Vegetarian Chili

Ah, Superbowl Sunday. Even for those of us non-vegetarians, a meatless meal can provide a much appreciated break from those saturated-fat-laden-protein-fests that celebratory sports-watching often dissolves into. Chock full of mushrooms, cheese, herb-y tomato sauce, and two types of beans, this hearty chili is healthy yet deliciously filling. Your arteries will thank you.

Vegetarian Chili

1/4 cup vegan Italian white beans

2 tablespoons garbanzo beans

2 tablespoons chopped red bell pepper

2 tablespoons sliced mushrooms

1/4 cup meatless tomato sauce

shredded cheese

cheese crisp and salad green leaf, for garnish

Mix the beans, bell pepper, mushrooms, and tomato sauce in a bowl. Microwave for 2 minutes, until mushrooms are tender. Top with shredded cheese. Garnish with a cheese crisp and salad leaf.

Cheese Crisp

2 tablespoons shredded cheese

Create a small mound of cheese on a plate. Melt in the microwave for 1.5 min, or until cheese is golden and bubbly. Let sit for 1-2 minutes, until crisp. Using a fork, peel the cheese crisp off of the plate for garnishing or snacking.

Squash Bisque with Cheesy Bacon Collard Greens

The Ratty's squash bisque is delicious on its own - a delicious balance of sweet and savory blended into a velvety smooth creamy soup. You can customize it by adding a personal spin, such as what we did here with bacon collard greens, cheese, scallions, and a slice of whole grain Seven Stars Bread.

Squash Bisque with Cheesy Bacon Collard Greens

1 bowl of squash bisque

bacon collard greens

1 slice of cheddar cheese

scallions

1 slice of Seven Stars Whole Grain Bread

1. Put cheese and half of collard greens on top and microwave until cheese melts - about 20 seconds.

2. Top with the rest of the collard greens and scallions.

3. Enjoy with the bread!

Tortellini Soup with Cheese Crisp and Greens

When something is good, there no need to fuss around with it too much. Tortellini soup is an excellent example. The cheese crisp was invented on accident when we noticed that shredded cheese melted in the microwave tends to dry out and form a thin crispy cracker that sticks to the side of the bowl. The key is to use a very tiny amount of cheese and melt it in a clean bowl, and monitor it in the microwave so it doesn't burn. You want it just golden around the edges and still creamy white in the center! Cheese crisps make great garnishes for soups and salads.

Tortellini Soup with Cheese Crisp and Greens

1 bowl of Ratty tortellini soup

7 shreds of shredded cheese

mixed greens

1. Sprinkle the cheese in a soup bowl. Microwave until the cheese is browned on the edges.

2. Remove from the microwave, wait 1 minute, and peel off the cheese crisp.

3. Garnish the bowl of soup with greens and cheese crisp.

Vegan Fagioli Soup with Spinach and Cheese

cold weather + people coughing around you + rain + tingly sensation at the back of your throat = hot soup season

This one is wonderful on a cold, drizzly day. Not that the Vegan Fagioli Soup isn't delicious on its own, but there's something about melted cheese that just gets me every time. A word of warning, though: please don't try to gobble this down in the 2 minutes before Chem conference. I tried; the soup was very hot.

Vegan Fagioli Soup with Spinach and Cheese

1 spoonful savory spinach (1/2 cup)

2 ladelfuls Vegan Fagioli Soup (3/4 cup)

1 slice provolone

1. Get the spinach in a bowl.

2. Get the soup.

3. Place a slice of Provolone on top.

4. Microwave for 40 seconds or until cheese is melted. Enjoy slowly on a cold autumn day.

Creamy Edamame Pasta Salad

You know how you sometimes get into a habit of doing things the same way every day? I always get into "breakfast habits" -- soymilk-cereal-fruit, soymilk-cereal-fruit, soymilk-cereal...

Or "lunch habits" -- sandwich, sandwich, sandwich...

Or "dinner habits" -- pasta and marinara, pasta and marinara, pasta and... cream of asparagus soup? Add in some edamame for protein and veggies for vitamins.

Creamy Edamame Pasta Salad

whole wheat penne

spoonful of edamame (green soybeans)

spoonful of diced tomatoes (burrito bar)

spoonful of scallions

small spoonful of raisins

spoonful of sliced zucchini (salad bar)

1 ladle of Cream of Asparagus soup

salt & pepper

1. Gather pasta and veggies on a plate.

2. Spoon soup on top.

3. Mix with a fork and add salt/pepper to taste.

French Onion Soup

Nothing like a steamy, melty bowl of French Onion Soup to warm you up on a chilly day. Try one of these the next time there's a thunder/lightening hailstorm.

French Onion Soup

2/3 cup chicken broth (or noodle soup broth)

2 rings of red onion

10-12 mushrooms

2 slices cheddar cheese

1 slice of toast (bruschetta bar)

1. Ladle soup over onion rings and mushrooms in a bowl.

2. Carefully place toast on top of veggies in soup, then cover with two slices of cheese.

3. Microwave for 1 minute or until cheese has melted, and enjoy.

Asian Noodle Soup

Asian Noodle Bar is back this week! Has anyone ever tried making a bowl of noodles from the stuff provided? The veggies are sweet and crunchy when you heat them up in the microwave with the broth, and even better with some freshly sliced scallions on top.

Asian Noodle Soup

1 bowl rice noodles

1 bowl clear broth

mushroom slices

sugar snap peas

bean sprouts

julienned carrots

sliced water chestnut

tofu cubes

diced red bell pepper

scallions

1. Get a bowl with all the ingredients.

2. Microwave for 1 minute.

3. Garnish with scallions.

Kicked-up Mushroom Tomato Bacon Soup

Ridiculously easy to make, this soup gets an added dimension of creaminess from the melted cheese and a fragrant accent from crisp green scallions.

Kicked-up Mushroom Tomato Bacon Soup

1 bowl of Mushroom Tomato Bacon Soup (or any savory tomato soup)

1/4 cup shredded white cheddar cheese

2 Tbsp sliced scallions

1. Top a bowl of the soup with the cheese.

2. Microwave for 30 seconds.

3. Garnish with scallions.