Now that fall is in the air, many of us are turning to heartier dishes. Eric, one of our readers, wrote in to tell us that one of his all-time favorite comfort foods is Beef Stroganoff, strips of beef in a creamy mushroom sauce over pasta or rice. But since Eric is no longer an omnivore, he wanted to know if we could create a vegan recipe: Stroganoff without the beef.
We subbed tempeh (fermented soybeans) in place of beef. With hearty flavor and texture, tempeh adds protein, fiber and very little saturated fat.
Portobello mushrooms add a deeper, more savory flavor than other varieties.
To keep this recipe quick to assemble per Eric’s request, we relied on vegetarian gravy mix (look for this near the soups and broths). You could certainly make it from scratch.
We suggest serving the tempeh and mushrooms over brown rice for soaking up the flavorful sauce. For ease and convenience, we used frozen brown rice in this recipe, but it would be just as delicious over noodles. Try it over udon noodles, soba noodles, brown rice noodles or whole wheat or spelt pasta.
Want to adjust some of your favorite recipes to meet a new diet? Here are a few general tips for making great vegan and vegetarian recipes:
For creaminess, use coconut milk, nut milk or silken tofu in place of dairy products.
Use rich vegetable stock, shallots, garlic, leeks and other aromatic vegetables to create a flavorful base. Fresh herbs are wonderful additions as well.
Other ingredients to consider for adding robust flavor are chipotles (smoked jalapenos available canned), sun dried tomatoes, olives, caramelized onions and wild mushrooms.
Do you have some tips for vegetarian and vegan cooking to share? We’d love to hear! Please post them in the comments below.
Check out our selection of vegan recipes. We have almost 500, so there’s something for everyone!
Post your idea for a recipe makeover. If we pick your idea, we’ll send you a $25 gift card and publish it our blog and our website!
Do you have plans for the upcoming three-day weekend? It’s not hard to make some: just invite friends and neighbors over for an end-of-summer backyard bash! Make it easy on yourself by asking your guests to bring a side dish, something for the grill, or their favorite drinks. For me, a cookout is all about the sides. I love the chance to sample different side dishes and a potluck cookout means you’ll get to taste the very best everyone has to offer.
Here are some recipe ideas to get your party started:
Meet Hosea Rosenberg, Top Chef Season Five Winner, and find out why buying and eating local is important to him. And to us!
Our history and reputation are intimately linked to our support of local farmers. Our search for produce begins right outside our front door in every community where we do business. We are committed to buying from local producers whose fruits and vegetables meet our high quality standards, particularly those who farm organically and are themselves dedicated to environmentally friendly, sustainable agriculture.
And our Local Producer Loan Program (LPLP) provides up to $10 million in low-interest loans to small, local producers. Why? Because we believe in supporting local farmers and producers. We want to make it easier for them to grow their businesses and bring more local products to market. That’s good for us and it’s good for you.
Local means miles closer, miles fresher, miles more delicious.
What are some of your favorite local products in our stores this summer?
Happy July 4th! Round up some friends, roll out the grill and celebrate summer with some fantastic food. Whether you want to stick with a classic grilling menu or try some new flavors, we’ve got you covered with great recipe ideas.
Just about everyone loves those kid-classic chewy, gooey rice treats, right? Well, one thing you may not love about them is the nutritional profile of the ingredients- margarine or butter, marshmallows and conventional white rice cereal. Jennifer, a Whole Story reader, sent us a request to make a more nutritious rice treat. With summertime upon us and kids out of school, it’s a great time to tackle a new version of this recipe.
In short, we replaced some of the usual suspects with healthier versions like almond butter, brown rice crisps and raisins. Check out our improved Crispy Rice Treats and head to the kitchen with your kids…but leave the guilt at the door!
Want to know how we did it and why? Here’s a quick rundown:
We substituted brown rice crisps for conventional white rice cereal. Since whole grains are naturally higher in B vitamins, fiber, potassium, magnesium, vitamin E and iron than processed grains, this was a simple but very effective fix. One cup of brown rice cereal has about 2 grams more of fiber, 25 mg magnesium and 45 mg potassium when compared with a cup of the white stuff.
We used almond butter instead of butter or margarine for added nutrition as well as great flavor. Almond butter adds protein, fiber, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium.
