Always Time for Cookin' {A Fast & Not Really Furious FFF}
Happy Friday friends! I've swapped one niece for another (albeit fuzzier one) this week, so I have found myself with a bit of extra time this afternoon between walks to actually pop in for a little @foodfightfriday fun. Though in keeping with my new self-imposed computer time limits, let's see how fast I can bust this tasty post out!
As I always say, no matter how busy life gets, there's always going to be home-cooked food coming out of my kitchen. I may take the easy route with some healthier packaged snacks in a pinch, but I've got too many easy meals in my arsenal to skimp on the good stuff for the main attractions of the day. If I were as smooth as my pal @dandays, I could have probably come up with a better title to my post, but it's the end of the week and I've got plenty of humor left for the weekend, but perhaps not as much sharpness to my wit.
Anyway, this post might be short(ish) on words, but it won't be short on flavor. I've got another one of those roundups full of delicious bowls of goodness for you to find at least something that strikes your fancy. I'll start off with my cover photo and perpetual crowd-pleaser--pasta!
Yep, if you haven't noticed I'm quite fond of the legume-based pasta. I think my last #fff contender was a pesto pasta, so why not go with a red sauce this week? This pasta was another variation made solely out of lentils, and my sauce was a pretty simple mixture of tomatoes, celery, onion, carrots and a whole host of herbs and spices from the cabinet and the garden. Speaking of the garden, I also tossed in a few of the hot peppers for some heat and some of the last of the cherry tomatoes we are still pulling off before the plants die off for the season. My basil is still going strong, but I also added some turmeric for a little twist to the sauce. A serving of tofu tossed in makes this bowl a plant-based protein powerhouse!
Stir fry is another one of those staples that I can whip up in under 30 minutes when I'm short on time or just need to finish off the last of the veggie haul from the week. Though I always am a bit torn calling it that since I don't really "fry" anything, haha. More like "stir saute" perhaps, but who really cares what you call it as long as it is nourishing and delicious. I finally got my hands back on some black rice (a favorite of my pal @riverflows), so that was the base last week when I cooked up an assortment of veggies from the farmers market and tofu. I pretty much always keep sprouted firm tofu and/or tempeh in the refrigerator for these types of meals. It's a super convenient source of vegan protein. I know some folks are allergic to soy and can't consume it, but I find my body tends to crave it when I haven't had it in a while so I listen and heed it's call. Though I do stay away from the highly processed stuff. No soy lecithin or soy protein isolate for this gal!
We also had a few late season eggplants, one of which I tossed in this mix! There are a few more growing, but I'm not sure if they'll survive the cooler weather that's finally making its way here. We'll see I suppose!
With all of the greens popping back up at the farmers market and herbs going strong in the garden, pesto has also been featuring very heavily on my menu. Toss a bunch in the food processor with some tahini and seeds (love pepitas or sunflower seeds, or walnuts, too!), lemon, garlic, and perhaps some nooch and you've got the perfect addition to many meals. It's a great way to get greens in EVERYWHERE in your meals.
Last week included a simple butternut bisque made with squash from the garden and the lovely Hakurei turnips from the market. The pesto on top utilized the turnip greens and spicy garden cress. I'm so happy to finally have soup weather here to stay for a while.
Root veggies are also my jam, so another round of lunches included a different pesto and roasted beets and sweet potatoes. There's still some pinkeye beans to be had, though this might have been some of the last of the fresh ones for the year. I've very much enjoyed all of the fresh beans, but will also be happy to switch back to some of my dried staples like chickpeas, black beans, and all the lentils around.
Not to be outdone, @dksart put together a delicious homemade pizza last weekend when we had friends in town. I made the pesto for the sauce, but he put together the dough and chopped up all the yummy veggie toppings. Sorry, we gobbled up the final product before I got a picture when it was done.
Of course nothing beats soup for the title of "Cheapest & Easiest" (because you can actually say that about food and not be offensive). This week was pretty mad trying to get a lot of things accomplished after a busy weekend, so a huge pot of broccoli and sweet potato soup lasted all week for quick and hearty lunches!
Nothing fancy. Just a bunch of veggies cooked together in a simple broth. Looks like some chilly, rainy weather ahead tomorrow, so might be time to toss another pot on the stove top.
