Eggplant “Non-Parmesan”

My friend Beth gave me an assignment – create a vegan (non-dairy), gluten-free, fat-free (or close too it), additive-free Eggplant Parmesan to use in Sandwiches.

You know how I am, can’t resist a challenge. So I started experimenting. Many of the recipe components can be found on the Basic Recipes Page: Tapioca Eggs, Cashew Cheese and Quick Italian Red Sauce. Please refer to that page for the specific recipe otherwise this post is going to be way to long.

The Beef of Vegetables???

Over the weekend I spent a couple of hours surfing the net. I was on a mission:  finding some good kale recipes. Almost immediately I saw an an amazing article title: Kale, the Beef of Vegetables. Of all the odd titles I have stumbled across recently, this has to top the list!

My first thought. of course, was, “no wonder I don’t particularly like it!” Then I cracked up (I do tend to amuse myself, easily). Look, I’m really, really, really trying to eat it and like it. Damn it!  It is so good for my body that I should at least eat it and hopefully, learn to like it! 

When I finally quit laughing at myself, I settled down and read the article.  It was yet one more in a long series of articles extolling the virtues and benefits of kale.  Did you know that it is full of :

I got my Mojo Back! Made Veggies au Pistou ( a fancy French name for a basic Veggie Stew with Pasta and Pesto)

I am GREATLY relieved to be able to report that I have my cooking mojo back!  This week everything I cooked turned out well.  In fact better than well. . . it was all downright good!

Monday morning I went out a picked a great assortment of fresh veggies. Spinach, yellow squash and tomatoes shown here.  I also trimmed a big basket full of basil and a bunch of onions. 

In the fridge there were navy beans from last week, a head of lettuce and a big cucumber that we had gotten at Farmer’s Market.  It was obviously a Greek salad day.

We are now officially in summer and menus are guided by what I pick on any given more.  This morning I had LOTS of basil that was either going to get harvested or bolt.  I harvested.

Bad Week at Black Rock

Just so you know, Not everything I try is a success. I know that there are friends that think I am making it up.  After all I am a proficient cook with lots of experience and knowledge.

Now, it is true that I am a proficient cook with lots of experience and knowledge.  And yet, trust me, I have very bad cooking experiences!  Last week was an great example. . .  I was on a roll!

Red Beans and Rice

A big favorite in our household is Cajun Red Beans and Rice.  Traditionally cooked on Monday which was laundry day because cooking beans the traditional way is an all day (and sometimes close to two) process.  Taking the time is almost worth it since the pot of beans is to die for!

Any red bean will work – small, large, kidney.  The dish tastes  almost as good if you use pressure cooked red beans.  And you can always use canned kidney beans.  Whatever beans you decide to use the basic recipe methodology is the same.

Lasagna

David found a package of rice lasagna noodles the other day and said, “you know, I am really hungry for lasagna.  Think you can make a vegan version that tastes good?”

Nothing like a challenge!  Especially since lasagna is one of those quick meals that is perfect for a crowd. The trick, of course is to bake it on low heat with lots of liquid so you never have to precook the noodles!  I really have not made this dish since we gave up dairy last year so I figured I just wing it and see what happened.

The place to start was with my more or less standard combination of vegetables (carrots, zucchini, green pepper, onions, garlic and spinach). That was all easy!  The part that took a little thinking was what to use in place of ricotta cheese.

There are hundreds of cheese replacement recipes out on the net. Most of them are cashew based. I don’t know, there is something about the idea of cashew cheese/sour cream that just didn’t seem right. But a challenge is a challenge, so what the hell. . .

I have to say I was impressed!  This is something I would be happy to serve to anyone!  I am also willing to bet they would never know that it wasn’t a traditional lasagna with ricotta.

Cookbooks as Suggestions (or a few words about my recipes)

First of all, lets be clear that I consider cooking more art than science. The important disclaimer as that we are talking cooking not baking. Baking is kinda fiddly and requires much more science. But that said, I think of recipes as crude hand drawn maps. They give you a rough idea about the general direction you are planning to go.

Pasta And Veggies

There must be some Italian buried in my genes!  It would at least explain why I love pasta so much!  When David found out he was gluten intolerant I was pretty sure my life was over.  No more pasta??

