feel food club

vegetarisch

Quick Roasted Pumpkin & Quinoa Salad with enjoy by NENI red cabbage

by Kommentar verfassen

If there is any season that calls for cozy, roasted food, it is fall! That comforting flavor of softly roasted pumpkin in combination with the freshness of the Orange and the crunch of the red cabbage with pomegranate seeds is just unique. A perfect balance of fall comfort for those cloudy days while still keeping some freshness! A very, very underrated combination that you definitely NEED to try!

What is special about this dish?

It is not quite a salad, neither is it really a bowl. It is something inbetween – something really tasty though. What is more, it actually is super simple to make and does not take long. And what is really soecial is the combination of orange and pumpkin. Normally you would probably not combine these two but surprisingly they do taste really good in combination!

In addition to that, we are using the new NENI cabbage with pomegranate seeds in this bowl with just is the dot on the I. This addition adds a lot of flavour, nutrients and crunch while it does not take any additional work or preparation because we can just get it from the supermarket.

Is this dish healthy?

Definitely! This bowl is a bowl full of goodies for you! Where should we start? With the base maybe: the quinoa is loaded with nutrients. In here we have got some protein, fibre, amino acids, vitamins, and and and. You can read more about why quinoa si so healthy in my January Top 5! The rest of the base is spinach or another salad, which not only makes you feel full but also is a great source of vitamins, fibre and water!

The rest of the bowl also has some decent nutritional value: the pumpkin has a solid amount of fibre to keep you full for long as well as several vitamins, including Vitamin A, C, E and Iron, which have shown to improve the immune system. This is great for the colder months ahead of us! In the dressing we can find more vitamin C from the orange, which also will keep your immune system healthy. The pumpkin seeds to top it off are a great source of healthy fats, which are essential for several functions in your body including your brain to work properly.

isn‘t red cabbage a lot of work?

It definitely is more work than just chopping cucumbers. However, we want to keep this dish as simple, easy and quick as possible so we are taking the easy and delicious way out! How? With enjoy by NENI Red Cabbage! You can find it at SPAR in Austria! It is pre-made and ready to eat! I love it in this dish, however you can really add it to everything you like, have it as a salad or a side! It is super tasty, not expensive and a great quick solution to making red cabbage!

How to make this dish?

What is so great about this recipe is that it really does not take long to make. It is best if we start by preparing quinoa and pumpkin since this is what takes the longest to make. The quinoa just needs to be brought to a boil with water and salt and then reduced to a simmer. The pumpkin on the other hand, needs to be cut into about 1cm thick slices and we also need to remove the seeds. The reason for why we cut it into about 1cm thick slices is that those do not take this long to cook! If you prefer otherwise you could also cut them into cubes or half circles or any other shape of your preference! The pumpkin now is tossed in olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs before it can be fried in a pan. Here we do not need any additional oil since the pumpkin has been marinated in olive oil anyway.

While this is cooking, we can start making the dressing for which we just combine some orange juice, olive oil, and vinegar and prepare the remaining ingredients for the bowl. For the yoghurt dip, we can solely combine some greek yoghurt, sour cream and parsley, we can prepare the pomegranate and take the red cabbage out of the fridge. Once the pumpkin and quinoa is done cooking, we can already assemble everything and enjoy it!

Ideal for mealprep!

This salad is great for meal prep! When you keep it in the fridge, it soaks up the flavours of the dressing even more and gets even more delicious! It kind of turns into a tabouleh, which tastes amazing! You can take it to work, to school or uni and it‘ll still taste great after 2-3 days! Plus, you do not need to heat it up!

Print

Quick Roasted Delicata Squash & Quinoa Salad with enjoy by NENI Red Cabbage

a bowl full of fall goodness, and definitely not your average salad! the combination of warm roasted pumpkin and fresh orange quinoa along with crunchy red cabbage will not only keep you full for long but also satisfied and happy!

