Italian Antipasti Marinated Mushrooms

These marinated mushrooms are perfect for adding to salads or served as part of an Antipasto plate. Small white button mushrooms are boiled in a vinegar mixture along with garlic, herbs, and diced pimentos. Then, the cooked mushrooms are stored in the brine which helps to preserve them. Because this recipe is oil-free, the mushrooms will actually keep for longer, up to 2 weeks in the fridge!

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A couple weeks ago, I found myself at the Antipasto salad bar at the grocery store, checking out all the pickled foods and olives when I came across some seriously delicious looking marinated mushrooms. I picked some up and definitely enjoyed them, but they were covered in oil, and that just didn’t seem necessary. It didn’t really add anything to the flavor and if anything it made them a bit slimy.

So I decided to try and make my own version, completely free of oil, but still just as flavor-packed and tangy. It turns out, the oil really doesn’t serve any purpose at all. In fact, not using any oil means that these will keep for much longer because the acidity of the vinegar works to preserve the mushrooms and garlic.

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You can add these to salads and wraps, or even slice them and add them to sandwiches. For the most part though, we like to snack on them when browsing the fridge.

If you ever find yourself with too many mushrooms and need a fast way to preserve them, this is the perfect recipe for that situation. The ingredients are minimal and simple, and you can change it up by adding in which ever herbs you prefer.

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For storing these mushrooms, you can use any sealed container or jar you like, but storing them in glass is ideal. I think it’s best to just repurpose old leftover jars of sauce or other leftover jars, but if you’re into fancy Italian glassware, I love my Bormioli Rocco Fido jars (affiliate link). They have lasted me years and not only do they look beautiful, they also hold up to the dishwasher and even have survived being dropped.

To watch the whole simple cooking process, check out my recipe video. Note: I don’t have a small deep pot that works with my induction burner which I use to film recipes, so I opted for a sauce pan, but boiling these in a small deep pot would be best and requires much less frequent stirring over the course of the cooking time.

I hope you enjoy this tasty mushroom recipe!



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Walking around our hazy forest & a big bunny yawn

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This past Sunday, we drove out to our property in the forest to walk around and see how it looks in the hazy, smoky wildfire weather that we've been experiencing this past week here just outside of Seattle, Washington. 

NASA IMages of the wildfires and smoke

NASA IMages of the wildfires and smoke

The smoke was so thick that the sun could only break through occasionally, but when it did the quality of the light became almost cinematic and orange-tinged. I didn't bring my camera out but I had my cell phone, so I took a few photos anyway. 

Our house building site

Our house building site

We're just about ready to submit our building permits and hopefully start building our house within the next year, but we're in no big rush and we're making sure to spend a lot of time on the house design before finalizing everything. 

The land we purchased is seven acres in an old logging forest with some evidence of old growth tree stumps. One particular stump and downed tree that we have is 600 years old! The majority of the trees currently standing are new growth evergreen trees, around 50-60 years old.

The climate in the Pacific Northwest makes our forest a temperate rainforest, full of lush ferns, evergreen trees, and moss blanketing everything.

sword ferns and mossy logs

sword ferns and mossy logs

scraggly moss-covered maple near the wetland

scraggly moss-covered maple near the wetland

View on the Noth side, looking towards thousands of acres of logging forest owned by of Department of Natural Resources 

View on the Noth side, looking towards thousands of acres of logging forest owned by of Department of Natural Resources 

orange smoke-diffused light on the trees

orange smoke-diffused light on the trees

It can be a little difficult to traverse the land sometimes with the occasionally unstable, perpetually decaying forest floor.

It can be a little difficult to traverse the land sometimes with the occasionally unstable, perpetually decaying forest floor.

The meadow full of sword ferns and alder trees in front of our house building site

The meadow full of sword ferns and alder trees in front of our house building site

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It's not quite mushroom season here yet- we usually see the most mushrooms/fungi here in October once the rains begin, but we did find a few on this particular walk. I'm not sure exactly what this one is, but it looks like a kind of shelf fungi. 

Black Bear, wildlife camera

Black Bear, wildlife camera

We have a wildlife camera tied around a tree facing a path that we, as well as many of the forest animals, frequently walk. We've seen black bears and deer so far, but we also have cougars, which we have yet to see, fortunately. 

Deer, wildlife camera

Deer, wildlife camera

When we got home in the evening, our bunny Violet, who is not used to spending much time alone, was very happy to see us and made sure she was the center of attention and cuddled with for the rest of the night. 

Anthony found himself with our video camera in a slow-motion setting at just the right moment to capture this very relaxed stretch and slightly terrifying yawn. 

We're staying inside now that the smoke has become much more thick over the past few days and trying to minimize the negative health implications of breathing in all of those particles, but it was interesting to see how it changed the light in the forest and spend a little time out in nature.