Fortunately there are a lot of great gluten-free pastas on the market.  After trying brown and wild rice, corn and quinoa, we decided we like brown rice best.  But if you haven’t experiment with the kinds, you owe it to yourself to try.

This is my own version of veggie pasta based very loosely on a similar dish I once at at California Pizza Kitchen.

Rice and Veggies

Brown rice is probably our most flexible staple. We use it as breakfast cereal, for specialty rice dishes (like Spanish Rice),  salads or a quick add to bean based meals for an extra protein boost. 

At the end of every week we gather up any veggies we can find laying around, nuts and even beans. We throw them in a pan and add rice for a quick, thrifty meal. The trick is adding a good mix of herbs and mirepoix to give it great flavor without resorting to too much salt or soy sauce.

Here is what I found to use this week:

BASIC RICE AND VEGGIES 

1. In Dutch oven or big frying pan heat a liberal amount of oil and when hot add
• 1 chopped onion
• Garlic to taste
• 1/2 cup mirepoix
2. When onions are clear lower the heat
3. Add herbs; this will vary with the veggies you use, but in this one I added
• Basil
• Marjoram
• Dill
4. Add 1/2 cup chopped nuts (I like cashews and peanuts best).  Mix thoroughly with veggies and herbs
5. Chop the veggies (either by hand or with a food processor); this week I had and added:
• celery
• green pepper
• beet greens (from our garden)
• asparagus
• corn (left from corn on the cob)
6. When veggies start to soften add 1/2 to 1 cup water; cover tightly and cook about 5 minutes
7. Turn the heat up and add the final ingredients:
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1 big handful of spinach
• Salt (to taste)
• Small squeeze of lemon
8. Cook on high stirring constantly until spinach is totally wilted and cooked; serve hot

You can use just about any combination of vegetables. I try to balance the green and colored veggies. An alternative veggie mix would use green beans, zucchini, red chard, asparagus and cauliflower and fresh diced 2 tomatoes

Almost any nut will work – pine nuts, peanuts, almonds (especially slivered almonds) or pecans. If you are not vegan adding scrambled eggs is a nice touch.

If you don’t have brown rice you can use white rice, pasta or quinoa instead.

Your imagination is the only limit!

Bean Veggie Burgers

I grew up eating veggie patties.  Mom would serve them smothered in gravy and accompanied by potatoes and a veggies. Leftovers would be recycled as “hamburgers” for lunches or snacks.  We usually have some sort of veggie burger or veggie loaf in the fridge for exactly the same reason.

I probably have 25 versions of this recipe, but this happens to be the one I used today.

BEAN VEGGIE PATTIES/BURGERS

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees
2. Lightly oil a cookie sheet
3. In a large frying pan sauté 2 cups of grated veggies in olive oil.  The important thing is two cups of veggies not the kinds, but for the record here is what we used today was
• 1 medium onion
• Garlic to taste
• Mixed peppers (I use a mix of Jalapeno and Anaheim)
• 1 carrot
4. When onions are clear add herbs and spices and continue to cook 5 minutes longer (you may need to add a little extra oil):
• 1Tablespoons fresh thyme or 1Teaspoons dried
• 1 Teaspoons dried mustard or 1Tablespoon prepared mustard
• Optional:  1 teaspoon salt
• Optional:  1  teaspoon of cumin
5. While the veggies are sautéing, get out the food processor
• Grind 1/2 c of dried bread into crumbs
6. When the veggies are done throw them into the food processor with the dried bread crumbs and add
• 1 1/2 cup of black beans (or 1 15 oz can of drained black beans
• 1/4 cup applesauce or for those who are not vegan add 1 egg
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1 Teaspoon olive oil
7. Pulse the entire mixture in the food processor about 20 times or until it is well mixed and then empty it into a large bowl
8. Take a handful of the mixture and make it into a 3 inch ball; you should have  between 6 and 8 patties
9. Place on cookie sheet and bake for 1/2 hour
10. Pull patties out of the oven and turn over; once they are turned use the spatula to gently flatten each one out
11. Return to the oven and bake for 1/2 hour

If you are in a hurry or you don’t want to heat the kitchen up with the oven you can always fry them in a shallow pan.  In any case the extras make wonderful sandwiches.

