Stir-fry cabbage and kale in a creamy balsamic sauce

This dish came out very pink and purple which was quit funny because it matched Bella’s outfit for the day and what better way to get your kids to eat vegetables than if they match themJ Otherwise, kids usually like this dish because it has a slight sweetness from the balsamic vinegar. I served this dish with quinoa but it will taste great with rice or noodles too.

¼ cup green onion, diced

1 cup purple cabbage, chopped

1 cups kale, stems removed and chopped

1 tbsp. canola oil

¼ cup hot water

2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

Salt & pepper to taste

2 tbsp. sour cream  (I used Tofutti sour cream)

Heat oil in a wok on medium heat and cook onions, cabbage and kale for 5 minutes, stirring often. Add balsamic vinegar and hot water and cook for another 5-10 minutes until cabbage is al dente. Remove from heat and drop sour cream, sat and pepper in and blend.

Wok

We're doing some renovations and changes to our home so it's been filled with workers, dust and a whole lot of noise all day. At 5:30 pm when they finally stopped for the day, I was beat and had zero energy to cook. But I still had to so I just made a very simple wok with different vegetables and mushroom which we ate with rice.

2 tbs canola oil

1 cup shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and chopped

1/2 yellow onion, chopped

1 cup cabbage, chopped

1 cup broccoli, chopped

1 cup asparagus, cut in half

2 tbs Bragg's liquid aminio's or light soy sauce

1 tbs balsamic vinegar

2 tbs brown sugar

1 tsp ginger powder

1/4 cup water

1 large tomato , cut into smaller wedges

Salt & pepper to taste

1 tsp corn starch mixed with a little water

1. Heat oil in wok and saute mushrooms until lightly brown.
2. Remove from wok and set a side.
3. Place onion in wok and fry for 1 minutes.
4. Add cabbage, broccoli, asparagus, bragg's or soy sauce, balsamic brown sugar, ginger and water. Simmer until vegetables are soft.
5. Add tomatoes, salt and pepper.
6. Let it all got hot.
7. Add the corn starch mixed water.
8. Let sauce thicken while stirring.
9. remove from heat and serve

Hungry and busy mom's spicy wok

I find myself cooking and eating much faster since Noah was born. This has made my lunches kind of one sided with salad or vegetables and a need for very simple and fast ideas for a meal. This wok is one of those and it also perfect for dinner when the kids are starved and you have no time. If you make this for young kids who are sensitive to spicy food, remove their portion before adding the chili sauce. I ate this wok with noodles but it can be enjoyed with barley, millet or rice as well. The vegetables can be varied so use whatever you have available.

1 tsp coconut oil

1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger

1 carrot, julienned

1/4 cup yellow onion, diced

1/3 cup

1/2 cup asparagus tips

1/4 cup zucchini, diced

1 tbs sweet chili sauce

1/2 tbs Bragg's liquid amino's or light soy sauce

Heat oil in a wok and add ginger, carrot and onion and cook for 3 minutes. Add asparagus and cook another minutes. Add water, chili sauce, Bragg's and zucchini and cook until vegetables are soft al dente, about 5 minutes. Serve piping hot!

Hoisin seitan and a peek at out temporary kitchen

It's very hard to cook in someone else kitchen and our temporary kitchen is so small it's almost impossible to cook something more advance or bake for that matter. We and Bella had planned to bake ginger breads but will not happen until we get back home now. So now all I cook are very simple recipes and this seitan dish in a hoisin sauce is one of them.

marinade:

2 tsp dry sherry

1 tbs canola oil

2 tsp corn starch

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 package seitan, chicken style, drained

Place everything including the seitan in a ziplock bag and place in fridge for 1 hour. Heat a wok on medium heat and place seitan pieces in wok and cook for about 1 minute. Remove from heat and set aside.

Sauce:

1 tsp canola oil

1 large garlic clove, grated

1 tbs dry sherry

4 tbs hoisin sauce

2 tbs cream (I used mimic)

Heat oil in wok and fry garlic for 10 seconds. Add sherry and bring to a boil for 1 minute. Add hoisin sauce and cream and mix well. Add seitan back and mix with sauce. Serve with white basmati rice and broccoli for a tasty meal.

Orange sand cilantro seitan and noodles

We have a small orange tree growing next to our house and it has produced two oranges which were too tart to eat but not to cook with. The result is orange seitan which taste a little sweet and sour I guess. I do think this would taste great made with tofu as well. Bella loves this dish so it's a kids friendly dish if you remove their portion before adding the cilantro which can be strong tasting for some.