Course bowl, lunch, mealprep, Salad
Prep Time 10 Minuten
Cook Time 15 Minuten
Total Time 25 Minuten
Servings 2 servings

What you will need

For the pumpkin:

  • 1 medium sized delicata squash (about 400g)
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp mediterranean dried herbs or oregano
  • salt & pepper

For the rest:

  • 120 g Quinoa
  • 2-3 handful spinach or other salad
  • 50 g sour cream
  • 50 g greek yoghurt
  • 1 tbsp chopped parsley
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 50 ml orange juice (from about 1/2 orange if you are using fresh one)
  • 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
  • 1 package enjoy by NENI Rotkrautsalat mit Granatapfelkerne (red cabbage)
  • pomegranate & pumpkin seeds

How to

  1. Start by adding the quinoa to a pot along with a pinch of salt and twice the amount of water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and let simmer on medium heat until the liquid is absorbed. Turn down to low heat and let sit for another 5ish minutes until the quinoa is light and fluffy.

  2. In the meantime cut the delicata squash into about 1cm thick rings and remove the seeds. You can leave the skin on if you wash the pumpkin before. Add it to a bowl along with the olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs. Then fry in a pan on medium-high heat for about 4-5 minutes on each side until golden brown and soft.

  3. In the meantime mix the olive oil, white wine vinegar and orange juice and toss it with the quinoa and spinach.

  4. In another bowl combine the greek yoghurt, sour cream, parsley and a little salt to make the dip.

  5. Once the pumpkin is finished, divide the quinoa-spinach mix onto bowls, top with the pumpkin, the dip, fresh pomegranate and pumpkin seeds and enjoy!

I genuinely hope that you will enjoy this recipe as much as we do and have an amazing time cooking!
Enjoy,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière

Super Simple Roasted Sage Pumpkin Tagliatelle Aglio e Oglio

by Kommentar verfassen

To be fair, this name sounds way more complicated than this dish actually is!! It seems fancy, however, it is super easy to make! You have got that soft and warm roasted pumpkin, spiced with sage, the al dente cooked pasta tossed in some olive oil flavored with garlic and then that parmesan cheese on top for some cheesy contrast! All in all: pure comfort heaven! My friend’s mom would make that day in day out during fall and we‘d go to her house and have it in every lunch break. Seriously, it was SO good and we literally could never wait to get there. So, there was no way around making a recipe of this!

What is Aglio e Oglio?

Very good question. Aglio e Oglio is Italian and literally translated means garlic and oil. In Italy Spaghetti Aglio e Oglio is a very typical dish since it is easy to make (you only need pasta, oil, garlic and chili) and is super affordable. If you have never tried it, it may seem a bit boring but when prepared with some good olive and al dente pasta it tastes amazing!! Sometimes the simplest things are the best.

What is special about this dish?

However, we are leveling it up a bit and are creating a fall version of this Italian classic. We are skipping the chili and instead are adding roasted pumpkin to the pasta. The pumpkin is spiced with a little sage and then baked in the oven before it is being added to the pasta since it takes longer to cook than the rest. Also, instead of spaghetti, tagliatelle are used in here. The flat and wider shape of them just works better with the roasted pumpkin! These little changes transform the classic into a seasonal, cozy, delicious meal!

Which pumpkin should be used?

In this dish I prefer to use butternut squash. This is the pear-shaped light orange pumpkin. Contrary to hokkaido squash it has a lighter and buttery taste to it and a little sweet note that is enhanced when baked. In my opinion these flavors work in great harmony with the pasta and give a nice contrast to the sage! However, if you have another pumpkin favorite, feel free to use that!

Is this dish healthy?

First of all, this meal is very healthy for the soul. This cozy, warm, carby goodness is pure comfort food!! Besides, it definitely can be said that it contains a lot of nutritional value. The pumpkin, for example, is a great source of Vitamin A, C and E as well as fibre and iron, which benefits your immune system (great for the cold months ahead) and your digestive system!

What is more, the oil for example is an amazing source of unsaturated, healthy fat. These fats are essential for your brain and many other aspects in your body. The pasta makes a great source of carbohydrates, making sure you stay energized and also comes with a decent amount of protein. If you want to make it even healthier, you could substitute it for wholegrain pasta, although I need to say that the flavor definitely is better with “regular” pasta.

Ready in 25 minutes (max)!

Not only does this dish take very little time to make, but it also is super easy!

To make it, start by removing the peel and seeds from the pumpkin. After, it needs to be chopped into about 1cm sized cubes (makes it easier to toss with the pasta and allows for a reduced cooking time) before being tossed with a little olive oil, salt and finely minced sage. The mix then is baked at 220°C for 15-20 minutes until the pumpkin is nice and golden brown and soft.

