Easy Meal Favorites

More one-pot and easy meal favorites of the McDougall family.  Some of these may require a bit more work, such as cooking some pasta, brown rice or potatoes, but these are recipes I pull out over and over again to prepare for friends and family. 

One Pot Meals

Potato Chowder

This is always a favorite at the McDougall Program and it is quick and easy to make as well.  Buy bags of frozen, chopped hash brown potatoes (with no added oils) for really easy preparation of this delicious soup.

Preparation Time:  10 minutes
Cooking Time:  30 minutes
Servings:  4-6

4 cups vegetable broth
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 leek, white and light green part, sliced
6 cups frozen chopped hash brown potatoes
2 cups soy, rice or almond milk
½ teaspoon sea salt (optional)
⅛ teaspoon white pepper
2 tablespoons parsley flakes
2 tablespoons dried chives
dash liquid smoke

Place ½ cup of the broth in a large soup pot with the onion, celery and leeks.  Cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes, until softened.  Add the remaining broth and the potatoes.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and cook for 20 minutes.  Using an immersion blender, process the soup while still in the pot.  (Unless you are using a non-stick pan, then place the soup in a blender jar and process until fairly smooth.  Return to pan.)  Add the remaining ingredients and heat through, about 5 minutes.

Easy Mayan Black Beans

This is one of those simple, 5 ingredient recipes that is so easy to put together, yet it has a delicious, hearty flavor.  This will serve 2 people when used as a topping for baked potatoes or rolled up in a tortilla.  It is also wonderful heaped into a baked tortilla boat.  (See the recipe in the August 2004  newsletter for an explanation on these tortilla boats.)

Preparation Time:  5 minutes
Cooking Time:  15 minutes
Servings: 2

1  15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup fresh salsa:  mild, medium, or hot
½ cup green onions, chopped
¾ cup frozen corn kernels
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Place all the ingredients except the cilantro in a saucepan and bring to a gentle boil.  Reduce heat, cover and cook for about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Stir in the cilantro, if desired, let rest for 1 minute and serve.

Hint: This also makes a wonderful topping for brown rice, or for a simple recipe variation, add about ¾ cup of cooked brown rice to the bean mixture about 5 minutes before the end of the cooking time.  This recipe adapts well to precooking:  double the recipe, cook ahead of time, refrigerate half for use within the next 2 days, freezing the remainder for later use.

Barbecued Bean Sauce

This is delicious over baked potatoes, on top of brown rice, stuffed into pita bread or just in a bowl by itself.

 Preparation Time:  10 minutes
Cooking Time:  20 minutes
Servings:  6

1 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1/3 cup water
1  15 ounce can fire roasted chopped tomatoes with green chilies
1 teaspoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon chipotle chili powder
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
1  15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1  15 ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1  15 ounce can white beans, drained and rinsed
1  10 ounce package frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
½ cup vegetable broth
¼ cup barbecue sauce
dash or two of hot sauce (optional)

Place the onion, garlic and water in a large pot.  Cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.  Add tomatoes and seasonings.  Mix well, then add the remaining ingredients.  Cook, stirring occasionally for 15 minutes.

Stovetop Bulgur Pilaf

This is a delicious earthy fall pilaf that would be a wonderful addition to your Thanksgiving menu.

Preparation Time:  15 minutes
Cooking Time:  1 hour
Servings:  4

1 onion, chopped
2 cups vegetable broth
½ cup white wine
½ cup uncooked wild rice
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
½ cup uncooked bulgur
½ cup chopped green pepper
½ cup chopped red pepper
1 tablespoon soy sauce
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
freshly ground black pepper
½ cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

Place the onion in a large non-stick pot with 1 tablespoon of the vegetable broth.  Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion turns a slight golden color.  Add the remaining broth, the wine and the wild rice.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and cook for 30 minutes.  Add the mushrooms, bulgur, peppers, soy sauce, crushed red pepper and several twists of freshly ground black pepper.  Mix well, cover and continue to cook for an additional 25 minutes, until grains are tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.  Stir in parsley and serve.

