/cheeses/etc to your house once a week.  They post what is in the next week's box on Thursday and you have until Saturday to customize your box.  Then it just shows up at your house! :)

We are getting our first box today and I am so excited! Even with getting the super-jumbo-you-eat-an-insane-amount-of-produce sized box - it still isn't enough.  But I am so happy that we can provide our family with almost exclusively local grown, organic produce and then I simply have to supplement throughout the week.  This week, I plan on having to buy limes, cilantro, and of course more bananas - we eat them like they are going out of style! I will be continuing to use tomatoes, peppers, beans, okra, kale, etc from our garden as well as all of the tasty canned goods I've been so busily putting up for the past month or so.  I also have some left over apples, potatoes, and oranges that I bought last week, so we'll be set for a bit.

We also, may or may not have purchased 80 pounds of organic Vidalia onions that are now adorning my canning shelves....we go through at least 1- 1 1/2 five pound bags of onions a week, so I hope those will last us a bit! :)

Not too bad of a start for getting back to the real world of having to purchase your produce - if you ask me!

Mini Garden Update

Hey hey there! I decided I couldn't wait until the end of the month to show you what's going on in my garden - so instead of taking pictures of all of the plants - I took one of everything I harvested this morning! :)

 And of my helper - of course. :)

Looks like I know what I'm doing this morning....what about you?

Black Bean & Corn Salsa

Man oh man.  You know those recipes that your family has been making for years and yet every time you have it, your mouth is just like YES! :) This is one of those recipes.  We eat it on chips, in tacos, in enchiladas, over rice, when we used to eat eggs, it makes a mean omelet...can't say I've ever eaten it on anything and didn't like it. :)

It's so simple - but I think that's what makes it awesome! We just had it for dinner Thursday night over some wild rice from the Organic Market in town.  It is fantastic!  Also - this has nothing to do with the salsa, but one of the guys that works at the market told me that you can cook the rice covered in the oven for an hour and it turns out perfectly - he isn't kidding! So easy and I have a rice cooker but I usually leave it in the cabinet and I like to have as few things on the stove as possible if I'm not in the kitchen full time....don't want little Te-Man to burn his fingers.  I just throw in a little poultry seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, and some good old S&P. And it is phenomenal! :)

Well, back to the Salsa - make this!  And make some of these Corn Tortilla Chips to eat it on. :)  YUM!

Black Bean & Corn Salsa

What's In It:
1 red pepper, chopped
1 yellow pepper, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
1 qt sized bag of corn*
2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained**
1/2 c olive oil
1/2 c vinegar
3 limes or lemons, juiced (approx 1/3 c)

What To Do With It:
Combine all vegetables and beans.

Whisk oil, vinegar, and juice together.

Toss to mix.

Can be eaten immediately, but it tastes so much better if you let the flavors combine for a few hours.

*About 3-4 cups.  You can use canned, but go for the higher quality corn - it makes all the difference.
**I use homemade black beans and I use 3 heaping cups.

Plant Based Pad Thai

I am a lot of things.  I'm sure you could ask a ton of people and they would probably all give you slightly different answers, but one that I think would be very rare (or hopefully non-existent) is cheater.  The Super Parents definitely raised us all to be honest, hard working, etc.  Just today at a market, a small business owner gave me the wrong change and I was almost embarrassed that I hadn't noticed.  I have my own small business and I would NEVER want to cheat anyone out of anything!

Well....I'll tell you a secret.  I do cheat.  I cheat when I make Pad Thai. :)  I found this recipe over at Happy Herbivore.  Have you checked her out yet?  Oh. My. Goodness.  I have not found a single dish of hers that I am not in love with.  I think I'm going to be asking for her entire cookbook set for Christmas and I'm kinda anti cookbook (I can't stand the clutter - so I end up putting them away and then I never use them!)

