Goulash, tacos, pizza

Well, it's been a few weeks since my last post! When I started up this blog, I intended to post once every couple of days, but life is just so BUSY!

Of course, for us life can be a little extra hectic since we have two children, both of whom are young and need a lot of attention, but I think it is important to point out that adopting a whole foods (vegan or otherwise) lifestyle can be time-consuming. We spend a lot of time planning our meals, which I think is really important in so many ways for families. It helps us stick to a budget, but it also really helps us keep from turning to convenience foods or eating out during the week. It's worth the time we spend, but there is no denying that it can feel like a lot of work sometimes. SO.... between kids and food shopping and cooking and dishes and cleaning up the kitchen, I don't have a lot of extra time to blog.

That being said, we've tried some pretty awesome recipes since my last post, so I wanted to share a couple of those. My absolute favorite is called Two-Bean Zucchini Goulash, it's definitely in my top 5 recipes of all time. I got this from the book Supermarket Vegan. It was super easy (one skillet, plus whatever you make to put it on like rice or cous cous) and sooo delicious. Here's a pic and recipe:

2 T olive oil
2 zucchini
1 onion, chopped
2 T tomato paste
2 T paprika
2 cloves garlic
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can cannellini or other white beans, rinsed and drained
3/4 lb plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/4 c water
3/4 t salt
fresh black pepper

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add zucchini and onion and cook, stirring until softened for 5 mins. Add tomato paste, paprika, and garlic, cook stirring constantly for 2 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a brisk simmer of medium-high heat stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until desired amount of liquid has been absorbed.

We served this over whole wheat cous cous (Trader Joe's has a decent sized box for like $2) and it was seriously delicious. Even if you're a family who doesn't care to do a meatless diet, this dish is worth trying. So good and super healthy.

Another one we really liked was Ancho Lentil Tacos from the website Post Punk Vegan (lentil tacos).
The link will take you directly to the recipe if you'd like to try it yourself! Even Emory ate this one, which has been the exception rather than the rule lately with our vegan dinners (he's been eating lots of sun butter sandwiches lately). Kevin was especially fond of these, and the best part is they are super easy to customize to your particular taste. Here's a pic:

 Finally, the last of my recent favorites was a total surprise to me. It was a white asparagus spinach pizza, which didn't really sound appealing to me but wound up being really good. It was a very simple recipe, though I think Kevin changed it up a bit. Here's the recipe:

12 asparagus spears
4-5 oz baby spinach
12.3 oz firm silken tofu
1 t salt
pizza crust
1/3 c sun-dried tomatoes cut into strips

Trim asparagus, cut into 1-in pieces, steam until barely tender, about 3 mins. Add spinach, steam until wilted. Drain well. Puree tofu with salt in food processor. (Kevin pureed the sun-dried tomatoes with the tofu because they were really sticky and hard to work with.) Spread tofu over pizza crust, add asparagus, spinach, and tomatoes (unless you to what we did) and bake at 400 degrees for 12-15 mins. Here's the pic:

I would really encourage anyone reading this to try one of these recipes! Over 3 weeks of cooking these are by far the best of the bunch. The kid-friendly level just depends on what your kid has been exposed to so far - but I'd say these are pretty good for the little ones. Emory ate and liked the two of these three that he was willing to actually try!