Tempeh and Quinoa Stuffed Portabellas

It's been cold 'round these parts. Really cold. This morning, the pipe coming out of our well froze, and Jacob's diesel engine wouldn't run because it was around -12 at our house. Winter is not easy, but we still eat well despite the frigid temps. In fact, since it's dark so early, eating a nice dinner at home is one of the few things that is truly exciting during this time of year. That, and keeping up with the latest episodes of some of our favorite Netflix originals. Orange is the New Black? House of Cards? When are the second seasons coming out??

So, we're tired of the cold. But, this recipe helped us to cope, and maybe it will help you too.

Quinoa is one of those things that just adds texture and some awesome nutrients to just about anything. I like it by itself, as a pudding, in a soup, or made into burgers. This time around is served as the base for the stuffed mushrooms. I cooked 3/4 cup dry (yields around 1.5 cups cooked). I always rinse the quinoa (a flour sifter works well for this since the quinoa will most likely fall through the cracks of a normal strainer). It takes any bit of bitterness away.

Other stuffing ingredients ready to be prepped.

I like to get the pan/oil nice and hot before I add the tempeh to it. That way it gets crispy on the outside.

Tempeh takes on whatever flavor you season it with. A favorite of ours is soy sauce. It's easy and give the tempeh an awesome taste!

Post soy sauce and veggie additions. See that nice browning action going on there? That's what makes it tasty!

The portabellas were wiped with a damp paper towel to remove any dirt. Then, the stems were trimmed, they were seasoned with salt and pepper, and each got a couple of small pats of butter.

Feta and Cheddar. The feta for the filling, the cheddar to go on top of the mushrooms before they go in the oven.

 All the filling ingredients in a bowl! If you have any leftovers, this goes great by itself as a cold salad or on top of a big bed of greens. Yum!

Mushrooms have been over stuffed and topped with cheddar - ready for baking.

And the final product...

Along side some sweet potato chips (home made - coming soon to the blog!) and steamed broccoli. This meal was a big hit.

Tempeh and Quinoa Stuffed Portabellas Recipe:
Yields two large stuffed portabellas (two main courses or 4 side dishes when cut in half)
- Two large portabella caps, cleaned with a damp paper towel
- 3/4 cup dry quinoa cooked according to package directions (1.5 cups cooked)
- 1 package tempeh, diced
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 large carrot, diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 roma tomatoes, diced
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1 tbsp butter
- Salt/Pepper to taste

Directions:
- Once the portabella caps are cleaned, cut off the stem so the inside of the cap has more room for stuffing.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Place the caps in a baking dish and season with salt and pepper and 1/2 tbsp butter (see picture for reference)
- Saute' the tempeh, onion, celery, and carrot in the olive oil over medium/high heat.
- Once the tempeh starts to brown (5 minutes), add soy sauce and cook an addition 2-3 minutes until veggies are tender.
- Mix the tempeh/veggie mixture with the cooked quinoa.
- Add diced tomatoes and feta. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Pile the stuffing into the portabella caps. Top with shredded cheddar cheese.
- Bake the stuffed caps at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until the cheese is golden and the caps are tender.

Tempeh, Wild Rice, and Sweet Potato Stew

You can thank me for not posting a recipe that has the words "pumpkin spice" in the title. To be honest, I think the whole pumpkin spice muffins, lattes, cakes, sticky buns, etc have been a little out of control this year. I like fall, and I like pumpkin, but not EVERYTHING has to be flavored with the dang orange squash-like food.

So, I decided to create something that was very fall-ey, but did not include pumpkin. Who doesn't like a good soup when the weather gets brisk? Who doesn't like a nice big bowl of steamy goodness accompanied by a slide of crusty, cheesy baguette? Exactly.

This combination of flavors worked out really well, and we ate off the pot of stew for several days (yet another reason why I am a huge fan of stews and soups). This is a hearty stew, heavy on the ingredients, fairly light on the broth. Since we typically eat our soups (or stews) as a main dish, I want like them to be filling and hearty.

How many times did I say either soup or stew in that last paragraph? If you don't have a cast iron dutch oven, you're truly missing out. This is one of our most loved wedding gifts.

Butter? Yes. I used a little olive oil as well, but I just can't get over the flavor that butter gives a hearty stew. Careful not to burn it!

