Not So Spicy Eggplant

Okay, so we are moving in a day and I am trying to pare down on my recipe books. I have a wok and stir fry one that I only ever use one recipe from. I figure it would be more prudent to just post the recipe and give the book away (any takers? I've also got a bread machine book. If not, they will find a happy home at DI). Anyway, the dish's title is Spicy Eggplant, but I don't do spicy. So don't be afraid of the title, because I don't even think it tastes spicy.

1 lb eggplant, rinsed

2 tsp salt

3 T veg oil

2 garlic cloves, crushed (or minced)

2 T fresh ginger

1 fresh red chili (maybe this adds heat? I've never had it on hand, so I've never used it)

1 onion, halved and sliced

2 T soy sauce

1 T hoison sauce

1/2 tsp chili sauce (never used this either, actually)

1 T dark brown sugar

1 T wine vinegar

1 tsp ground Szechuan pepper (okay, so now I'm seeing why this is called spicy eggplant :P I've always omitted this ingredient, too)

1 1/4 c veg boullion

Cut eggplants into cubes. Place in strainer and sprinkle with salt. Let stand 30 minutes. Rinse under cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Heat oil and add garlic, ginger, onion, and fresh chili. Cook 30 seconds and add the eggplant. Continue to cook for 1-2 minutes. Add soy sauce, hoison sauce (I suppose it may be compensation for the spices I omit, but I always end up using more than 1 T of hoison sauce.. so maybe you'll want to add to taste), chili sauce, brown sugar, wine vinegar, Szechuan pepper, and veggie boullion, reduce heat and let simmer, uncovered for 10 minutes or until eggplants are cooked/tender. Increase heat to reduce sauce until thickened enough to coat eggplants. Serve immediately.

Cauliflower Pesto

Okay, so I like cauliflower! It's just such a versatile veggie. This recipe is a tasty, and extremely easy, way to eat it as part of a main course.

Steam the florets until tender, then puree in a blender. As needed, add the same water that you used to steam the cauliflower (you'll retain more nutrients this way). Continue to puree. Once you've achieved a creamy consistency, add pesto (storebought or homemade). Start with a little pesto and blend each time you add some, to distribute the flavor. Do this until the amount of pesto flavor suits you. Salt enhances the flavor, so use the same method- a pinch at a time- to season to your taste. And that is it. You can eat it over pasta...... but my favorite way to eat it is over cooked spaghetti squash. I am telling you, a nothing-but-veggies entreé never tasted so good!

Roasted Cauliflower

Thanks to Tiffany, I don't think I will ever cook cauliflower any other way. Unless I'm making cauliflower pesto, a recipe I'm going to post in a minute. It is SO good. Tiffany's method may differ a little, but I've been doing it this way:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Wash/Break apart cauliflower into florets.

Spread out on cookie sheet.

Drizzle with olive oil.

Bake for 15-20 minutes. If you leave the oven at 400, then bake a full 20 minutes... but I like to only bake for 15, then switch the oven to broil for 2, 3 minutes max.... because I like the stalks a little crisp.

Salt to preference.... and devour :)

Cashew Ginger Sauce

Okay, so the recipe is really for Cashew Ginger Tofu, and it is delicious. But, I've been trying to rely a whole lot less on soy for my protein, so I've just been making the sauce and eating it over quinoa, which contains more protein than any other grain. So yummy... especially with some roasted cauliflower on the side.

The full recipe follows.... simply omit the tofu if you just want the sauce. You could even just cook the sauce in a pan instead of baking. I'm telling you, the sauce rocks!

1/3 cup cashew butter (all I do is blend up the cashews until they're at a fine consistency)
3½ tbsp tamari (I sub soy sauce)
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 large cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
2 tbsp agave nectar (I sub honey)
¾ cup water
1 pkg (12-oz/350-g) firm or extra-firm tofu (frozen or fresh), sliced ¼–½ -in (5–10-mm) thick squares and patted to remove excess moisture

Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Using a hand blender or food processor, combine cashew butter, tamari, vinegar, garlic, ginger, and agave nectar and purée, until cashew butter is incorporated and mixture is smooth. Add water and purée again until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Pour a little of mixture into an 8x12-in (20x30-cm) baking dish to cover bottom, then add tofu and pour in remaining sauce to cover evenly. At this point, either cover and refrigerate to marinate for 1 hour or more, or bake immediately. To bake, cover with aluminium foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove cover, stir well, and bake again uncovered for 5–7 minutes, until sauce has thickened (lightly stir if necessary). Do not overbake, or the sauce will become too thick and pasty.

Note: Leftovers of this tofu are terrific paired with veggies and rolled into a rice paper wrap, or baked in a tortilla wrap.

Note: The ginger adds 'heat' to the sauce, but if you want to kick it up some more, add a few shakes of crushed red chili flakes... to your liking.

recipe & notes from Vive Le Vegan.

Zuppa Toscana

Am I still allowed to post on this?? Chante, I tried this soup and loved it. Who knew kale was so yummy? Okay, maybe you did, but not us.... My mom loves the vegetarian (Morningstar?) sausage and they would work great. And I know mayo sounds sick, but I have an uber-healthy cookbook (dairy-free) that uses Vegannaise in place of dairy sometimes to add the needed fat and white color. Enough with the disclaimers, though.