In the meantime the pasta can be cooked according to package instructions, the garlic can already be finely sliced and the parmesan can be grated. Just before pumpkin and pasta are done, a little olive oil can be heated up in a pan and the garlic and sage can be fried in there for a minute before taking it off the heat. Now the cooked pasta, pumpkin cubes and parmesan can be added and everything can be tossed. And that already is it! Pretty simple right?

Meal-prep-options:

Pre-making and storing the entire dish, I would not recommend. Reheated pasta just does not taste as good! Instead, you can premake (essentially preroast) the pumpkin and store this, since the pumpkin is what is time consuming. Whenever you then want to make this dish, you solely need to cook the pasta and start from there. This already saved you a bunch of time!

All in all I hope that you will love this dish as much as we do and that you will have lots and lots of cozy fall evenings!!

Print

Super Simple Roasted Sage Pumpkin Tagliatelle Aglio e Oglio

This seasonal twist on the Italian all-time classic takes fall comfort food next level! Roasted sage-pumpkin along with some cheesy, garlicy pasta equals heaven! Plus, it is super easy to make and ready in 25 minutes!

Course dinner, lunch, Main Course, pasta
Cuisine Italian
Prep Time 10 Minuten
Cook Time 15 Minuten
Total Time 25 Minuten
Servings 4 servings

What you will need

  • 500 g tagliatelle
  • 600 g butternut squash
  • 1 tbsp chopped parsley + 6-8 extra leaves
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 6-8 tbsp olive oil
  • 50 g finely grated parmesan cheese
  • 2 cloves of garlic

How to

  1. Start by preheating the oven to 220°C. Remove the peel and seeds of the pumpkin and then chop it into about 1cm sized cubes. Toss with nutmeg, salt, sage and about 2 tbsp of the olive oil before placing it on a baking tray and baking it for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and soft.

  2. In the meantime finely slice the garlic and prepare the pasta according to package instructions. Once the pasta is done cooking, drain it and take the pumpkin put of the oven. Only then heat up the oil and fry the garlic and sage leaves in it for about a minute before taking it off the heat and mixing it with the pumpkin cubes, grated parmesan and pasta.

  3. Serve with fresh sage, more parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil and enjoy!

Enjoy,
Katie

Super Comforting Turkish Roasted Bell Pepper & Lentil Soup

by Kommentar verfassen

Finally – it is soup season!! Isn‘t it the best feeling when the leaves are turning red and brown and the temperatures start to drop, while you are sitting inside, underneath a cozy blanket and enjoying a heavenly, warm bowl of soup? There are few things that are as cozy as this! And especially if you are enjoying this Ultra Creamy, Comforting Turkish-Inspired Roasted Red Bell Pepper Lentil Soup!

What is special about this dish?

We all know that soup basically is equal to comfort heaven. Yet, if you always have the same, good, old, pumpkin soup and chicken soup, it gets boring easily. So, in order to keep the soup game fun we need to switch things up. Just as we are doing with this soup – because it definitely is not your average soup!

Also, as the name says it is Turkish Inspired. Originally the lentil soup is made without bell pepper – but you know what? I thought a little veggie never hurt nobody, so why not adding it into the soup? What else is so great about this recipe is the creaminess of the soup. Soso heavenly thick and fillings – it is pure heaven. And the soup will actually keep you full and satisfied for long, because the lentils are packed with fibre.

Is this healthy?

Speaking of fibre, is this dish healthy? Soups tend to be pretty healthy in general because they mostly are packed with veggies. So is this soup. The main ingredient, the star of the show are the lentils. Those tiny, little things are packed with nutrients! They not only contain a decent amount of fibre, but also an incredible amount of plant based protein. This makes them a super nutritious base for the soup.

Regarding the rest of the ingredients, it can be said that they also are pretty nutritious. The bell peppers are loaded with vitamins and fibre and so are the onion and garlic. The vegetable broth mainly is added for the texture of the soup, but also may contain essential vitamins. The greek yoghurt on top is the dot on the eye, contributing a little more protein and deliciousness. The olive oil as a finishing touch makes sure you get your unsaturated fats and voilà, the perfectly balanced meal it is!

