Veggie Punk Kitchen

Vegetarian cooking to a punk soundtrack.

Slow Cooker Veggie Chicken Soup

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Slow Cooker Veggie Chicken Soup is a great, no fuss weeknight meal. Throw most of the ingredients into the pot in the morning, come home, add a few things, dinner is served.

Slow Cooker Veggie Chicken Soup is a great, no fuss weeknight meal. Throw most of the ingredients into the pot in the morning, come home, add a few things, dinner is served.Slow Cooker Veggie Chicken Soup is another use up all the veggies in the refrigerator type recipes. I hate to let anything go to waste, so I use my slow cooker for soups and stews quite often.

I used to make a damn good chicken soup. Now I have to find ways to modify old favorites. Sometimes tofu just doesn’t cut it. This time I used Beyond Meat Grilled Chicken Free Strips. Chicken flavored seitan would work for this recipe too. You’ll notice I added quite a lot of fiery spices. It will be a running theme. Feel free to scale those back a bit if you’re not as enthusiastic as I am about heat.

I used Bob’s Red Mill Organic Farro, but you can add just about any grain into the mix. As for all the vegetables, pick your favorites. Just remember that some things take a lot longer to cook than others. You might want to pre-cook some of the veggies like potatoes or yams.

You can turn my Slow Cooker Veggie Chicken Soup into anything you want pretty much. Saute some mushrooms and add them near the end. Kale would be good too. Just cut out the thick stem and chop it up.

Slow Cooker Veggie Chicken Soup is a great, no fuss weeknight meal. Throw most of the ingredients into the pot in the morning, come home, add a few things, dinner is served.Slow Cooker Veggie Chicken Soup was pretty easy to prepare. It gave me time to get other things done. I didn’t have to stand over a hot stove, which is a plus. My Slow Cooker has a timer too, so I can set it to start an hour or so late, in case I’m going to be out all day

If a dish usually takes:

  • 15 – 30 mins, cook it for 1 – 2 hours on High or 4 – 6 hours on Low
  • 30 mins – 1 hour, cook it for 2 – 3 hours on High or 5 – 7 hours on Low
  • 1 – 2 hours, cook it for 3 – 4 hours on High or 6 – 8 hours on Low
  • 2 – 4 hours, cook it for 4 – 6 hours on High or 8 – 12 hours on Low

Root vegetables can take longer than meat and other vegetables so put these near the heat source, at the bottom of the pot/

Specific Crock Pot Cooking Tips

  • For best results, ground meats must be cooked in a skillet and drained of all fat before cooking in the crockpot.
  • Cayenne pepper and tabasco sauce tend to become bitter if cooked for long periods of time. Use small amounts of these ingredients and add toward the end of the cooking time.
  • Add tender vegetables like tomatoes, mushrooms and zucchini during the last 45 minutes of cooking time so they don’t overcook. Canned tomatoes can be added with the rest of the ingredients at the beginning of cooking time.
  • Dairy products should be added during the last 30 minutes of cooking time, unless the recipes states otherwise.
  • Liquids do not boil away in the crockpot, so if you are making a recipe that wasn’t specifically developed for the crockpot, reduce the liquid by 1/3 to 1/2 unless you are cooking rice or making soup.
  • Stir in spices for the last hour of cooking. They will lose flavor if cooked with the rest of the ingredients for the long cooking period.

A sprinkle of fresh herbs or squeeze of lemon juice at the end of simmering can brighten flavors and cut through the richness of long-cooked recipes. Other excellent finishing touches: hot sauce, citrus zest, grated Parmesan, good-quality olive oil or even sautéed garlic.

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Slow Cooker Veggie Chicken Soup
Author: 
Recipe type: Soup
Cuisine: Vegetarian
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 15
 
Ingredients
  • 12 oz. pkg. Beyond Meat Chicken Free Strips - diced
  • 1 large potato - baked - cut into cubes
  • 1 cup Farro
  • 1 can green chile ( I used Hatch Chiles)
  • 1 can black beans - drained - rinsed
  • ½ onion - diced
  • 1 large carrot - thinly sliced (or ½ can pre-cooked carrots)
  • 2 bell peppers ( I used 1 red & 1 green) chopped small
  • 4 cups baby spinach
  • 1 Tbsp. garlic - minced
  • 1 container vegetable stock (about 6 cups)
  • 1 Tbsp. lime juice
  • 1 Tbsp. parsley - fresh - chopped
  • 1 Tbsp. basil - fresh - chopped
  • ¼ Tsp.- paprika
  • ¼ Tsp. - whole mustard seeds - crushed
  • ¼ Tsp.- ginger
  • ¼ Tsp. - red pepper flakes
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Bake potato then let cool
  2. Use a splash of olive oil in a hot skillet to cook the onions and garlic. 3 - 5 minutes. let cool
  3. Add all ingredients except spinach, basil, and parsley, and spiced to slow cooker
  4. Low setting = 8 hours/ Medium setting = 5 hours/ High setting = 3 hours
  5. minutes before end add spinach and stir in spices.
  6. Garnish bowls with basil & parsley

Slow Cooker Veggie Chicken Soup is a great, no fuss weeknight meal. Throw most of the ingredients into the pot in the morning, come home, add a few things, dinner is served.

