Broccoli Potato soup recipe (vegan)

I really enjoy making soup because it's an easy way to add a lot of vegetables to one recipe. Plus, you give the taste buds an overwhelmingly good feeling with each slurp. 

My first attempt at Broccoli Potato soup was a big success. I hope you enjoy it. Don't forget to yum!

Ingredients

• 1 yellow onion
• 2 tbsp Olive oil 
• 4 cloves garlic (minced)
• 4 medium sized golden potatoes (peeled and diced)
• 1 large carrot (peeled and chopped)
• 1 celery stick (chopped)
• 5 cups vegetable stock + 2-3 cups water
• 2 broccoli florets (chopped)
• Pinch of red pepper flakes 
• 1/2 tsp turmeric 
• Pepper (to taste)
• 4 tbsp nutritional yeast

Instructions

1. Preheat a large cooking pot over medium heat. Sautee the onion in olive oil until slightly golden. 
2. Add the celery, carrots, pepper, turmeric, red pepper flakes and stir. 
3. Add the vegetable stock. 
4. Add the garlic, potatoes and broccoli. Stir to combine. 
5. Add water until vegetables are covered with liquid. 
6. Cover with lid and cook for ~20 minutes. 
7. Add nutritional yeast. 
8. Transfer soup to a powerful mixer and puree until smooth (you may need to do in smaller batches). 
9. Enjoy!

Adapted from this recipe. 

A vegetarian Thanksgiving (anytime recipes)

 

We started off the day with a ~3 hour bike ride on our road bikes. We left around 10am and the weather was weird - misty, grey, not too warm, not too cold. We welcomed the fresh crisp air and took in the beautiful sights of nature, farm animals and fall colors. It's incredible that after six years of living in Greenville, SC we are still discovering new routes. Although our country roads are typically pretty quiet from cars, this recent ride treated us with no more than ten cars passing us over just over 50 miles. 

After we returned home around 1:30pm, I cleaned up, had a meal and then got to work in the kitchen. While Thanksgiving food centers around traditions, I see this holiday as a way to create memories over food. And there's no better way to create positive memories than around delish food that feels just as good on the taste buds as it does in the belly. 

I wanted to share the recipes that I used to create the dishes that I prepared for Thanksgiving. These recipes are not exclusive to Thanksgiving - I encourage you to try them out and add them to your weekly menu. If you are like me and feel a bit overwhelmed and anxious with detailed recipes, I will list the ingredients below and then you can click on the recipe link when you are ready to follow the actual recipe. I find it much less cumbersome to purchase ingredients in advance and then prep those ingredients in advance, versus trying to do everything at once (shop, prep, cook all on the same day). 

Sesame Ginger Tempeh Stir Fry

RECIPE LINK

Ingredients: 

• 8oz block tempeh (I used two x 8 ounce blocks of tempeh to have leftovers.)
• 1 cup each carrot sticks and green beans
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp fresh grated ginger
• 1 tbsp fresh garlic
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 3 tbsp soy sauce/coconut aminos for lower sodium+paleo (I used Tamari sauce)
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• Sesame seeds, green onion, white rice for serving (optional) (I used sesame seeds)

Broccoli and Quinoa Casserole

RECIPE LINK

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups vegetable broth or water (I used vegetable broth)
• 1 cup quinoa (any color), rinsed under running water in a mesh sieve for a minute and drained
• 16 ounces broccoli florets, either pre-packaged or sliced from 2 large bunches of broccoli
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• 10 twists of freshly ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, omit if sensitive to spice
• 8 ounces (about 2 ½ cups) freshly grated cheddar cheese, divided (I used brick provolone and just under 1 cup)
• 1 cup low-fat milk (cow’s milk tastes best but unsweetened plain almond milk works, too) (I used cow's milk)
• ½ tablespoon butter or 1 ½ teaspoons olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, pressed or minced
• 1 slice whole wheat bread (substitute gluten-free bread for a gluten-free casserole)

Creamy Roasted Cauliflower Soup

RECIPE LINK

Ingredients:

• 1 large head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), cut into bite-size florets
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• Fine sea salt
• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 4 cups (32 ounces) vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or more if needed
• Scant ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• For garnish: 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, chives and/or green onions (I used dried parsley) 

Vegan Apple and Pear Crumble 

RECIPE LINK

Ingredients: 

• 2 1/2 cups pears, chopped (after peeling)  (I used 3 small Bartlett pears)
• 1 1/2 cups apples, chopped (after peeling) (I used 3 small honey crisp apples)
• 1/8 cup coconut oil (melted)
• 1/8 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/3 cup coconut oil (I used ~2 tbsp vegan butter)
• 1/3 cup walnuts, chopped optional (I used a handful each of chopped walnuts and pecans)

My best friend. 

