Hearty Brown Stew

Another oddly titled recipe from the McDougalls. It is simple, low fat and tasty. No exotic or hard to find ingredients.  The original recipe calls for ¼ cup tomato juice but I just threw in a chopped up tomato instead and that worked fine. Oh, and pardon my crappy photo of the end product. It tastes better than it looks. Honest!

What you will need:

1 onion, sliced (optional)

2 stalks celery, thickly sliced

2 carrots, thickly sliced

3 potatoes, cut into chunks

1 green bell capsicum, cut into strips (optional)

250g mushrooms, quartered

1 tomato, chopped

2 cloves of garlic (optional)

2 tbsp low sodium soy or tamari sauce

½ tbsp fresh grated ginger

½ tsp fried marjoram

½ tsp dried thyme

½ tsp paprika

3 tbsp cornstarch, mixed with ½ cup cold water

Method:

Combine all the ingredients except for the cornstarch mixture, in a large pot. Bring to boil and then lower heat. Cover and simmer for about 1 hour or until vegetables are tender. Add the cornstarch mixture and stir until thickened. Serve.

Beans and Things

This is an oddly titled recipe but not an oddly tasting meal. Easy, filling, tasty and low fat – like most of the McDougall recipes I have tried out so far. I like the inclusion of molasses in this. I am pretty new to this ingredient. It is rich in iron and gives this dish a full body flavour.  You can find top grade, organic molasses in health food shops.  I used Wholesome Sweeteners Organic Molasses. 

What you will need:

2 cans of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

Small broccoli, chopped

Half cauliflower, chopped

1 onion, chopped (optional)

1 stick celery, chopped

1 large carrot, chopped

1 large tomato, chopped

2 tbsp soy or tamari sauce

1 ½ tbsp molasses

Dash or two of paprika

Dash cayenne pepper

Few fresh basil leaves, finely chopped

Method:

Combine the beans and vegetables in a large bowl. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a small bowl and then pour over the vegetables. Mix well and pour into a covered casserole dish. Bake for 1 hour. Serve as is or spoon into tortillas. Easy!

Szechwan Eggplant

In my quest to shed some kilos, I have been making an effort to cut vegetable oils out of my cooking. Dr McDougall's site has heaps of recipes and I have been slowly working my way through the ones that have taken my fancy.
Now, eggplant is one of those vegetables (actually, it is a fruit!), that has a habit of soaking up LOTS of oil, when cooking it. So to be able to cook it oil free and still have it taste good, is a bit of good news for those of us packing a few extra kilos. 
This method is very easy and the results are pleasing. I like having this with steamed rice.

What you will need:

2 medium eggplants
1 ¾ cups water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 green onions, chopped (optional)
¼ to ½ teaspoon cayenne 

Method:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius.  

Slice eggplant into 1cm slices.  Place on a non-stick baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and set aside.  Reduce oven heat to 180 degrees.

Meanwhile, combine the remaining ingredients in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and clears.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Place the eggplant in a 30cm long baking dish, overlapping slices as necessary.  Pour the sauce over the eggplant and bake for 20-30 minutes until eggplant is very tender.

Dr. McDougall's Right Foods

I have been trying out quite a few recipes from Dr McDougall's website lately, and have been reading his books (check out his book "The Starch Solution"). There are also quite a few of his food products on the shelves at Coles (in the health foods section) and in health food stores.
Although there is quite a range, I have only seen a handful available here, so I will cover those that I have tried. Note that all of the range is vegan though only some are also gluten free.
These are for light lunches and snacks. I tend to boost the noodle cups by adding some chopped up cooked veggies to them.

In the Noodle Cup range, my fave product, hands down, is the Miso Ramen Noodle Soup. So tasty! Not gluten free, though, so this is a bit of a guilty pleasure for me. I have found this one to be the easiest to find in Coles. The next more common one is the gluten free Pad Thai, which I also like though not as much as a the Miso Ramen. I have seen in some health food stores, the Tortilla Soup with Baked Chips which I wasn't all that keen on.





There is also an Asian Noodle Cup range. These are 'entree' size which means, even bolstered by cooked chopped vegetables, there really are only snack sized. My two favourites from this range are the Teriyaki Noodle and the Spicy Kung Pao Noodle. These tend to be a little harder to find, but have sometimes found them in Coles.

Apart from the noodle cups, I have also found the Ready To Serve Soups. Some of these come in Low Sodium varieties. I have also found these in Coles, in amongst the health food section. They are just the right amount for a lunch meal and are super tasty. I think my favourite is the Split Pea Soup. Again, there is quite a few varieties in this range but I have only seen a few in the shops - the Lentil Soup and the Minestrone Soup. Both are flavoursome.

It is good to know that a major supermarket stocks some vegan convenience food. Sure, nothing beats home cooked but when you are tired or lacking time, or even travelling, having these kind of products to hand is great!

Roasted potato chunks

I loooove potatoes! And roasted? OMG, hand them over! 
But lately, I have been packing on the kilos. Yes, even vegans can be chubby. We are not all super thin. Although we cut out a lot of bad fats (animal fats being the worst for your health), we still consume some fats in plant origin. This may not be a bad thing in moderation, from nuts, seeds and avocado, but oils (including olive) should be kept to a minimum. Hence my downfall.

So, I have been making an effort to cut back on cooking with oils. Now, in roasting, olive oil is what makes the veggies super delicious. I honestly did not think I was going to be able to enjoy them without it. But here is the trick - substitute the oil with other condiments and you will still end up with a tasty dish, such as this one I am about to share. 

This one is super easy. I found it on Dr. McDougall's site. If you have not heard of him, please check out his website, videos, books, etc.  

What you will need:
1 teaspoon oregano/marjoram
1 teaspoon rosemary
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/8 to1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1-2 cloves minced garlic or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
8 to 9 medium potatoes, cut into 2cm chunks

Method:
Preheat oven to 220 degrees Celsius.
Mix the oregano/marjoram, rosemary, paprika, cayenne, mustards and garlic into a smooth paste in a bowl.

Add a few potato chunks at a time and coat with the mixture; keep adding a few chunks at a time until all potatoes are coated.  Spread out on two nonstick baking sheets and bake for 30 to 40 minutes until tender.

Serve with a green salad or steam vegetables.