Tunes for cooking – The Birthday Party – Prayers On Fire

Tunes for writing – The Cramps – Bad Music For Bad People

Vegan Chicken Vegetable Soup

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Vegan Chicken Vegetable Soup is the perfect thing for a cold day or for when you’re feeling a bit under the weather. It’s chock full of fresh veggies and packing some heat.

Vegan Chicken Vegetable Soup is the perfect thing for a cold day or for when you're feeling a bit under the weather. It's chock full of fresh veggies and packing some heat.Vegan Chicken Vegetable Soup is a warm, delicious bowl of goodness. It is also a great make-ahead meal for no fuss weekday meals. Set the timer on your crock pot, 8 hours later come back and dinner is ready.

When I was a kid my dad would make me chicken soup when I wasn’t feeling well. His came from a can, but the intent made it tasty. With the super fresh and healthy Vegan Chicken Vegetable Soup you can freeze the leftovers for up to 2 months and pull it out to make in a sauce pan when you’re feeling like a quick pick me up.

I use the Beyond Meat products fairly often.  Once or twice a week in fact. You can add them to all kinds of dishes. The strips are good for Chinese chicken salads, on pizzas, or in sandwiches or quesadillas. I made a fettucine alfredo with them and it tasted fantastic.

If you don’t have a crock pot here is a stove-top version:

  1. Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook and stir onion and celery in hot oil until onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
  2. Stir garlic into the onion mixture; cook and stir until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes more.
  3. Add chicken and beans; cook and stir 2 to 3 minutes.
  4. Add all your dry spices.
  5. Pour wine, vegetable broth and water into pot.
  6. Add arrowroot powder. Simmer for about 10 minutes.
  7. For a thicker soup you can add potato flakes or a quarter cup of coconut milk.
  8. Stir carrots, peas, green beans, and potatoes through the broth. Simmer until carrots are tender, 10 to 15 minutes more. 
  9. Add parsley, spinach, and dill at the end.

I found a product that let’s me save time on the potatoes. I was out shopping and I saw a Potato Express box that promised a fully cooked potato in 4 minutes. I grabbed one to try at home and it works well. They come out perfectly cooked. Depending on the size of the potato you’re using, it may take a little less time, or slightly more.

While you wait for your crock pot to ding, you can whip up something to accompany the soup:

  • Couscous salad with butternut squash & cranberries.
  • Arugula & fennel salad with lemon vinaigrette.
  • Warm spinach salad with tempeh bacon crumbles.
  • Spicy kale with garlic & olive oil.
  • Roasted broccoli with garlic.
  • Roasted green beans with harissa.
  • Roasted sweet potato slices with cilantro pesto.
  • Herbed french bread loaf.

You can also use grains to thicken the soup base. Some grains work better than others for this task. The best choices to get the job done are ones with a higher starch content, like barley, cornmeal, white and brown rice, amaranth, kamut, teff, and even oats. You can cook the grains separately and toss them into the soup. You can cook them separately and add them to the soup or, to get the most starch out of them, add them in uncooked. You may need to add a little extra stock or lengthen the cook time, but you’ll get a thicker and heartier soup for it.

Vegan Chicken Vegetable Soup is the perfect thing for a cold day or for when you're feeling a bit under the weather. It's chock full of fresh veggies and packing some heat.

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Vegan Chicken Vegetable Soup
Author: 
Recipe type: Soup
Cuisine: Vegan
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 12 servings
 
Ingredients
  • 12 oz. Beyond Meat Chicken Strips
  • 2 - 32 oz. boxes of No–Chicken Broth
  • 2 cups of water
  • ½ cup dry white wine.
  • 2 large potatoes diced. I baked them before adding to the soup.
  • 1 white onion, diced
  • 3 medium carrots, sliced into ¼-inch-thick rounds
  • 2 stalks celery, peeled and finely sliced
  • 1 cup peas, canned, frozen, or fresh
  • 1 cup tightly packed chopped spinach leaves, stems removed,
  • ¼ cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
  • ½ cup loosely packed fresh dill fronds, chopped (about 1 small bunch)
  • 1 can beans, drained rinsed. I only had cannellini handy. Use the kind you prefer.
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 2 tbsp. arrowroot powder
  • 1 tsp. yellow curry powder
  • 1 tsp. coriander
  • 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
  • 1 tsp. Cajun seasoning
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Bake potatoes for 20 to 40 minutes or until tender.
  2. Cut potatoes into bite size pieces and set aside.
  3. Combine the chicken strips, broth, 2 cups of water & wine.
  4. Add beans, carrots, celery, onions, and spices.
  5. Add arrowroot powder.
  6. Add 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper in the insert of a slow cooker.
  7. Cook on low for 8 hours.
  8. Remove the chicken strips.
  9. When cooled, shred the chicken or cut into cubes and add back to the soup.
  10. Add the potatoes, peas, parsley, spinach and dill.
  11. Season with salt and pepper.
  12. Let cook for 10 to 15 more minutes
  13. If you want a thicker soup you can add potato flakes.

