Black Bean & Sweet Potato Superfood Soup

When I first tasted this soup, in my head I did my best silent Ron Burgundy voice, "Oh this stuff is gooooood." Not even on purpose! It just happened. Like that was the most appropriate and logical reaction to this soup's deliciousness that my brain could come up with! So weird. But guess what? This soup is also good for you. Like, really good for you. Black beans and sweet potato? Yes, but wait, there's purple cabbage too! If you're not a cabbage fan, I promise you that it's not even discernible. Truly. 

Did you know that purple cabbage lends the most nutritional bang for your buck? Yep. And black beans come in fourth! If you still haven't checked out NutritionFacts.org, you really should. This video on Superfood Bargains is great knowledge to have when money's tight.

This soup has a hint of sweetness and is spiced with chipotle chili powder, cumin, and turmeric. Black beans, sweet potato, and red cabbage all make a superfood star appearance dressed with cilantro and avocado.  

So get your health on while mowing down on this absolutely delicious soup. It's definitely a keeper! 

Black Bean & Sweet Potato Superfood Soup

Serves 4

• 1/2 Tbsp. coconut oil
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 tsp. turmeric
• 2 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp. chipotle chili powder
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• pinch of salt
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 purple cabbage head (4 cups), chopped
• 1 large sweet potato, chopped
• 1 15 oz. canned black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 1/2 bunch of cilantro, separated and chopped
• 1/2 lime, juiced
• 1/2 avocado, chopped

Notes: This soup can be as chunky or smooth as you'd like, just adjust the blended portion to your preference.

In a large soup pot, heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the cumin, turmeric, cocoa powder, and chipotle chili powder and saute for about 30 seconds. 

Turn the heat down to medium-low and add the onion and garlic. Saute for about 5 minutes, or until the onions have started to brown.

Add the broth, salt, pepper, cabbage, and sweet potato. Bring to a boil over high heat, then turn down to low, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the sweet potato is tender.

Add the black beans and maple syrup. Take the bunch of cilantro and chop it in half to separate the leaves from the stems. Mince the stems and add them to the soup. Save the leaves for garnish.

Continue to simmer for another 5 minutes. Then, carefully place about 3/4 of the soup into a blender and blend until somewhat smooth. Add the pureed soup back into the pot and stir in the lime juice.

Serve hot and garnished with avocado and cilantro.

When I tried to put the soup away later on, I couldn't stop eating it! 

I love this song, Wild Belle – Shine

[yumprint-recipe id='60']

Roasted Maple Tempeh + Rosemary Quinoa

Tempeh is pretty cool. I never ate it growing up. However, for a time I did work here (see photos at end of the post)...saweetest job there ever was, let me tell you. Anyway, the owner was a rambunctious, old vegetarian guy from Boston and on the menu we had a few tempeh sandwiches. This was my only exposure to tempeh for the greater part of my life. I think I did taste it while cooking there and I don't think I liked it very much. Even being vegan for almost a whole year now, I am only just recently starting to really to enjoy it. Well, this is my favorite way to have it now, maple roasted! The unique tempeh flavor is still detectable and compliments it's scrumptious caramelized maple crust. Together with herbed rosemary quinoa, dried cranberries and toasted walnuts, this is a new favorite in my book! 

If I had happened to have stumbled upon this dish before Thanksgiving, it would have definitely made an appearance. A sneaksy and delicious way to get non-vegan folk to eat tempeh!? Muah-ha-ha! Perfect. I guess I'll have to wait until next year though. 

I have to say, though this dish does seem to have a certain affinity for a Thanksgiving theme, what with the dried cranberries and maple and rosemary...however, I assure you that it's delicious any time of the year. Tempeh is an excellent source of vegan protein as well as probiotics and it can be found pretty much anywhere! Triple win!

Roasted Maple Tempeh + Rosemary Quinoa

Serves 4

• Quinoa:
• 1 cup dry quinoa (I used red)
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 Tbsp. fresh rosemary (chopped) or 1 tsp. dried
• 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 1/2 Tbsp. walnut oil (or olive)
• 1 tsp. dried thyme
• 1 tsp. dried parsley
• 1 tsp. dried sage
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• Tempeh:
• 2 8 oz. packs of plain tempeh (16 oz. total), cubed
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 1/4 tsp. dried sage
• 2 Tbsp. chopped walnuts

First, rinse and drain the dry quinoa. Place in a medium saucepan with the vegetable broth. Bring to a boil over high heat, then cover and reduce to a simmer. Allow to simmer for about 15-20 minutes, or until all the broth is gone and the quinoa is fluffy. Check on it after about 10 minutes and give it a stir, if left too long the quinoa can stick to the bottom of the pan. Once done, fluff with a fork.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the remaining quinoa ingredients and mix well. Once the quinoa is done, add it to the bowl mixture and stir to combine. 