The kale I se most of the time comes pre-washed and chopped. It may cost a tad bit more, but the convenience factor is worth it to me. This is the same kale we use for smoothies as well, makes the morning routine quick!

Other things, and stuff.

Chopped ingredients, ready to roll.

I gave the ore-sliced mushrooms a quick chop. I like buying pre-sliced most of the time because they're usually free of dirt and I don't have to worry about trying to wipe them off before using them. Also, you usually don't pay any extra/get the same amount of mushrooms either way!

Cumin was the star of the show in this stew. It gives a really nice flavor that I can't quite explain in words. A little smoky, a little homey, really good stuff.

Lots of sweet potatoes! These two chopped into a little more than I thought they would, but that was fine by me.

Only needed half of the extra large can of tomoatoes, so I saved the rest to use throughout the week.

All assembled, bay leaf tossed in for some additional flavor. I don't usually use boxed or canned broths in my soups and stews, I would rather create the flavors using my own spices. I also like to be able to control the amount of salt that goes into the dishes I create, and using pre-made broth usually adds quite a bit of sodium.

I actually transferred the soup to the crock pot at the last minute because Jacob was racing one evening and I decided I wanted to go watch! So, I transferred everything to the trusty crock pot and set it on low for two hours. It was perfect when we got home later that evening!

Served with a big chunk of toasted baguette with melted muenster cheese. Comfort at it's finest. Happy fall!

Tempeh, Wild Rice, and Sweet Potato Stew Recipe:

- 1 tbsp butter

- 1 tbsp olive oil

- 1 small onion, chopped

- 3 cloves garlic, minced

- 1 package tempeh, diced into 1/2 in cubes

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 2 small sweet potatoes, chopped into 1/2 inch cubes

- 1 cup mushrooms, chopped roughly

- 3 packed cups kale, trimmed, washed, chopped

- 1 can (2 cups) diced tomatoes

- 2 tsp cumin powder

- 4 to 4 cups of water

- 1/3 cup wild rice

- 1 bay leaf

- Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
- Melt butter and oil in a dutch oven over medium heat.
- Add onions, garlic, and tempeh to the pan.
- Season with 1/2 tsp salt.
- Saute' until the tempeh is golden and the onions are tender.
- Add sweet potatoes, mushrooms, kale, tomatoes, and cumin powder.
- Cover and let the mixture cook for 5-10 minutes. The kale will wilt and the mixture will cook down.
- Add water until the vegetable mixture is just barely covered in liquid.
- Mix in wild rice and bay leaf.
- Cook for 45 minutes on low heat, or simmer all day in the crock pot.
- The wild rice grains will break open and curl up when they are cooked through.
- Season with salt and fresh cracked pepper.
- Serve with crusty bread.

Sesame Tempeh Asian Fusion Salad

Good Morning! Spring is finally showing it's first signs here at 4100 ft. We've got all kinds of wild flowers popping up in the yard. Including these beautiful trilliums. I couldn't resist sharing.

In other news, it's the start of salad season! As previously mentioned in my recent pasta post, Jacob's parents brought us some garden grown greens when they visited Boone recently. These greens included two types of lettuce, kale, swiss chard, and mustard greens. The lettuce will be the featured green in this post, if you didn't already guess.

But first, tempeh.

And marinade for said tempeh. I love sesame oil and soy sauce combinations on so many different things - this tempeh was no exception. The marinade consisted of soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes, garlic, and honey.

Mix the marinade with the tempeh cubes, and toss. I let the tempeh marinate for about an hour before I roasted it, but it would have just as much flavor with 15-20 minutes of marinating. 

Line a small baking dish with parchment and put the tempeh and any remaining marinade with it.  Pictured next to the tempeh are some cabbage and mushrooms prepped and ready to be roasted along side the tempeh.  

I have a confession to make: I really like dole mandarin oranges. Especially on asian salads.

Next up - prep the dressing. The dressing used a lot of the same ingredients as the marinade - in fact, if you wanted to you could probably double the marinade as dressing, but I did make a few changes to this batch of dressing. The dresses also has canola oil in it to balance out the sesame oil and soy sauce. I also added some ginger and orange juice for some sweetness and kick. 

Next up - assembly! My salad started out with fresh washed, trimmed, and chopped lettuce. Then, I layered tempeh, carrots, mandarin oranges, sprouts, roasted cabbage/mushrooms, and some rice noodles that I had leftover from another meal. Topped it all off with asian fusion dressing and crunchy chow mein noodles.

