Category: Entrée

Dairy-Free, Entrée, Gluten-Free, Italian, Vegan, Vegetarian

Bringing in September with a Pumpkin “Meat” Sauce

Annie

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It’s September, so that means it has to be pumpkin season, right? This was an impromptu dinner from last fall that I posted to my Instagram. After many requests for a formal recipe, I’m happy to say I’ve finally written one. (Albeit a year later since I forgot all about this one, oops.) I give you –drumroll please — Gnocchi in a Tomato Pumpkin “Meat” Sauce. I like starting with random ingredients and seeing how they come together by the end, and that’s exactly how this meal started. Pumpkin purée thickens the tomato-based sauce, while zucchini melts and melds into the sauce. Italian flavors honor the “meatless” version of this dish, using a vegan-based “meat,” pairing perfecting with gnocchi. No pumpkin spice flavors here!

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Dairy-Free, Entrée, Gluten-Free, Lightened Up, Meal Prep, Seafood, Vegetarian

Time to Dip Grilled Shrimp & Zucchini in a Tahini Parsley Sauce

Annie

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I can’t rave about this parsley tahini sauce enough. When we first made it, it was in this setting: Grilled Shrimp & Zucchini with Parsley Tahini Dipping Sauce. The char from the grill and that smoky flavor pairs so well with the bitter umami of the tahini and bright citrusy parsley. Grilled shrimp is such a summery choice. Plus it’s super fun to dip things. Brings my back to my childhood days when chicken nuggets were the best thing. We paired this with Trader Joe’s multigrain medley, which I highly recommend stocking up on if you have TJ’s near by. We’ve since had it on (beef) burgers, turkey burgers, with chicken, with just grilled veggies.

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Breakfast/Brunch, Dairy-Free, Entrée, Gluten-Free, Italian, Meal Prep, One Pot Dish

Eggs & Prosciutto for Dinner

Annie

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I love eggs, and I love any time that I have an excuse to eat eggs for dinner. Eggs, Chickpeas, & Prosciutto in a Creamy Tomato Sauce was the perfect impromptu dinner. Ted and I saw this recipe, while we had prosciutto and soppressata to use up from a local  salumeria called Bricco in Boston’s North End. This seems like a fitting meal, as we leave the North End for the other side of the harbor in Charlestown. We ate this as a dinner, and I added more spices and red pepper for a quick. I cut the heavy cream in half and swapped for almond milk, again, because that’s what we have on hand in our fridge. Plus, almond milk is a bit healthier than heavy cream. Pair with this bread to soak up the juices and that runny yolk. Oh, and don’t be like me and only add 7 eggs; apparently I miscounted!

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Dairy-Free, Entrée, Gluten-Free, Instant Pot, Meal Prep, One Pot Dish, Soup, Vegan, Vegetarian

Lemony Protein-Packed & Plant-Based Soup (Instant Pot)

Annie

I may be the only person enjoying April’s cold spell last month. It was a great time to meal prep lunch recipes for work and sample some hot soups. I quite enjoyed this take on a plant-based soup that with the addition of lentils, is packed with protein. Harissa adds a unique flavor and spice along with lemon, ginger, cumin, and turmeric. Using the Instant Pot, this Lemony Lentil & Butternut Squash Soup is rich and creamy without any added dairy and comes together quickly, easily cooking the carrots. squash, and lentils. It’s the soup you need when you’re looking forward to spring on a crisp day.

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Entrée, Lightened Up, Meal Prep, Salad, Vegetarian

Spring Buddha Bowls with Veggies & Farro

Annie

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Ted and I couldn’t get enough of these Spring Veggie, Marinated Chickpeas, & Farro Bowls. It’s the type of meal that you’re sad when you finish the leftovers. These grain bowls are savory yet bright with the dressing, chewy thanks to the farro, crunchy from the radishes and snap peas, and creamy because of the goat cheese and avocado. By marinating the chickpeas directly in the dressing, they absorb some of the flavor. We served this with a piece of crusty bread, channeling our inner sweetgreen during this pandemic. This salad is fun because you can change your veggies and toppings every time. We added pumpkin seeds one night, fresh basil and mint another, and Ted added cherry tomatoes on our third try. We did only spinach for one and mixed greens for another. Mix and match to make it your own!