I love using this recipe to use up all the odds and ends from the fridge or when I get a ton of veggies in the reclaimed produce box.  Both of the pictures in this post are filled with free veggies (except for the water chestnuts in the first pictures - those were a special request from Ze-Ra)! :)  I think I can handle a meal that costs less than $1 for 4 people!!! :)

CHECK HAPPY HERBIVORE OUT!!!!

Cheater Pad Thai

Original Recipe Here

What's In It:
1/4 c soy sauce
2 T sweet soy sauce (or additional regular soy sauce)
2 T peanut butter
2 T sweet chili sauce*
1 t siracha sauce
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t ginger powder

8 oz rice noodles, prepared

What To Do With It:
Whisk all ingredients except for noodles together.  I sometimes do this earlier in the day and keep it in the fridge if I know I'm going to be rushed later - how can you be too rushed to whisk something together in 2 minutes?  I don't know, but it happens.  :)

Pour over rice noodles as soon as they are ready.

Serve with bean sprouts, green onions, veggie stir fry - or just enjoy the noodley goodness. :)

*I use a sweet chili sauce for spring rolls.  I just saw that you can make your own....I smell a project! :)

Plant Based Spinach Artichoke Dip

*Insert your best whiny voice here*
But Melissa....I don't want to go Plant Based....there's never anything delicious to eat!
*Insert my best mom voice*
You clearly haven't been eating over at the Hive.

:-)

Give me a holler and we'll set an extra place at the table with your name on it!  I'm not promising that there will be any food left over for you - especially if I make this dip.  I made it yesterday on a whim and I seriously ate 3/4 of it myself.  I'm not sure if I should be proud or embarrassed.  Maybe both? :-)

I think it's even better than this Spinach Dip I made last year.  Last year's was great too, but you know how when you eat a bunch of rich, cheesy food you feel just - ugh?  Well, after eating all that I did yesterday the only feeling I had was gratitude. :)

Give this one a try - as a favor to me!  I want to hear what you think! I LOVE that I can actually taste all of the vegetables yet it has that creamy comfort food feeling!

Plant Based Spinach Artichoke Dip

Original Recipe Here

What's In It:
3/4c raw cashews (not soaked)
3/4 c almond milk
3 T lemon juice
1/2 T minced garlic
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1/2 t yellow mustard
1 can artichokes, drained
1 jar roasted red peppers, drained
3 c spinach leaves

What To Do With It:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Blend cashews, milk, juice, garlic, mustard, and seasonings in a high powered blender.

In a food processor, pulse artichokes, peppers, and spinach (my spinach wasn't pulsing the way I wanted, so I just tore my spinach into smaller pieces by hand).  Do not completely puree!

Mix milk mixture with veggies.  Bake in an 8x8 (or equivalent) baking dish for 17-20 minutes or until it is bubbly and the edges are getting a little browned.

Serve with bread, veggies, or crackers.

Plant Based Potato Salad

What good is a burger if it doesn't share a plate with some beautiful potato salad?

I LOVE potato salad....I could eat it every day, and I'm not even kidding.

I almost feel like I don't have anything to say about this potato salad because the fact that potato salad exists at all is enough of a reason to try it.  

Wanna know a secret? I only eat potato salad with BBQ sauce.  I just think that eating potato salad without BBQ sauce is like.....Bert without Ernie - just unacceptable.  You should have seen the look on Super Mom's face the first time I put the BBQ sauce on my potato salad.  It was quite amusing, but then I used the BBQ sauce on the potato salad even when we weren't having BBQ'd food....and then Hit Girl started doing it....hahaha...let the corruption begin! :)

You don't have to eat it with BBQ sauce - but I bet if you try it, you'll like it. :)

If you're wandering what the delicious salad is in the above photo, stop by the recipe for Summer Salad and check it out! :)

Plant Based Potato Salad

Original Recipe Here

What's In It:
4 medium potatoes
2/3 c relish or bread and butter pickles, diced
1/2 c onion, finely diced
1 stalk of celery, finely diced
1 c Plant Based Ranch Dressing
1 T dijon mustard
Salt and Pepper to taste
BBQ SAUCE - optional

What To Do With It:
Boil potatoes until tender.  Cool slightly, peel if desired, and dice.

