You want simple, you want fast, you want to make your Thanksgiving hassle free. What do you do? We turned to the king of healthy fast food, Jeff Novick, RD to help us come up with some great, fast, inexpensive meals this Thanksgiving.
Fast Food Veg Loaf:
We took Jeff’s recipe for burgers as our base. We doubled the recipe, added 2 more tbs of liquid and added poultry seasoning. Walla! Veg Loaf!
What we did: This worked for one loaf pan or 6 large muffin molds (we used a silicone muffin tray, worked out great!) – *This is Jeff’s recipe doubled:
Pre-heat oven to 350
Ingredients:
Two Can Eden Foods Organic Kidney Beans, No Salt Added
1 Cup Cooked Brown Rice (short grain works the best)
1 Cup Regular Oats
4 TB plant-strong tomato sauce (we just used Pomi tomato puree)
add 2 TB more of tomato puree
(veg) Poultry seasoning spice. (we just covered the entire mixture)
Mix together and then mash with a potato masher. You could also use a large fork, or your hands will work just fine!
In a loaf pan: spread a thin layer of tomato puree, then pack in your loaf mixture.
In a muffin mold: if you are using non stick or parchment paper liners, put enough veg loaf mixture to fill up each mold, pack it into each mold.
Cover the top with a thin layer of tomato puree (you can also use bbq sauce if you like).
Bake for 35-45 minutes.
We served this loaf with brussels sprouts and sweet potato mash. We use frozen vegetables for both.
Fast Food: Shepherds Pie:
Mashed potatoes: The quick and easy way – boil cubed potatoes, when they are done, put them in a bowl and mash them up. Want to get fancy? Add a tiny unsweetened non-dairy milk and a little nutritional yeast.
Frozen or pre-cooked (low sodium) lentils (3 small bags or 2 packages)
Frozen spinach
Frozen vegetable mix (peas/carrots)
Veg. Poultry Seasoning
1/4 jar of tomato plant-strong tomato sauce
Pre-heat oven to 350
In a nonstick large baking dish layer the following:
1 layer tomato sauce
1 layer lentils
1 layer vegetable mix
1 layer spinach
Sprinkle poultry season over entire dish
1 layer of mashed potatoes
Bake for 30 minutes, covered. Use a parchment lined aluminum foil for best results.
We topped it with Happy Herbivore’s gravy recipe, but it is not necessary if you want to skip it.
Fast Food: Lasagna:
Tomato Sauce
2 Boxes POMI Chopped Tomatoes
Fresh Garlic, Basil, Oregano
Lasagna
1 lb frozen chopped spinach
1/2 lb frozen mushrooms
1 lb frozen zucchini
1/2 lb frozen carrots
1/2 lb frozen onion, pepper mix
2 sweet potatoes baked
Filling
Mashed sweet potatoes and thin with warm water while veggies thaw and then mix thawed veggies in with the mashed sweet potato to make the filling
1/2 cup sauce on bottom of pan
1 layer whole grain noodles
1 1/2 cup sauce
1/2 sweet potato/veggie mix
1 layer noodles
1 1/2 cup sauce
1/2 sweet potato/veggie mix
1 layer noodles
1 1/2 cup sauce
sliced tomatoes
Bake covered for 45 minutes at 375
Enjoy!
Jeff’s Longevity Soup:
To make this more festive, we served it in a baked squash. You could also add frozen sweet potato to it if you wanted.
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4
6 cups water
1 15 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 15 ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 15 ounce cans beans (see hints below)
2 pounds frozen vegetables (see hints below)
1-2 cups cooked potatoes, grains, or pasta (see hints below)
Seasonings: 1) minced garlic, basil, oregano, hot pepper sauce
OR 2) minced garlic, grated ginger, smoked paprika, cumin, hot pepper sauce
Place all of the ingredients into a large pot and mix well. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes, until all vegetable are done.
Hints: Use any kind of beans that you like in this soup, either both the same kind or one can of each of 2 different kinds. (Jeff’s favorites are kidney and garbanzo.) Look for Eden Organic, No-Salt Added Beans. Also look for Pomi tomatoes in shelf-stable boxes. Frozen vegetables usually come in 1 pound bags. Look for California Blend (cauliflower, broccoli and carrots) or Italian Blend (zucchini, green beans, broccoli and red pepper). This is a good use for leftover cooked starches, such as potatoes, rice or pasta. Use one of the 2 seasoning suggestions for either an Italian-style soup or a Moroccan-style soup. (Leave out the hot pepper sauce, if desired.) Or use your favorite seasoning blend to make this soup even easier.
What about dessert?
Sweet potato-orange slices: (We got this idea from Ann Esselstyn)
Cut an orange in 4.
Combine sweet potato puree and juice from the orange.
Take the flesh out, so you just have the orange peels.
Put the mixture in your orange peels.
Bake for 10 minutes on a lined cookie sheet at 350.
Sprinkle with pumpkin pie spice and a small amount of maple syrup.
Jeff’s Chocolate Mango Dessert:
1 Bag Mixed Frozen Berries (Strawberries, Blueberries, Rasberries, Blackberries)
2 Fresh Mango
2 TB Hershey’s Cocoa Powder
Blend 1 Mango with 2 TB Cocoa Powder
Arrange Berries in Parfait Glass
Top With Chocolate
Top With Diced Mango
Top With 1 Tsp Diced Walnuts
For more great recipes check out Jeff’s Facebook page!
Jeff has a brand new DVD coming out this week! His new DVD, “Cooking School” will take you through a grocery store, and once and for all end the confusion when it comes to how to shop! We love all of Jeff’s DVD’s, and we are really excited about this one! We are giving away one copy to one lucky winner! Just tell us what you are thankful for this year, and you will be entered to win!
Pingback: Fast Food: Thanksgiving Recipes – PLUS! A Giveaway! | The Engine 2 Diet | Muskegonvegan's Blog
Pingback: Fast Food: Thanksgiving Recipes – PLUS! A … – The Engine 2 Diet | Healthier Eating Tips
Pingback: Fast Food: Thanksgiving Recipes – PLUS! A Giveaway! | CookingPlanet
Pingback: Giveaway: Jeff Novick’s Shopping School DVD via Engine 2 Diet « Vegan Perks