Meatless Monday-What's for Dinner?

Meatless Monday is a great tradition to adopt if you are looking to improve your family's health. It is potentially the one-and-only day all week where you don't eat meat. The goal on this day is to pack your body with nutrient-rich foods such as vegetables, beans, whole grains and fruit, while leaving out the artery-clogging cholesterol, high-blood-pressure-making sodium, and obesity-causing saturated fats that are in meats, cheeses and processed foods. Don't get me wrong though, only one day of eating vegetables a week is not nearly enough to see the cholesterol-lowering, pound-shedding effects this eating style can provide you BUT, it is a great start and is worth every mouth-watering moment!

The key here is to make good choices for dinner on this night. Choosing fake meats or processed foods as an alternative to meat is not beneficial because they still have the fat, sodium and then sugar that you should avoid. Instead, try easy recipes using real ingredients to wow your tastebuds and fill you up. Try this recipe below-it's one of my favorites because it's quick, tasty and stays in the fridge for a few days for lunches! It's also inexpensive and you can totally multitask while it's cooking! Enjoy!

Veggie Paella

Ingredients (Vegan, Serves 6)

1 onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1.5 cups quinoa (uncooked, use red quinoa for a nuttier, more savory flavor)

1/4 teaspoon saffron, crushed (this is what makes any paella great!)

2 teaspoons Spanish smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

dash cayenne

1 14oz can of diced tomatoes (no-salt added, very important)

1 red or yellow bell pepper, chopped

1 14oz can of red kidney beans (no-salt added), rinsed and drained

2 3/4 to 3 cups of low-sodium vegetable broth

2 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced

1 cup frozen peas

1 can artichoke hearts, rinsed and cut into quarters

Method

Put the quinoa into a large bowl and cover with water, stirring well to wash the grain. Pour off the water (through a seive) and repeat. Leave the drained quinoa to the side for a second.

Saute the onion and garlic in a deep non-stick pan with a little water (in lieu of olive oil) until soft, about 2 minutes. Add the quinoa and saffron, stirring constantly for 2 minutes. Add paprika, cumin, cayenne, tomatoes, peppers, beans and 2 3/4 cups of vegetable broth to the pan. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a low simmer. Cook covered for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, check to see if more broth is needed. You'll know because the mixture will look dry instead of vibrant and moist. If dry add 1/4 cup broth. Now place the zucchini on top of the quinoa and re-cover. Cook for about 5 minutes more until the quinoa is done. You'll know because it will turn translucent-ish and will have little spiral-like tails coming from each seed. When done, remove the cover, stir in the peas and cook uncovered for about 5 minutes. Arrange the artichoke hearts on the top and serve!

Nutrition Facts PER SERVING: 288 calories, 3g total fat, 13g protein, 0mg cholesterol, 150mg sodium, 10g fiber