How to stay on track during the holiday... food prep! Keep healthy foods stocked in your fridge! This is one of my favorites as the weather gets cooler! 

Hearty Minestrone Soup
Ingredients:

• 1 cup minced white onion (about 1 small onion)
• 1 cup chopped zucchini
• 1 cup fresh green beans, chopped into 1/2″ pieces
• 1 ½ stalk minced celery
• 4 teaspoons minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
• 7 cups water
• 4 No Chicken Cubes
• 1 (15 ounce) can red kidney beans, drained
• 1 (15 ounce) can small white beans or great northern beans, drained
• 1 large can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup carrot, minced or shredded
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 ½ teaspoon of dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 4 cups fresh baby spinach
• 2 cups small shell pasta (I like the brown rice pasta or Ronzoni Gluten Free pasta)

Directions:

Sauté onion, for 2 minutes, add celery and carrots and sauté for another 2 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent.

Add garlic, vegetable broth, tomatoes and herbs and spices and simmer for 15 minutes.

Add green beans and zucchini and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add beans and bring soup to a boil

Add spinach at the very end to just wilt.

I like to cook my pasta, rice, or other whole grain separately and add to my bowl so that it doesn’t soak up the broth while cooking, or sitting overnight for leftovers.

Instant Pot:

 Make the broth with the onions, carrots, celery, garlic, tomatoes, herbs and spices and set for about 5 minutes with a quick release.

Add the zucchini and green beans and set for 3 minutes, with quick release. Open and set on sauté. Add beans to heat through, and spinach at the last minutes.

I was at work when I finished the second part and I added the pasta to make it easier for serving. Fresh soup with fresh veggies at work for a birthday lunch! Yum!

Veggie Stew With Dumplings

Stew:
    2 teaspoons vegetable stock concentrate
    1 cup boiling water
    1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence (rosemary, thyme, marjoram, summer savory, basil, sage and tarragon)
    1 teaspoon oregano
    2 tablespoons olive oil
    1 cup turnip, peeled and diced
    1 cup onion, chopped
    1 cup carrot, diced
    1/2 cup celery, sliced
    1 clove garlic, minced
    2 bay leaves
    1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
    1/2 teaspoon rosemary
    1/2 teaspoon basil
    2 cups water
    5 teaspoons tamari
    2-3 potatoes, peeled and chopped
    1 cup frozen peas
    2 tablespoons cornstarch + 2 tablespoons water
    salt and pepper, to taste

    Dumplings:
    1 cup all-purpose flour
    2 teaspoons baking powder
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1/4 cup parsley, chopped
    1/2 cup nondairy milk (I use soy)
    2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions:

1. For stew,  blend first four ingredients and set aside. Sauté turnip, onion, carrot, celery, bay leaves, rosemary, basil, garlic and parsley in oil for 8 minutes.

2. Add water, broth mixture, tamari and potatoes.  Simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add peas, continue cooking another few minutes. Remove bay leaves.  Combine cornstarch and water, add to stew, and stir until thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3. For dumplings, sift dry ingredients together then add parsley. Mix milk with oil and add to dry ingredients (just stir until moistened). Drop mixture by tablespoonfuls onto stew. Cover and cook for 15 minutes (Do NOT lift the lid!)

I should have warned you guys that it (this recipe) has a lot of ingredients and looks lengthy. But I swear it a snap to make!

Potato Mushroom Soup

hmmmm, this soup was so yummy and filling! Sometimes I miss the creamy soups not using milk and sour cream... but found a great substitute in Tofutti sour cream! Was missing Grandma's German Potato Soup with knockwurst or for a good substitute hot dogs. So decided that mushrooms would be a good substitute

Of course I did not measure when I made the soup... so I will try to give good estimates on measurements.I'm a throw it in the post and taste sort of cook! I tweek just about every recipe I do use!

