I know that when I decided to do this, I looked online for all kinds of recipes, but pretty much came up blank. I mean, I found a lot of sites that were like "eat kale!" but that's not all that helpful if you're trying to plan a meal. And I did eat meals, because I feel like to do otherwise is modeling some pretty unhealthy dieting behavior. So if you're thinking about trying to reset your digestive system, here are some pretty easy things that were also really tasty.
Caramelized Onion and White Bean Soup
I have been craving onions like crazy for some reason, and this soup really hit the spot. It was easy to make and super yummy and really filling. I actually was sad that I didn't have more. (And sad that I didn't get a picture of it)
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
2 carrots, sliced thin
6 c. vegetable broth
1/2 c. cooked leafy green (I used kale, because I had some and, you know, kale)
1/2 can small white beans, rinsed
In a medium pot, saute the onions in about 1 tbsp olive oil over low heat. Once the onions have become very soft and almost translucent (about 35 minutes - stir occasionally) raise the heat to medium and cook until they are a golden brown.
Add the carrot and garlic and cook about 5 minutes. Add the broth and simmer over medium heat until the carrots are soft, about 15 minutes. Add the leafy greens and beans and cook until the beans are warmed through.
There isn't much to this soup, but it really hits the spot on a cold day when you feel all comfort-foody, but don't want to pile in a thick stew.
Curried Chickpea Patties
These were really really good. I ate one for breakfast one day. I resisted the urge to call them "burgers" because then people expect something hamburger-like, which these obviously aren't. But if you can accept that something yummy and healthy can come in a hamburger shape but not taste like meat, these are the way to go.
Pete had his on a hamburger roll
(and the kids had regular hamburgers. I know how much I can push it)
3/4 c cooked brown rice (I used the frozen stuff from Trader Joes
1/2 onion
1/4 c frozen peas
1 tbsp yellow curry paste*
1 egg white
olive oil for cooking
Saute the onion over medium heat for about 5 minutes just so it loses its bite. Set aside to cool.
Put the chickpeas, brown rice, onion, egg white and curry paste into a Cuisinart, and run until it's a pasty consistency, but still with some chunks of chickpea. Using a spoon, stir in the peas.
Heat a generous (6 tbsp?) olive oil in a nonstick pan until hot. Shape about 1/6 of the chickpea mixture into a patty shape and gently place in the hot oil. You want to fill the pan but not overcrowd, so decide whether you can repeat with one or two more patties. Lower the heat to medium and cook undisturbed until the patty is browned on the bottom (about 5 minutes). Gently flip over and cook on the other side. Remove from pan and keep warm in a 200 degree oven, and repeat with the rest of the mixture until all the patties are cooked.
*if you can't find yellow curry paste, you can use red, but that tends to be a little spicer, so be careful if you don't like a lot of heat. As a last resort you can use about 1 tbsp curry powder, but that is going to result in a less flavorful patty.
Lentils and Rice and Fried Onions
I told you I was on an onion kick. I got this recipe from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison, and just tweaked it a little. I'm not normally a huge fan of lentils, but when they're hidden under a mess of fried onions, you kind of can't go wrong.
6 tbsp olive oil
2 large onions, sliced thin
1 c green lentils, rinsed and picked over
1 c. white rice (I used medium grain, but you could use long grain - anything that has about a 25 minute cooking time)
salt and pepper
In a regular (not non-stick) skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. When hot, add the onions and cook until they are a nice dark brown, about 15 minutes. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to a boil and add the lentils and let cook, uncovered, for about 15 minutes. Add the the rice, reduce the heat to low, and cover. Let the lentil rice mix simmer until all the water is absorbed and the rice is cooked, about 25 minutes.
Briefly reheat the onions, and serve it atop the lentil and rice mixture, seasoning generously with salt and pepper.
I served this with a simple salad topped with balsamic, a little olive oil, and beets that came cooked from the refrigerated section. It came together really well. While the lentils and rice aren't so pretty (this isn't people-over-for-dinner food) it's filling, delicious, healthy, and cheap.
5 Minute Steel-Cut Oats
This isn't really a recipe, but I guess maybe kinda. For breakfast every morning I had Trader Joes 5 minute steel cut oats. I sometimes topped with thawed frozen blueberries and always topped with about 2 tbsp maple syrup. So good. I am totally NOT in any way a morning person, but it was worth the 5 minutes to start my day like this
If you've made it this far, congrats. And you don't have to worry about my getting all preachy about healthy foods. Aside from a few more fruits and less bread (just because I haven't been wanting it) I'm basically back to normal. In fact, the day the cleanse ended was Pete's birthday, so we've been eating how he likes which is
the cupcakes were vegan and so moist and delicious (don't tell anyone) and the frosting was that amazing stuff that I wrote about here
and
that would be pulled pork, homemade cornbread, collard greens and coleslaw
and
vanilla cake with &^%* number of candles (and more of that amazing frosting)
Not to mention the delicious dinner out and southern style BBQ feast that my mother concocted for our family celebration.
So next week's recipes will be a mix of regular ole food and some healthy extras. But I'm still on that onion kick - we had French Onion Soup sandwiches for dinner tonight (and some amazing brussels sprouts with bacon and walnuts). Don't knock it til ya try it (and I'll get the recipes up for those next week).
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