Green beans, Tomatoes, & Rice

It blows my mind that I did not post this recipe sooner, as it is one of my most frequented meals. This dish is one of the earliest foods I remember from growing up, and it is still near and dear to my heart. It is incredibly simple; practically as simple as its name. But it is packed with a sublimely lasting flavor.

When I was growing up, my mom actually did not always make this vegetarian. She often stuck to the original recipe which involved adding sauteed ground beef to give it more body and calories. However, when I went vegetarian in High School, we started leaving out the beef, because there was absolutely no way I was going to eliminate one of my favorite meals from my life. Following this change, I immediately realized that I loved the flavor of the dish even better without the beef. To me, it now tasted sweeter and fresher. That said, if you are not vegetarian I would actually suggest trying it both with and without meat, just for curiosity's sake.

I would like to note that I usually serve this dish over brown rice. However, there are a bunch of other options such as barley, cracked wheat, another type of rice, or a medley of grains.

Also, I would like to point out that this recipe is made with canned tomatoes, so I of course have some recommendations. If you are on a budget like me, I would recommend buying Pine Cone brand canned tomatoes. They are really yummy, while being much less expensive than other brands. However, if you want to buy fancy, organic, canned tomatoes I would suggest getting Muir Glen. They also taste fantastic.

Green beans and Tomatoes

1 can tomatoes

1 pound green beans

1/2 onion

1/4 tsp Cinnamon

salt & pepper to taste

olive oil for pan

Heat oil in pan. slice onions into semi circles, and saute on medium heat. Wash and snap off ends of green beans. Chop tomatoes and add them, along with the green beans, into pot (covering green beans with tomatoes as much as possible). Turn heat up to high. Add cinnamon and salt & pepper. Cover pan. Once it starts to boil, turn heat down to medium heat and uncover. Cook for about 45 minutes or until green beans are tender. Serve on rice.

Sun Iced Tea

As summer gets nearer, I crave iced tea more and more. It is one of those drinks that is so refreshing and soothing and cools you down on a hot summer day.

I personally love to go to an outdoor coffee shop, buy an iced tea, and sip it (or rather chug it) while relaxing at a table out in the sun. However, if I bought tea at shops as much as I wanted, I would be broke pretty quickly; which is why I usually make it myself. 

A lot of people when making iced tea at home will heat up water and pour it on the tea leaves, and then throw in some ice cubes to cool it down; or they make the same hot tea and stick it in the fridge and wait for it to chill. I'm not particularly fond of either of these methods because I feel that the tea either gets too watered down, or I sit around forever anxiously waiting for it to chill (and I waste electricity by continually opening the fridge to see if its ready yet). 

So, I would like to share with you other tea fanatics a simple and quick way to make our beloved summer drink.

1. Fill a big glass pitcher up with water from the tap (my pitcher holds about half a gallon)

2. Add a few ice cubes

3. Throw in some tea bags (I generally use about 5, but it's very flexible)

4. Add anything else you might like in your tea (slices of lemon or a sprig of mint perhaps)

5. Cover the top of the pitcher with a lid or some plastic wrap

6. Stick it out in the sun and go about your business

7. When you check back and it looks like tea, you're good to go! (it will take about an hour or two)

A glass I just put out a couple minutes ago. I added a slice of lime for fun.

Now that I am student, I unfortunately no longer have a big glass pitcher. So today when I woke up, with sun pouring into my room and a desire to drink iced tea on my back patio, I had to come up with a modified method of making iced tea.

This simplified student version of sun iced tea is actually even easier. I filled a pint mason jar with some water from the tap, threw in one tea bag, screwed on the top, and stuck it outside in the sun. It was ready within 10 minutes! I then tossed in one ice cube and I was all set.

It was this mason jar version of iced tea that inspired me to write this blog post today. As I sat on my patio I came to a wonderful realization. When I am out on the town or on campus between classes, I always want ice tea, but I hate buying it all the time. I felt at a complete loss. However, now I realize that if I throw a mason jar and a few tea bags in my backpack, I can make iced tea anywhere that I can get some running water and a little bit of sun. 

Happy Spring!

Pizza doesn't need cheese

Growing up, pizza was always one of my all time favorite foods. So, the first time I went vegan, I immediately feared that the lack of cheese in my diet would threaten my love of pizza. Fortunately though, today, pizza is still one of my favorite foods. The only difference is what specifically I put on it. My first vegan pizza had soy cheese, my second had almond cheese (definitely the way to go if you are looking for faux cheese - I've been using it on pizzas for years now); and last night, I eliminated "cheese" from my pizzas altogether. Instead I used nutritional yeast, a new favorite food of mine. It worked great, so I felt inspired to post my pizza recipe here. 

Oven temperature: 500 degrees
Cook time (in oven): about 10 minutes

Toppings: homemade pasta sauce, nutritional yeast, chopped fresh tomato, onions, olives, sun dried tomatoes, potatoes (sliced and boiled before being put on the pizza), hot sauce, oregano, and salt & pepper.

Dough recipe:
1 package active dry yeast (1 Tbl)

1 teaspoon granulated sugar 
2/3 cup warm water (105 to 115°F.)
1 2/3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoons table salt
¾ teaspoon olive oil

mix yeast and sugar and water in bowl; let sit until bubbles or froth appear (this means the yeast is active). mix in salt and oil. slowly add in flour, mixing. once the dough starts to form a good blob, plop it out on the counter and begin kneading. Knead for 5-10 minutes, until dough feels elastic-y, adding in more flour if needed. 

Possible alterations to dough recipe: sometimes I substitute some of the white flour for whole wheat flour, or add flax seed, or add sunflower seeds.