Tag: Dinner

Chicken Sausage and Sweet Potato Skillet

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Hey guys! I know that usually I post plant-based or vegetarian recipes, although I’m not a vegan or a vegetarian. I just love my veggies- and honestly never really learned how to cook meat! I do eat meat almost every day though, and have recently started branching out into cooking more animal proteins. So far I’m just cooking pretty easy stuff, like shrimp, and today I’m sharing the recipe for this Chicken Sausage and Sweet Potato Skillet. If you do prefer to omit meat from your diet, you can always substitute the meat in any of my recipes with plant based alternatives (like tofu or plant-based sausage in this case), or just omit them altogether. It should still be delicious! I’ll always have plenty of plant-based recipes on my site and will continue to post new ones as well, I just wanted to give you the heads up that I might be cooking more meat in the future:)

Lately I’ve been into really quick, simple, and delicious recipes, and this Chicken Sausage and Sweet Potato Skillet hits ALL of those points. We’ve got three simple steps- chop, cook, and EAT. First you’re gonna chop up all of your amazing veggies- sweet potato, broccoli, bell peppers, and cherry tomatoes, as well as your sausage. I was thinking about the kind of carb I wanted to include in this meal, originally wanting to make it into a kind of stir fry with quinoa or brown rice. But I didn’t feel like getting out an extra pot and waiting for any grains to cook. And also I really love sweet potatoes. So I thought, WHY DON’T I ADD THE SWEET POTATO RIGHT INTO THE SKILLET? I usually don’t cook sweet potatoes in the pan, but I diced them up really small so they cooked quickly, and it turned out SO GOOD.

I love all of the other veggies in here too- there’s such a nice rainbow going on! The sweet potatoes and the broccoli go into a hot pan with a bit of olive oil first since they take the longest to cook. After a few minutes, the rest of the skillet ingredients go into the pan until the sliced sausage is nice and browned on both sides. Lastly, the some spinach, garlic powder, red chilli flakes, salt and pepper, and a splash of water go in to finish everything off. Yum!

The kind of sausage that I used was a chicken, spinach and feta sausage from Costco. They’re really good and have pretty clean ingredients. Costco just rocks! When picking out a chicken sausage, look for one with simple ingredients and that doesn’t have preservatives.

This meal is super delicious and super simple! Perfect for meal prepping or a speedy, protein filled dinner. I added some sprouts and hummus to finish it off. Enjoy!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:)

Chicken Sausage and Sweet Potato Skillet

Ingredients

-1 chicken sausage, sliced

-1/2 tbsp olive oil

-1/2 cup broccoli florets

-1/2 a bell pepper, chopped

-5 cherry tomatoes, cut into halves

-1/2 a medium sweet potato, peeled and diced

-1/2 cup packed spinach

-1/2 tsp garlic powder

-2 tbsp water

-Salt and pepper to taste


Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add in the diced sweet potatoes and the broccoli and cook for about 4 minutes, until the sweet potato begins to soften.

2. Add the rest of the veggies, except for the spinach, to the pan, as well as the chicken sausage, Cook everything for 8 more minutes, until the sausage is golden brown on both sides.

3. Add the water, garlic powder, and spinach to the pan and cook until the spinach is wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. Serve warm with some hummus and/or sprouts and enjoy!


Vegetable Stew with Mashed Sweet Potatoes

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Hey guys! Hope you had a great weekend:) I’m still going strong with these cozy fall/winter recipes, and today I’ve got this Vegetable Stew with mashed Sweet Potatoes. It’s completely vegan but is packed with SO much richness and delicious flavour. Plus, who can say no to sweet potatoes?

I started this stew by cooking the onions until they were nice and caramelized, so that all of that browned up goodness makes its way into the stew. Lots of garlic made its way into the pot as well because garlic just makes everything better. I also used a kind of unconventional strategy to get more flavour and richness in there- I used a whole can of black beans, liquid and all. No joke! This thickens everything up and just gives it that nice savoury-ness that you want in a good stew. However, this means that you should definitely use a can of organic black beans, or make sure that the only ingredients are beans, water, and some salt. You don’t want any of those nasty preservatives if you’re not rinsing the beans off.

The next things that I through into the stew were chopped carrots, frozen corn and peas, some tomato paste, and some flavour boosters like soy sauce, maple syrup, and oregano. Super simple, no long or complicated prep involved. Frozen veggies are my jam; I could literally eat corn all day long. If you have a bag of mixed frozen veggies, feel free to throw some of those in there to avoid chopping carrots and cut down on prep time even more.

I don’t mash sweet potatoes often, but I really should! It’s faster than roasting and they’re pretty darn good:) I just boiled em, mashed em, and seasoned em with some salt and pepper. They make the perfect carby accompaniment to this amazing stew!

