Chili Con Tempeh

I was in the mood for something spicy last night when I found this recipe It was fantastic! Spicy but not too much...perfect!

Sorry I can't write more but my next post will be amazing....I am working on something great so stay tuned!!

Ingredients:
Serves 8
2 Tbs. olive oil, divided
1 onion, chopped (1 cup)
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (1 cup)
5 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbs. plus 2 tsp.), divided
2 celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (1 cup)
1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (1 cup)
1 small jalapeño pepper, minced
1 14.5-oz. can whole tomatoes with juice
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp. chili powder, divided
2 8-oz. pkgs. tempeh
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 12-oz. bottle dark amber beer
2 tsp. maple syrup
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, finely chopped

Directions:

• Heat 1 Tbs. olive oil in large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and 1 Tbs. garlic, and sauté 5 minutes, or until onions are soft. Add celery, bell pepper, and jalapeño, and sauté 5 minutes more, or until bell pepper is crisp-tender.
• Meanwhile, purée tomatoes and juice in blender or food processor until smooth. Add puréed tomatoes, tomato paste, cumin, oregano, 1 tsp. chili powder, and 2 cups water to onion mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Pulse tempeh, red pepper flakes, remaining 2 tsp. garlic, and remaining ½ tsp. chili powder in food processor or blender until crumbly. Season with salt and pepper. Heat remaining 1 Tbs. olive oil in skillet over medium heat.
• Add tempeh mixture, and sauté 5 minutes, or until golden brown. Stir beer, maple syrup, and tempeh mixture into tomato mixture. Simmer, uncovered, 15 minutes more, or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Fold in cilantro.

Nutritional Information
Per Serving:
Calories 209, Protein 13g, Total fat 10g, Saturated fat 2g, Carbs 21g, Sodium 574mg, Fiber 3g, Sugars 7g

Better Than Beef Bugers

Last night I was feeling adventurous so I tried something brand new and it turned out GREAT... these burgers are to die for! I made them with my Butternut Squash Fries and oh my it was quite a meal! There are a lot of ingredients and it looks overwhelming at first but once you get going it all falls into place and is really easy. It took a little longer than I wanted and made WAY more than I needed for 3 people but overall it was great and now I have some leftovers for my co-workers.

On a side note...my roommate tried to make crab rangoons last night and it was a scary encounter. When she was going to deep fry them she had a little water on her hands that dripped into the pan and holy moly...it was scary! The flame went almost all the way up to our ceiling. Luckily our smoke detector didn't go off because it was laying on our coffee table from an earlier smoke incident, but it was a great lesson in chemistry that we needed to be reminded of. My loyal readers remember, HOT oil and water don't mix well!

Now on to the food...

Ingredients:
Serves 8

4 Tbs. light miso paste
2 8-oz. pkgs. tempeh, grated
3 Tbs. canola oil, divided
1/2 cup gluten flour or vital wheat gluten
2 Tbs. guar gum
1 portobello mushroom, stemmed and grated (about 3/4 cup)
1 small beet, grated (about 3/4 cup)
1 small onion, grated (about 1/2 cup)
1 small carrot, grated (about 1/2 cup)
1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1/2 medium green bell pepper, finely chopped (about 1/3 cup)
1/2 medium red bell pepper, finely chopped (about 1/3 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 tsp.)


Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350F. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray.
• Dilute miso in 1/4 cup water in bowl. Stir in tempeh and 11/2 Tbs. oil. Stir in flour and guar gum.
• Mound tempeh mixture on prepared baking sheet. Cover with foil, and bake 20 minutes, or until heated through.
• Heat remaining 1 1/2 Tbs. oil in skillet over medium heat. Add mushroom, beet, onion, carrot, corn, bell peppers and garlic. Sauté 10 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.
• Pulse vegetables and tempeh mixture in food processor 6 or 7 times or until just blended (do not overblend).
• Shape tempeh mixture into 8 patties. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 4 hours, or overnight, to blend flavors.
• Preheat grill to medium. Brush burgers and grill rack with oil. Grill 8 to 10 minutes per side.

Nutritional Info:

Per Serving:
Calories 218, Protein 20g, Total fat 9g, Saturated fat 1.5g, Carbs 14g, Sodium 259mg, Fiber 6g, Sugars 3g