We included raisins in this traditionally raisin-free recipe to add protein, fiber, phosphorus,potassium and iron. Raisins are also a great natural source of sugar.
Incorporating healthier ingredients into this recipe brings greater complexity in flavor and improved nutritional value. Get the full new recipe here.
Got a recipe that needs a natural makeover? Post it in the comments section below! If we select your recipe for a healthy makeover and publish the improved version on our website, we’ll send you a $25 Whole Foods Market gift card.
Thanks for all the tasty recipe ideas you submitted when we asked for your Dad’s best recipe in anticipation of Father’s Day on Sunday, June 21.
Your recipe ideas and stories led us to a few conclusions about your dads’ cooking habits:
Dads are masters of the grill.
Reilly claims her dad makes grilled steak much better than you can find in any steakhouse. His grilled chicken is also a winner, and he’s always in charge of the grilling at their July 4th picnic.
Char’s dad cooked without recipes. His secret on the grill: pour a good bottle of beer over whatever he was grilling. With this method, he produced great ribs and chicken.
Melissa, a Whole Story reader, sent us a request to make over the classic summertime dessert, ice cream pie. Yum! Her version included conventional sandwich cookies, frozen whipped topping and jarred chocolate sauce. Not so yum. Our version features better-quality ingredients: 365 Everyday Value Sandwich Cremes, all-natural frozen whipped topping and dark chocolate chunks. Moderation alert: Even though we remade this dessert with natural ingredients, it’s still an indulgent treat. Don’t go fooling yourself into eating a ton of it!
Thanks for all the great recipes you submitted when we asked for your recipes honoring Mom in anticipation of Mother’s Day this coming Sunday, May 10.
Your recipe ideas and stories certainly confirmed some basic truths about mothers, such as:
Moms are creative and resourceful.
Learn to maximize your groceries by following these moms’ tips. What to do with elderly bananas and avocados? Follow the leads of Anita’s and Audrey’s mothers by making Banana Bread or Avocado Cake.
Gerald praised his mom for making great food without all the fancy gadgets and on a limited budget. She made Skillet Cabbage, combining garden items and home-canned goods.
Jackie’s mom excelled at making something absolutely wonderful out of simple ingredients. A supper of Ham, Cabbage and Potatoes is one of her favorites.
Kristin, one of our Whole Story readers, sent us her idea for a recipe makeover:
The dish my mom makes for every family gathering is taco salad. I’ve lightened it up a little by using ground turkey (or, sometimes, black beans) instead of beef, low-sodium, all-natural taco seasoning, hormone-free cheese, about three times the tomato she used, plenty of lettuce, organic blue corn chips in place of Doritos, and all-natural roasted red pepper dressing in place of Catalina (WHY does salad dressing have so much sugar???). Although I’ve been eating hers for most of my life, honestly – I like mine better!
As promised when we asked for Mom’s Best Recipes, we haven’t forgotten Dad! Here’s your chance to let us know about Dad’s best recipes. Whether they cook one special meal or all the meals for the house, dads definitely have their place in today’s kitchen. So come on all you kids, spouses and dads and share those best recipes with us in the comment section below by April 16th. We’ll collect the best entries to highlight in a Father’s Day feature in our e-newsletter, fl@vors, and on this Whole Story blog.
To give you some inspiration, my dad is an accomplished cook and grill master, but his “best recipe” is Potatoes Anna. He makes an incredible version in a very well-seasoned cast-iron skillet. Requesting this treat is not something to be done too lightly, as this dish requires the peeling and thin slicing of a large quantity of potatoes. Then comes the layering, buttering, seasoning and cooking until the outside is browned and crisp and the inside is tender and melting. For the final touch, he inverts the whole potato cake onto a plate. It’s a beautiful sight to behold!
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To give you some inspiration, my dad is an accomplished cook and grill master, but his “best recipe” is Potatoes Anna. He makes an incredible version in a very well-seasoned cast-iron skillet. Requesting this treat is not something to be done too lightly, as this dish requires the peeling and thin slicing of a large quantity of potatoes. Then comes the layering, buttering, seasoning and cooking until the outside is browned and crisp and the inside is tender and melting. For the final touch, he inverts the whole potato cake onto a plate. It’s a beautiful sight to behold!
