Three Square
Winter Quick Meals: making the most of short daylight
Perfect Overnight Oats
While a full-course English breakfast might sound like a hearty winter meal, the cook time (and subsequent cleanup) could easily burn an hour and a half of your morning. Our overnight oats take just two minutes to prep the night before and are ready to eat the moment you wake up. If you don’t like the mushy, textureless feel of hot cooked oatmeal, we encourage you to give these a chance. Compared to warm oatmeal, they provide an entirely different experience and, in our opinion, a vastly improved one. When properly prepared, cold soaked oats retain a nutty texture and delightful chewiness. While we’ve experimented with a couple of different options, we’ve found thick-cut rolled oats are best for overnight soaks. (We also love this recipe with Bob’s Red Mill 5 Grain Cereal, a mix of oats and other grains.) The thicker the cut, the more satisfyingly nuanced the texture becomes. Another trick is to soak the oats in milk or a plant-based milk alternative (we’re partial to oat milk). Preparation couldn’t be simpler. Combine equal parts oats and milk in a sealable container and allow to cold-soak in your refrigerator or cooler for a minimum of six hours. The next morning, you can add nuts, seeds, fresh fruit, or nut butter for a nutritional boost and sweeten to taste with maple syrup or honey.
- 1 cup thick cut oats
- 1 cup milk or oat milk
- ¼ cup chopped cashews
- ¼ cup almond or peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon hemp seeds
- 2 teaspoons chia seeds
- Fresh fruit (strawberries, bananas, blueberries, etc.)
- In the evening, combine the oats and milk in a sealable container, stir, and place in the fridge.
- In the morning, divide the oats between two bowls and top with hemp and chia seeds, nuts, nut butter, and fruit. It also travels well to enjoy later.
Tomato Soup and Cheesy Croutons
We developed this creamy tomato soup and cheesy crouton recipe to be an on-the-go version of grilled cheese and soup (one of our favorite winter lunches). It’s the perfect way to warm up on a winter hike or after a morning ski session. There are plenty of great store-bought tomato soups, so we knew that if we were going to make one from scratch it would need to be pretty special. Our recipe starts with roasted canned tomatoes, tomato paste, shallots, red wine vinegar, and vegetable broth. To get that distinctive creamy texture without using dairy cream, we pureed all the ingredients with cashews. The result is a full-bodied, luxuriously creamy soup that is loaded with flavor. Tomato soup and grilled cheese are a match made in heaven, but there’s just no good way to take grilled cheese with you on a hike. So we opted for oven-baked cheesy croutons that can be stored and added to the soup later. They bring a crunchy, crusty texture and satisfying cheesy taste that nearly mimics the golden perfection of a grilled cheese sandwich. One thing we love about this meal is that the soup can be made in large batches and stored either in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for as long as a month. The croutons also can be made ahead of time and stored in a sealable container at room temperature for a few days.
- 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes in puree
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large shallot (or 1 small onion + 1 clove garlic), finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 ½ cup vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ cup raw cashews
- 1 tablespoon fresh basil (optional)
- Cheesy Croutons
- 8-ounce baguette or other sturdy bread
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ cup shredded cheese or vegan cheese alternative (we use VioLife Just Like Parmesan)
- Preheat the oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat, parchment paper, or foil.
- Gently break the tomatoes open, holding them over the can to collect any juices. Lay the tomatoes flat on the baking sheet. Sprinkle the sugar over the tomatoes and place in the oven to roast for 20 minutes.
- While the tomatoes are roasting, prep the croutons by cutting or tearing the bread into bite-sized pieces. Toss with olive oil in a medium bowl and set aside.
- Chop the shallot and sauté with the tomato paste and a tablespoon of olive oil for 10 minutes, using a heavy-bottomed pot. Transfer the roasted tomatoes to the pot and add the reserved juices and puree, vegetable broth, and salt. Stir and let simmer for about 10 minutes.
- While the soup simmers, spread the bread pieces on the baking sheet and sprinkle with cheese. Place in the oven to bake until golden and crispy, or about 10 minutes.
- After the soup has simmered for 10 minutes, turn off the heat. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the solids to a blender and add the cashews and basil (if using). Blend until smooth, adding a bit of soup if you need more liquid to keep it moving. Transfer back to the pot and stir to blend.
- To serve, divide the soup between bowls and top with croutons. To pack for a hike, transfer the soup to an insulated container and carry the croutons in a separate container.
Savory Vegetable Stew
When returning home from a winter outing, the smell of savory stew is absolutely irresistible. While classic cookbooks are full of beef stew recipes, we wanted to replicate that deep, aromatic flavor in a plant-based version. In our rendition, hearty root vegetables such as sweet potatoes and carrots combine with aromatic onions, celery, and garlic. To get that deep, meaty umami flavor, we sautéed quartered mushrooms with a few splashes of liquid aminos. We then simmered all these wonderful veggies together in a vegetable broth and red wine mixture, with bay leaves and thyme. The result is a filling and savory stew done in almost no time: just 30 minutes.
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 8 ounces mushrooms, halved or quartered
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 celery sticks, sliced ½-inch thick
- 1 large carrot, sliced ¼-inch thick
- 1 medium sweet potato, cut into ½- to ¾-inch cubes
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons flour
- ½ cup red wine
- 1 tablespoon liquid aminos or soy sauce
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- Freshly chopped parsley to serve
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and sauté until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining oil, onion, celery, carrot, sweet potato, and salt, and sauté 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste and sauté 1 minute more.
- Add the flour, stirring to coat the vegetables. When no dry flour remains, add the red wine and liquid aminos or soy sauce.
- Simmer until the wine has almost entirely evaporated, about 2 minutes.
- Add vegetable stock, thyme, and bay leaf. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, then uncover to let the stew thicken a bit, about 10 minutes more. Once the vegetables are tender, divide among bowls and top with fresh parsley.