Got any veggie burger recipes you want to share?  Send them to me! I will try them out and then publish them giving you full credit and a link to your email, blog or website.

Quick White Bean Soup

The advantage of cooking a big batch of beans on Sunday is that even after making the Baked Beans, I still have some extra.  There a probably a thousand ways to use extra beans.

One of my favorites is to make a quick soup to heat and eat for lunches or to add to dinner when you want a little something more.  Lots of nutrition and great low calorie treat.

This is a family favorite


Quick White Bean Soup
In a large frying pan or Dutch oven sauté in olive oil:

• Garlic to taste
• 1 medium onion
• 1/2 cup mirepoix
1. When onions are clear add herbs and spices and veggies. .Continue to cook 5 minutes longer (you may need to add a little extra oil):
• 2 Tablespoons fresh rosemary or 2 Teaspoons dried
• 2 Tablespoons fresh oregeno or 2 Teaspoons dried
• Optional herbs will depend on the greens you choose like dill, mustard, basil
• 1 cup of greens (whatever you have or can scrounge up like chard, spinach, kale, beet greens, turnip greens)
• 1t salt
2. Sauté until greens are completely wilted
3. Add
1. 2 cups (or 1 15oz can) cooked white beans
2. 1 15 oz cans of diced tomatoes or 2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
3. 2 c water  You may want to add more or less
4. Bring to a boil; turn down to simmer for 10-20 minutes

I often make this soup with more garlic, onions and herbs and leave out the tomatoes. It still is yummy

Southwestern Baked Beans

Beans are one of those wonderfully healthy foods.  High in fiber, protein and minerals and very low in calories. So when it comes to baked beans, I always been ambivalent about eating them. I like fact that they burst with flavor but all the brown sugar and molasses give me great pause.

Beans, especially white beans, are pretty much flavorless. So we decided to try something different.   Over the winter (when having the oven on felt great) we did a bunch of baked navy bean experiments and came up with our favorite. It is flavorful, filling and tastes as good with honey in it as without.


Southwest Baked Beans.

1. Soak 3 cups navy or any other white beans overnight and then pressure cook for 10 minutes (Or you can used precooked/canned white beans )
2. In a large frying pan or Dutch oven sauté in olive oil:
• Garlic to taste
• 1 medium onion
• 1 cup mixed peppers (I use a mix of Bell, Jalapeno and Anaheim)
• 1 cup mirepoix
3. When onions are clear add herbs and spices and continue to cook 5 minutes longer (you may need to add a little extra oil):
• 2 Tablespoons fresh basil or 2 Teaspoons dried
• 2 Tablespoons fresh oregeno or 2 Teaspoons dried
• 2 Tablespoons dried and ground mustard or 3 Teaspoons prepared mustard
• 1t salt
• Optional spices include cumin, dill, ginger and cilantro
4. Mix  together
• Cooked Beans from above
• Veges and herbs from above
• 1 15 oz cans of diced tomatoes or 2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
• 1 cup favorite salsa
• 2T honey; this is optional and mainly cuts the acid from the tomatoes
• Salt, Pepper and mustard to taste
5. Bake at 350 for 1 hour covered; uncover and continue to bake for 1-2 hours in a conventional oven. 

There are a couple of notable variations on this basic recipe. For example:

• If you do not want to heat up the kitchen cut the liquids by 25% and put the entire mixture into a crockpot or slow cook and let bake for 3-4 hours stirring occasionally
• Do not precook the beans add 25% more liquid and bake in the oven for 6-7 hours.  Be sure to stir about every hour and
• Do not precook the beans and cook them in the crockpot or slow cook cooker for 8-10 hours.  Stir occasionally and add liquid as needed

These beans work well with corn on the cob, potato salad, cole slaw, on toast and even as an accompaniment to veggie burgers.

Crunchy Granola

David loves granola, but most of it either contains lots of sugar and/or is filled with gluten containing grains like oats. 

We started on the quest for easy to make, sugar free, gluten free granola.  The first thing we found was gluten-free oats.  They are expensive, but worth it (maybe).  Oats worked well,  but I felt like they added a lot of carbs and for some reason seemed to have less fiber than the regular oats. The granola tasted good, but after a couple of hours I was ravenous. 