Curried Yam Stew

This one pot meal contains many of my favorite foods; garbanzos, spinach and yams.  It is easy to prepare, cooks quickly and tastes delicious. 

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking time:  20 minutes
Servings:  4

4 cups peeled and diced garnet yams
1  15 ounce can diced tomatoes
1  15 ounce can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
¼ cup vegetable broth
2 teaspoons curry powder
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon ground coriander
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
4 green onions, chopped
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 cups packed fresh baby spinach leaves

Place the yams, tomatoes, garbanzo beans and broth in a large pot.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and cook, stirring occasionally for 15 minutes, until yams are just tender.  Add the remaining ingredients, except for the spinach leaves and mix well.  Place the spinach leaves on top of the stew, cover and steam for 1 minute or so, then stir the leaves into the stew.  Continue to cook, stirring frequently for 4 minutes longer.  Serve at once.

Two Pot Meals

Peppered Kale & Potatoes

I grew so much kale in my garden this year, which I have been using in many new ways.  Kale is a very nutritious vegetable, loaded with phytonutrients. This is delicious, healthy, and quick to put together which makes it a favorite lunch time dish.  I even like this for breakfast!  We like this with Sriracha red chili sauce over the top for even more heat.

Preparation Time:  15 minutes
Cooking Time:  20 minutes
Servings:  2

2 cups red fingerling potatoes, chunked
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 portobello mushrooms, coarsely chopped
4 cups packed, coarsely chopped dinosaur kale
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon chili paste
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the potatoes in water to cover, bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook until fairly tender, about 8-10 minutes.  Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, place the onion, garlic and mushrooms in a large nonstick sauté pan or wok. Do not add any liquid.  Dry fry over medium heat, stirring frequently, for about 5-6 minutes, until onions and mushrooms are fairly tender.  Add the kale and stir gently to combine. Continue to cook, stirring frequently for about 2 minutes, then add the potatoes.  Cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes, then add the soy sauce, chili paste and pepper.  Cook an additional 5 minutes, until kale is tender and potatoes are somewhat browned.  Serve warm.

Hints:  Small red potatoes may be substituted for the fingerlings, if desired.  If you can’t get dinosaur kale (also called Lacinato Blue), use regular kale, but remove the stems first. 

Costa Rican Potatoes and Beans

Preparation Time:  30 minutes (need cooked potatoes)
Cooking Time:  30 minutes
Servings:  4

½ to 1 cup vegetable broth
1 onion, chopped
½ teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
2 ½ cups chopped fresh tomatoes
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
several twists freshly ground black pepper
4 cups packed chopped spinach
3 cups chunked cooked potatoes
1  15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
hot sauce

Place ½ cup of the vegetable broth in a large non-stick frying pan.  Add the onion, garlic and jalapeno.  Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until vegetables are very soft, adding the rest of the vegetable broth if necessary.  Add tomatoes, cilantro and black pepper.  Cook, uncovered over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, drop the spinach into boiling water for 1 minute.  Drain and set aside. 

Add potatoes and beans to tomato mixture.  Mix well and cook for 3 minutes.  Add spinach and cook for another minute.  Season to taste with hot sauce. 

Serve hot or cold.

Red Bean Gumbo

Preparation Time:  20 minutes, cooked rice needed
Cooking Time:  30 minutes
Servings:  6-8

1/2 cup water
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
6 cups vegetable broth
1  14.5 ounce can Cajun-style stewed tomatoes
1  8 ounce can tomato sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons ground oregano
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
several twists of fresh ground pepper
1  15 ounce can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1  15 ounce can red beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups chopped greens (kale, chard, spinach, etc.)
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2-4 cups hot brown basmati or jasmine rice

Place the water, onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic in a large pot.  Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.  Add vegetable broth, tomatoes, tomato sauce and seasonings.  Bring to a boil, cover and cook over low heat for 15 minutes.  Add beans and greens (not parsley) and cook an additional 10 minutes.  Stir in parsley.

To serve, place 1/2 cup of the rice in the bottom of a soup bowl.  Ladle gumbo over the rice and mix well before eating.

Mexican Picadillo Wraps

Wraps are a simple, yet hearty meal for lunch or dinner.  These are especially quick because they make use of canned beans and leftover rice. 