Combine potatoes with remaining ingredients and gently stir until combined.

Chill for at least 2 hours before serving - with BBQ sauce, of course ;)

Summer Salad

I got some free portabellas in a reclaimed produce box and what better way to eat them than as a burger!?  So to go with our mushroom burgers, I made some delicious potato salad and some of this fresh summer salad.

Wolverine LOVES this stuff.  Anytime I ask him what he wants to have, he says Lima Bean and Corn Salad. :)  I just figured that since I also make this with zucchini on occasion, calling it Lima Bean Salad just wouldn't do. :)

Summer Salad

Original Recipe Here

What's In It*:
2 c corn (the sweeter the better)
1 c lima bean or diced zucchini**
1 c tomatoes, diced
2/3 c cilantro, chopped
1/2 lrg onion, thinly sliced
1 T dijon mustard
2 T basalmic or white vinegar
2 limes, juiced
1/2 t pepper
1 t garlic salt

What To Do With It:
Mix all ingredients together and allow to chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

*I did measure everything out when making this recipe the first time, but the recipe is really forgiving - so I really don't measure much anymore.  I grab a couple of handfuls of lima beans out of the bag in the freezer and a quart size bag of  corn, then grab a couple of tomatoes, and a large handful of cilantro.  This summer, when my peppers are going gang busters in the garden, you can bet your britches I'll be throwing in a pepper or two as well. :)
**If you are using canned Lima Beans, just rinse and go.  If you are using frozen or dry.  Be sure to cook them enough to soften them - you don't want to be biting into a hard lima!
If you're going with the zucchini, just dice it and use it raw.

Red (or White) Beans and Rice

I started making this dish during our 30 day Vegan Challenge in 2011.  It was amazing then and it still is! :)

We LOVE it with corn bread, though I haven't quite found a plant based corn bread recipe yet that I feel is worth trying.  So the search continues!  If you have one, send it my way....I'd love to try it! :)

It is a little spicy, so you can adjust your seasonings accordingly.  If you're wanting to cut back on the spice, I'd use less Tony Chachere's and more regular salt.

If you need a little meat with your beans, you can throw in a ham hock with the beans and it will be super tender and flavorful.  I'd pull apart the meat and mix it into the beans before serving.

The most recent time I made this, I didn't have any red beans in the house and our organic market didn't have any and our Sam's doesn't carry dry beans.  I am usually not the kind of person to make a trip to the store for a single item, especially when I have a perfectly fine substitute in my cabinet.  Hence, our White Beans and Rice for the photo.  Just use your imagination and they'll be red!  :)

Red Beans and Rice

Original Recipe Here

What's In It:

1 lb dry beans, rinsed, soaked for at least 8 hours, and drained

1 T oil

1 lrg onion, diced

1 bell pepper, diced

1 large carrot, diced

1 c chopped celery

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 T dried parsley

3 bay leaves

1/2 T black pepper

1 T smoked paprika

1-2 T salt (kosher or Tony Chachere's depending on your preference)

1/2 T thyme

1/2 T onion powder

1/2 T poultry seasoning

3-4 c stock

Sliced Green Onions for garnish

What To Do With It:

Saute veggies and garlic in oil over medium high heat for a few minutes - I usually do this until they start to sweat a bit.  

Add spices and beans and stir to combine. 

Add stock and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for at least 2 hours.

If you'd like your beans to be a little smashed, you can take a spatula and press them against the side of the pot while you stir.

Serve over rice.

Sweet Potato Chili

WOW!  I've been making this chili for over a year and (I know I say this a lot) every time I make it, I think to myself.....why don't I make this more often?!  It is delicious!