The perfect spring meal. Easy, cheap, and quick. The best part - only a few small dishes to wash after dinner!

Sesame Tempeh Marinade and Roasting Directions:

- 1 package tempeh (we like the three grain variety, but any kind will do. Found in the produce section of the grocery store)

- 2 tbsp sesame oil

- 2 tbsp soy sauce

- 1 tsp minced garlic (1 large clove)

- 1 tsp sesame seeds

- 1 tsp honey

- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Directions:

- Cut the tempeh into cubes around 3/4 inch.

- Mix together remaining ingredients.

- Pour marinade over tempeh.

- Let rest for as little as 15 min or up to 1 hour.

- Line a baking dish with parchment paper.

- Heat oven to 400 degrees.

- Pour tempeh and marinade into baking dish.

- Bake for 25 minutes or until golden and crispy.

- Serve on top of your asian salad!

Asian Fusion Dressing Recipe:

- 2 tbsp sesame oil

- 2 tbsp soy sauce

- 1/2 orange, juiced

- 1/4 cup canola oil

- 1 tsp sesame seeds

- 1 tsp minced ginger

- 1 tsp (or 1 large clove) minced garlic

Directions:

- Mix all ingredients except the canola oil in a bowl.

- Whisk the canola into the other wet ingredients, stirring vigorously to incorporate.

- Serve over top salads.

Other asian fusion salad topping suggestions:

- Mandarin oranges

- Chow mein noodles

- Roasted veggies (cabbage is great!)

- Cooked rice noodles

- Carrots

- Cucumber

- Sprouts

5 Ingredient Tempeh Tacos

Vegetarian alert! These tacos are veggie-friendly and SO easy to make. I kid no one when I say that there are only 5 ingredients required to make these tacos (only 4 if you don't like mushrooms)! This meal is not only super quick and easy, but it's cheap! Tempeh usually goes for $2.50-$3/package in your regular grocery store. It's usually kept near the tofu in the produce section. Tempeh is a high protein soy product that originated in Indonesia. Soy beans are pressed into cakes and are put through a controlled fermentation process. Don't worry, it doesn't taste nearly as gross as that description makes it sound. I promise. This is what it looks like in un-cooked form.

The rule of thumb with tempeh is that it will pick up whatever flavors your season it with. It doesn't have a ton of flavor on it's own, but it's very versatile because you can customize it to whatever theme you prefer.

I generally have one package of tempeh and one package of tofu in the fridge at all times. They're both cheap, high in protein, and easy to use for a quick dinner during the week. This week, Jacob and I decided we needed to use up the tortillas that had been hanging out on top of our microwave for far too long. So, the tempeh was cubed, the onion chopped, and the mushrooms sliced. Let's get to the good stuff.

I didn't include olive oil as one of the ingredients, because I feel it's a given. But, olive oil was added to the pan before throwing this tempeh mixture on the stove for some heat.

Once the tempeh was heated through and a starting to get crispy, we threw in a couple tablespoons of soy sauce.

The tempeh mixture was piled high onto fajita size flour tortillas (corn tortillas are our usual go-to, but flour was handy this time around) and topped off with a little salsa, pepper jack cheese, and sour cream  greek yogurt (the perfect sour cream substitute)! You can call me a liar if you want, since I didn't include the toppings in the ingredient list.

Along side these delicious tacos were some roasted veggies - kale and broccoli. Cleaned, seasoned with olive oil and salt/pepper, and roasted in a 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Apple slices too!

Jacob is looking really happy and so attractive in this picture here. But really, he loves tacos.

5 Ingredient Tempeh Taco Recipe

 - 1 package tempeh (any variety will do), cubed into small cubes

- 1 small onion, diced

- 7-8 medium white button mushrooms, sliced

- 1-2 tbsp soy sauce

- Tortillas

Directions:

- Add the tempeh, onion, and mushroom to a hot pan that has been coated with a few glugs (very precise measurements here) of olive oil

- Cook the tempeh mixture for 10-15 minutes or until it starts to get a bit crispy and browned

- Add soy sauce to taste

- Pile high on warmed tortillas (we usually warm ours in the microwave for 30-45 seconds with a damp paper towel on top so they don't dry out)

- Garnish with salsa, sour cream, cheese, cilantro, lime, or any other taco topping favorites!