Ingredients:
12. oz tortellini pasta (I used frozen sun-dried tomato tortellini)
2 tablespoons earth balance buttery spread (non dairy)
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups soy milk
2 tablespoons pesto sauce (I use the Dorot frozen cubes. 1 cube = 2 tablespoons)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
12 oz. artichoke hearts

Directions:
Cook pasta in salted boiling water until al dente. Once cooked, remove from water and set aside. Reserve 1 cup of water and set aside. Heat up earth balance in a large pot until melted. Add the flour and whisk together until smooth and combined. Add the milk and whisk together until smooth and combined. Continue to whisk together until thickened. Add the pesto and season with salt, pepper and garlic. Drain the artichokes and add to the sauce and whisk together with sauce. Once nice and thick, turn off heat and add the pasta into the sauce. Mix together and serve with freshly chopped basil and red pepper flakes. (optional, for those that like it spicy!)

*Tips&Tricks: If you do not like artichokes, you can replace them with wilted spinach, sauteed mushrooms and onions, or simply stick with pasta. You can also swap the tortellini for your favorite pasta! If you want to make this dairy, simple use butter instead of the earth balance and use milk or heavy cream instead of soy milk. If serving this dairy, be sure to add some parmesan on top after it’s cooked. There is nothing like yummy fresh grated parmesan!

~ Recipe submitted by Nina Safar

Ingredients:
1 pint of roasted grape tomatoes (get recipe HERE)
1 bag of spinach (about 4 cups)
3 cloves of garlic, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons earth balance natural buttery spread
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups of almond milk (or soy)
8 oz. pasta (I used Trader Joes Garlic Basil Linguine but any long pasta will do such as fettucini or spaghetti)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 black pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon fresh lemon basil, chopped

Directions:
Cook pasta in salted boiling water until al dente. While the pasta cooks and you roast the tomatoes (recipe HERE) saute olive oil and garlic in a large pot. Add the spinach and cook until wilted. Once wet and wilted, it will reduce in size. Remove from heat and set aside. Using the same large pot, melt the earth balance buttery spread and add the flour. Whisk until combined and slightly thick. Add the milk and whisk until combined and continue to whisk over medium heat until smooth and thick. If you want it to be thicker, you can add an additional tablespoon of flour. Once sauce is thickened, add the spinach and tomatoes and combine well. Add pasta to pot of sauce and whisk together. Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper and stir several minutes over heat then turn off fire. Add fresh lemon basil and mix together before serving.

*Tips&Tricks: You can easily make this recipe dairy by using butter instead of the earth balance, and using heavy cream or cows milk instead of almond milk. If you make this dairy, serve with parmesan cheese shredded or grated on top.

~ Recipe submitted by Nina Safar

Ingredients:
1/2 cup diced red pepper
1/2 cup diced celery
6 sticks of fake crab, diced
1 tsp. dijon mustard
1 egg
1/2 cup of bread crumbs or panko crumbs plus 1/4 cup set aside
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
Egg wash (1 egg + 1 tablespoon water mixed together)

Directions:
Combine red pepper, celery, fake crab, mustard, egg and panko crumbs (or bread crumbs) salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Shape into patties. Dip both sides of each crab cake into the bowl of 1/4 cup crumbs that were set aside. Place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Brush with egg wash then bake in oven on 400′ for 10-12 minutes. You can also fry these up by heating up some oil in a frying pan and cooking both sides until crispy. Serve with cilantro lime dipping sauce and fresh cilantro.

Cilantro Lime Dipping Sauce:

Ingredients:
1/2 cup of mayo
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (fresh!)
Juice of 1/2 lime
1/4 tsp. chile powder

Directions:
Combine above ingredients. Serve on top of each crab cake or on the side for dipping.

*Tips & Tricks: If the batter is too loose and you have trouble keeping it together, you can add 1 tablespoon flour to help bind it. If you are baking them and want it to be super moist, you can add a tablespoon of mayo to the mixture.

