Baked Gnocchi & Meatballs in Marinara

I saw this recipe over at Lazy Mom's Cooking Blog that was Gnocchi, Marinara and cheese. I knew that I could make it vegan and a one pot dish by adding Gardein Meatballs, Daiya mozz shreds and fresh chopped spinach. Oh my gosh, I've made it twice already, it's that good.

• 1 package whole wheat potato gnocchi
• 1 jar pasta sauce or marinara
• 1 package Daiya mozzarella shreds
• 1 package Gardein Meatless Meatballs
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach, rough chopped

Preheat oven to 350. Cook gnocchi according to package directions. While cooking add all other ingredients to a large bowl.

Toss gnocchi into bowl when they are done. Toss everything well and pour into a casserole dish. I was able to use a 9x9 but it was very full. You may opt for a 9x13.

My guy's couldn't wait for me to get a pic before they dove into it.

Enjoy, we served with homemade garlic bread.

Enjoy!!

Roasted Sriracha Broccoli

No surprise, we loved this dish. If it's spicy then bring it on. The good news is you get to control the spice here, if you prefer a milder flavor, use less Sriracha. I honestly think any veggie you would roast would be good prepared this way.

• 1 pound broccoli, cut into bite-sized florets
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4-6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon sriracha, or less if you like it milder
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean up. In a large bowl, whisk olive oil, garlic, sriracha, salt and pepper.

Add broccoli florets to bowl and toss well to coat each floret.

Pour the broccoli onto the baking sheet.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until broccoli is crisp-tender and just starting to brown.

Enjoy!!

Southwest Pasta Casserole

You're going to love this easy casserole. Basically you assemble everything in a huge bowl while the pasta cooks, then add the pasta, toss it all and bake. I'm talking seriously easy here.

• 1 pound rotini pasta (I used tri-color)
• 2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can corn kernels, drained
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced 
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 small roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 (16 ounce) jar picante sauce
• 1 package taco seasoning
• 1 package Daiya PepperJack shreds
• Garnishes: diced avocado, chopped cilantro, sour cream, etc.

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9x13 casserole dish. Bring pasta to boil and cook according to package directions. Since you'll be baking this as well, don't overcook. While the pasta is getting ready in your largest bowl, combine black beans, corn, bell peppers, tomato, picante sauce, taco seasoning and 1/2 the cheese.

Stir this well.

Add drained pasta when it's ready and toss well.

Pour mixture into casserole dish.

Cover with remaining cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes until cheese is melted and it's hot all the way through.

Garnish as desired and serve.

Enjoy!!

Roasted Garlic & Herb Chick'n & Veggies

Oh my goodness, the flavor of these fresh roasted veggies with garlic and herbs is out of this world. The flavors just explode in your mouth. This is really easy. Don't let the list of ingredients fool you. One set is for the veg, the other set for the marinade. You could also throw this sheet of veggies on the bbq grill if it's too hot to turn on the oven.

Ingredients:

• 1 package Gardein Teriyaki Chick'n Stips (save the sauce for something else)
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 1 large zucchini, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 medium sweet onion, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces (or whatever color you have)
• 1 cup grape tomatoes, cut in half
• 6 cloves garlic, halved

Garlic & Herb Marinade:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 2 tablespoons dried cilantro
• 1 teaspoon chili pepper flakes
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• juice of 1 small lime

Preheat oven to 450F. In a small bowl whisk marinade ingredients.

Cut up the veggies and slice each piece of chick'n into bite sized pieces. Place in a large bowl.

Pour the marinade over the veggie/chick'n mixture. Mix well. Pour onto cookie sheet.

Bake for 20-22 minutes or until veggies are done to your liking. They shouldn't be too soft. Serve immediately with rice or quinoa if desired.

Enjoy!!

Bell Pepper Tacos

A couple of weeks ago at my local grocery they had large beautiful red and yellow bell peppers for 50 cents a piece. Yeah, you read that right. I loaded up and was so happy I did when I spied this recipe on the web for Bell Pepper Tacos-- let's make these babies vegan!! These are really easy to make and I bet the filling would be good stuffed into hollowed out zucchini as well.

• 3 bell peppers (I used yellow, orange and red), halved and deseeded
• 3/4 cup vegan cheese (I used Daiya pepperjack shreds)
• 1 package Beyond Meat Beef Crumbles
• 1/2 onion, chopped fine
  1 tablespoon oil
• 1 package taco seasoning (I prefer reduced-sodium) or you can make your own
• 2/3 cup water
• Garnishes: sliced jalapenos, lime wedges, sour cream, guacamole, cilantro, cooked rice to plce the pepper on, etc

Preheat oven to 400 F. Place pepper halves on baking sheet covered with foil.

Brown onion in oil in a skillet. Add crumbles and heat until crumbles start to brown.

Add taco seasoning nad cook for 2 minutes.

Add water and simmer 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat.

Add cheese and set aside.

Stuff the pepper halves ( use about 1/2 cup filling) depending on the size of your peppers.

Top with additional cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Serve with garnishes of choice. I served the pepper on top of rice with jalapeno, guac, lime slices and cilantro.

Enjoy!