Dinner: Veggie Stir-fry with Rice and Egg Drop Soup

Today was a little chilly, at least it felt like it after a couple of hours of pulling weeds in the rain… So I thought chicken noodle soup sounded good for dinner. I opened the refrigerator, though, and changed my mind after seeing all the produce I bought yesterday! So instead I decided on Veggie Stir-fry, Rice, and Egg drop soup.

Veggie Stir-fry


5-6 medium carrots
½ bunch celery
½ onion
½ lb broccoli
½ bell pepper
½ lb cauliflower
8 oz mushrooms
1 small zucchini
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp ginger
½ tsp ground cumin
1 tsp Mrs. Dash type seasoning (I used Bragg Organic Seasoning Blend)
1 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
¼ tsp Paprika
¼ cup Liquid Aminos or soy sauce
1 Tbsp corn starch or 2 Tbsp flour
¼ cup water
1 Tbsp oil

Heat oil in Wok. Chop veggies and add to Wok in this order: carrots, celery, onion, broccoli, pepper, cauliflower, zucchini, mushrooms. Carrots take the longest to cook so chop those first and allow them to cook as you chop and add each additional vegetable. When veggies are almost tender, mince garlic and add to the mix. Stir and add additional seasonings. Mix corn starch (or flour) with water until smooth and then add to veggies. Stir until sauce is thickened. Serve over rice.
 
 

My kids love to snack on carrots and peanut butter so I peeled and cut into carrot sticks a few extra carrots for that. I did the same with the cauliflower so they’ll have a couple options for snacks.


I also decided to peel, chop and steam some extra carrots and celery for some quick chicken noodle soup on Monday (if I feel like soup that is…). I let the extra carrots and celery steam while I got my stir-fry dinner going. Also, I doubled the amount of all the veggies in the stir-fry so I could have enough for another meal down the road.
 

While my veggies were cooking, I started some rice on the stove. For those who are unsure how to cook rice, it’s very simple. Rice : water = 2 :1 So, for every 1 cup of rice, you’ll add 2 cups water to your pot. Wipe some butter around the rim of the pot and lid to help keep rice from boiling over. Turn the stove to medium hot and bring rice to boiling. Then simply turn stove all the way to low and allow to cook for 15-20 minutes. You’ll know when it’s time to remove from heat when water no longer bubbles up through the rice.

When the extra carrots and celery were done steaming, I saved the water I used for my egg-drop soup base- throwing in a few pieces of carrots and celery before I bag it all up.

When the veggies were about 90% finished cooking, I took half of them and put them in a freezer bag to save for later. I purposely didn’t add seasoning for two reasons: 1. I may decide to use them for a different recipe later on. I’m constantly changing my mind about what to cook. And 2. Seasonings lose potency in the freezer anyway, so I’d rather just season them when I finish cooking them for another meal. Now to add the seasonings to dinner. I always say in just about any recipe you can substitute fat for flavor! Mmmm!

Egg Drop Soup

4 cups chicken broth (For mine I used 2 cups vegetable broth from steaming carrots and 2 cups chicken broth. I used 1 tsp chicken bouillon per 1 cup water for my broth)

½ cup cooked diced vegetables or peas
1 egg, beaten
1/8 tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp paprika
½ tsp dried parsley
4 oz egg noodles. (I used 2 lasagna noodles leftover from the other night. I just broke them up into small pieces first)

Heat broth to boiling, add noodles and vegetables. Let soup return to boiling and cook 7 minutes. Slowly pour beaten egg into broth, stirring as you pour. Allow to cook one minute more. Remove from heat and add seasonings. Serve hot, sprinkled with cayenne pepper if desired.

I thought dinner turned out terrific, but in true man fashion, my son and husband both asked where the meat was.. by 7:00 they were eating burgers at Arctic Circle... oh well! I try!