How to make this dish?

Soups (almost) never are difficult to make, so is this one. It really takes very little time and few ingredients to create such a delicious dish! All that needs to be done is sautéeing lentils and veggies, then covering it with broth and letting it simmer until the lentils are soft. We of course, do need to add some spices too, for that incredible flavor, but nothing too fancy or special. In the meantime the roasted red bell pepper can roast in the oven until golden brown. The process of roasting it will let the bell pepper intensify in flavor and sweetness!

Once both is done, it can all be blended up until having reached a creamy soup. It is beat not to add all liquid (from the broth) into the blender at once, this way you can adjust the consistency after blending. And that already is it! Isn’t it easy? If you want, you can also prepare a little salsa to go on top, by just finely chopping some jalapeños, cilantro and mint and mixing it with olive oil. This can go on top of the soup along with a dollop of greek yoghurt and some olive oil. Voilà! Enjoy!

Perfect for meal prep!

Just make a larger portion of it, let it cool to room temperature and fill it into tupperware. You can then freeze this and grab and thaw one whenever you are craving it. Or you know, on those days, when you are coming home exhaustedly and don’t really feel like cooking a lot! Just add a splash of water while reheating it and enjoy your meal!!

I genuinely hope, you‘ll enjoy this dish as much as we do and have an amazing time cooking it! Wishing you lots and lots of cozy fall days!

Print

Super Cozy Turkish Roasted Red Bell Pepper and Lentil Soup

This is not your average soup but a fun twist on the turkish, classic lentil soup. This Roasted Red Bell Pepper and Lentil Soup is a creamy heaven for cozy fall days and also so quick and easy to make! Plus, it is vegan and healthy – there are no excuses left not to make this!

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Soup
Cuisine turkish
Prep Time 10 Minuten
Cook Time 20 Minuten
Total Time 30 Minuten
Servings 4 servings

What you will need

  • 300 g red lentils
  • 4 red bell peppers
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 yellow onion
  • 2 carrots
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste (Tomatenmark)
  • 1,5 l vegetable broth

Optional to serve:

  • 2 jalapeno peppers
  • 1 tbsp mint & parsley
  • olive oil
  • greek yoghurt

How to

  1. Start by preheating the oven to 200°C. Remove the core of the bell pepper and cut in half. Lay out on a baking tray, sprinkle with salt, drizzle with half of the olive oil and bake for 20 minutes until soft and slightly brown on top.

  2. In the meantime peel and finely dice the onion, garlic and carrot. Heat up the remaining olive oil in a pot and fry them in there for about 2 minutes until fragrant before adding in the lentils, cumin, a little salt and tomato paste and letting fry for another minute. Add the vegetable broth and let simmer for about 15 minutes until the lentils are soft.

  3. In the meantime remove the seeds and finely chop the jalapeños, mint and parsley and mix with the olive oil for a salsa!

  4. Once the bell pepper is done, roughly chop it and mix it with the lentils, as soon as they have finished cooking. Do this with a blender or a hand blender until creamy. If too thick, add a little more water.

  5. Divide onto bowls, garnish with the salsa and a dollop of greek yoghurt and enjoy!

Enjoy,

Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière

Easy Peasy Summer Panzanella (perfect for leftovers!)

by Kommentar verfassen

These days I feel like an ice cream in the sun – just melting away in very little time. And let‘s be honest, who wants to cook and eat something warm when it‘s this hot? I at least, definitely do not want to. And salads are great, yeah, but after a few days I feel like a rabbit when I only eat salads, so we need to switch things up a little. That‘s where Panzanella needs to be introduced. A salad made out of bread, tomatoes and bell pepper, just without salad. And holy moly, when you make this, your salad level will be elevated to the next level.

This is really insanely easy to make, and ideal if you want to use up any leftover (maybe already stale) bread. It only takes a few minutes to make and a few to chill and that‘s it. Plus, (big plus) your kitchen is no mess after making this because it takes very few ingredients to end up with this deliciousness!

What even is panzanella?

Panzanella is an italian bread salad, that traditionally is made from stale bread, tomatoes, cucumber, olives, bell pepper and olive oil. It is like a greek salad, just with bread instead of feta cheese. Although adding feta cheese would probably also be a genius idea! 