It is chock full of vegetables and tastes fantastic!  If you want to add meat I could see chicken, beef, or venison working well, but give it a try as is first....you might be surprised! :)

I whipped this up in less than 10 minutes on Saturday to take over to Wiley Kat's house for an impromptu chili dinner. :)  Not too shabby for 10 minutes! :)

Sweet Potato Chili

Original Recipe Here

What's In It:
2 sweet potatoes, diced
1 onion, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 c corn*
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, diced
2 14.5 oz cans of diced tomatoes
1 14.5 oz can kidney beans (or 1 1/2 c soaked beans)
2 T chili powder
1 T smoked paprika
1 t salt
1 1/2 c water
1/2 c orange juice**

What To Do With It:

Slow Cooker Version:
Throw everything into the slow cooker and mix well.
Cook on Low 6-8 hours or High 3-4

Stove Top Version:
Throw everything into a pot and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to strong simmer and allow to cook for 2 hours or until vegetable are tender.


*I use corn that I freeze myself, but I think any kind would work here.
**I've made this using orange juice or lime juice. Both are delicious!  If you don't have either, water could be used instead....but it just won't be the same.

Cauliflower and Lentil Tacos

We LOVE tacos here at the Hive!  YUM!  I was a little sad that tacos might become a thing of the past, but I don't know what I was thinking.  There are so many delicious plant based taco options....I was just being silly!

These were so good they even won over my cauliflower hatin' Wolverine!   He actually congratulated me on coming up with a way to get him to eat cauliflower.  :)  Yay!

Also, this makes a ton!  We all had at least 3 tacos for dinner and there were left overs for at least 4 lunches!  I've also paired it with some Mexican Rice for a mean burrito. :)

Cauliflower and Lentil Tacos

Original Recipe Here

What's In It:
1 c uncooked lentils*
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 c water

1 large head cauliflower
1 large onion, diced
1 chipotle pepper, diced
4 cloves garlic
2 T chili powder
1 t salt
1/2 t cumin
1 t smoked paprika

What To Do With It:
Rinse and drain the lentils.  Bring lentils, 3 cloves garlic, and water to a boil.  Reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook 20 minutes or until water is absorbed and lentils are tender.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Prepare cauliflower by removing leaves and center core.  The goal is to have the cauliflower in little crumbles.  This can be achieved with a food processor, a cheese grater, or just chopping.  If using a food processor, do so in batches and make sure you don't over process!  I usually just chop, less dishes.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onions and chipotle pepper and cook until the onions start to brown.  Add cauliflower and garlic.  Cook 3-4 minutes.

Pour lentils into a strainer to remove any excess water.  Add the seasonings and the lentils to the skillet.  Continue to cook until warmed through and combined.

Serve with whole wheat tortillas, salsa, pickled peppers, avocado, sprouts, lettuce, etc.  


*You can also make this recipe using left over lentils.  If you're using precooked lentils, you'll need 3 cups and you won't need the water to cook them in or the first 3 cloves of garlic. ;)

Reclaimed Food Week #11

This week's theme must have been....GREEN!  Check out all those goodies - maybe Produce Guy thought the chickens needed a little St. Patrick's Day pick-me-up. :)  

Either way - we LOVE our green veggies here at the hive- just today for lunch Te-Man snagged a piece of cucumber off of my lunch plate and munched away happily.  Ze-Ra is always down for eating some veggies - she is seriously the easiest kid when it comes to food.  As long as it isn't sauer kraut or salted ham, she's game!   It is so fun when you get to watch your kids make great choices! :)  

 Tuesday 03/12/13

Thursday 03/14/13

Reclaimed Food Week #10

Whoa momma....look at all the corn, yellow squash, and peppers!  Craziness! 

I made a new recipe with the squash - it was a chocolate zucchini bread recipe.  It was interesting....everyone but me LOVED it....maybe it was because I used honey and I don't really like the taste of honey....I don't know. :(

We made hashbrowns out of the butternut squash - those were delish!  I'll have to make them again and take a pic - super easy and even a great work out ;) 

Te-Man was so excited when he saw that corn - YUM!

Tueday 03/05/13

Kale soup baby....yea! 