Campy's plate.

He's always so surprised and patient when he receives his own Thanksgiving plate. 

Happy Tummy. 

Kale, Broccoli, and Sesame Noodle Salad

This Kale, Broccoli, and Sesame Noodle Salad is bursting with flavor. The veggies and homemade dressing fancy up those inexpensive packages of ramen noodles (no need to use the soup base flavor packets as they are packed with sodium and not needed in this recipe). Serve this salad at room temperature or make ahead, refrigerate, and serve chilled (the leftovers are even more flavorful!). Add your favorite protein and you have a flavor-bursting balanced meal.

Kale, Broccoli, and Sesame Noodle Salad

By Joey Mock, RD, LD, CLT

Shopping list

• Head of broccoli 
• Garlic cloves (2)
• Sweet chili sauce
• Red wine vinegar
• Canola oil 
• Kosher salt
• Black Pepper
• Scallions (3)
• Ginger 
• Kale (large bunch)
• Dried ramen noodle packages (2)
• Optional: Mint, sesame seeds for garnish 

Ingredients

• 1 large head of broccoli, cut into medium sized florets with some stalk attached
• 2 garlic cloves, minced, divided
• 1½ teaspoons sweet chili sauce
• 1 tablespoon plus ½ cup red wine vinegar, divided
• 2-3 Tablespoons plus ½ cup canola oil, divided
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus additional to taste
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus additional to taste
• 3 scallions, green parts only, thinly sliced, plus more for serving if desired
• 1 3-inch piece ginger, peeled, cut into 1-inch matchsticks
• 4 cups fresh curly kale (about a bunch) leaves only, stemmed and chopped (or Tuscan kale leaves)
• 2 x 3-ounce packages dried ramen noodles (discard flavor packets)
• Torn mint leaves and toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 450°. Toss broccoli with 1 clove minced garlic, sweet chili sauce, 1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar, and 2-3 Tablespoons oil (until broccoli is lightly coated) on a rimmed baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Roast, tossing occasionally, until tender and starting to brown, about 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, whisk scallions, ginger, 1 clove minced garlic, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper, remaining ½ cup red wine vinegar, and ½ cup oil in a large bowl. 
3. Add kale; toss to coat. Massage until the kale starts to soften and wilt, about 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside at room temperature. 
4. Cook ramen noodles according to package directions (discarding flavor packets and skipping that step on the package). Drain noodles and rinse under cold water. Add noodles and broccoli to kale and toss to coat. 
5. Divide amongst bowls and top with mint, sesame seeds, and additional scallions if desired.

Adapted from: bon appetit recipe.

Broccoli and cheese spaghetti squash casserole

In my last blog post, I talked about the importance of meal planning for athletes with a few of my helpful meal prep tips.
It's important that you do not overwhelm yourself with food prep and meal planning but instead, make the effort to plan ahead instead of always making it an afterthought.

Sometimes good intentions backfire when you try to do too much at once or have this vision of "healthy eating" that isn't practical for you right now in your nutritional journey.

Every athlete is going to have a unique starting point when it comes to meal prepping.

Perhaps you are trying to move away from always having an English muffin, egg, piece of ham and chips for dinner or you trying to break a habit of always having pasta or fast food, or eating out or a frozen meal for dinner most nights per week.

Or maybe you are in a meal prep rut and need to challenge yourself with a more complicated meal or recipe as you have been resorting to quick and easy, despite having the time, passion and energy for cooking.

With so many food blogs, magazines and articles promoting recipes, sometimes looking at perfect food pictures, a list of ingredients and many steps can be overwhelming for some athletes and it can actually take the fun away from creating a meal that you will eventually yum over.

Sometimes cooking is like a hard workout. It looks daunting at first and you assume you will fail (or you don't have the energy or time for it) but when you give an effort and the process is over, you are not only happy that you did it but you feel really great about what you accomplished.

For myself, I like to plan and prep meals that are quick and easy for me but perhaps for someone else, my meals may look complicated and time-consuming.

 When considering what you will eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner, if you are new to meal prepping and planning meals, don't overwhelm yourself with extremely detailed recipes or dishes that require lots of steps or extended cooking time every night of the week.

Healthy eating is much easier to accomplish when you shop, plan and prepare ahead of time.

What you make is up to you!

