Extend Your Dinner with a Quick, One-Pot Miso Soup

I was whipping up a quick dinner, baked tofu with soba noodles and bok choy, when we had an unexpected guest for dinner. My noodle dish is only really big enough for the three of us, despite the fact that it says serves four. So, I whipped up a quick post of miso soup to help stretch the meal. Everyone was full, and I even had one serving of noodles and soup left for today’s lunch…yum.  Here’s how to do it:

Ingredients:

Scallions – 3 thinly sliced (white parts only)

Shallots – 2 large, thinly sliced

Napa Cabbage – 1 head  or other asian greens (I used only 4 leaves from this head of cabbage for another recipe, so this was just some leftovers in my fridge)

Vegetable Broth – 4 cups

Miso Paste – 1-2 Tbsps (more or less depending on how salty you like it. you can use any kind of miso paste red, yellow or white. I used yellow)

Tamari/Soy Sauce – 1 Tbsp

Olive oil – 1 Tbsp

Tempeh or Tofu  – optional (I used Lightlife Ginger Teriyaki flavored Tempehtations because I had some on hand that needed to be cooked)

How to do it:

In a large sauce pan over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the shallots and sautee until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the scallions and cabbage and sautee until softened, another 1-2 minutes. Add 4 cups of broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, then add miso and tamari/soy sauce and the tofu or tempeh if using, then cover. Simmer for another 10 minutes to allow the flavors to marry. Tell everyone how you just threw together some leftovers in the fridge and soak in the compliments.

New MorningStar Farms Sweet & Sour Chik’n

Most of the time I bring leftovers to work for lunch (ok, well I try anyway). If I don’t bring my lunch I have a variety of tempting and not so healthy options to choose from. In order to combat these days when I just don’t have any leftovers to bring, or when I simply don’t feel like eating them, I’ve picked up a few frozen, vegetarian meals. I noticed that Morningstar Farms had two new frozen entrees available: Sweet & Sour Chik’n and Lasagna with Sausage-Style Crumbles. (Apparently the lasagna was good, because my daughter has already devoured both of the boxes that I purchased).

Today I’m trying out the Sweet & Sour Chik’n. While I sit waiting for the microwave I noted that on the back of the box it says, “Made with Gardein, The All-Vegetable Protein”. Intrigued, I decided to head over to the Gardein website.  Here I learn that Gardein is actually used in a lot of entrees, not just my fake chicken lunch. In fact, it appears that they have their own line of foods, so I’ll be sure to keep my eyes peeled for those, but I’m fairly certain that they aren’t yet offered at my local Safeway. Their website is filled with the usual materials about how eating a plant-based diet is good for you and the environment, and of course, I couldn’t agree more. Interstingly though, they also have information on community gardens and how to start one up yourself.  The press kit also has a Q&A section with answers to some of the things that I wanted to know such as:

1. What is gardein™? gardein™ is a  line of tasty, plant-based foods with a meaty texture. Our products are made from a blend of soy, wheat and pea proteins, vegetables and grains. gardein™ is good for you; it is high in protein and easy to digest; the majority of our products provide you with a good source of fiber too. gardein™ is free of cholesterol, trans fats and saturated fat; the majority of gardein™ products are low fat too. gardein™ products are also vegan-friendly, meaning they are free of animal and dairy ingredients.
2. How do you make gardein™? Think of how bread or pasta is made. gardein™ is made using a similar approach. We mix water, veggies, grains, flavors and spices together to create the ‘dough,’ form it and bake it in special ovens to give gardein™ a fibrous look and its meaty mouth-feel.
3. Where do the ingredients come from that are used in gardein™?
   The majority of gardein™ ingredients come from North America.  We use all non-GMO ingredients and some organic ingredients. We like to diversify our proteins by using wheat, soy and pea proteins. We are also the first company of our kind to add ancient grains—quinoa, amaranth, millet and kamut—to our foods. Some of our spices come from India and some of our grains from South America.

The nutritional value of this meal is ok, but not great. It has 340 calories, but no cholesterol and only 6g of fat (of which .5g is saturated and there are no trans fats). The sodium is high at 550mg and the carbs are high due to 12g of sugar (and it’s tastes like it!). It does have 14 grams of protein and 4g of dietary fiber as it’s redeeming qualities however.

Finally, the taste test. Yes, it’s pretty good. The faux meat is actually really delicious, although the tempura batter coating doesn’t hold up well to microwaving, making the outside a bit mushy. The flavor of the meat is dead on for chicken and the texture is not as chewy as seitan, but more substantially meaty than tofu or tempura. It reminds me a bit of Quorn, actually. Personally, I find the dish to be overly sweet and I wish that they’d cut down on a bit of that unnecessary sugar, but it’s a good meal in a pinch and I feel full and happy.