#marathonerlunchdinner

[marathonerchronicles]

RECIPE: HEALTHY VEGGIE-LOADED BEEF CHILI

Here’s a yummy and easy Instant Pot recipe for all of you! Super good for meal prep and freezes well, so enjoy :)

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

~ 2 lbs lean ground beef

5 cloves garlic

1 bouillon cube (I use McCormick vegetarian cubes), crumbled

1 bottle Heinz chili sauce (really any brand works but this is just what I use and it’s the perfect size)

1 large tomato, chopped

2 bell peppers, chopped

1 (12 to 14 oz) can small peas

1 (12 to 14 oz) can corn kernels

1 (12 to 14 oz) can mushroom slices

1 (19 oz) can black beans

1 (19 oz) can red kidney beans

Directions:

Add olive oil, crumbled bouillon cube, and garlic to an Instant Pot and turn on Sautee setting. Cook until garlic becomes fragrant, then add beef. Cook until beef is broken up into small chunks (whatever size you like) and mostly cooked through.

Add tomato and bell peppers and cook for another 3-5 minutes. Then, add chili sauce. Rinse bottle with water (half full) and add that too. Cook for about another 5 minutes, stirring to keep mixture from burning.

Turn off Instant Pot and add peas, corn, mushrooms, black beans, and red kidney beans. Then, turn Instant Pot on Beans/Chili setting for 8-10 minutes. Make sure to seal the Instant Pot.

Once it’s done, divide into meal prep containers, freeze, or serve fresh!

[marathonerchronicles]

PEANUT TOFU ZOODLE SALAD

So I made this as a midday snack to tide me over until lunch or dinner, but you can just as easily have it as a meal! Vegan, gluten-free, and absolutely delicious! This is a nice salad to make if you wanna mix it up from the usual meal prep staples. Recipe is below the read more!

MAKES: 4-6 servings

INGREDIENTS:

3 zucchini

1 pint cherry tomatoes

400 g firm or pressed tofu

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 cup dry roasted peanuts (plain or seasoned)

DIRECTIONS:

Use a veggie spiralizer to make your zoodles. Cut up the zoodles to make them shorter, then place in a strainer and dump hella salt on the zoodles. Let sit.

Meanwhile, chop cherry tomatoes and tofu. Add oils and soy sauce to a large bowl or tupperware. Stir in chopped tofu to coat in dressing.

Rinse salt off zoodles and press to get da juices out. Mix into large bowl with tofu. Mix in cherry tomatoes.

Portion into jars/tupperware and top with peanuts or mix peanuts into large bowl/tupperware. ENJOY!

[marathonerchronicles]

ROMANIAN CHICKEN PAPRIKASH

Although I have lived in Canada for the last 14 years, I was born in Romania and still consider myself proudly Romanian... and can you blame me when the food looks so good and is actually healthy? This is a stew-like dish from my part of Romania (Ardeal/Transylvania), although original credit goes to Hungary. Click “keep reading” for the recipe!

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil

2 onions, chopped

13 garlic cloves, minced

8 medium size carrots, sliced

2 large bell peppers, chopped

About 3.5 lbs (1.6 kg) boneless skinless chicken thighs, chopped

1 to 1 1/2 cups flour (whole wheat works, though white/all-purpose makes for fluffier dumplings)

6 eggs

Around 1/3 to 1/2 cup Hungarian (sweet) paprika

Salt, to taste

Directions:

In a large bowl, whisk the 6 eggs and slowly start whisking in the flour. Start with 1 cup only. You want the batter for your dumplings (găluște) to be really thick (consistency of a paste, shouldn’t drip when you pull the whisk out). Slowly add flour if you don’t reach that consistency after 1 cup. TIP: add around 1 tsp of paprika in the dumpling batter for some more flavour.

Boil a large pot of water with a generous addition of salt (like you’re getting ready to make pasta). Once boiling, scoop batter into the water using a teaspoon (should be the size of a golf ball). Keep adding batter to boiling water (turn heat down if it gets to cray) SLOWLY, wait at least 30 seconds between dumplings. Once all the batter is gone, wait a couple minutes, then leave dumplings in pot and turn off heat.

In a very large pot or saucepan, add olive oil, garlic, onion, some salt, and about 1 tbsp of paprika. Cook until onion becomes fragrant and translucent, then add the chicken and cook for about 10 minutes. Then, stir in peppers and carrots, add about 1/4 cup of the dumpling water and 3 tbsp of paprika, and bring to a simmer. Let cook for around 15 min, stirring occasionally. This could also be done in an Instant Pot.

If stew doesn’t look vibrantly reddish orange, you need to add more paprika (don’t be aftaid to go ham, this spice is the STAR of the dish). Stir in with some salt to taste. Add more dumpling water if it appears to be drying up/want it more soupy.

Scoop in dumplings and stir so they can get coated in the paprikash sauce. Let cook for another 10 min.

Serve hot with some polenta (mămăligă) or rye bread.

[marathonerchronicles]

CHICKPEA TOFU COCONUT CURRY

A great vegan and gluten free alternative for those that want to cut down on meat or dairy, or simply looking to try something different! Serve with naan or rice (pictured here with wild rice blend). Good to eat right away or portion out for meal prep! Keep reading for the recipe - you can cook this in an Instant Pot like I did to save time or on the stovetop!

Ingredients:

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 garlic clove

1/4 tsp cayenne

3 to 4 tbsp curry powder (depends how strong you want the flavour)

4 medium carrots, chopped

2 19 fl oz cans chickpeas

400 g firm or extra firm tofu

1 400 mL can coconut milk + 400 mL water

Directions:

Set your Instant Pot to the saute setting or heat a large pot on medium high and add coconut oil and garlic. Cook until garlic is fragrant and looking a little clear, then add carrots. Keep an eye on them and give em a stir regularly.

Add salt, cayenne, and curry and mix in well. Cook for another 2 min if using Instant Pot, 4 min if using stove top.

Turn off Instant Pot/heat and add chickpeas and chopped up tofu. Mix in well, making sure that the chickpeas and tofu get coated in curry.

Add a can of coconut milk, then refill the can with water and add that to the mix.

Turn Instant Pot on Chili/Stew setting for 7 min, or turn on stovetop to medium heat and cook covered for 15 min, stirring occasionally.

Vent Instant Pot/remove pot from heat. Serve hot with some wild rice or naan, or let cool and store in tupperware for