 Broccoli and cheese spaghetti squash casserole

Cooking time: 10 min to prep, 25-60 min to cook

Ingredients 

1 spaghetti squash (a 7-9 inch squash should feed 2 but buy bigger if you want leftovers)
Marinara sauce
2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
2 heads of broccoli
Cheese - sharp or cheddar (I use Cabot)
Parmesan cheese
Olive oil
Salt/pepper

1. Preheat oven to 450°F

2. Cut squash length-wise and place cut-side down on baking sheet (sprayed with non stick spray) for 40-50 minutes. (You can also cook in microwave in 15 minutes.).
3. Steam broccoli on stove top in large pot (stems removed).
4. Use a fork to remove the seeds.
5. Drizzle olive oil (a few tsp) on bottom of a casserole dish to lightly cover.
6. Scrape squash from the shell and place into the casserole dish. (this is fun, have your kids help!)
7. Add chopped garlic, a pinch of salt/pepper and about 1/2-3/4 cup marinara sauce to cover the squash. Mix together with your fork until evenly combined. OK to add more sauce to your liking.
8. Add steamed broccoli and mix together in dish. Broccoli will fall apart but OK to leave some chunks of broccoli.
9. Top with a little Parmesan to lightly cover the top of the broccoli/squash mixture and then sprinkle on a little shredded cheese.
10. Place casserole dish on lower rack (in oven) and bake for 10-15 minutes.
Best if served warm.

Serve with your choice of protein (chicken, beef, tempeh, tofu).

I hope you yum as loud as we did!

No more excuses - meal planning

Sitting down to a home-cooked meal in the evening is not an everyday occurrence for many people in our society for a variety of reasons; being too tired or hungry, wanting something easy, needing something quick and convenient, feeling too busy, not knowing what to eat or not liking to cook.

As an athlete, you already have so much to squeeze into the day that it’s easy to see why dinner may be an afterthought, especially if you have been up since 5am or you are finishing an evening workout around 6:30 or 7pm. 

But, that's not a good excuse. 

Let's get serious...
You aren't too busy to train so it's all about priorities when you say you are too busy to cook. 

As an athlete myself, I can empathize with how overwhelming it can be to plan nutritious meals, every day of the week and still squeeze in workouts. And this is in addition to work, family and everything else on a never-ending to-do list. 

I realize that I do not share many of my meal creations on this blog but I have to be honest with you, I'm passionate about healthy eating and I love sharing my food pics but my job is not a food blogger. And I also don't like to measure food and make my meals precise for you to replicate.

I am a board certified sport dietitian who spends all day helping athletes maximize performance by personally addressing and tweaking lifestyle, nutrition and sport nutrition limiters.

I regularly share my food pics on Facebook with the hope that you can be inspired to prepare healthy and satisfying home-cooked meals that will work for your active lifestyle but I never want you to feel overwhelmed when it comes to food shopping and food prepping.
There are hundreds and hundreds of food bloggers with amazing pictures, stories and recipes of food.
You should have no problem finding recipes that will work for you...but the key is making the time to actually prep and cook those meals. 

As far as I know, athletes love having a plan to follow so if it works for you to have a training plan, consider a meal plan to guide you in a successful week of eating. 

There’s no need to be obsessed with food as you need to let food enhance your life, not control your life. And there is nothing wrong with the occasional off day of eating. 

I actually feel that allowing yourself an "of" day (ex. breakfast for dinner, yogurt, granola and fruit for lunch, PB & J and a smoothie for breakfast, etc.) can actually keep you on track for healthy eating the rest of the week. It's kinda like a vacation from "typical" eating.  

Above all, you should love to eat and your meals should work for your health, body composition and performance goals. 

Place a similar amount of passion, effort and enthusiasm into your daily diet (and fueling regime) so that you can experience the rewards of having a healthy, nourished and well-fueled body. 

Here are a few of my meal planning tips that will work for your busy lifestyle. 
But in order to make them work.....
 make an effort, not excuses. 

1. Prepare meals on the weekend and always plan for leftovers. A little meal prep goes a long way. Dice, chop, wash, cook — do as much as you can when you have the time so you at least have options for a upcoming meal. Don't overwhelm yourself. Plan for 2-3 days and then do a light meal prep to last you the rest of the week.

2. Prep a meal before a workout.
You don’t want to finish your workout hungry with no patience to meal prep. Prepare as much as you can before working out. This is a game changer. You won't believe how your food choices will change (and how less complicated "healthy" eating can be) when you know that a meal is prepared before you workout. More often than not, if you finish a workout hungry, you will almost always go for what's quick and easy and not always healthy or performance enhancing and find an excuse or reason to eat it (even though you know you should be eating something healthier.)