 

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Entrée, Gluten-Free, Lightened Up, Meal Prep, Mexican

Enjoying These Easy Enchiladas

Annie

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Now that I’ve made homemade enchiladas, the filling and flavor combinations are endless. These Turkey, Spinach, & Black Bean Enchiladas are hearty, bursting with flavor, and easy to make. I’d consider these enchiladas to be a “lightened up” version since they’re full of lean animal and plant-based protein, use corn tortillas, and you make your own enchilada sauce from scratch in under 5 minutes. Full disclosure: Ted bought a large bunch of cilantro and we’re were purposefully trying to use it up. This recipe is very cilantro heavy since 1). it adds a burst of flavor quite effortlessly; and 2). waste not. If you’re not a cilantro fan, don’t worry! Just omit cilantro, but it do add a flavor like no other.

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Dairy-Free, Entrée, Gluten-Free, Instant Pot, Italian, Lightened Up, Meal Prep, One Pot Dish, Slow Cooker

Comfort Food: Meatballs & Potatoes Edition (Instant Pot)

Annie

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I love this recipe for Italian Meatball Stew over Smashed Potatoes. I haven’t had it in a few years, but this is one that my mom made regularly in the slow cooker. I decided to switch things up and use meatballs instead of chicken Italian sausage after spotting meatballs when doing a last-ditch quarantine preparedness run at Wegman’s. (Let me just interject that their prepared beef meatballs are mini and cute and delicious.) I made the potatoes extra creamy using mascarpone instead of EVOO. Using an Instant Pot allows for a much faster simmer compared to a stovetop or a slow cooker. This is quite aromatic and your kitchen will smell amazing during while cooking this stew, only adding to its maximum comfort level during this crazy self-quarantining and social distancing time. If you’re feeling industrious, trying making bread to pair!

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Entrée, Italian, Meal Prep, Vegetarian

Meatless Veggie Bowls with Copycat Sweetgreen Dressing

Annie

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I’ve been looking for a good “bowl” lately. Maybe it’s generational that we’re the people who meal prep and pack lunches apart from sandwiches. I’m always looking for something that I can make, package and be done, or quickly assemble the night before or morning of. These Eggplant “Meatball” Bowls with Spicy Cashew Dressing do just that. As I’m always striving to copy Sweetgreen’s dressing–if you’ve had them, you totally know what I mean–and this bowl-salad fusion does just that. Roasted veggies, quinoa, and vegetarian meatballs combine for this hearty dish.

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Entrée, Italian, Lightened Up, Meal Prep, Vegetarian

Meatless Eggplant “Meatballs”

Annie

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The idea for meatless meatballs has been in my head for some time. I keep circling back to ideas for eggplant or lentils, and settled on trying Eggplant “Meatballs” complete with cannellini beans. Just like you’d make regular meatballs, they have panko and Parmesan as breading and an egg to bind. By baking them, they stay moist in the center with a crispy outside. While I didn’t try them with sauce yet, I think the crispiness will hold its own. All I can do is envision these with some basil marinara sauce or simmering in a vegetable bolognese or turkey bolognese.

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Dairy-Free, Entrée, Gluten-Free, Meal Prep

Umami-Packed Chicken & Lentils

Annie

Do you ever finish a meal and then think, “Wait, is there more?” That’s how this meal was because it’s that good, and another meal prep option. Black garlic is at the heart of this bringing an umami flavor into play. Simply roast the vegetables and chicken, while quinoa and lentils cook. Assembly is easy, making Garlic Chicken with Veggies, Quinoa, and Lentils a fantastic dinner or a nice lunch on the go.

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