How many times have you heard yourself say, "It's too hot to cook"? I know I've said it myself a zillion times, especially in this unseasonably warm weather, or on many a hot and steamy August evening. And let's face it, we all don't live in New York City or Los Angeles, where healthy vegan restaurants are plentiful, so going out to eat isn't always an option. This is when a tried and true recipe can save the day.
My friend and long-time natural foods enthusiast, Amy Rolnick, of Portland, Maine, recently shared her "15 minutes max" plant-based recipe. Amy wrote, "You can use corn and edamame from the freezer, roasted peppers from a jar, and celery and onion are kitchen staples. My 18-year-old son saw me making this dish and said it looked good, took a serving and ate it up in seconds. This is a kid who wouldn't touch my vegetarian cooking for the past six years."
Colorful Corn and Edamame
1 medium red onion, diced
*1/2 teaspoon extra virgin olive
pinch sea salt
1 red pepper, diced (or 1 small jar water-packed roasted red peppers, diced)
1-2 stalks celery, diced or sliced
2-3 cups of corn (frozen and thawed or fresh, shaved from cob)
1-2 cups shelled edamame (frozen and thawed)
Generous pinch of dried basil
Splash of umeboshi vinegar (rice or other vinegar can be substituted)
* Oil may be omitted for oil-free diets and water can be substituted for the oil.
Saute onion in oil (or water) with a pinch of sea salt for 1 to3 minutes. Add the red pepper and celery and another pinch of salt and continue stirring for a few more minutes. Add corn and edamame and a generous pinch of basil. Add a few drops of water if needed but continue stirring until everything is warmed, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with a few drops umeboshi (or other vinegar) vinegar to taste.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.
This could be served as is, or on a bed of Ready Pac salad greens. In hot weather I'd serve this with a slice of whole-grain bread -- or, if it's not too hot to cook, a small dish of quick-cooking quinoa would be a perfect grain to complement this meal.
Note: Quinoa also cooks in 15 minutes, so if you start cooking it just before making the Colorful Corn And Edamame, they would both be ready to serve at the same time.
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Glad it's cooling down for you in AZ, and cool that you're defrosting (and making) the Edamame dish!
What a great way to kick edamame up a notch! We always have edamame on the side, but this seems like a great way to make it a meal. Onions and peppers are part of the Cajun Trinity. Seems all I have to do is add garlic and Crazy Dick's Cajun Seasoning! www.CrazyDicksCajunFoods.com What do you think? Smokey or Hot?
Thanks! rich
It seems like everyone likes edamame on the side, especially kids, so yes, perfect in a meal version! On the spices, I think that it probably depends on what part of the country you are from, but I think BOTH would be nice. Do you ever mix them? The hot with a pinch of smokey?
Do you have any quick & easy recipes that you'd like to share?
This recipe sounds great and I'm going to serve it Friday evening over salad greens for a few of my lady friends who love main dish salads and are also gluten intolerant. I'll roast my own red pepper, pick up frozen edamame tomorrow and serve with gluten free tartshells filled with fresh strawberries with a bit of melted chocolate over the berries just before I serve. When doing a rich dessert I always like to keep the main dish light so this combo is perfect. With red wine I've my dinner menu all done and easy to prepare.
We're going to re-watch Shirley Valentine? Have you ever watched it Meg? It's several years old but won many awards and I haven't watched for some time.
Hope all is well with you dear Meg and that LA was a great trip for you in many ways,
love and hugs,
Hmmmm ... I answered this last night, so sorry!
Love hearing about your planned dinner with your lady friends. The gluten-free tart shells, the strawberries and chocolate sound divine. You are quite the hostess, H & h. Wish I were there!
Never saw the movie Shirley Valentine. Who is in it?
LA was fun, thank you. xo
" Shirley Valentine. The last name is a marvel: for she learned to trust loving herself and everything changed from the process. Loving it! "