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As costs keep rising, we're all looking for ways to make our hard-earned dollars stretch as far as they possibly can.

One thing many people have in their freezer are frozen veggies, and some Atlantic Canada cooks and chefs have some creative and budget-friendly ways to use them to make more than a quick side dish.

Olivia Biermann of Halifax, N.S. is the creator of the Liv B blog and YouTube channel. She focuses on a mix of comfort and health-conscious recipes while keeping everything entirely plant-based.

Biermann loves making Coconut Almond Veg and Rice Bowls.

“This tasty meal requires only five ingredients, which is perfect when you’re low on groceries but don’t want to order takeout (again)," she says.

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“I always keep a bag of mixed frozen vegetables on hand for quick meals and recipes like this one. The sauce has only three ingredients but is super creamy, a little bit spicy and so satisfying.”

  Coconut Almond Veg and Rice Bowl

Cook the rice according to the package directions. Fluff with a fork and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) vegetable oil in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Add the veggies and cook for about six minutes, stirring occasionally, until heated through and starting to brown.

Add the coconut milk, almond butter, Sriracha sauce and a pinch of salt; stir to combine. Cook for about three minutes, stirring frequently, until the sauce thickens slightly.

Divide the cooked rice between two bowls and spoon the vegetables over top; serve.

"You can easily substitute any smooth nut or seed butter in this recipe," she adds. "Peanut butter, tahini and sunflower seed butter all work well here."

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Chef Trisha Gordon lives on P.E.I.’s North Shore, where she writes a vegan food blog and does freelance recipe development and photography.

The inspiration for her recipe came during a trip to Switzerland to visit her brother and family.

“My sister-in-law made me a vegan green pea soup. I was impressed because it tasted just like one I remember making before I was vegan," she says.

"I made it at home and even in restaurants to serve to customers. I asked her for her recipe, which she gave me. It was indeed similar.”

In the original version of the recipe, Gordon used whipping cream.

“This recipe uses vegan sour cream or creme fraiche. Either way, it's a delicious soup and I love having it in my repertoire.”

Gordon says the great thing about this soup recipe is “you can make something delicious using only a handful of ingredients. It's embarrassingly simple and surprisingly yummy.”

  Green Pea Soup with Vegan Sour Cream & Fresh Mint

Heat vegan butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring here and there, until softened (about five minutes).

Add 400 g of the frozen peas. Stir.

Add veg stock. Season again with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. Gently simmer for five to 10 minutes, or until peas are tender.

Add vegan sour cream and blend everything together with an immersion blender until smooth. If the soup is quite thick, you can thin it out with a bit more vegetable stock or water.

Taste. Add a couple pinches of paprika, a squeeze or two of lemon juice and salt and pepper as needed.

Stir in the remaining 100 g of peas and heat through.

Divide soup into bowls and garnish with fresh mint. Add a drizzle of olive oil or vegan creme if desired.

"Don't leave out the fresh mint to garnish if you can help it. It's really good," adds Gordon.

Drs. Arjun and Shobha Rayapudi are both board-certified lifestyle medicine doctors and co-founders of Gift of Health, a non-profit organization based in Burin, N.L. that's dedicated to revolutionizing lives through lifestyle medicine.

“Through the Gift of Health, we are teaching people the concepts of using food as medicine to break free from disease, drugs and transform their health through better food and lifestyle,” they say.

Drs. Arjun and Shobha Rayapudi offer their Healthy Junk Food Recipe Book for download free of charge.

The five-minute vegetable soup recipe they created fits the bill. It's very easy to make and the amount shown in the recipe would be good for one person, but could be increased to make more servings.

“The best thing about this recipe is that it is very easy and quick to make, tastes delicious and is full of nutrients.”

Prep time: Less than five minutes

Mix all ingredients and heat until warm, either in the microwave (for three to four minutes) or on a stovetop (stovetop works best).

Jessica Mitton is a culinary nutrition expert and an award-winning certified holistic nutritional consultant. In 2018, Mitton published her cookbook, Some Good: Nutritious Newfoundland Dishes, which was a 2019 Taste Canada Award finalist in the Health and Special Diet Cookbooks category.

This cookbook has been called a new kind of Newfoundland cookbook.

“Some Good is a fusion of healthy food and local traditions," she explains.

These recipes include appetizers, main meals, sides, desserts, and condiments, all utilizing island ingredients with new twists on Newfoundland classics like fish cakes, Jiggs’ Dinner, seafood chowder, and many more.

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"Every recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, and made without refined sugars. More than a collection of recipes, Some Good provides a whole new way of thinking about Newfoundland food.”

In 2020, she released her latest cookbook, Some Good: Sweet Treats.

Mitton's curry lentil root stew - featured in her first cookbook - takes advantage of the abundance of root veggies in Newfoundland.

“While we make good use of our roots, the ways we cook them and incorporate them tends to be pretty same-y. It’s always nice to take the whole ingredients you have readily available and experiment a little,” she says.

“I wanted to take those common root vegetables and infuse them with some non-traditional ingredients to come up with a new dish with a different flavour.”

The result is a flavourful stew.

“This curry lentil root stew is brought to you by the abundance of roots found in Newfoundland, and the always-satisfying wonder of culinary creativity," she adds.

Prep time: 15 minutes; Cook time: 1 hour

Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Add onion and half teaspoon of salt, and cook until onions become translucent, around 10 minutes.

Add garlic, one-quarter cup of water, curry powder, and turmeric. Cook for 1 minute.

Stir in lentils and the remaining 4 3/4 cups of water, and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Add carrots, sweet potato, turnip, remaining half teaspoon of salt, and pepper. Simmer for another 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

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