2 Tbs. olive oil
1 lg. onion, chopped
4 c. chicken broth
4 medium potatoes, diced (OR 2-3 c. frozen hash browns)
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
3/4 lb. mild italian sausage (OR 2-3 sausage patties, chopped)
4 c. kale, de-stemmed and chopped (discard stems)
1/2 c. heavy cream (OR 1/2 c. mayonnaise)
opt. parmesan cheese

1-In a large pot, heat olive oil. Saute onion until translucent, about 10 minutes.

2-Add broth, potatoes, kale, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes.

3-Meanwhile, cook sausage until browned/thoroughly cooked.

4-Add sausage and cream (or mayo) to soup. If using mayo, whisk with a small amount of broth taken from the pot; this way it incorporates completely.
Garnish with parmesan shavings if desired.

Mac O Geez

From the Vive Le Vegan blog:

Pasta:
2 3/4 - 3 cups (~10 oz) dry cut pasta (ex: macaroni, penne) (I use brown rice pasta, see note)

Sauce:
1/2 + 1/3 cup raw cashews
1/2 cup raw brazil nuts
3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 large clove garlic
2 tsp arrowroot powder (flour or cornstarch works just as good here)
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp (rounded) dry mustard
1 cup water
1 1/3 – 1 1/2 cups plain non-dairy milk (I use unsweetened plain almond milk, but you can also use plain soy or rice milk) *(use the full 1 1/2 cups of milk if using full 3 cups of dry pasta)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Breadcrumb Topping:
1 - 1 1/2 cups dry whole-grain breadcrumbs (I use Ian's whole-wheat brand) (use full 1 1/2 cups if you like crunchy topping, only 1 cup if you prefer more mac and sauce... like me!)
1 1/2 - 2 tbsp olive oil (use full 2 tbsp for full 1 1/2 cups of breadcrumbs)
1/8 tsp (rounded) sea salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Get all ingredients ready to blend for sauce, then start cooking pasta. While pasta is cooking, blend all sauce ingredients in a blender or in a deep bowl with an immersion blender (beging blending the nuts and other ingredients with about 1/2 of the liquid to smooth it out, then when smooth, add remaining liquid and blend again until entire mixture is very smooth). Once pasta is almost tender, fully drain (don’t rinse). Mix noodles with sauce, and immediately pour into a lightly oiled 8 x 12” baking dish. (it will look like there is a lot of runny sauce – it will thicken up, trust the pasta!) Mix breadcrumb toppings in a small bowl, then sprinkle over top of casserole. Cover with foil and bake for 16-18 minutes. Then, remove foil cover and bake another 5-7 minutes or until topping is golden brown and crisped. Don’t overbake or sauce will get too thick. Remove from oven and place casserole on a hot plate (rather than on top of oven, since residual heat from oven will continue to thicken the sauce). Serve!

Notes:
1) This may not seem like a lot of pasta for this dish… but once it cooks and soaks up some of the sauce, this dish makes enough to happily serve 4. Don’t be tempted to use more pasta – you’ll lose out on the sauce and instead will have a dry casserole.

2) If you have leftovers (IF!), place in a heatproof dish. Drizzle in a touch of non-dairy milk to remoisten the mixture while baking. Cover and bake until heated through, then remove cover for a couple of minutes to crisp up the topping again.

Heart-Healthy Spelt Bread ♥

love, love, love this spelt bread recipe! The author suggests using some white spelt for a lighter, fluffier bread, but I used all whole spelt and it is still pretty light. Yumminess. I smathered a slice with smart balance and drizzled it with honey. More yumminess.

(See, half the loaf has disappeared already!)

Spelt Bread
by Rebecca Wood (posted at http://www.thenewhomemaker.com)
Yield: Two 8 ½" x 4 ½" loaves
For a lighter flavor and texture, use up to 50% white spelt flour. Some people who are sensitive to common wheat are able to enjoy spelt bread.
Note: it is important that you don't over-knead spelt dough.
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2 cups warm water (105° to 110° F)
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons melted butter
2 teaspoons sea salt
6 cups spelt flour (use any combination of whole or white spelt)
Combine the yeast, water and honey in a large warm bowl. Let stand for 10 minutes or until the yeast softens. Stir in the butter and salt and 3 cups of the flour. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon. Add the remaining flour in increments until the dough becomes too stiff to stir, then place the dough on a lightly floured surface. Knead for about 6 minutes, adding any remaining flour as necessary, until the dough becomes smooth and elastic. Do not overknead.
Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free spot for about 2 hours or until doubled in bulk.
Grease two 8 ½" x 4 ½" loaf pans. Punch the dough down to deflate it and divide it in half. Form each half into a smooth loaf and place in a prepared pan. Cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free spot for about 1 hour or until the dough has risen to the top of the pans.
Preheat the oven to 350° F.
Uncover the risen loaves. Place the pans on a heavy baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes or until the tops are light brown and crusty. Remove from the oven and tap out of the pan into the baking sheet. Turn the oven off and return the breads to the oven to crisp for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.
Note- I don't know if it was the higher altitude or that I put the loaf pans on a pizza stone... or what, but these only required about 35 minutes to bake, then I popped them out of the pan and back onto the stone for just another 2 minutes.