3. Have a menu for the week.
Knowing what you will eat for dinner (and breakfast, lunch and snacks) will ensure you have those items available. No need to make this menu extravagant, just make a plan. Theme meals or staple meals work really well, especially when you are getting started with this habit.

4. Allow yourself one night a week to get a little help from a pre-made or semi-homemade meal.
Sure, you could dine-out but let's be honest, eating out takes time and it's expensive...you have to wait for food, eat and pay and travel to and from the restaurant. Consider getting help once a week (Wed or Thurs) from a salad bar, pre-made meal option from the grocery, pick-up/take-out healthy item or making something super easy and semi-homemade. Make sure this meal works for you as your meals should never make you feel guilty or should negatively affect your next days workout. 

5. Use your time wisely
Think about your entire day (M-F) - when do you have the most free time? And by free time, this means watching TV or spending time on your smart phone/computer at home. Could you make more time in your day?
Hopefully, there are times when you are home and you can find 10 to 30 minutes in the early morning, when you get home from work or in the evening that you can do some cooking or prepping. Oftentimes, the cooking and meal prep is an afterthought and athletes get busy doing something else or feel too exhausted and hungry to do anything but sit.....and eat something convenient.

As an athlete, food should be high on your to-do list. This means eating, cooking and planning. 

You know how important consistency is with training and you love the results when you follow your training plan.
Put that same focus and attention on your eating habits as you do with your training and you will find yourself doing amazing things your healthy, well fueled and nourished body. 

Broccoli and tempeh ginger stir-fry

It's no fun coming home hungry after a long day/commute, evening workout or late meetings and feeling the pressure to cook. 

We all have crammed-packed schedules but even if you want more hours in the day to get everything done, you'd likely fill-up those hours as well. Rather then beating yourself up that you are failing on certain areas of you life that may improve your overall health, remind yourself that regardless if you find the time or make the time, you do have time that you may not be using wisely and nothing is more important to your busy life than keeping your body in good health.

You know a home cooked meal will make you feel great inside and with you in control of the portions, ingredients and timing, there is a lot to benefit from when it comes to preparing food at home.  So the hope is that when you make small changes with your diet and keep them up, you will feel the effects of those changes and not only form new healthy habits but you may also feel so good that you are even more motivated to change other areas of your life to feel even better.  

The next time you are about to sit down at home to relax, watch TV, fold laundry, clean, get on the computer, call your family or do anything that my take 30 min or longer, STOP before you get going on whatever you are about to do and head to the kitchen. 

One of the best investments to your health is having a plan when it comes to eating real food. But in order to implement that plan, you have to have food at home to prep for upcoming meals. 

Here are some options: chop, cook, grill, steam, bake.  

Whatever you can do in 30 min, consider it 30 min that you don't have to spend on food prep later that day (or next day). 

A few options: 
-Cook 2 types of whole grains per week (I recommend plan 1 cup dry of each grain so you have enough to last for a few meals) on your stove top
-Chop veggies and fruit so you have a salad bar of tupperware in your refrigerator
-Buy frozen veggies for easy steaming or microwaving
-Bake proteins in the oven which require no attendance until they are finished cooking
-Use your crock pot for stews/soups/chili's (large) or oatmeal, beans, lentils (small)
-Hard boil eggs (1 for each day)
-Have go-to options for a quick, easy meal when you feel overwhelmed with life (Ex. yogurt, fruit and granola parfait or potato w/ Greek yogurt and steamed veggies drizzled with olive oil) or bagged lettuce with cottage cheese, fruit and pumpkin seeds on top)


                            

Broccoli and tempeh ginger stir-fry

3 cups broccoli (fresh or frozen) - steam until cooked
1 package tempeh (chopped)
2 small baked potatoes (cooked in microwave and then chopped)

1 leek (washed and chopped)
1/8 cup peanuts
Olive oil (2 tbsp olive oil)
1 tbsp ginger (chopped, skin removed)
Rice vinegar (2-4 tbsp)
Water
Wok
Turmeric, pepper
Optional: top with greek yogurt, salsa or shredded cheese.

1. On medium heat, add 1/2 tbsp olive oil and cooked tempeh until golden brown (5-8 minutes) - toss as needed. 

2. Add 1/2 tbsp olive oil and add potatoes, broccoli, leek and ginger. 

3. Turn heat to low and add 2 tbsp rice vinegar (may want to turn on your vent on your stove at this time). Stir to combine. 

4. Add 2-3 tbsp water and additional olive oil/rice vinegar as needed if creation starts to stick to bottom of your pan. 

5. Toss well, add seasonings of your choice and cover for 5 minutes. 

6. Add peanuts, toss and serve.