Potato Mushroom Soup

6-8 potatoes cut in half and sliced- skins on (I used russet potatoes-cheaper, but would taste better with red)
1/2 large onion, or 1 medium
2 portabello mushrooms- sliced and diced into larger pieces
8 cremini mushrooms- sliced and diced into medium pieces(called baby bellas in some places)
1/2 Tsp of "Better Than Bouillon" Vegetable Bouillon
2 TBS flour 
Fresh parsley to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
1- 8 oz Tofutti Sour cream  (as of late, I have been skipping the tofutti sour cream and using almond milk and flour to thicken and to add the creaminess).

Saute onions to golden brown
Add potatoes and saute for a few more minutes
Add water to cover potatoes and simmer until almost tender
Add Boullion, mushrooms, parely, salt and pepper
Mix a little cold water with flour and add to soup to thicken
Simmer until potatoes are to your liking.
Add Tofutti and simmer for just a couple of minutes.

Yummy!
Enjoy! Easy recipe!!!

Variatoins:
Next time I may add a little more bouillon, and maybe some broccoli!

Chili

Meatless Chili can taste good!!! I like to experiment, and this one came out great!
I made it a bit spicy for me, but not Paul... so tone down the chili by a 1/2 to 1 Tbs if you don't want it as spicy... you can always add more!

Ingredients:
1 large onion
1/2 red pepper
1 large can diced tomatoes w/ green chilies (28 oz)
1 small can of tomoto paste
3 gloves of garlic crushed
2 bay leaves
3/4 c of broth (I had a container of mushroom broth open, so used that)
2 Tbs of chili poweder
1 tsp of Ancho chili powder
1/2 tsp of salt
1/4 tsp of black pepper
1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper
1 can small red kindey beans (15.5 oz)
1 can canelli (white kidney) beans (15.5 oz)
1 can pinto beans (15.5 oz)
1 large can of black beans (26.5 oz)
1 1/2 cups of frozen corn
(I was going to add mushrooms, but we had used them up already, so will try next time)

Saute onions and red pepper in a little bit of canola oil (or water)
Add diced tomotoes, garlic, broth, and spices and let simmer for 10 minutes.
Add cans of beans and let simmer on low for 30 minutes
Add rinsed frozen corn and let simmer another 5-10 minutes.

Serve over brown rice or slice some sweat potatoes and/or white potato into thick chips and bake on a cookie sheet in a 400 degree oven till starting to brown. Serve chili over potato.

Enjoy!

Veggie Stew with Dumplings

Stew:
    1 cup vegetable stock/broth (I used no chicken broth by Imagine Natural Creations)
    1 tsp rosemary, thyme, basil, sage and tarragon, oregano
    2 tablespoons olive oil
    1 cup onion, chopped
    1 cup carrot, diced
    2 cloves garlic, minced
    2 bay leaves
    1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
    2 cups water
    5 teaspoons tamari or lite soy sauce
    2-3 potatoes, peeled and chopped
    1 cup frozen peas
    2 tablespoons cornstarch + 2 tablespoons water
    salt and pepper, to taste
    (in the original recipe there was 1/2 c celery and 1 small turnip)

    Dumplings:
    1/2 cup all-purpose flour
    1/2 whole wheat flour
    2 teaspoons baking powder
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    1/4 cup parsley, chopped
    1/2 cup nondairy milk (soy or rice or grain)
    2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Directions:

1. For stew,  Sauté turnip, onion, carrot, celery, herbs, garlic and parsley in oil for 8 minutes.

2. Add water, broth mixture, tamari and potatoes.  Simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add peas, continue cooking another few minutes. Remove bay leaves.  Combine cornstarch and water, add to stew, and stir until thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3. For dumplings, sift dry ingredients together then add parsley. Mix milk with oil and add to dry ingredients (just stir until moistened). Drop mixture by tablespoonfuls onto stew. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes (Do NOT lift the lid!)

But I swear it a snap to make and oh so good!!!