Thursday 03/07/13

Reclaimed Food Week #9

Only one day of produce this week, but that's alright - no complaining here!  

Even with getting produce only one day, I was able to save over $30 of produce from hitting the garbage!

Have I convinced you to contact your local grocery store to ask about their produce scraps?  You should definitely do it - the worst thing that can happen is they say no.  

My "chickens" eat like kings!!! 

Thursday 02/28/13

Reclaimed Food Week #8

Wow, I have gotten bad about posting these....yeesh.

Maybe I am forgetting to post them because I'm so busy eating all of the produce.....yea....that's it. ;)

I can tell you that it might not have kept me busy, but it sure did keep us (and Wiley Kat's family) happy with tummies full of fruit! :)

Tuesday 02/19/13

Thursday 02/21/13

Prepared Horseradish - Challenge 2013 Recipe #12

Hello.....my name is Melissa.....I love horseradish.

There, I said it.  Admitting you have a problem is half the battle, right? :)

I love cocktail sauce, horseradish mustard, I love horsey sauce - straight, in stir fry's, on bbq, on hotdogs....I have a problem.  :)

I had never even thought of making it myself.  I figured there had to be something tricky to it....I mean they sell it in those little jars like it's gold right?

Nope.  I peeled it, chopped it, whirred it in my ninja, added some vinegar, and BAM!

Now I have all the excuses in the world to make all kinds of horsey dishes....right?   Like some Homemade Cocktail Sauce?  You bet'cha!

DIY Test Kitchen Prepared Horseradish

Reclaimed Food Week #7

Strawberries and grapes this week!?  That's awesome!!!  I had plenty of produce to get to share some with Wiley Kat this week and have all kinds of peppers to eat with the Hummus I picked up also.  I want to turn those beets into some beet pancakes, but we'll see if I get around to it.  My fridge is packed to the gills! 

 Tuesday 02/12/13

Thursday 02/14/12

Te-Man is LOVING all of this fruit and corn.  He's turned into quite the corn expert.  I'm also looking forward to some Kale smoothies this week.  I still have a little bit in my garden, but I'm kind of saving it....for what I'm not sure....it's just the natural hoarder in me. ;)   

Reclaimed Food Week #6

Well, if things were a little slow last week, this week more than made up for it!  Wiley Kat got three big bags of produce this week and my fridge was overflowing!

No complaints here from either camp though....I mean really who can complain about too many veggies! :)

 Tuesday 02/05/13

Thursday 02/07/13

Check out all those carrots from Tuesday!  We are still eating them :) I bought all the stuff to make this Carrot Pasta from Weelicious....but I haven't gotten around to doing it yet....maybe this weekend.  

We ate almost everything else in salads, but I put the swiss chard in breakfast smoothies and YUM - it was fantastic! :) 

Reclaimed Food Week #5

This week veggies weren't as plentiful as usual, but that's alright, we had plenty left over from last week, so really it was probably a good thing so that we didn't waste anything.  

I totally forgot to take a picture of Tuesday's produce, but it was 3 small zucchinis, an ear of corn, and a large metal bowl of green beans. :) 

Thursday 01/31/13

Te-Man had the corn eaten by the time I was done snapping the green beans that went into the freezer.  The zucchini was turned into bread, the greens were cooked down and frozen for later, we had roasted carrots for dinner one night and the lettuce was turned into salads! :) YUM! 

Reclaimed Food Week #4

You can never have too much produce - at least we can't here at the Hive!. :)

Gotta love all the goodies this week!

Tuesday 1/22

You should see Ze-Ra devour those mangoes - they are all gone already!  And Te-Man has made pretty fast work of those Carrots and oranges.  As for the salads, those were gone in less than 24 hours as well.  The mushrooms, well some went into this Venison Pot Pie and the others are being saved for Spaghetti! 

Thursday 1/24

All of that beautiful lettuce and those peppers will very soon be turned delicious salads - yum!

Have you called your grocery store yet?