An Oozy Eggplant Stack

Still struggling through life without meat, I've been trying to get creative with some new vegetarian dishes.  Eggplant is a great meat substitute as it is a very hearty vegetable with a solid, meaty texture.  However, it does not contain any of the nutritional benefits of meat, so make sure you are getting your protein elsewhere. 

I wanted to achieve a different taste sensation in each layer - the sweet tomato sauce, the meaty eggplant, the creamy mozzarella, a hit of hot peppery arugula''.  I knew I was about to get a little piece of heaven when I saw the mozzarella come oozing out with my first cut.  I was not disappointed when I shoveled a massive bite into my mouth, it was absolutely delicious, DELICIOUS.

Although, eggplant is not as bitter as it once was, when I'm using a

large eggplant, I usually salt it to draw out the additional moisture.  Place the slices on a rack and generouslly sprinkle with course salt.  After 30 minutes, quickly rinse and pat dry.

Ingredients

2 1/2 tbsp olive oil, divided
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced, divided
1 14-oz can (400 g) whole tomatoes in juice
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup basil, finely chopped
2 eggplants, sliced into rounds
1 cup flour
1 ½ cups canola oil
¼ tsp red pepper flakes
4 cups arugula (rocket), chopped
2 mozzarella balls, sliced into rounds

Directions

1. Heat 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cooks, stirring, until softened.

2. Meanwhile, blend tomatoes with juice in a blender until almost smooth. Add tomatoes, water, and sugar to saucepan and simmer for about 10 minutes. Stir in basil and season.

3. Add canola oil to deep sauce pan over high heat. Place flour in a shallow dish and dredge eggplant slices, shaking off excess. Pan-fry until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Drain on paper towel.

4. Add remaining tbsp oil to a small saucepan over medium-high heat and cook remaining garlic with red-pepper flakes, stirring, until golden, about 1 minute. Remove from heat, stir through arugula, and season.

5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C). To arrange stacks, use 4 ring molds on a baking sheet. Place 2 tsp of tomato sauce on the bottom of each and top with a slice of eggplant. Arrange mozzarella over eggplant and top with 2 tsp of tomato sauce. Add another layer of eggplant and top with 1/4 of arugula mixture. Top with another slice of eggplant and 2 tsp of tomato sauce. Bake for 15 minutes.

6. Serve with a drizzle of olive oil and garnish with basil strips and torn mozzarella.

Who needs meat?

I promise it tastes better than it looks!!

My Tiramisu might not be the most beautiful dessert you've ever laid your eyes on, but there's a reason why this popular Italian cake is seen on menus all over the world.  No one can deny the overwhelming sensation you get when you sink your teeth into this decadent treat.  It's sweet and rich while still light, cool and refreshing.  This heavenly dessert literally melts in your mouth! 

Basically, it is made of savoiardi bisuits (lady fingers) dipped in strong coffee, layered with a whipped mixture of mascarpone or custard, and topped with cocoa.  Follow these few basics steps and come up with your own rendition!  Make sure to allow enough time to chill (at least 4 hours).  This isn't a dessert that you can whip up right before dinner! 

Tiramisu

Ingredients

3 eggs, whites and yolks separated
1 cup caster sugar (superfine)
300 mL mascarpone cheese  (about 10 oz)
1 1/2 cups strong coffee
1/4 cup brandy
1 20-count package of savoiardi biscuits (lady fingers)
1 tbsp dark chocolate, grated
1 tbsp cocoa, sifted

Directions

1. Beat egg yolk and sugar together until pale.  Fold in mascarpone and set aside.

2. In separate bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form.  Fold into mascarpone mixture.  By beating the egg whites separately, you will keep the mixture very light and fluffy.

3. Mix coffee and brandy in flat bottomed bowl.  Quickly dip each biscuit to absorb the mixture without become soggy.  Line the base of your dish with half of the biscuits.  Choose an appropriately sized dish for this task.

4. Cover biscuits with half of mascarpone mixture.  Combine grated chocolate and cocoa and sprinkle over lightly.  Repeat with another layer of soaked biscuits and remaining mascarpone mixture Chill in the refrigerator for atleast 4 hours.

5. Just before serving, sprinkle with remaining chocolate and cocoa.

For my next tiramisu, I'm going to try out making my own sponge instead of using saviordi biscuits!  I think I might use Grand Marnier instead of brandy and throw in some orange zest for a fresh and summery taste!

Easy Lenten Meal!

No, it's not Friday, but in a moment of insanty, I chose to give up meat for Lent... this is not going to be an easy 40 days.  I almost always incorporate meat in my meals so this will force me to expand my horizons a bit and create some new meatless dishes that will still be satisfying.  Not that last night's dinner really 'expanded my horizons' but let me set the scene... can't eat meat, temperatures have cooled drastically for a couple days, slightly sore throat, fridge full of veggies, homemade chicken stock in the freezer... maybe you know where I'm going with this?

I absolutely love homemade soups and they are so easy!  I always make a big batch so we can enjoy some leftovers!  After a few easy steps, we had a hearty and healthy pot of soup to enjoy for a couple of days.  For this vegetable soup, I literally used all of the veggies that I could find in the fridge - celery, zucchini, green beans, cabbage, corn... there aren't too many standard veggies that won't fit the bill . I started the soup by sweating some onions and garlic, and stirred in the celery after a few minutes.  I then tossed in a big bowl of veggies, cooked for a few minutes, and covered with chicken stock.  After bringing to a simmer, I added a can of tomatoes (undrained), a can each of drained and rinsed red kidney beans and cannellini beans, threw in a couple bay leaves, seasoned, and simmered for about 30 minutes.  I had a few fresh tomatoes as well so I seeded, chopped, and threw those in last minute.         