Well my 30 minutes to post my 30 minute meals is up, so I'm off to take my furry pal for another stroll around the neighborhood to pee on anything that she hasn't hit yet. With nasty weather ahead tomorrow we're banking up our exercise today. Though I'm not planning on the conditions derailing my farmers market visit! Too many fall goodies to get my hands on to stay away. 😉
Good food, fresh air and exercise are the best ways to stay healthy with the crazy busy holiday season nipping at our heels. Really, the best way to stay healthy all year round. What do you all have planned this weekend to nurture your bodies and minds?
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What a great feast you shared with us here on Steemit - so delicious, simply yummy
Everything looks fantastic Katie! I only wish I could come to join you for lunch. I have to try that beet chickpeas salad for sure!!! And here are some well deserved Wonkies for you:
Always love some Wonkies! Some good stuff all around! Happy to have a quiet Sunday today to work on the next round. Hope you are enjoying your weekend, as well!
I am happy to hear that Katie. I am working on challenging recipe, but so far so good 😊
Serious to god girl if you left Steemit my enthusiasm for life would die. These meals are moreish to say the least. I have planted TONS of basil this year .. bring on the pesto days!!! I crave tofu too. Last night i killed a fatted cabbage for a tofu ginger cabbage stirfry with smattering of seeds... i have really taken to pepitas, sunflowers, sesame on my stirfries which isnt traditional but tastes oh so good. Xx Love you xx
Aww, thank you! I can't seem to stay totally away, too many good pals not to check in a bit. ;) But I am finding more of the balance I need right now. That cabbage sounds awesome! After they didn't have the market last week, I can't wait to see what's around tomorrow morning for more yummy meals next week!
Good thing that was the short version, I started reading this on Friday and just looked at the time—I’m late for lunch and now it’s Saturday.
Your pal may be smooth but he sure ain’t as clean as the bowl on the cover image—ooh wee! You know you wiped, shined and glossed that thing up—good job, chef.
I didn’t even notice that noodle at your 2 o’clock, either. 😉
Edit
Tell me about your self imposed computer regs?
I actually went up to edit and add "ish" to my short comment. 😂 What can I say, get me talking about food and I just can't stop. I had to leave one noodle a little out of place otherwise you might think I went all fancy on you. If you ever see me sprinkle random crumbs around the bowl you know I've been abducted by aliens.
I still need to work on those specific time limits on here, but the gist of it is I've been spending a bit too much time on here and not enough actually building up my business out here in the real world. I have a tendency to get cozy in one spot and not challenge myself to step outside my comfort zone. Thus, as much as I love my peeps, I'm trying to balance out my time and not get sucked into the black hole of social media. Because in the end this is just as much a time suck as the old bookface or foodstagram. Especially when you look at the value of Steem to the dollar. I'm not on here for money, but I also can't sacrifice an income to be on here if that makes sense. Plus these killer dishes won't cook themselves if I'm pounding away on the keyboard...😉
Wow, so many delicious plates:) A feast for the eyes for us,lol
Feasting all around! One of these days we'll figure out how to actually virtually share so you can try it, too. ;)
I was thinking of doing a tomatoes base pasta for tomorrow! Looking at yours makes me hungry.
I hope you had an enjoyable meal, as well! :)
30 minutes for this post, I don't think I could have loaded the pictures in that time.
Soup weather is in full swing in this neck of the woods @plantstoplanks.
One of my favorite vegetables are beats. The last thing in my garden are beats, and with the temp hitting 33 degrees last night, we will be uprooting them today.
I have never had roasted beats, usually we serve them cold, straight-up or in a salad. When you roast the beats do you boil them before roasting as they are very hard and require a lot of cook time.
All of your dishes look absolutely scrumptious.
Have a great weekend.
Brrr! We've hit the mid-40's overnight, but haven't gotten that close to freezing just yet. Only a matter of time I'm sure. I tend to do better with a deadline, so setting that clock for 30 minutes lit a fire under my butt to knock this one out! Though to be fair I think I did already have the pictures downloaded so all I had to do was pop them on in.
I love all the root veggies! Though beets are one of my favorite. I don't usually boil them ahead of time, but they can take a little while to cook through. I have found I love the pressure cooker for them. They cook much more quickly and it retains all the delicious moisture! There's not many ways I don't like them.
Each climate certainly does have its pros and cons, though most of the pros are in all the variety of produce available! I often get envious of all the yummy tropical fruit that doesn't grow here, but then I remember things like berries and broccoli don't grow so well in tropical climates. The last time we did travel to the Caribbean I gorged myself on pineapple because it was soooo delicious! ;)
That all looks amazing. It certainly gets my seal of approval.
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Many thanks! :)