Preparation Time:  15 minutes
Cooking Time:  44 minutes
Servings:  8-10

½ cup water
1 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2  15 ounce cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1  14.5 ounce can fire-roasted chopped tomatoes
1  4 ounce can diced green chilies
1 tart green apple, cored and chopped
freshly ground black pepper
2 cups cooked long grain brown rice
½ cup raisins
1  2.2 ounce can sliced black olives, drained
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons toasted slivered almonds (optional)

Place the water into a large pot.  Add the onion, bell pepper and garlic.  Cook, stirring occasionally until onion softens slightly, about 5 minutes.  Add the beans, tomatoes, green chilies, apple and several twists freshly ground black pepper.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and cook for 20 minutes on low.  Add the remaining ingredients, mix well and cook for 5 minutes until heated through. Serve rolled up in a tortilla with some hot sauce sprinkled over the top, if desired.

Hints:  To toast the almonds, cook and stir in a dry non-stick pan until golden in color.

This may also be made with black beans, or one can of pinto and one can of black.

New Tamale Pie

This may be made ahead of time and refrigerated until baking.  It reheats well and is delicious the next day.

Preparation Time:  10 minutes
Cooking Time:  1 hour
Resting Time:  10 minutes
Servings:  4-6

5 cups frozen corn, thawed
½ cup masa flour (for tamales)
¼ cup vegetable broth
1  4 ounce can chopped green chilies
2 tablespoons chopped roasted red peppers
2 tablespoons chopped black olives
½ cup tofu sour cream (recipe in the June 2002 newsletter)
¼ teaspoon salt (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place the corn, masa flour and broth in a food processor.  (If you have a small processor, do this in batches.)  Process until fairly smooth.  Scrape into a large bowl.  Add chilies, chopped peppers, olives, tofu sour cream and salt.  Mix well.  Turn into a casserole dish.  (To prevent sticking, lightly oil the dish first with a small amount of oil on a paper towel.)  Cover and bake for 1 hour.  Remove from oven and let rest for about 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with salsa, enchilada sauce or guacamole to spoon over the top.

Global Bean Stew 

Servings:  6
Preparation Time:  25 minutes
Cooking Time:  60 minutes

3 cups vegetable broth
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups baby potatoes, chunked
2  15 ounce cans white cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1  8 ounce can tomato sauce
1 ½ cups prepared hummus
1 ½  tablespoons parsley flakes
1 ½  tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon basil
½ teaspoon oregano
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
1/8 to ¼  teaspoon crushed red pepper
½ cup cooked quinoa
1 ½  cups thinly sliced fresh spinach

Place ½ cup of the broth in a large pot.  Add onion, celery, carrot, bell pepper and garlic.  Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.   Add remaining broth, potatoes and beans.  Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and cook for 30 minutes.  Add tomato sauce, hummus and seasonings.  Cook an additional 10 minutes.  Add cooked quinoa, mix well and cook for 5 minutes.  Stir in spinach and cook an additional 2 minutes. 

Hints: This may be made with other cooked grains, such as bulgur, kasha, millet, rice or even whole wheat couscous (which is not a grain, but a pasta).   Most natural food stores sell prepared low-fat hummus or you can easily make your own by pureeing cooked garbanzo beans with a small amount of broth, garlic and salt.   This may also be made with garbanzo beans instead of the white beans.  If you can’t find baby potatoes, use larger red potatoes and chop them into bite-sized chunks.  If you want to use chard or kale instead of the spinach, it will need to cook about 5 additional minutes. 

Thai Green Curry Rice

This rice dish is made with a Thai green curry paste that is sold in Asian markets, natural food stores and some supermarkets.  To vary this recipe, try making it with red curry paste instead of the green curry paste. 