I found some whole wheat pasta in the pantry so I decied to add it to the vegetable soup to make it a bit more filling .  I like to cook my pasta separately and add to each serving as I HATE mushy pasta in soup.  I threw in a few leaves of spinach just before serving so they would wilt slightly but maintain the shape and flavor. 

The point of this story is that you don't need a recipe.  Play around, use what you have, be creative.  I also find it very important to taste as you go.  As my stock was homemade, I added a bit more salt than I probably would have if I had used store bought stock that already contains quite a bit of sodium. 

I am looking forward to enjoying some delicious and healthy vegetarian meals over the next month or so.  Feel free to share your favorites!

Italian-inspired Salad

If you've ever been Italy, I'm sure you've tried or at least seen the very common antipasto combination of melon and prosciutto.  Before my visit, I had never experienced this delicious duo.  It initially seemed a bit strange to me, but the salty prosciutto couldn't ask for a better mate than the sweet juicy melon.

As is the custom at my Italian meals, we enjoyed a fresh salad featuring prosciutto and canteloupe after our main course.  This salad takes no time to put together and in one bite, you get a peppery, salty, sweet, and sour sensation.  What a workout for your taste buds!

Prosciutto, Melon, & Arugula Salad

Ingredients

1/4 canteloupe (rockmelon)
8 slices of proscuitto
1/4 cup pine nuts
3 cups baby argula (rocket)
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Directions

1.  Cut canteloupe into large cubes. Slice prociutto in half lengthwise. Toast pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium-low heat until fragrant and lightly browned.  Set all aside.
2. To dress rocket leaves, whisk together lemon juice, sugar, and salt.  Slowly add olive oil while whisking to emulsify.  Toss with arugula. 
3. Arrage melon and prosciutto over salad and sprinkle with pine nuts.

Gobi Masala

I must admit, I am not a big fan of cauliflower, I have never been a fan.  And it requires such much washing!  (That sounds pretty lazy.)  This is probably about the only way that I truly enjoy eating cauliflower, but boy do I enjoy it! 

I was definitely more pleased with this dish than the palak paneer.  As I said yesterday, I wasn't loving the textures but everything came out perfect with my gobi masala!  The cauliflower is usually fried before adding to the masala but to make it a bit healthier, I decided to braise/steam my cauliflower in the pan with the all of the spices and aromatics.  I couldn't ask for more in a flavorful and healthy dish.  The cilantro garnish added a hint of freshness on top of the spice and more savory flavors.

 Gobi Masala (Spiced Cauliflower)

Ingredients

1 cauliflower, cut into florets
1 1/2 tbsp oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 green chilies, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, minced
1 inch piece of ginger, minced
2 tomatoes chopped
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
handful of cilantro, chopped
salt to taste

Directions

1. Heat oil in large pan over medium heat.  Add onions and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add chilies, ginger and garlic and cook for 4 minutes, stirring continuously.
3. Add tomatoes and cook until you can see the oil separating from the mixture.
4. Once oil has separated from the tomato mixture, add the spices and stir for 30 seconds.  Add the cauliflower and 1 cup of water.  Mix well to coat the cauliflower.  Cover mostly allowing a slight bit of steam to be released and cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionaly, until the cauliflower is tender.
5. Add salt to taste, garnish with chopped cilantro and serve.

"I'm an Indian Outlaw..."

Not quite the same message as Tim McGraw's song, but that's what I felt like last night!  I am always wanting to try out some Indian recipes, but never allowed as my fiance has it engrained in his head that he does not like Indian food.  One not-so-great culinary experience in Bangalore and he has written it off completely!

He has been out-of-town on business so I thought it made for the perfect opportunity to try cooking a few Indian recipes.  My first was Palak Paneer.  This is a very popular spinach dish from northern India.  It features lightly fried cubes of Indian cottage cheese.  There are many variations, and I made a fusion of a recipe that I received from my friend Vibha along with a spicier one that I found in magazine.  Flavorwise, it turned out great, but I was not too pleased with the texture.  I have refused to buy a food processor here as I have a nice one at home, but I am beginning to rethink this decision.  It really inhibits what I can make!  The spinach really needs to be processed so you can get that nice creamy consistency to the dish.  I also used lowfat milk instead of cream to make it a bit healthier.  Here's how I would make it if I could!

Palak Paneer

Ingredients

16 oz. package of frozen, chopped, spinach

7 oz package of paneer, cubed
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, minced
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 green chilies, chopped
2 tomatoes, pureed
2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 cup lowfat milk
salt to taste

Directions

1. Thaw spinach and squeeze out most of the moisture.  In a blender or food processor blend spinach until desired consistency.
2. Heat 2 tbsp oil over medium high to high heat.  Add onion and cook covered stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.
3.  Add the garlic and green chilies and cook uncovered for another 4-5 minutes.
4.  Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring continuously until almost the consistency of a paste.

5. While the mixture is cooking, pan fry the paneer cubes in the remaining tbsp of oil.

6. When mixture has reached desired consistency, add blended spinach and spices.  Mix well and cook for 5 minutes.

7. Add milk and cook for 2 more minutes.
8. Remove from heat and gently stir in paneer.

I have a head of cauliflower in the fridge just waiting to be attacked so I look forward to trying Gobi Masala  (a spiced cauliflower dish) tonight.  If anyone has any good Indian recipes to share, I'd love to be the recipient!