Orange seitan or tofu served with noodles

1 packaged seitan chicken style or 1 package extra firm tofu, sliced
Juice from one large orange
1/2 tsp coriander powder
salt to taste
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tbs apple cider vinegar
1 tbs agave nectar

1 tbs olive oil

1 cup broccoli flowers, streamed

2 cup rice noodles, cooked

1 tbs cilantro leafs, chopped

Blend everything except the olive oil and noodles in bowl and marinate for at least one hour in fridge. Heat olive oil in a wok on medium heat and fry seitan for about 5 minutes. Add marinate and reduce heat to low and simmer for about another 5 minutes or until sauce has reduce to a syrupy sauce. Add noodles, broccoli and let it all warm up. Sprinkle cilantro over before serving.

Stirfry noodles and vegetables with peanut sauce

I've been craving peanut butter and Thai food so today's dinner was stir fry noodles with peanut sauce. The sweet peanut sauce is great for kids and can hide a lot of vegetables. Bella is not crazy for carrots but under a layer of peanut sauce it was OK. I think broccoli would work well in this dish as well but my garden was out of it today.

Peanut sauce

2 tbs creamy peanut butter

1 tbs miso

A splash of rice vinegar

1/2 tbs agave nectar

1/2 cup coconut milk

pinch of ginger powder

Blend everything to a smooth sauce.

Stir fry noodles and vegetables

2 cup noodles, cooked (I used undo noodles)

1 tbs olive oil

1/2 cup yellow pepper, sliced fine

1 carrot, peeled and sliced fine

1/2 cup leeks, cut into smaller pieces

1 cup bean sprouts

1/2 cup water

Heat the oil on medium heat in a wok. Fry onions and carrots. Add water and bring to a boil and cook on low heat until vegetables are soft about 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and heat. Add peanut sauce and blend well so everything get coated well by the sauce.

Fast lunch with sweet & sour flavors

Today I  made lunch on the fly and cleaned out the fridge. The outcome? Well I cut my index finger on my brand new knifes and taadaaa, and the creation is sweet & sour stir fry with a twist. The twist being I used Swedish lingon preserve for the sweetness and sour cream fr the sourness. It worked really well. Lingon preserve can be found at Ikea. 

Lingon stir-fry, serves two

1 zucchini, cut into slices and half

2 carrots, peeled and cut into smaller pierces

1 large celery stalk, cut into smaller pierces

2 cups bean sprouts, rinsed

1/2 cup sour cream (or vegan sour cream)

salt, pepper and chili powder to taste

1 tbs olive oil

Heat oil in a wok on high heat. Add carrot and cook for 1 minute. Add celery and cook for another minute. Add 1/4 cup of water and place a lid and let cook for 2 minutes. Add zucchini, lingon and spices. Cook for 1 minute. Add sprouts and sour cream and lower heat to low and let simmer under lid for 3 minutes. Enjoy with noodles or rice. 

Soy sauce infused shiitake mushrooms and bean sprouts

After the birth of our daughter Isabella we had a doula care for us. Aparna is wonderful and she cooked the most amazing and wholesome food for us. Up until Aparna came into our lives I really did not have much of an appetite since take out food just did nothing for me who is used to eating wholesome food.  One of her dishes James loved so much, soy sauce infused shiitake mushroom and bean sprouts. I know I will never be a Aparna but I tried my best to make my version of her dish. Shiitake mushrooms are very nutritional and valuable health food. They are low in calories, high in proteins, chitin, iron, zinc, fiber, essential amino acids and vitamins. Bean sprouts also have outstanding nutrition value. They are rich in protein as well as vitamin A, Vitamin B complex, vitamin C and E as well as various minerals and enzymes. They are good to help fight cancer, fatigue and the immune system.

Shiitake Mushroom and Bean sprouts Serves 2

2 cups sliced fresh Shiitake mushrooms (stems removed)

2 cups rinsed bean sprouts

1 tbs canola oil

1 tsp cumin

Black pepper to taste

1/4 cup soy sauce or Bragg's Liquid Amino's

Heat oil in a wok on medium heat and add cumin and let sizzle. Add mushroom and cook for about 2 minutes. Add bean sprout and cook for 5 minutes. Add soy sauce and pepper. Cook for one more minute or so. Enjoy with Basmati rice.