Preparation Time:  20 minutes (cooked rice needed)
Cooking Time:  12 minutes
Servings:  4

1/3 cup vegetable broth
1 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 tablespoons green curry paste
2 cups chopped Napa cabbage
1 cup broccoli florets
1 cup cauliflower florets
1 cup snap peas
1 tablespoon soy sauce
4 cups cooked long grain brown rice
1 tomato, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh Thai basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup almond milk or rice milk mixed with 1 teaspoon coconut extract 

Place the broth in a large pot along with the onion, bell peppers and garlic.  Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.  Stir in the curry paste.  Add the cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, peas and soy sauce.  Mix well, cover and cook for about 5 minutes, until vegetables are tender.  Add the remaining ingredients, mix well and cook until heated through, about 2-3 minutes.

Hint:  Curry pastes are quite spicy so you may want to start out with the smaller amount and add more to taste.  If you can’t find fresh Thai basil, just use the fresh basil found in the produce department of your supermarket.  For a very colorful variation, use cooked Thai purple rice in place of the cooked brown rice.  Coconut extract in rice or almond milk makes a wonderful substitution for coconut milk in recipes.

Thai Noodles

This wonderful meal requires minimal cooking and it may be made completely ahead of time and served cold or at room temperature.  It also keeps well in a cooler so it is a great picnic food.  Everyone loves these!!

Preparation Time:  30 minutes
Cooking Time:  10 minutes
Servings:  4

12-14 ounces linguini (broken in half)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup natural peanut butter, creamy
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1-2 teaspoons chili-garlic sauce (see hints)
¼  teaspoon sesame oil (optional-see hints)
3 tablespoons vegetable broth
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 ½ cups mung bean sprouts
1 ½ cups shredded carrots
7 ounces baked seasoned tofu, thinly sliced
chopped cilantro
chopped peanuts (optional)

Prepare noodles according to package directions.  Drain and set aside. 

Meanwhile, combine the honey, peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, chili-garlic sauce and the sesame oil in a mixing bowl and whisk until smooth.  Set aside.  Place the broth in a non-stick frying pan with the onions, garlic and ginger.  Cook, stirring frequently for 2-3 minutes.  Add the sauce, mix well and heat through.  Pour over the noodles and toss well to mix.  Add the bean sprouts, carrots and tofu and toss again to mix.  Serve warm or at room temperature.  Let each person add chopped cilantro and/or chopped peanuts, if desired. 

Hints:  Rice vinegar and chili garlic sauce may be found in most supermarkets in the oriental section. One brand of chili-garlic sauce is made by Huy Fong Foods.  It is quite spicy, so you may need to adjust the amount used according to your tastes.  I use a small amount of sesame oil in this recipe for the unique taste it adds to foods.  It may be omitted, if desired.  This dish keeps well in the refrigerator and may also be served cold.  This is great to fix on those busy evenings when everyone is eating at different times because it tastes best at room temperature.

Mexican Pasta Surprise

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time:  45 minutes
Servings:  6

8 ounces brown rice or whole wheat penne pasta
¼ cup water
1 onion, chopped
1 ½ teaspoons minced fresh garlic
1  4 ounce can chopped green chilies
½ teaspoon chipotle chile powder
1  14.5 ounce can fire roasted chopped tomatoes
1  15 ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 ¼ cups enchilada sauce
1/3 cup shredded soy cheese (optional)
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
½ cup tofu sour cream

Place a large pot of water on to boil and cook pasta according to package directions, just until barely tender.  Drain and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place the water in a large non-stick pan.  Add the onions and garlic.  Cook, stirring occasionally until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the green chilies, mix well, then stir in the chipotle powder.  Add the tomatoes, beans and enchilada sauce.  Mix well and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.  Add the cooked pasta and mix well.  Ladle mixture into a covered casserole dish.  Sprinkle with the soy cheese, if desired.  Bake covered for 30 minutes.

Serve with the cilantro and sour cream to spoon over each individual serving.

Hints:  Cook the pasta until it is just tender.  Do not overcook.  This may be prepared ahead of time and refrigerated until baking.  You will need to add about 10-15 minutes to the baking time.  Chipotle chile powder is quite spicy.  If you can’t find it or would like a less spicy version, use regular chili powder instead.  Recipes for enchilada sauce and sour cream may be found in the May 2003 and the June 2002 newsletters or in The Quick & Easy Cookbook.  If you have any leftovers, this is great reheated for lunch the following day.