Preheat the oven to 350 F and chop the tempeh into small, bite-size cubes. 

In a large bowl, combine the remaining tempeh ingredients and then add the tempeh cubes and stir well to coat. 

Scatter the cubes on a baking sheet and bake at 350 F for about 20 minutes or until the maple syrup has caramelized atop the tempeh. Be sure to check that the walnuts don't get too toasty! 

Once the tempeh is done, combine with the finished quinoa and stir well.

Snuggle up and serve hot! 

Wiggling to Pharrell Williams – Happy (from Despicable Me 2)

[yumprint-recipe id='59']I was a waitress and cook at the Hatcher Pass Lodge for a few years when I came back from college in Montana. It was a great job. I had the opportunity to work in an Alaska State Park, with absolutely breathtaking views. I remember the serene drive up to the mountains, and baking fresh cookies and muffins all alone, long before any customers or other employees got there, while listening to NPR. I think it's really where I discovered my love for cooking! 

Inspired by Nutrition Stripped

Rum Spiced Soft Pumpkin Muffins

Okay, I have two pretty neat and equally exciting things to share today. Number one, we have over 500 likes on Facebook! Must be all those Alaskan pics. Cool beans, huh? Sometimes it's fun to get excited about such little things. Number two, Swiftype is finally working again! Hurray! Swiftype populates the search bar, which I love. So if you type in "muffins" it will population a list of all my muffin recipes. Or if you type in "spinach" it will populate a list of all my recipes including spinach! I was driven utterly bonkers while it wasn't working. So, anyways, both are...preh-tee, preh-tee, preh-TEE exciting.  Happy New Years! I must confess; New Years is my absolute least favorite holiday. Truly, it's the worst. What do I hate more than rambunctious parties? Fireworks. I'm like a dog in that regard, I suppose. Bailey hates them as well. We have to make him a bomb shelter in tub. Plus, staying up until midnight!? Not for this ol' gal. Yes, I'm the The Grinch Whole Stole...New Years. This is not to dispute the fact that I did, however, have a lovely New Years eve.

Todd and I went to a low-key, sit-around-table and talk with the lights low while soft music plays in the background type of party. There may have been vegan spring rolls and oreos and vegan caramel corn involved. I would like to take a moment to thank that special person in my life who made all that possible! Thank you! And I didn't even have to drink or stay up until midnight, either. Man, what a party pooper! We were the youngest there and the first to leave. In bed by 11:30pm, it was all pretty pathetic of us to be honest. Two childless, mid-twenty somethings should definitely be able to do better than that. I'll put it on the list of New Years resolutions. Just kidding...I don't do those...

Any who, to this geriatric little shindig, I brought some fabulous pumpkin muffins! I whipped them right up after work, all in a snap and let me tell you , they are absolutely one of the best muffins I've ever had, truly. 

These guys are so incredibly soft and borderline gooey. They almost melt in your mouth! You may think they need a little more time in the oven, but they're supposed to be very moist. With just a whisper of rum, and deliciously spiced these fluffy, sweet muffins are kindred to a perfect pumpkin pie and will be a total hit at any party.

Rum Spiced Soft Pumpkin Muffins

Makes 12

• Dry:
• 1 3/4 cup whole wheat white flour
• 1 cup vegan sugar (I like Zulka)
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. ground allspice
• 1/8 tsp. ground cloves
• Wet:
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup cartoned coconut milk
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. molasses
• 2 Tbsp. spiced dark rum (optional)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. 

In a medium bowl, combine the wet ingredients. Do you adore my sweet little measuring spoons? I love them!

Preheat the oven to 400 F and coat a regular muffin pan with a nonstick cooking spray. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. I got The Flavor Bible for Christmas and pretty much died on the spot. 

Divide batter evenly in the muffin pan and bake at 400 F for about 20 minutes. The edges should begin brown slightly and the top of the muffin should bounce back when gently poked with a finger.

Allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan, before popping them out. My god! Look how gooey and soft!

I couldn't of pulled it off without my kitchen helpers. Okay, that's not true, they are mostly a hindrance. Like furry, oddly-shaped movable rugs that are constantly tripping me and trying to snatch things off the table when my head's turned. Not pictured: Todd.

Swaying to Ane Brun – Halo

See the Go Dairy Free contest page.

See the So Delicious facebook page

[yumprint-recipe id='58']Inspired by IsaChandra