After a few experiments what we figured out is that things we like best are coconut, nuts and fruit.  So what about using nuts, seeds, coconut and dried fruit.  Good idea but the dried fruit got leathery and created the blood sugar drop.  The nuts and seeds didn’t really hold together to well. 

After a few tries here is the recipe that we like best.


GRANOLA

1. Measure out 2 cups of nuts and seeds; here is what I use:
   • 1 cup raw almonds
   • 1/3 cup raw cashews
   • 1/3 cup raw pecans
   • 1/3 cup sunflower seeds
2. Soak nuts and seeds overnight
3. The next morning preheat the oven to 200 degrees
4. Drain and rinse nuts well; spread them out on a clean towel and pat dry
5. Heat the following until liquid (I use the microwave when I am in a hurry):
   • 2-4 Tablespoons honey*
   • 3-4 Tablespoons coconut oil
6. Throw nuts into the food processor and add:
   • Liquid honey and coconut oil
   • Add 2 cups Rolled Oats (we use gluten free oats)
   • 1/2-1 Teaspoon vanilla extract
   • 4 Tablespoons chia seed
   • 1/2 cup dried shredded coconut
   • a pinch of salt
   • a pinch each of the spices you like best – cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves pumpkin pie spice etc.
7. Pulse the mixture until it is a size and consistency you like. I personally like bigger pieces but it really is a personal preference
8. Put mixture on parchment paper covered cookie sheet and bake for several hours (usually takes me 4-5). Be sure to stir about every 1/2 hour until nuts are roasted through
9. Cool and store in an airtight container; should last at least a month!

The bad news about this recipe is that it is very high in calories!  The good news is that 1/4 of a cup with fresh or dried fruit and diluted coconut milk with fill you up and leave you feeling full for a long time!

If you are short on time, or if you don't want to heat the kitchen up you can start with pre-roasted nuts; chop them in the food processor and then put them and all other dry ingredients (oats, chia seed, coconut, salt and spices) in a big bowl.  Liquefy honey and coconut oil and mix into dry ingredients.  Bake at 200 for about 1 hours.

I would love to hear what combinations you come up with for nuts and spices or any other ingredients you add.

*This actually tasted great without the honey and both Stevia and Agave syrup will work as substitutes.

Mirepoix - The French Secret

Every cook has their basic ingredients.  You know, the 10 essential things you NEED if you are going to cook! Let’s assume that salt and pepper are already in the vicinity. 

What else do you need? What I need are:

• Onions
• Garlic
• Celery
• Carrots
• Olive Oil
• Basil
• Marjoram
• Honey
• Cinnamon
• Cloves

Many of my entrees and soup start with the first five – onions, garlic celery, carrots and olive oil.  Sautéing them up every time I want to cook is a time waster and a nuisance! So I use the traditional French approach and keep mirepoix in my fridge. For those of you who have a little trouble with weird French pronunciation -- it is pronounced meer-pwah.

About once a week I pull out the food processor and make a good size batch. There are as many ways to make mirepoix as there are French and Cajun cooks.  Remember, making it is an very inexact science. It is a matter of taste and what you have available.  Honestly, it is a trial and error process. 

To help you I have written down my recipe as a guideline. There is really only one rule -- HAVE FUN!!


MIREPOIX – Flavor Magic
1. Lightly Cover frying pan bottom with olive oil and heat
2. While oil is heating chop the following in the food processor

• Celery (6 stalks or about 1 cup)
• Carrots (2 or 3 or about 1 cup)
• Onion- equal to celery and carrots (2 or 3 or about two cups)
• 4 or five fresh basil leaves or 1T of dried Basil

3. When oil is very hot add:

• Contents of the food processor from above 
• Garlic to taste*

4. Stir well and cook on high for about 5-10 minutes stirring occasionally.

*A note about garlic: I would not even attempt to give you a measurement on the garlic! Especially since it would be hard for me to define “too much”. We love the stuff and buy it at Costco or Sams Club in 48oz jars. It makes no sense to me to spend time peeling, crushing, dicing etc!   I won’t even tell you how long (actually short) 48 oz lasts us; you'd be appalled!