Moroccan spiced tofu and root veggies

Found this recipe back in May 2012 and really liked the flavors in the dish.  The first time I made this, I used tofu, onion, sweet potato, carrot, and parsnips.  I made it again last night with tofu, onion, sweet potato, and carrots. I still enjoyed the dish, even though I am not a lover of tofu!  The spices really make the dish taste great.  One note:  I always find that the tofu and veggies require more of the seasoning blend/mixture than the recipe calls for so I would double this portion of the recipe.  Once you toss it all together you will know if you need more to coat everything properly.  I also left out the raisins, parsley, and red pepper and it still was good.  You can pair this with rice, quinoa, or just more veggies of your choice.

Ingredients

1 large onion, chopped roughly

1 bunch (about 6 medium) carrots, chopped
2 small sweet potatoes, chopped into small cubes

1 block tofu, pressed and cut into cubes

Seasoning (get this ready first)

1 Tbsp olive oil

3/4 tsp each salt, black pepper, ground cumin, ground coriander

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp red pepper

Garnish

1/3 cup fresh parsley 
1/4 cup raisins

Directions

1. Preheat baking dish in oven to 450F. 

2. In a medium bowl mix seasoning mix with a whisk.  Add onion, carrot and tofu; toss to coat.

3. Remove heated dish from oven and spray with cooking spray; spoon carrot mixture over evenly.  Bake 45 minutes or until veggies are browned and tender; tossing halfway through.

4. Divide mixture over four plates, top with raisins and fresh parsley.

Curried Butternut Squash and Kale Soup

I orginally saw this recipe on the web at http://vegtastic.net/ around Thanksgiving and opted not to make it for the holiday.  I needed a soup recipe this week to go with our salads and I ran across this recipe again.  I tweaked the ingredients a bit to cut down on the preparation time, but the result was a delicious, flavorful soup.  I will definitely be making this one again....and it works for any season, not just the fall and winter.

Ingredients:

• 1 sweet onion, diced
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• Olive oil
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 1 small butternut squash, peeled and diced (I used frozen butternut squash)
• 1 bunch small carrots (or a couple large ones), peeled and diced
• 6 cups water + 1 TBS un-beef broth (or 6 cups broth)
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1/2 cup coconut milk (I used 365 brand canned lite coconut milk from Whole Foods) 
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 12-16 oz of frozen chopped kale greens

• 
  
• Instructions:

1. Saute onions and garlic in olive oil until browned. (Since I used minced garlic from a jar, I added the garlic once the onions were almost ready).
2. Add sweet potato, squash, and carrots and saute for a few minutes.  (I microwaved my frozen butternut squash, and  set it aside for a later step).
3. Add broth, coconut milk, curry powder and salt and pepper (to taste). Cook until veggies are soft.
4. If using frozen greens and squash, wait until the carrot and sweet potato softens a bit, then add the frozen kale greens and the microwaved squash to the pot and continue to simmer until the greens are tender and the sweet potato and carrot can be easily pierced with a fork.
5. Puree about 3/4 of the mixture with an immersion blender or in a regular blender; return to pot, if using regular blender.
6. If using fresh kale, add kale and cook for a minute or two longer.
7. Serve immediately.