I hope everyone else has had a relaxing weekend and that you're safe and far away from all of the wildfires and heavy smoke. 

I'll be back with more recipes (and recipe videos) very soon!

Vegan Pizza Soup with Bell Pepper & Mushrooms

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This hearty soup has everything you love about pizza all in one bowl. The only thing missing is the crust, but if you want the full experience just serve this soup up with some fresh bread! 

When I first started making this variations of this recipe I didn't intend to call it pizza soup, but every time I'd make it my partner would tell me it tastes like pizza. I've since come to fully embrace idea of pizza flavors being in a soup and so I've tried to make it a bit more pizza-like each time which resulted in this thoroughly pizza inspired soup creation.

I chose to use classic pizza topping veggies like mushrooms and bell peppers and I also added in barley and white beans to make the soup extra filling and give it a bit more texture and substance. If you're not into barley feel free to leave it out, but it you like an extra thick soup it definitely lends itself to that consistency. 

The fresh herbs give this soup an authentic pizza flavor.  While I used dried oregano for convenience, I opted to use fresh basil and thyme as well which if you can find them fresh they really add such a good flavor. 

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While this soup is still delicious without the parmesan topping, I find that pairs nicely with the tomato sauce and gives it such a realistic pizza flavor. Check out my Vegan Parmesan recipe for a super quick and easy way to make your own at home and enjoy the extras on all sorts of food, it's seriously so good on almost anything savory. 

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This recipe requires a little bit of chopping, but it cooks up on the stovetop in just 30 minutes making it a perfect weeknight recipe! It's also oil-free and full of whole grains, healthy plant protein, and fiber to keep you feeling healthy and vibrant.

If you love pizza, give this soup a try and let me know what you think of it! 

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Miso Ramen Veggie-Packed Soup with Tofu and Bok Choy [Oil-Free, Gluten-Free, Vegan]

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This isn't your typical restaurant-style, enjoy-before-your-actual-meal miso soup. This miso ramen recipe is a fully satisfying veggie-packed main course. 

I love miso soup, but I often find myself a little underwhelmed and not quite as satiated as I'd like. Many of the miso soup recipes I've tried in the past have lots of noodles and even tofu but are lacking in the colorful crunchy veggies that make me so happy and satisfied. So I loaded this recipe up with some of my favorite fibrous whole plant foods which made for a miso soup that can actually hold up as it's own full meal. 

Depending on what you currently have going on in your fridge, you can add in whichever veggies you're currently working with. Some of my favorites which I used in this soup included, mushrooms, bok choy, carrots, and purple cabbage. Other veggies that could work well in this might be bell pepper, broccoli, chard, or spinach. 

No matter what veggies you choose what really makes a good miso soup is the broth of course! White miso is a fermented salty paste made from soybeans and gives it that classic miso soup flavor. In addition to that I like to add a little hot sauce and tamari for an extra kick of flavor. 

Something that really ups the wow-factor when serving this is searing the bok choy until it's golden brown. You don't need any oil to make this happen, just slice the bok choy in half the long way and then place it sliced side down in a hot pan, using a wooden spoon to press it down until it get's some color to it. While this isn't necessary, it makes for a beautiful final presentation, but if you're just looking to eat it as fast as possible you can skip this step and rip the bok choy into individual leaves then add it at the end in the last 2 minutes of cooking. 

I hope you enjoy this veggie-loaded miso soup! If you try it out and post a photo, tag me on instagram @herenownutrition or leave a comment down below. 


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Hot & Sour Cabbage Soup

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This hot & sour cabbage soup is one of my favorite new soup recipes. I've never been super enthusiastic about cabbage before, but since throwing this recipe together, I feel completely different about it now. Somehow the combination of sour with spicy fits so well with the purple cabbage and brings out it's best qualities.

Purple cabbage is the healthiest kind of cabbage because it has the most antioxidants. Green cabbage will also work in this recipe, but not carry quite the same nutritional load. Plus the purple color it gives the soup is so pretty!

Recently I've started adding a bit of sauerkraut to this soup along with some of the juices, and that adds to the delicious sour flavor, but if you don't have access to good fresh sauerkraut that comes in a jar in the refrigerated section, feel free to omit it and replace with an extra tablespoon of lime juice. The tofu is also optional. The cabbage and mushrooms are hearty enough that it's not entirely necessary, but it does make the soup more filling. 

This soup recipe was inspired by the Dr. McDougall's hot & sour ramen noodle instant soup. When we were travelling in our trailer across the country, we loved the convenience of having instant soups at rest stops and campsites along the way, but they're not an ideal health food at all. I wanted to make my own version that was full of healthy veggies instead and the result was this delicious cabbage soup.

If you try this recipe, leave a comment down below! 

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