What are you waiting for? Throw on some fuzzy socks, get a fire going, and whip up a plate of this homey deliciousness!

Vegetable Stew with Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Serves: 3-4

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

For the Stew:

  • 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 a large white or yellow onion, thinly sliced
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 large carrots, chopped
  • 1 can of organic black beans, liquid (aqua faba) included **make sure it only contains beans, water and salt**
  • 1 cup frozen corn
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • 1 can of tomato paste
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • Salt and pepper to taste

For the Mashed Sweet Potatoes:

  • 1 medium or large sized sweet potato, cut into 1 inch cubes
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add in the sliced onions, and cook until browned and caramelized, about 8-10 minutes. Make sure that you stir them often to prevent burning.
  2. Add in the minced garlic and cook for another two minutes, stirring frequently.
  3. Add the can of beans, carrots, frozen veggies, tomato paste, soy sauce, maple syrup and dried oregano to the pot and mix until combined. Turn the heat down to low, cover, and let simmer for 25-30 minutes, until the carrots are soft.
  4. While the stew is cooking, bring a smaller pot of water to a boil. Add in the chopped sweet potatoes and cook for 8-10 minutes, until tender and mashable. Drain them, add them to a bowl, and then mash until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  5. When the stew is ready, season it to taste with salt and pepper, then remove from the heat. Serve with the mashed sweet potatoes.

Hope you enjoy this comforting cold-weather recipe! Make sure you come back for more because there’s lots more where this came from:)

Yours Truly,

Olivia:)))

Lentil and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

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It seems too early to be transitioning from fall to winter, but it’s kind of already happening. Why the heck is it so cold? And why is the sun rising at like nine and setting at like six? These are questions we have yet to answer, my friends. But in the meantime, we might as well embrace the freezing darkness that is winter and enjoy these stuffed peppers.

Stuffed peppers are an amazing comfort food🥰 They’re hearty and delicious, perfect for a cold winter night. These ones also happen to be super healthy, as well as vegan and gluten free. I used lentils and quinoa for the meat substitute, and it makes a filling that is INCREDIBLE. My advice is to double or triple the recipe so you can have tasty peppers for lunch all week long.

Also, if you don’t feel like cooking for hours or washing a TON of dishes, these are for you! I used canned lentils and already cooked quinoa for increased simplicity. You just need to fry up some onions and basically mix everything tightest in the pot. Then stuff your peppers, pop em in the oven, and let them get nice and soft on the outside, warm on the inside, and crispy on top😍 (Those crispy bits are the best part). You’re left with a meal that is so flavourful and filling that you’ll be like, take that, stupid winter. So yeah, the season might not be too bad if you’ve got these hanging around!

Hope you enjoy this recipe!:)

Lentil and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Serves: 2

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 2 large bell peppers, any colour
  • 1 medium yellow onion, diced
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 can of tomato paste (6 oz)
  • 1 cup cooked lentils (I used the brown canned variety)
  • 2/3 cup cooked quinoa
  • 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp dried basil
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1 cup packed spinach
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. In a medium sized pot, heat the olive oil. Add in the diced onions and cook for 6-8 minutes, until translucent.
  2. Add the minced garlic to the pot and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Then dump in the tomato paste, lentils, quinoa, balsamic, soy sauce, herbs and spices, and stir to combine.
  3. Let the mixture cook for about 5 minutes, then add in the spinach and continue to cook until it’s wilted. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then remove from the heat.
  4. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut out the tops of your peppers so that a round hole is left. Full each pepper with half of the lentil and quinoa filling, then place in a glass baking dish.
  5. Bake the peppers for about 15 minutes in the oven; then reduce the heat to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes, until the peppers are soft and the top of the filling is crispy.
  6. Remove from the oven and enjoy!

Hope you guys are having a great week! I have another great pumpkin recipe for you guys on Friday. We’ve got to milk this pumpkin and apple stuff before fall is over, am I right? See you then!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))

Fall Harvest Bowls

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A part of shifting into fall mode for me is roasting all of those awesome fall veggies and making some hearty bowls. And of course I had to throw some sweet potatoes into this one- you know me and my sweet potatoes. Bowls are just a simple, healthy dinner idea that are quick to make and great for meal prep and busy evenings. Today I’m featuring a bunch of delicious fall ingredients, tied together with an apple cider vinegar dressing. Yum!

You guys like Brussels sprouts, right? I love them, and so I roasted a bunch of them up with my sweet potatoes till they were nice and crispy. I also got out my frozen corn. Frozen corn is like the most underrated thing. It’s so tasty and it’s ready in less than five minutes! Sometimes I just eat it as a snack. So so far we’ve got Brussels sprouts, sweet potatoes, corn, and some delicious dressing.

