Vegan and Gluten Free – Veggie Soup

I just made this soup tonight. It’s on the sweet side, but, it’s so filling! Totally vegan and gluten free.

Vegetable Soup Recipe

Ingredients:

Veggies:
1/2 Onion diced (1/2 cup)
1 stalk Celery chopped (1 cup)
1 large Carrot diced (1 cup)
1 small zucchini (sliced into 1/4-inch rounds)
1/4 lb. Cauliflower chopped (2 cups)
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
5 cloves Garlic chopped
1/2 lb. Whole Tomatoes chopped (or 14oz can Diced Tomatoes with juice)

Liquid
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
8 cups vegetable broth

Herbs:
2 tsp dried basil (or sub 1 Tbsp fresh per 2 tsp dried)
2 tsp dried oregano (or sub 1 Tbsp fresh per 2 tsp dried)
1/4 tsp Italian Seasoning
1 tsp Kosher Salt

Optional
1 15-ounce can white beans or chickpeas (rinsed + drained)
1 cup kale or spinach (or other green // roughly chopped)

Directions:

Vegetable Soup (stove instructions)
Heat olive oil in a 4-quart soup pot on medium-high heat.
Add onion, celery, carrot, garlic; sauté until tender for about 5 minutes, stirring as needed.

To the pot, add broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, zucchini, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, vegetable broth and seasonings stir to combine.

Turn heat to high and heat the soup it starts to boil; then turn heat to medium-low and simmer for 20-30 minutes until all veggies are tender. I did this recipe on a gas stove for 20 minutes.

Vegetable Soup Serving and Storage Instructions:
Serve veggie soup warm. Garnish options: lemon zest, fresh parsley, croutons, or grated parmesan cheese.

Refrigerate veggie soup in an airtight container up to 5 days or in the freezer up to 3 months.

Fries

We just bought an air fryer. Do you have one? Ours is a Ninja and it’s great. So far we’ve put in a few things to test out the time and see how it works. I made these potatoes in the oven a few weeks ago and I wanted to see how it worked in the air fryer.

Here’s the recipe.

Oven Fries

TOTAL TIME: Prep: 10 min. Bake: 40 min. YIELD: 4 servings.

Ingredients

4 medium potatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
2-1/2 teaspoons paprika
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Cut each potato into 12 wedges. In a large bowl, combine oil, paprika, salt and garlic powder. Add potatoes; toss to coat.

2. Transfer to a 15″ x 10″ x 1″ baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake 40-45 minutes or until tender, turning once.

I put these in the air fryer this time at 375°F for 17 minutes. I initially put them in for 10 minutes and then I flipped them all and started it again for 7 minutes to check it. The book that came with the air fryer said at least 20 minutes, so I knew at least to check it.

They turned out pretty well. See?

Gluten Free Recipe – Marinara Sauce

I wanted to try making this from scratch. I used this recipe and it turned out great! So good on vegetarian meatballs and burgers. I had a lot left over that I put in some jars in the fridge.

 

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup onion finely diced
1/3 cup carrot shredded
3 garlic cloves minced
1/4 cup fresh basil chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and pepper
28 oz whole tomatoes canned
28 oz crushed tomatoes canned
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1-2 teaspoons sugar (optional)
1/2 cup water

Directions

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and garlic. Cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
Add whole tomatoes (with juice) and gently break apart with the spoon.  Stir in remaining ingredients.
Simmer uncovered on low heat for 20 minutes or until sauce reaches desired consistency.
Serve over spaghetti or enjoy in your favorite recipes. Freeze or refrigerate to store.

Gluten Free Recipe – Meatballs

These Baked Meatballs are the BEST! The perfect addition to any meal or to eat right on their own. Bonus: they’re meal-prep friendly to stock up throughout the week!

INGREDIENTS
* 1 pound ground beef, chicken or turkey
* 1 egg
* 1/2 cup Gluten Free breadcrumbs
* 1/2 cup grated Parmesan (optional)
* 2 tablespoons olive oil (optional – makes meatballs more moist and yummy)
* I use Italian seasoning.

INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the oven to 425℉ degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and a little cooking spray.
Mix all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl.
Roll the mixture into about 30 small balls. Place on baking sheet.
Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Buckeyes

My husband was raised in Ohio and well, the Buckeye candies are REALLY good!

Here’s the recipe I use. I’ve never had any issues with it at all. I do use a cake tester vs. a toothpick for the dipping part.

Enjoy!

Buckeyes
Makes 50
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons shortening

Directions
Line a baking sheet with waxed paper; set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and confectioners’ sugar with hands to form a smooth stiff dough.
Shape into balls using 2 teaspoons of dough for each ball. Place on prepared pan, and refrigerate.
Melt shortening and chocolate together in a metal bowl over a pan of lightly simmering water.
Stir occasionally until smooth, and remove from heat.
Remove balls from refrigerator. Insert a wooden toothpick into a ball, and dip into melted chocolate.
Return to wax paper, chocolate side down, and remove toothpick. Repeat with remaining balls.
Refrigerate for 30 minutes to set.