Soups & Salads

Shelly Schultz Arizona Softball

Sweet Potato Cauliflower Soup

yield: 6 to 8 servings

1 large head cauliflower (the one I used was at least 7″ in diameter

olive oil for drizzling

Few dashes garam masala (optional)

3 medium to large sized peeled sweet potatoes, cut into 1″ pieces

1 sweet onion, diced

2 cloves garlic

7 cups filtered water

First, preheat your oven to 400 °F and cut up your cauliflower into bite sized pieces. Sprinkle cauliflower lightly with garam masala. Place cauliflower onto ungreased cookie sheet and lightly drizzle with olive oil. Place in oven and let roast until golden brown on the tops and tender, but not mushy, about 20-30 minutes. There’s no need to flip ‘em. Just remove from oven and let cool while you cook the rest of the soup.

In large stockpot, bring sweet potato, onion, garlic and water to a boil. Salt (abt 3/4 tsp) and stir. Reduce heat and allow to remain at a constant simmer until sweet potatoes are tender. Add in cooked cauliflower and divide soup into 2 parts.

Let soup cool and then blend one part soup in blender until very smooth. Combine with second part soup and stir. Salt to taste and warm up over stovetop if needed.

Quinoa and Roasted Pepper Chili

• 2 red bell peppers 
• 2 poblano chiles
• 4 teaspoons olive oil
• 3 cups chopped zucchini 
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion 
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon Spanish smoked paprika
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/3 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed 
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes with chipotles, undrained 
• 1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added pinto beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup low-sodium vegetable juice 

Preparation

1. 1. Preheat broiler.
2. 2. Cut bell peppers and chiles in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membranes. Place halves, skin sides up, on a foil-lined baking sheet, and flatten with hand. Broil 10 minutes or until blackened. Place in a paper bag; fold to close tightly. Let stand 10 minutes. Peel and coarsely chop.
3. 3. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add zucchini, onion, and garlic; sauté 4 minutes. Stir in chili powder, cumin, and paprika; sauté for 30 seconds. Add roasted peppers and chiles, 1/2 cup water, and remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until quinoa is tender.

Nutritional Information

Amount per serving

• Calories: 258
• Fat: 6.3g
• Saturated fat: 0.9g
• Monounsaturated fat: 3.6g
• Polyunsaturated fat: 1.2g
• Protein: 9.7g
• Carbohydrate: 42.1g
• Fiber: 9.8g
• Cholesterol: 0.0mg
• Iron: 3.7mg
• Sodium: 430mg
• Calcium: 108mg

Tomato Salad with Cucumber, Avocado, Cilantro, and Lime

6 medium tomatoes, diced into bite-sized pieces (about 2 cups diced tomatoes)
2 medium cucumbers, diced into bite-sized pieces (about 1 cup diced cucumber)
1 avocado, diced into bite-sized pieces
1 cup chopped cilantro (use more or less to taste)
1 T + 2 T fresh squeezed lime juice
1 T best quality extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp. Spike seasoning (optional, but good)
salt to taste (I used Vege-Sal, but sea salt would be great here)

Instructions:

Peel avocado and cut into 1/2 inch pieces (I use this method for peeling and cutting an avocado.) Put avocado pieces into plastic or glass bowl and toss with 1 T lime juice. Season generously with salt.

Chop tomatoes, cucumbers, and cilantro and add to avocado in bowl. Whisk together 2 T lime juice and 1 T olive oil (with Spike seasoning if using) then stir gently into salad. Serve immediately. This doesn't keep well, so only make as much as will be eaten right away.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup pecan halves
• 4 cups spinach
• 2 cups arugula
• 1 pint strawberries, trimmed, sliced lengthwise
• 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon agave nectar
• 1 tablespoon minced red onion
• Pinch of ground coriander
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh chives
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a small skillet over medium heat, toast pecans, shaking skillet often until they are fragrant and just lightly browned (do not scorch). Transfer them to a small plate and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, toss together spinach, arugula, strawberries, and onion.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of dressing over salad and toss to coat.
4. Plate salad and scatter with pecans. Drizzle with more dressing if desired.

Slow Cooker Recipe for Vegetarian Greek Lentil Soup with Tomatoes, Spinach, and Feta 

Ingredients: 

2 cups brown lentils (washed and picked over if needed)
8 cups vegetable or chicken stock (or more)
1 medium onion, diced small
1 cup chopped celery, chopped into fairly small pieces
1 T Greek Seasoning (I use The Spice House Greektown Billygoat Seasoning, but there are a few good brands.)
1 tsp. dried thyme 
2 tsp. dried oregano (preferably Greek or Turkish oregano)
1 T minced garlic
fresh-ground black pepper to taste 
1 can (14.5 oz.) petite diced tomatoes with juice
1 bunch spinach leaves, stems cut off, chopped and washed
2 T fresh-squeezed lemon juice (or a little less if you're not that into lemon)
crumbled Feta Cheese for serving (optional, but good)

Instructions:

Chop onions and celery and measure 2 cups brown lentils.  (Do this the night before and store in the fridge in a Ziploc bag if you want to get this into the slow cooker quickly in the morning.)  

Put the lentils, onions, celery, vegetable or chicken stock, Greek Seasoning, dried thyme, dried oregano, minced garlic, black pepper, and canned tomatoes with juice into the slow cooker.  Cook on high for about 4 hours or on low for 8-9 hours, or until the lentils are as softened as you'd like them.  (Cooking time will partly depend on how fresh your lentils are; lentils that have been on the pantry or store shelf for a while will take a little longer to cook.)

When the lentils are softened as much as you'd like, chop the spinach and wash in salad spinner if needed.  Add spinach and lemon juice to the soup, turn slow cooker to high if you were cooking on low, and cook about 30 minutes more.  (A little longer won't hurt, but the longer you cook the spinach the darker green it will get.  Add another cup or two of stock at this point if the soup seems thicker than you'd like.)  Serve soup hot, with a tablespoon or two of crumbled Feta sprinkled on each serving if desired.

Shelly Schultz Arizona Softball