Next is quinoa, some avocado, and a soft boiled egg. I’ve been big on eggs lately too. They’re fast to cook and are a great source of protein.When you’ve got that golden yolk just bringing everything together in your bowl it’s just perfection😍 On top of all that I sprinkled some pumpkin seeds for an extra touch of fall, and then voila! You’ve got the perfect fall bowl that’s simple, healthy and so yum.

Hope you enjoy!

Fall Harvest Bowl

Serves: 2

Total Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

For the Bowl:

  • 1 medium sized sweet potato, peeled and cut into cubes a couple of centimetres big
  • 8 Brussels sprouts, washed with the outer leaves removed, and cut in half
  • 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 cup quinoa
  • 1 cup water
  • 2 cups frozen corn, defrosted
  • 1 avocado
  • 2 eggs
  • Handful of pumpkin seeds to sprinkle on top (optional)
  • Salt and pepper to taste

For the Dressing:

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Toss the cubed sweet potatoes and halved Brussels sprouts in a bowl with the olive oil and some salt and pepper. Dump them on a parchment lined baking sheet and roast for 25-30 minutes, until soft and caramelized.
  3. While the veggies are roasting, bring the quinoa and water to boil in a small pot. Lower the heat for a simmer, then cover and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit until needed.
  4. In another pot, bring water to a boil and add in the eggs. Depending on the egg size, I boil my eggs for 7-8 minutes for a runny yolk. If you have small eggs I would do 5-6 minutes. Transfer the eggs to a boil of cold water after boiling to prevent them from continuing to cook.
  5. In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients, then set aside.
  6. Build your bowls! To each bowl, add in half the quinoa, corn, roasted veggies, avocado, and an egg. Drizzle with the dressing and then sprinkle with pumpkin seeds to finish.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:)

10 Healthy Freezer Meals

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Lots of places are starting to open up again, which means a gradual return to our busy lives. I found out a few days ago that I’m going back to school in September, and I’m really excited about it! Hopefully sports and activities can begin again soon too. But something I’ve really enjoyed over these past months is all the time that I had to cook. Now that I’ll have a somewhat full schedule again, I might not have the luxury of taking an hour to make an awesome dinner each night! Not to mention I’ll have to make school lunches again. So I thought I’d do a roundup of a bunch of Healthy Freezer Meals that I’ve posted.

I always like having a few things in my freezer that I can take out for my lunch the night before. Having freezer meals on hand is also handy for busy nights when we’re rushing to different things, and don’t have time to cook. I know things aren’t going to be completely back to normal, so maybe I won’t be THAT busy, but sometimes I’m tired and don’t feel like cooking anyways. My point is, it’s not a bad idea to have some delicious food stocked up and ready to go.

On this list, we’ve got everything from soups and stews to curries and falafel. Not all of these recipes have freezing details in them, but you can pretty much throw any of these meals into a resealable bag and freeze them like that. To reheat frozen soups, stews and curries, just run the bags under some cold water for a bit, then pop the frozen meal into a pot with a bit of water to melt. It also helps if you place the bags in the fridge to defrost the night before; that way you just have to heat up your meal. These freezer meals are all super nutritious as well, which is a bonus for when you need fuel before or after sports.

I like to take a day or two to just make big batches of a few recipes on this list, and throw them in the freezer for emergencies. It’s a fun and productive thing to do on a rainy day! I hope this post helps you out;))

10 Healthy Freezer Meals

Lentil and Barley Stew This Stew is so hearty and comforting! It’s packed with protein and complex carbs to fuel you through your day.

Cauliflower Soup This soup is full of flavour and makes for a great light lunch:))

Soul-Warming Chickpea Curry Curry is one of my favourite meals to make and eat, and this one has so much flavour and texture from the chickpeas. Defrost and serve with pre-cooked quinoa for a quick weeknight dinner, or pack it in your thermos for an awesome school lunch.

Vegetable and Coconut Curry A delicious meal that’s packed with veggies and deliciousness. Add some noodles for an easy lunch.

Falafel These falafel are full of protein, and when defrosted make a great addition to salads, bowls, wraps, and sandwiches! They’re so great to have on hand.

Golden Lentil and Coconut Soup Such a velvety, flavourful, and gorgeous soup! This will definitely both warm you and fill you up! It’s so good:)

Stuffed Pepper Stew Another hearty stew that’s super tasty as well:)) It would go great with a piece of toast.

Lentil and Coconut Curry I love this curry SO MUCH because of its creaminess and flavour. Freeze some for when you want a kick-ass meal!

Beans and Broccoli This is a vegan take on beef and broccoli that is great with rice, quinoa, or in salads, wraps and bowls.

Moroccan Style Chickpea Stew This stew is super delicious and has big chunks of hearty veggies with warm middle-eastern spices. Love it!

Definitely stock up your freezer with a bunch of these recipes! Hope you enjoy them:))

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))