~ Recipe submitted by Nina Safar

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons oil
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 tablespoon ginger diced
1 tsp. chopped chili
1 lb. chicken breast cut into chunks
8 oz. sliced mushrooms

Sauce:
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoons corn starch
In a small bowl combine the above ingredients and mix well to dissolve corn starch.

Directions:
Heat a wok or frying pan with 1 tablespoon oil and saute onion, ginger, garlic, and chili pepper until tender. Add chicken chunks to pan and cook until no longer pink. Once cooked, remove chicken and onions from pan and set aside. Add 2 tablespoons oil to pan and saute mushrooms until soft then add the chicken back to the pan and mix with the mushrooms. Slowly pour sauce over chicken and mushrooms and stir together until sauce thickens. Serve over steamed broccoli or rice.

*Tips & Tricks: If you don’t have fresh ginger you can use ginger powder instead. Just add it in the sauce. You can swap mushrooms for any of your favorite stir fry veggies!

~ Recipe submitted by Nina Safar

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken cut into 8 pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt & pepper
1 onion cut into thin slices
3 cloves of garlic diced
1 cup of seedless raspberry jelly
1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar

Directions:
Wash and clean chicken pieces. Pat dry with paper towels. Place the chicken in a large ziplock bag with 1 tablespoon olive oil and salt and pepper. Marinate for 30 minutes. Put chicken in a large baking pan and fill the pan up slightly with water. Cover with foil and cook in oven on 400′ for an hour. While the chicken cooks, saute onion and garlic in a pot on the stove. Once golden and tender add the raspberry preserves and stir until smooth. Add the balsamic vinegar and stir together. Cook until boils. Uncover chicken and pour some of the glaze on. Cook for an additional 30 minutes. Once cooked you can glaze again with raspberry sauce if desired.

Tips/Tricks: I saved some of the sauce to serve with steamed green beans. Simply steam the green beans, then toss with 1 tablespoon of the raspberry glaze.

~ Recipes submitted by Nina Safar

This is a great recipe for Meatless Monday! I also included it in the Passover section since many people eat Quinoa on the holiday. Please note, that not everyone eats Quinoa on Passover and you should consult your Rabbi before deciding what your customs will be for the holiday.

Ingredients for Meatballs:
1 small onion diced
3 cloves of garlc diced
1 8ox package of mushrooms diced
Salt and pepper for seasoning
2 cups of cooked quinoa
2 tablespoons freshly chopped basil
Egg wash (1 egg + 1 tablespoon water mixed together. If you want to keep this recipe vegan, you can use PAM or egg substitute instead)

Ingredients for Sauce
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, chopped
1 zucchini, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
1 6 oz.can of tomato paste
2 tablespoons of sugar

Directions:
Cut the spaghetti squash down the middle, lengthwise. Remove the seeds and bake face down on a lightly greased baking sheet for 40 minutes until very soft. Allow to cool off then shred the insides with a fork. Set aside.

Saute onions and garlic in a large frying pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Cook until slightly browned. Add mushrooms, salt and pepper and cook until mushrooms are soft and tender. Remove from heat and combine with cooked quinoa. Add 1 can of tomato paste and basil and mix well. Using wet hands, Roll into small balls and place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper that has been lightly greased. Wet with egg wash then place in oven on 400′ for 20-25 minutes until firm.

Meanwhile, prepare sauce by sauteing onions until golden then adding the zucchini, carrots, red pepper and cook until slightly tender and fragrant. Add 1 can of tomato paste, and the crushed tomatoes. Add the sugar and mix well. Season with salt, pepper, paprika. Cook for about 30 minutes or longer, until veggies are soft.

Serve the quinoa meatballs over the cooked spaghetti squash with meatball sauce.

~ Recipe submitted by Nina Safar

These came about by accident, as I had leftover taco meat from dinner and decided to use them along with some ravioli dough that I had in the freezer. I have used both ravioli dough as well as wonton dough for this recipe and both came out great. The dough gets nice and crispy in the oven which makes these taste like real tacos!

