Recipe: Crustless Vegetarian Quiche

A few weekends ago, my sister in law and I got together and made our own version of a crustless quiche. We couldn’t be bothered to make a crust from scratch, so we decided to omit it all together! 

 

Nutrition Tip: This recipe includes 3 food groups from Canada’s Food Guide: vegetables, eggs (a meat alternative), and dairy (from the milk and cheese). 

The great thing about this recipe is that you can always experiment with different vegetables!

Crustless Vegetarian Quiche

Makes: 2 8inch quiches or 1 10inch quiche
One Serving: 1/4 of quiche

• 1 medium onion
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced onions
• ½ cup diced green peppers 
• ½ cup diced red peppers
• ¼ cup green onions 
• 2 tsp vegetable oil 
• 1 cup grated cheese (mozzarella) 
• 5 large eggs 
• 2 cups skim milk
• Salt to taste
• Black Pepper to taste
• Red Chilli Powder to taste (optional)

1. Heat up vegetable oil in a saucepan on medium heat. Add onions and lightly brown.
2. Add the remaining vegetables and add spices to taste. Cook 8-10 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Do not overcook! Once it is cooked, turn heat off and set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, add 5 eggs.
4. Whisk in milk and cheese.
5. Mix in cooked vegetables.
6. Pour batter into a greased pie pan. I did not have a deep pie pan, so I used two pie pans instead.
7. Bake at 350F for 40-45 minutes or until set. Remove and let cool slightly before slicing.

Recipe: Black Bean Tortilla Soup

During the break I had the opportunity to assist with recipe testing for an upcoming OHEA (Ontario Home Economics Association) Cookbook! I, along with other student volunteers, had the chance to work with Mairlyn Smith to test out some recipes. As a departing gift, I received Mairlyn's Cookbook: Healthy Starts Here!

I decided to try out the Black Bean Tortilla Soup from Mairlyn's cookbook and it turned out to be my kind of recipe; easy, healthy, and delicious!

Black Bean Tortilla Soup

Makes: 8 cups (2L)

One Serving: 2 cups (500 mL)3 cups (750 mL) lower sodium chicken or vegetable broth
One – 19 fl oz (540 mL) can diced tomatoes
One -19 fl oz. (540 mL) can black beans, drained and rinsed
¼ cup (60 mL) deli fresh salsa, mild, medium, or hot
1 tbsp (15 mL) hot sauce, less if desired
1 cup (250 mL) fresh or frozen corn, no need to thaw
1 ripe avocado, peeled and sliced thinly
1 cup (250 mL) thinly sliced green onions, approx. 5 green onions
1 cup (250 mL) chopped cilantro
1 lime, scrubbed well and cut into quarters
40 unsalted whole corn tortilla chips

1. Heat chicken or vegetable broth in a large pot over medium/high heat. When it comes to the boil add tomatoes, black beans, salsa, hot sauce, and corn. Bring to the boil, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir and remove from heat.
2. Ladle soup into 4 deep soup bowls. Equally divide the avocado, green onion and cilantro and sprinkle on top of each soup bowl. Squeeze on some fresh lime juice.
3. Put 10 tortilla chips in your hands and slightly crush them into each bowl. Mix gently and serve.  

New Year's Resolutions

It’s amazing how time flies. We’re almost at a new year once again. You know what that means, time to make resolutions! Ah, the infamous resolutions that seem impossible to keep once January comes to an end.

Now don’t get me wrong, creating personal resolutions is great, but how effective are they really? We often create resolutions that sound great but are too daunting.

Here is how to achieve your goals and maintain them throughout the year!

Let’s use the classic example of losing weight.

"I want to lose 10lbs!"

Fabulous!

Now what?

Well, if I leave it at that, I will probably hit the gym for a couple of weeks or go on an unrealistic diet.  What is the likelihood that you will achieve your goals?  How many people do you know that lost weight and kept it off by eating meal replacement bars for the rest of their lives? Most likely, none!

With that said, I urge you to not create personal resolutions surrounding weight. Weight is just a number on the scale at the end of the day and may not be an accurate description of your health.

Let’s try another approach. A resolution that is more specific and doable. Start off by thinking about what affects how your body feels and looks.

This year, I suggest that you create a resolution around improving your physical activity or eating habits.

Physical Activity 

There may be many obstacles that prevent you from being physically active.  Here are a few tips to help you incorporate more physical activity into your daily life this coming year:

1      Barriers: Make a list of obstacles you face that prevented you from being physically active this year. 

     
     Opportunities: For each obstacle, think of what can be done to overcome this. 

    
     Resources: Consider how much money you are willing to spend to be physically active.  This can range from working out at home to working out with a personal trainer.

     Time: Think about how much time you can spend being physically active each day. Be realistic. Start with 10 minute bouts of exercise and work your way up from there.

     Daily life: Think about how you can be physically active without being at the gym. Taking the stairs and walking the dog are great examples of incorporating physical activity into you daily life. 

     Motivation: Make a list of types of physical activity you would like to engage in and find a friend with similar interests.

      These are a few things that I considered when I decided to become more physically active and it has definitely helped. 

Food

Food is a central part of our lives and carries several meanings for us all. Rather than restricting ourselves from eating, how about focusing on what we can eat! Here are some examples of making small changes to your diet without feeling like you have to eat flavourless food to be healthy.

1. Opt for skim milk and low fat cheese to cut down the fat and incorporate more dairy in your diet.

2. Aim to eat at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day. By increasing your fruits and vegetables in your diet, you are automatically decreasing potentially high fat foods.

3. Make it whole grain! Switch your breads and pasta to whole grain. If you love your white bread, try "Smart" pastas and breads that are white but have added fibre.

4. Drink plenty of water throughout the day.

Try focusing on one of these tips and continue to add others to transform your diet. Who said resolutions can’t be made throughout the year?

Hopefully this helps you all in creating realistic, doable resolutions.

Happy New Year!

Recipe: Super-Easy-Anyone-Can-Make-It-Vegetarian Chilli!

One of my summer goals was to give cooking a shot and try a couple of new recipes. I decided to try vegetarian chili since it is so simple!

Vegetarian chili is absolutely fool proof and a great dish for students who are on a budget. Kidney beans are a great source of fibre and you can fit in a couple servings of vegetables too!



Vegetarian Chili

• 1 can of diced tomatoes (28oz)
• 1 can of beans (I chose kidney beans)
• One bag of mixed frozen vegetables (any variety you like)
• One small onion
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• Salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste
• Crushed chilli flakes to taste
• Red chilli powder to taste
• Turmeric powder to taste (optional)

1. Cut the onion and garlic finely (and try not to cry!)
2. Heat the olive oil in a deep pot over medium-high heat.
3. Add the onion and garlic and allow it to lightly brown by stirring every so often.
4. Add the can of tomatoes and stir.
5. Add in the spices to your liking, I like my chilli spicy so I added about a teaspoon of each and 2 teaspoons of crushed chilli flakes. Be sure to taste as you go along!
6. Drain the kidney beans and rinse with water to get rid of the extra sodium (canned beans usually have added sodium) and add to the pot.
7. Add the frozen vegetables and stir.
8. On medium heat, cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
9. Add half cup water and cook for another 10 minutes.
10. Remove from stove, garnish with cilantro, and enjoy!