Two Easy Recipes for World Go Vegan Week

From www.blog.fatfreevegan.com

Chili Mac

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Most of SusanV's recipes are kid-friendly if the children you're cooking for will eat vegetables and beans. If trying to transition family to a plant-based diet and your kids absolutely refuse to eat most of the foods on it, these kid-friendly recipes may not help much, and veganizing dishes that they already like might work best.

But if they're open to eating beans, this vegan version of the childhood favorite, Chili Macaroni, could be a winner. Feel free to leave out the kale until you get your family addicted to it and then slowly add in the greens a little at a time. You'll find that the kale provides nutrition and color but relatively little taste, so your more open-minded family members won't mind it at all.



2 cups elbow macaroni
1 onion, chopped
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups water
4 teaspoons mild chili powder*
1/4 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
10 ounces frozen corn kernels
1 16-ounce can pinto or kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 to 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
5 cups thinly-sliced kale (thick stems removed before slicing) or other greens**
salt and pepper, to taste

Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling water until tender. Drain. Sauté onion in a large non-stick pot until translucent. Add remaining ingredients, as well as cooked pasta. Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve hot.

*This is chili powder, not pepper, a mixture of mild chili peppers and cumin that adds no heat to the dish. If you want it spicy, add cayenne or additional chipotle chili powder.
**If you use a faster-cooking green such as spinach, add it during the last 3 minutes of cooking.

Makes 6 servings. Per serving: 259 Calories (kcal); 2g Total Fat; (6% calories from fat); 13g Protein; 52g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 854mg Sodium; 9g Fiber. 139mg Calcium; 2mcg B-12. Weight Watchers 5 Flex Points.

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If you're ever in Pensacola, Florida, please check out the End of the Line Cafe. It's a small coffee house near the railroad tracks, but we were all impressed by the delicious sandwiches, hummus, quinoa tabouli, homemade vegan cheeses, and incredible potato chowder.

Ridiculously Easy Lunchbox Enchilada Casserole
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The amount of ingredients you need for this will depend on the size of the container you're making it in. Servings based on thermos (which held less than the CorningWare dishes), so the ingredients listed below are just approximations based on one serving--you may find you need more or less.

1/2 cup salsa
2-3 corn tortillas, cut into quarters
2/3 cup fat-free refried beans or chili beans (or a combination of the 2)
1/4 cup frozen corn kernels
a handful washed baby spinach
2-3 jumbo black olives, sliced

Choose a 1-serving dish that can be safely microwaved. (The thermos shown above is designed to be put into the microwave; most are not and should not be used for this.) Spread a couple of tablespoons of salsa in the bottom of the dish. Next place a layer of tortillas over the salsa, trying to cover most of the dish's bottom--a little overlapping is okay. Spread the tortilla with half of the beans and top with the spinach. Add another layer of tortillas. Spread with the rest of the beans, sprinkle with the corn, and spoon a little salsa over the corn. Top with a final layer of tortillas. Spread the tortillas with a good layer of salsa, and put the olives on the top. (Or, hold the olives and add them after cooking.)

Cover the top loosely with waxed paper (do not use the thermos top), and put the dish into the microwave. Cook on high power until heated all the way through, 2 to 3 minutes.

Microwaves vary, so check to make sure that the inside is warm by inserting a knife into the middle and checking a sample. If you're making this in a thermos, it will continue to cook after you've sealed the container, so getting it hot in the middle is not so important. If serving right away, heat it until it's very hot and then let it sit for a few minutes to cool.

Makes one serving. With 2 tortillas and 2 olives: 306 Calories (kcal); 3g Total Fat; (7% calories from fat); 12g Protein; 62g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 1287mg Sodium; 9g Fiber. 6 Weight Watchers Points (or Core plus 1 point for tortillas).