Meatless Monday: Vegetarian West African Soup

As the weather gets cooler, my vegetarian dishes are taking on a heartier flare. Light pastas with fresh veggies are perfect for the summer however I try to choose comfort foods in the fall and winter. This Monday we had vegetarian west African soup. Very easy. Very filling and extremely flavorful. One caveat – you must like peanuts.

Here are the ingredients:

2/3 cup roasted peanuts (or 2/3 cup natural peanut butter)

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

2 cups chopped onion

6 cups (1-inch) cubed peeled sweet potato

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 15 1/2-ounce) cans chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained

1 15 1/2-ounce) cans black beans, drained

2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans vegetable broth

1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained

Flat-leaf parsley sprigs (optional)

This recipe is so quick and easy that I managed to throw it together in the 30-minute window between dropping my son off at football practice and heading out the door to a meeting.

The recipes calls for homemade peanut butter in which you place peanuts in a food processor; process until smooth (about 2 minutes), scraping sides of bowl once. In the interest of time, I use 2/3 cup of natural peanut butter.

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 7 minutes or until lightly browned. Add peanut butter, potato, and next 6 ingredients (potato through tomatoes); bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes or until potato is tender. Garnish with parsley, if desired.

This recipe is also great reheated if you have leftovers.

Body Basics/Healthy Food: Veggies for lunch

I work from home so I don’t have the temptation of office snack or cafeteria food throughout the day. However, I have fallen victim to having no “lunch” food when it’s time for lunch. I feel like I waste time, gas, and money if I leave my house and go out to buy lunch (unless it involves girlfriends then that’s a different story). So, I’m always trying to come up with creative, non-sandwich options.

I am somewhat of a foodie so I like to feel satisfied with the flavors and textures of every meal. Yesterday, I dumped some organic brown rice in my rice cooker and stir-fried leftover raw veggies from a previous meal and created one of the best lunches ever! Veggies and rice might sound a little boring but that’s where seasoning comes in. I cooked the rice in coconut curry broth and stir fried the veggies with a little garlic and soy sauce. It tasted great and didn’t make me drowsy afterwards.