Eggplant and Pasta Bake

A simple dish for lunch or an evening meal.

Slice and saute 2 onions.
Slice into rounds and saute 1 eggplant.

Take a baking dish and place cooked eggplant on the base.
Combine onion, 1 can of tomatoes and 200 gm cooked pasta
Place mix on top of the eggplant
Cover with a thin layer of tomato sauce.
 Top with bread crumbs and grated tasty cheese.
 Oven bake at 180c for 30 minutes or until cheese browns.

New Complete Vegetarian

This book by Rose Elliot has proved of enormous help in cooking a variety of tasty meals for my vegetarian girl.

 Most of the recipes for this month came from this excellent volume. The thing I like about the book is its modern approach, low fat and light recipes that really on the vegetables to add the flavour to the dishes.

There are a comprehensive range of recipes here that cover not just vegetables but grains, pulses, pasta, rice and nuts. Recipes also look at mains and entrees as well as deserts.

There are very few illustrations the bulk of the book being taken up with recipes. The recipes are well written the instructions and techniques are simple to follow and the whole volume is very friendly to the home cook.

If you buy only one vegetarian cookbook this one should be the one

Cheesy Lentils

This is a quick and simple dish for a cold night.
Saute 1 diced onion until translucent.
Add one crushed garlic clove
Then add 2.5 cups of water
225gms of red lentils

Simmer for 25mins or until lentils are soft

Then just before serving add 125gms grated cheddar cheese

Season and serve with crusty bread.

Seen here with dirty rice

Banana and Maple Syrup Cake

This one comes from the March issue of Delicious.

Line and grease a 20cm square cake tin

Pour a thin layer of maple syrup on the base
Cut 2 ripe bananas in half and place in the syrup cut side down

Mix
 100gms butter (room temp)
185gms brown sugar
4 eggs
2tsp vanilla paste
1 mashed banana
200gms self raising flour
100 gms almond meal
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
200gms Greek yogurt

Poor the blended mixture over the bananas, being careful not to move them

Bake at 160c for 45 - 60 mins

Its done when a skewer comes out clean

Prick the base with the skewer and pour on additional maple syrup

Allow to stand for 5 minutes then turn onto a plate

Serve warm with ice cream or cream

Syrian Chicken

In case you have been wondering I have not become a vegetarian, this lovely recipe makes my point.

This is adapted from Karen Martini's book Cooking at Home.
Coat several pieces of chicken in a mixture of ground cumin, ground cinnamon, ground turmeric, salt and pepper
Brown chicken in a fry pan, set aside.

Saute
2 Diced Onions
100gms of ginger cut into matchsticks
5 garlic cloves smashed
2 roughly cut tomatoes
2 sliced red chillies
When soft return chicken to pan
Add
1tsp ground cumin
Liberal sprinkle of thyme
2 tbs honey
Zest and juice of one lemon
Half a cup of sultanas
3 tsp vegetable stock
Cover all with water (don't go overboard) simmer to reduce and thicken sauce

Serve on a bed of cous cous or rice

Eggplant Quiche

Sauté in olive oil
2 diced onions
1 diced red capsicum
1 chopped eggplant
1 sliced garlic clove

Prepare 1 shortcrust pastry shell

Place a layer of grated tasty (cheddar cheese) on base
Top with vegetable mix and extra cheese

Pour over 2 eggs whisked together with 125mls milk

Oven bake for about 50 mins at 180c

Zucchini Stuffed and Baked

Take 2 zucchini and cut in half and remove flesh.

Meanwhile dice some brown mushrooms
Dice 1 garlic clove
1 large diced tomato
Mash zucchini flesh
Saute in olive oil until soft
Season with salt and pepper
Add a splash of lemon juice and 1/4 cup of bread crumbs

Place the Zucchini shells in an oiled baking dish
Fill with the sautéed mixture
Top with a handful of grated mozzarella, bread crumbs and grated tasty cheese
Oven bake until golden

Eggplant Stuffed with Chickpeas

Start with sauteing a diced brown onion
Add 2 cloves of diced garlic
Take an eggplant cut in half and remove flesh and dice
Sear  the two halves of eggplant

When softened add:
1 can crushed chick peas
2tsp ras al hanout
Thinly cut flat leaf parsley
Generous dash of lemon juice
Stuff the eggplant
Cover with cheese
Brown in oven

Spinach Bake 2

Start with spraying olive oil on the base of a baking dish.

Place a layer of spinach leaves
Sprinkle lightly with low fat mozzarella
Place a layer of sliced brown mushrooms
Break up and scatter one small goats cheese
Cut in half marinated stuffed bell peppers and layer
Add a second layer of spinach
Top with low fat grated cheddar
Pour on sauce

Sauce:
The sauce is always made in a ratio, so you make as much or as little as you want.
1 egg
1 cup of flour
salt pepper
1 cup of milk
1tsp baking powder ( this does not have to be greatly changed)
Seasoning of choice eg mustard, spices, chilli etc
Blend well

Chicken with Road Kill Potatoes and Leek and Mushroom Sauce

This is a nice combination of flavours for a meal.

Chicken:
Take a number of chicken pieces, season well and brown on all sides, then oven roast 180c 45 mins

Road Kill Potato:
Boil your potatoes skin on
Roughly crush on a papered tray
Season with salt and pepper and ras al hanout
Drizzle liberally with olive oil
Oven bake 180c 40 minutes or until browned.

Leek and Mushroom
Slice one clove of garlic
Slice the leek finely
Slice the mushroom
Saute in olive oil
Stir through 130ml light cream

Spinach Cheese Bake

This is a simple vegetarian dish that has potential for lots of additions, keep looking they will appear shortly.

Take 1 packet of baby spinach leaves and line the bottom of a greased baking dish.

Cover with a combination of shredded Mozzarella and cheddar cheese

Then combine 1.3 cups of flour
2 eggs
1.3 cups of milk
1tsp baking powder
2 tsps mustard powder
1tsp nutmeg
1tsp cayenne pepper
Salt & pepper
Beat until combined

Pour liquid over the cheese

Oven bake at 180c for about 40 mins or until golden

For a healthier option use a baking spray low fat cheese and skim milk.

As we are not all vegetarians you might like to add some meat, in my case some roast beef.

Chinese Salmon

Take 2 skinless portions of salmon and marinate in soy sauce, kechap manis, peanut oil

Meanwhile saute in peanut oil
1 sliced one onion
2 sliced cloves of garlic
2 thinly cut red chillies
1 pak choy (reserve leaves for the end)
3cm ginger cut into matchsticks
Handful of sweet corn kernels

Serve with rice.

Savoury Mushroom

Take 1 large flat mushroom
Remove stem and stuff with

Diced marinated artichoke hearts
Diced spring onion
Diced garlic
Cover with cheese and oven bake at 180c

Serve with miso flavoured rice.