Meatless Monday Meal! (Plus: The Wonders of Whole Foods)

Monday is right around the corner everyone! And we all know what that means: Going back to work, getting up early, and oh, did I mention Meatless Monday? Yup, thats Monday for ya. The best day of the week!

So it is now time for me to share with you the meatless recipes that I am personally going to make this Monday. And no, my mother is not going to be the one cooking it. It's me. Anyway, I haven't actually made these recipes yet, so I can't tell you how they turn out (that will have to wait until Monday night, of course) but I want you sitting there at home reading this to have time to get all of the ingredients you need. Okay, here it goes. My Meatless Monday Meal of the Week:


Lettuce Wraps with Chile Peanut Noodles:


Ingredients

Chile Peanut Noodles:

3 ounces dried bean thread noodles
1/2 cup unsweetened peanut butter
3 tablespoons brown rice syrup
1 1/2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon shoyu or tamari
2 teaspoons chile sauce 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped


Lettuce Wraps:

1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup dehydrated coconut flakes
1/2 cup toasted peanuts, roughly chopped
1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
4 limes, quartered
1 head butter lettuce, such as Boston Hoisin sauce

Method

For the chile peanut noodles, soften noodles in medium pot of hot water until tender, about 15 minutes. Bring noodles to a boil and cook 1 minute, then drain and set aside. Using a food processor, mix together the peanut butter, brown rice syrup, lime juice, shoyu or tamari, chile sauce, garlic, and 1/3 cup warm water until combined thoroughly. Toss noodles with 1/2 cup of the chile dressing. Reserve remaining dressing, and set noodles and dressing aside. For the lettuce wraps, arrange cilantro, coconut, peanuts, onions, limes, lettuce, hoisin sauce, chile noodles, and reserved chile dressing in separate bowls. Let guests create their own lettuce wraps by topping lettuce leaves with any or all of the items as they like.


Nutrition

Per serving * (about 6oz/169g-wt.): 540 calories (300 from fat), 34g total fat, 11g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 470mg sodium, 49g total carbohydrate (7g dietary fiber, 14g sugar), 14g protein *Does not include sauces


Carrot-Ginger Soup:

Ingredients

4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth, divided
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
1 pound carrots, coarsely chopped
1 medium Yukon gold potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives

Method

Heat 1/2 cup broth to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until tender, about 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in ginger, carrots, potato and remaining broth and heat to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook 25 minutes or until vegetables are tender. In batches, carefully puree in blender. Stir in lemon juice and garnish with chives.

Nutrition

Per Serving: 130 calories (5 from fat), 0g total fat, 0g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 220mg sodium, 28g total carbohydrate (5g dietary fiber, 9g sugar), 3g protein


Okay, I know that seems like a lot of, well, "stuff" to do (I hate that word, but it seemed necessary) however, the recipes really are simple. And what makes it simple to do (and simple to find) is a little place called Whole Foods. You're probably thinking "Wow, this girl's just so obviously trying to advertise Whole Foods" but in my honest opinion Whole foods is an amazing place. Although Whole Foods was (and still is) notorious for it's exorbitant prices, it has gotten cheaper in recent years. Not only is the quality of food great, but they have this wonderful sense of community that is contagious once you walk in. When you're there, you want to buy those apples from the orchard 20 miles away and you feel the need to buy the grass fed, humanely treated ground beef. At Whole Foods, you can always make good choices.

Now, I could go on and on and on about how magical Whole Foods is, but much of that will come to you in later (and shorter) posts. But for now, I'll just leave it at that.

Make sure you check out my blog Monday night when Ill reveal the results of my (hopefully) beautiful Meatless Monday Meal (pictures included, of course)!

Until then, Happy Eating!
Leda :)

(Image and Recipe Credit: Whole Foods)