(Scroll to the bottom to see our Summer Veggie & Tofu Noodle Bowl recipe!)*
One of my favourite things about produce boxes is that they force you to think outside the box. Because someone else is doing the grocery selection for you, you already have the ingredients you need to plan your meals for the upcoming weeks! If eggplant is on this week’s list and that’s not something you usually cook with, it’s time to get creative!
With every round of produce boxes, we send out an email with recipe ideas using some of the produce in your produce box. Especially when our boxes contain some of the less usual items (kohlrabi, anyone?). I have found some wonderful websites that I return to week after week for inspiration for these emails.
To me, one of the most enjoyable things about exploring new cultures is the food. You can even do this from home by simply using your locally grown potatoes in a new way!
Here’s a varied list of recipes that feature produce that we often have in our produce boxes. Isn’t it amazing that foods common in Ethiopia and India can be cooked with a majority of locally grown produce?
- https://itsavegworldafterall.com/maple-swiss-chard-salad/
- https://www.elmfoods.com/recipes/roasted-sweet-potatoes-with-tahini-dill-sauce
- https://urbanfarmie.com/ethiopian-cabbage/
- https://www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/aloo-patta-gobhi-sabzi/
- https://www.eatingwell.com/recipe/250906/curried-parsnip-apple-soup/
At LifeDirt, we are not pushing any certain type of diet, as we know that this is a personal decision and everyone’s bodies and backgrounds are different! What we do promote is fresh and whole foods. If you’re on board with that, you’re in the right place!
If nutrition is something that you’d like to learn more about, we’d love to point you to some local holistic nutritionists for whom this is a passion:
Summer Veggie & Tofu Noodle Bowl
(Recipe is for a single portion)
Ingredients:
⅓ cup fennel, chopped small
⅓ cup carrot, chopped small
⅓ cup kale, chopped small
½ Tbsp ghee or oil
¼ tsp salt
⅛ tsp coriander powder
1/16 tsp mustard seeds
1/16 tsp cardamom powder
Tofu marinated in soy sauce
½ tsp grated fresh ginger
½ Tbsp garlic scapes, chopped small
¼ cup grain or noodles of choice
Cilantro leaves & fennel fronds for garnish
Squeeze of lime juice
Directions
Alright, stick with us. This recipe looks complicated but that’s because there are a lot of spices! You can always use whatever spices you like; these are just a suggestion.
First, you’re going to marinate a portion of tofu in soy sauce while you work on the other elements of the meal.
Chop your vegetables up and set them aside.
Pour oil or ghee in frying pan, and heat on medium. Add spices and fry until mustard seeds start to pop. Add carrots and fennel, and cook for a few minutes. Turn down heat and cover for a few more minutes. Now add the kale, stir and cover again.
In the meantime, cook noodles or other grain of choice.
When vegetables are cooked to desired consistency, put them aside. Use the same pan to cook grated ginger and garlic scapes in oil. As soon as ginger starts to brown, add marinated tofu and cook on each side for a few minutes.
Combine noodles, vegetables and tofu in your serving bowl. Squeeze a bit of lemon on the vegetables, and add fresh cilantro leaves and fennel fronds as a fancy and cooling garnish.
Enjoy!
