Meatless Monday

It's Meatless Monday: the beginning of the work week, and time to start off another week of yummy vegetarian food. Here are today's six vegetarian recipes to help you through the day, including Sweet Potato Soufflé, Black Bean Veggie Burgers and, for that sweet tooth, Buck-eyes. Enjoy!

TUSCAN TOMATO BURGERS

This was in an old Weight Watchers email. The Weight Watchers PointsPlus was 3 per serving. Makes 2 servings.

Ingredients

1 tomato, coarsely chopped

1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

2 frozen Boca All American Flame Grilled Burgers

2 Tbsp shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

4 C torn salad greens

Directions

Combine tomatoes, basil and vinegar. Cook burgers as directed on package; top with cheese. Cover; cook 1 min. or until cheese is melted. Place salad greens on 2 plates; top with cheeseburgers and tomato mixture.

SWEET POTATO SOUFFLE

This is my mom’s recipe. Mom used to make this for holiday meals or if she was fixing ham for Sunday dinner. There was seldom any leftover soufflé.

Not to worry: since this is a vegetarian blog, I'm not going to suddenly post meat here. I'm just sharing a memory for decades past. Feel free to fix it whenever you want something a little festive.

This recipe can be found in my e-cookbook Off the Wall Cooking.

Ingredients

4 – 5 sweet potatoes

1 egg

1 small can pineapple

1 C nuts

2 T orange juice concentrate

1/2 tsp. salt

Cinnamon

dash pepper

1/2 C brown sugar

9 large marshmallows

Ingredients

Peel & dice sweet potatoes, place in pan of water, and cook until tender. Mash & add other ingredients except marshmallows. Put in square pan, cut in 9 squares & place 1 marshmallow in each square. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

BUCK-EYES

My mom made these and passed them out for Christmas presents in 1989. It’s amazing that any of them made the trip home; they are incredibly good.

As with Mom's recipe for Sweet Potato Souffle, this recipe can also be found in my e-cookbook Off the Wall Cooking.

Ingredients

1 lb. butter or margarine, room temperature

2 – 3 lbs. confectioner’s sugar

1 tsp. vanilla (opt.)

2 lb. peanut butter, room temperature

2-12 oz. packages of chocolate chips

1/2 bar paraffin (4 oz.)

Directions

Mix butter and peanut butter. Add vanilla. Blend well. Mix in confectioner’s sugar. Roll into small balls and refrigerate several hours.

Melt chocolate chips and paraffin in top of double boiler.

With toothpicks in each peanut butter ball, dip ball into melted chocolate, leaving spot on top of peanut butter balls undipped, then place on wax paper to harden. Try not to eat in one sitting!

GOURMET GREEN BEANS

This is from Publix Supermarket's April 2006 issue of Aprons

Ingredients

2 (12-ounce) bags fresh snipped green beans (snapped, if desired)

1 (8-ounce) package sliced baby portabella mushrooms

3/4 cup water

2 tablespoons garlic butter

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1 teaspoon seasoned salt

Directions

Place beans, mushrooms, and water in microwave-safe bowl. Cover and microwave on HIGH 12–14 minutes, stirring once, until crisp tender.

Preheat large sauté pan on medium-high 2–3 minutes. Place butter in sauté pan and swirl to coat. Add sesame seeds and heat 1–2 minutes, stirring often, until lightly browned.

Drain beans and mushrooms and add to sauté pan. Sprinkle with seasoned salt. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook 6–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until desired tenderness. Serve.

CALORIES (per 1/8 recipe) 70kcal; FAT 4g; CHOL 5mg; SODIUM 220mg; CARB 8g; FIBER 3g; PROTEIN 2g; VIT A 15%; VIT C 25%; CALC 4%; IRON 6%

BLACK BEAN VEGGIE BURGERS

This recipe begins, “Hearty, tasty and inexpensive, these black bean burgers taste great grilled or baked in the oven.”

From Diabetic Connect

To view this online, go to http://www.diabeticconnect.com/diabetic-recipes/general/4711-black-bean-veggie-burgers

Ingredients

1 (16 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 green bell pepper, cut into 2 inch pieces

1/2 onion, cut into wedges

3 cloves garlic, peeled

1 egg

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon cumin

1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce or hot sauce

1/2 cup bread crumbs

Directions

If grilling, preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil. If baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees F, and lightly oil a baking sheet.

In a medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty.

In a food processor, finely chop bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Then stir into mashed beans.

In a small bowl, stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, and chili sauce.

Stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide mixture into four patties.

If grilling, place patties on foil, and grill about 8 minutes on each side. If baking, place patties on baking sheet, and bake about 10 minutes on each side.

Nutritional Facts: Servings: 4; Calories: 198; Total Fat: 3 g; Cholesterol: 53 mg; Sodium: 607 mg; Total Carbohydrate: 33.1 g; Dietary Fiber: 9.8 g; Protein: 11.2g

VEGAN LENTIL BURGERS

This comes from the Food Network Kitchen, and begins, “These burgers are packed with flavor, fiber and protein while still being low in fat. We love them grilled, but you can also pan-fry them: Heat 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and fry patties until well browned, about 2 minutes per side. (Remember: The extra oil will alter the calorie and fat totals.)”

Total: 2 hr 10 min; Prep: 20 min; Inactive: 1 hr Cook: 50 min; Yield: 6 servings; Level: Intermediate

To view this online, go to https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/vegan-lentil-burgers-3362403.

Ingredients

3/4 cup brown lentils, rinsed, strained and picked through

1 3/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon low-sodium vegetable broth or water

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 large red onion, half finely chopped and half thinly sliced

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Kosher salt

8 ounces fresh baby spinach

2 large cloves garlic, minced

Freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 cup whole-wheat breadcrumbs

1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and finely chopped

Cooking spray

6 whole-grain vegan hamburger buns

Baby arugula, basil, roasted red bell peppers and spicy mustard, for serving, optional

Directions

Bring the lentils and 1 3/4 cup of the broth to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover and simmer until the lentils are fully softened and the liquid is absorbed, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl with the remaining 1 tablespoon broth and mash well with a potato masher. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, lemon juice and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring, until softened, about 6 minutes. Add the spinach, garlic, 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper and cumin and stir until the spinach is wilted, about 3 minutes.

Add the spinach mixture, breadcrumbs, walnuts and 3/4 teaspoon salt to the lentils and mix thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.

Preheat the grill to medium-high. Form the mixture into six 4-inch patties and spray with cooking spray on each side. Grill until nice grill marks form, about 3 minutes per side. Place the patties in the buns with the sliced onion and other toppings, as desired, and serve.