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Very Veggie Vegan Rice and Lentil Bowl

I love bowls of rice.  I love veggies. I love avocado. I love tahini sauce.  Don’t you?  This bowl has all of those things and then some.  It’s chock full o’ healthy starch, protein, vitamins, nutrients, healthy fats, and flat out deliciousness.  I adapted the recipe from this one here to fit my likes and what I had in the fridge/pantry.  Feel free to try my version or the one from Food & Wine Magazine.

Verry Veggie Vegan Rice and Lentil Bowl 

1 cup brown rice

1 cup lentils

4 Tbsps olive oil, separated

1 small onion, finely diced

1 whole carrot, peeled and sliced in 1/4 inch pieces

1 zucchini, sliced in half lengthwise then cut into 1/4 inch pieces

Salt

1 head of broccoli, chopped into florets

1 bunch kale, large stems removed and roughly chopped

1/2 cup tahini, room temperature

Juice of 1 lemon

2 cloves of garlic, minced

3-5 Tbsps warm water

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste)

More salt

1 ripe avocado, diced

 

Directions

1.  Cook the rice as indicated on package. In the meantime, cook the lentils as indicated on package as well.

2. Heat 2 tbsps of olive oil up in a large skillet and, over medium heat, cook the onions for about 4 minutes, until they turn translucent.  Add the carrots and cook, stirring occasionally for another 3 minutes.  Add the zucchini, a healthy dose of salt, and cook until tender (about 4 minutes).  Transfer into a bowl.

3. Put remaining olive oil in the skillet and over medium heat cook the broccoli, covered for about 5 minutes–stirring occasionally–until broccoli is dark green.  Add the kale and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with some salt, mix in the other vegetables, and remove from heat.

4. Whisk together your tahini, lemon juice, cayenne pepper, garlic, and warm water.  Add more water as desired for a thinner sauce.

5. Mix together your rice, lentils, and cooked veggies. Serve topped with avocado and tahini sauce.

**Note for the carnivores: My boyfriend topped his dish with a chicken breast that he cooked in a light coating of teriyaki sauce. He said it was phenomenal.

 

Be well!

 

 

 

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Some Dance to Remember, Some Dance to Forget

As a dancer, I need Pilates to help me find my core intuitively while I’m dancing, and balance my strength and flexibility for optimal movement efficiency.

Contact me to learn more about how Pilates improves dance performance.

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Vegan Pumpkin Peanut Soup

Vegan Pumpkin Peanut SoupI don’t know how the thought came to me, but one day I realized I desperately wanted to make a pumpkin peanut butter soup. Thankfully, such a thing exists and I found a number of recipes.  The recipes I found all had butter.  Why?  I have no idea.  The original recipe I tried was also super boring so I looked for more, stole some ideas, and added some a little sugar n’ spice to make it extra nice.  The vegan soup that I ended up with is absolutely delicious and please both me and my meat-eating boyfriend.  Enjoy!

Vegan Pumpkin Peanut Soup

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 medium sweet potato

1 Tbsp. coconut oil

1 1/2 cups water

1/4 cup peanut butter (smooth, natural)

1/4 teaspoon curry powder

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste)

1-2 teaspoons maple syrup

Salt and pepper to taste

Step 1: Chop the sweet potato, steam in a steam basket over boiling water until soft (about 10 minutes).  Peel the potatoes.  Allow to cool slightly and be careful though; those are some hot potatoes! Puree the sweet potatoes until smooth.

Step 2: In a large pot, melt the coconut oil over medium low heat. Stir in pumpkin, sweet potato puree, and peanut butter.

Step 3: Slowly add the water.  Season with curry powder, cayenne pepper, and maple syrup and stir well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Now eat up and love that Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and healthy fat and fiber!

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