Vegan Chicken Vegetable Soup is the perfect thing for a cold day or for when you're feeling a bit under the weather. It's chock full of fresh veggies and packing some heat.

Spicy Vegetarian Empanadas

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Spicy Vegetarian Empanadas are by far the best portable snack food in creation (in my not so humble opinion). Warm, golden crust enveloping a succulent blend of veggies and herbs.

Spicy Vegetarian Empanadas are by far the best portable snack food in creation (in my not so humble opinion). Warm, golden crust enveloping a succulent blend of veggies and herbs.Spicy Vegetarian Empanadas are little pockets of awesome, hands down. When you get the dough to the optimal shade of golden brown & the vegetables tucked inside are cooked to perfection? Someone should give you some kind of award.

As you will learn if you follow this page, I like heat. But not ghost pepper hot though. I like a slow, steady build.  A pinch of ancho chile, red pepper flakes, or anaheim peppers are a few of my favorite staples. What are your favorite ways to kick things up a notch?

You can fill Spicy Vegetarian Empanadas with just about anything. Make them as mild or as hot as you like. Bell peppers, hot peppers, carrots, spinach or broccoli would all work well for savory. Whatever your favorite foods are can probably be incorporated into these winning, hand-carry parcels of deliciousness.

So many empanada fillings, so little time. I just went out and got a small deep fryer. You bet I’ll be making tons more of these perfect pillows of perfection. If someone installed an industrial sized mixer in my kitchen along with a few more ovens, I would make dozens upon dozens of every kind you could imagine.

I want to make ALL the dessert empanadas! Fig, caramel, and cheese. Strawberry, basil, and cream cheese. Chocolate with a little chile pepper mixed in. My mouth is watering just thinking about making these. Tiny pies you can eat in three bites. Portable pumpkin, apple, or cherry pies!

They all come out delicious! If you end up with leftover dough, you can make desert empanadas at the same time.  Yum times 2.

Here are some tips & tricks for the filling:

  • Make sure the filling you use is not too watery or it will make the dough soggy.
  • To reduce the moisture of your filling, place it in a strainer for at least an hour.
  • It is a good idea to let your filling cool or even refrigerate it before assembling.
  • Filling ingredients should be diced small for best results.

If you’re making your own dough for these, here are some lessons I’ve learned:

  • When using a recipe with baking powder, know that your empanada will grow, but will be very hollow inside. I prefer to have a pocket full of filling and not air.
  • Never use more than one stick of butter or 1/2 cup of shortening for every three cups of flour or you’ll end up with dense, crumbly dough.
  • If a recipe calls for yeast, the texture will be more like pita bread.
  • Add your favorite fresh, dried or powdered herbs and seasonings to the flour before mixing. My favorites include crushed red pepper flakes, ancho chile powder, fresh chopped basil & thyme.
  • For baked dough use very cold butter and for fried dough use solid shortening. Vegan shortening is available. I just found out that Earth Balance has one.
  • Always use ice water, never lukewarm or hot. I just put a cup in the freezer while I’m assembling ingredients.
  • Refrigerate the dough ball for at least 3 hours before assembling your empanadas.

Spicy Vegetarian Empanadas are by far the best portable snack food in creation (in my not so humble opinion). Warm, golden crust enveloping a succulent blend of veggies and herbs.

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Spicy Vegetarian Empanadas
Author: 
Recipe type: Dinner
Cuisine: Vegetarian
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 10
 
Ingredients
  • 1 pkg. Goya brand discos - 10 rounds
  • 2 cups potatoes - peeled and cut into cubes
  • 1 pkg. Beyond Meat beef crumble
  • ½ onion, diced
  • 1 clove garlic - minced
  • 1 green onion - sliced
  • 1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • ½ tsp kosher salt
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • ½ tsp red pepper flakes
  • ½ tsp mace
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
  1. Take out empanada wrappers and let reach room temp.
  2. Peel the potato and boil for 10 minutes in salted water, until soft
  3. Remove the potato, and finely dice when it is cool enough to handle.
  4. Preheat oven to 400.
  5. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat.
  6. Saute the onion and garlic until translucent.
  7. Increase heat to medium high and add Beyond Meat beef.
  8. Cook for about 3 mins. or just slightly browned.
  9. Add spices except green onions, and parsley, stir
  10. Remove from heat and add potatoes, green onions, and parsley.
  11. Place a tablespoon of filling in the center of each wrapper.
  12. Dab water on finger, run along outside edge of dough
  13. Fold in half, roll or pleat the edge, and press with a fork.
  14. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 25 minutes, until golden brown

Spicy Vegetarian Empanadas are by far the best portable snack food in creation (in my not so humble opinion). Warm, golden crust enveloping a succulent blend of veggies and herbs.

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