What is special about this dish? 

It is like a regular panzanella, just with a little twist. We here are also adding in some chanterelle mushrooms to add a nice twist. And they taste soso tasty in combination with the remaining ingredients. Besides, this dish is really easy to make. It really takes only 15 minutes to make it and therefore is perfect for those hot summer days. And, it is packed with many, many veggies and can be enjoyed cold. All in all, really, really good.

Is this healthy?

We need to be honest and say that it definitely is not as nutritious as regular salad it. Nevertheless, depending on how you prepare it, it can be very nutritious. 

It already starts with the base. Traditionally you would use some white bread or focaccia, which also is what we are using here. In my opinion focaccia works best. If you though want to make it a bit healthier, you could substitute this for some wholegrain or at least partially-wholegrain bread. This will provide even more fibre and will be better for you blood sugar levels. Still, I need to say that it does taste better with white bread.

Then we have all the veggies, which are a pack of nutrients. The cucumber is full of water and fibre, the bell pepper with vitamin C and the tomatoes with antioxidants and different Vitamins. The chanterelle mushrooms help your cells and your immune system in order for you to stay fit and healthy. So, you can really never go wrong with veggies. In the dressing are some more healthy fats from the olive oil to round it up perfectly.

How to make this dish?

As mentioned before, this comes together really quickly!! First we need to cube the bread. The cubes should be about 2 cm on each side, making them a perfect bite-sized pieces. These are now fried in some oil or margarine to make them a bit crispy and golden brown on each side. Once they are crispy, we are taking them out and adding them to a bowl. Now we can add in the chanterelle mushrooms to the same pan (to save dishes ;)) and fry those for about 5 minutes until they are soft and cooked through. 

In the meantime we just need to chop the veggies: the flesh from the cucumber needs to be removed and then everything needs to be sliced up. Now everything just needs to be tossed with a mix of olive oil, lemon juice, mustard and honey and that is it for the work.

I would though still recommend to let it sit for at least 15 minutes. This lets the bread soak up all the flavors and get a bit soft. Just like the traditional panzanella salad. The longer you let it sit the softer and more intense it gets. As a maximum I would take 45 minutes – 1 hour.

Serving suggestions:

This really tastes super tasty as is, anyhow you can still upgrade it. For example some fresh mozzarella or burrata would be amazing. Or also, some fresh feta cheese would take it next level. If you want a slight fruity twist, you could even add some berries. As for more veggies, I could recommend some corn or avocado (both not traditional but very good).

All in all, it is super easy to make and tastes super duper fresh and yummy. Honestly, one of my favorite summer dishes and a must make! 

Print

Easy Peasy Summer Panzanella (perfect for leftovers!)

Salads are great yeah, but bread salads… oh damn – these are another level of great! Filling, healthy and SO damn much flavour – just super super good! And this recipe also is SO easy to make, simply a must make!

Course Main Course, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine Italian
Prep Time 10 Minuten
Cook Time 10 Minuten
Optional: resting time 20 Minuten
Total Time 20 Minuten
Servings 2 servings

What you will need

  • 300 g bread something fluffier like foccacia, (whole wheat) baguette, or similar – it does not have to be fresh
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cucumber
  • 250 g cherry tomatoes
  • 1 bell pepper
  • 250 g chanterelle mushrooms (optional)

For the dressing:

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp mediterranean herbs
  • 1/2 lemon juiced
  • 1/2 tsp Dijon Mustard
  • fresh salt & black pepper
  • 1 tsp honey

How to

  1. Start by chopping the bread into about 2cm sized pieces. Mix with the olive oil and some salt. Add to a hot pan, and fry for about 3 minutes on each side ontil golden brown and toasted.

  2. In the meantime peel the cucumber, cut in half lengthwise, remove the flesh and cut into 0.5cm thin slices. Half the cherry tomatoes and dice the bell pepper.

  3. Clean the mushrooms, if they are large also half them, and fry them in some olive oil.

  4. Add everything to a bowl, combine the ingredients for the dressing and toss everything together.

  5. Divide onto bowls and serve with some fresh basil. Serve and enjoy!

I really hope you‘ll enjoy this recipe and will make it on repeat! 

Enjoy,
Love,
Katie // Une Petite Cuisinière