Ingredients:
1/2 pound ground beef
1 package of taco seasoning
I package of frozen ravioli dough pre-cut into circles, defrosted OR 1 package of wonton wrappers

Directions:
Brown beef, then add taco seasoning. Cook for an additional 10-15. While the meat cooks, cut out circles of dough if using wonton wrappers and place onto slightly greased baking sheet. (If you are using ravioli dough that is pre cut into circles, place them on a slightly greased baking sheet.) Wet the dough with some water then place 1 tsp. of taco meat filling in center of each ravioli circle. Pinch the sides together, forming a triangle. If it won’t stick together, wet it again, this helps it stick together. Bake in oven on 350′ for 10 to 15 minutes until golden and slightly crispy. Serve them with all of your favorite taco toppings such as guacamole, salsa and shredded cabbage.

~ Recipe submitted by Nina Safar

Ingredients:
1 package of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
olive oil for cooking
1 box (12oz) of egg fettucini
1 package of mushrooms (6oz)
1 cube of Dorot’s frozen Alfredo sauce
1 3/4 cups of soy milk
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 tablespoon cold water
Salt, black pepper, garlic powder and nutmeg to taste

Directions:
Cook the pasta according to directions on package. While the pasta cooks, cut the chicken breasts into small pieces. Cook the chicken in a pan heated up with some olive oil until no longer pink. Remove from pan and set aside. Cook mushrooms in same pan, adding some olive oil if needed. Once mushrooms are tender, remove from pan and set aside. Add the soy milk to the pan and the frozen cube of sauce. Melt the Alfredo cube in the soy milk. Season with salt, black pepper, garlic powder and nutmeg. Combine 1 tablespoon corn starch with 1 tablespoon cold water until smooth. Slowly add it to the sauce mixture until blended, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil and allow to boil for a minute. Once the sauce has thickened, add the pasta to the sauce with the chicken and mushrooms and stir together combining all the ingredients to the sauce is mixed in well.

~ Recipe submitted by Nina Safar

Ingredients:
1 cup of quinoa, uncooked
2 cups of vegetable broth, chicken broth or water
1 onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, diced
1 can of diced tomatoes
Handful of mushrooms, chopped
1 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley (you can swap for basil or cilantro if you like the taste of those better)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 package of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup of bread crumbs plus more for topping
1 8oz. can of tomato sauce or 1 cup of honey mustard

Directions:
1. Place quinoa and broth in a pot, bring to a boil then lower flame and simmer until liquid is absorbed. Fluff with fork, then set aside.
5. In a large frying pan, saute the diced onion and 4 garlic cloves until tender. Add the can of diced tomatoes, chopped mushrooms, chopped parsley and salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes.
6. Remove from pan and put tomato mixture in a bowl. Add 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs, mix well. Add 1 cup of cooked quinoa. Mix well.
7. Take chicken breasts, and pound thin or cut in half so it’s thin
8. Place in a greased baking dish, and fill the center of each chicken cutlet with the quinoa mixture, then fold over in half so the quinoa mixture is covered.
9. Drizzle tomato sauce on top of stuffed chicken, or spread honey mustard on top of chicken, then sprinkle bread crumbs on top.
10. Bake, covered with foil in oven on 400′ for 30-45 minutes until cooked through.

~ Recipe submitted by Nina Safar

Ingredients:
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil plus more for cooking
Spices such as salt, pepper, garlic, paprika
1 small onion, diced
Lettuce, chopped up
Tomatoes, diced
Pickles, diced
Shredded carrots
1/2 cup of mayo
1/2 cup of bbq sauce

Directions:
Combine olive oil, spices and chicken breasts in a large zip lock bag. Shake well so all of the chicken is marinated in the olive oil mixture. Heat up a pan with some oil and saute onion until tender. Add chicken to and and cook until no longer pink. Place lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, carrots, sautéed onion and chicken pieces in a large bowl. Combine the mayo and bbq sauce, heat up and dress salad.

~ Recipe submitted by Nina Safar