Favorite Vegitarian/Meatless Recipes

quote:

Originally posted by Sundancer7

Michael Hoffman: Thanks for the recipe and your time. I did not know that egg plant had a bitter side. I noticed that Jellybean indicated slicing and waiting but I did not understand it was because it was bitter.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

Oops! Sorry about the non-explanation

Anyway, I usually don't wait for the eggplant juices to drain off and I just bake or grill it as is. However, in this recipe, I drain it so that it fries better.

Tiki, what a great topic. I have enjoyed reading this thread and will enjoy all of the recipes, especially the hummus and eggplant two of my favorites. Great tips.

Jelly Beans you really shine squeezing in time to give everyone that fab recipe. You get the BIG GOLD STAR for the day.

Vegetarian Lasagna

3 T. olive oil divided
1 onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound mushrooms, sliced
1 pound carrots, shredded
1 small can sliced black olives, drained (I usually use 2 cans)
15 oz can tomato sauce
15 oz of water (use the tomato sauce can)
6 oz tomato paste
3 t. oregano
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
2 cups cottage cheese, well drained
2 10 oz. pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 lb, 12 oz Montery Jack cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

In skillet, heat oil, stir in onion and garlic. Saute over medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring continuously . Stir in the mushrooms and saute genly for about 10 minutes. Add carrots and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in olives, tomato sauce, tomato paste, water, oregano, salt and pepper. Stir well and let simmer 30 minutes. There---------the sauce is done! It is really easy to make this dish if you do the sauce the day before.

OK, day of serving cook 10 lasagna noodles in large pot of water, adding 1 T oil to water. Put the noodles in 2 or 3 at time and soften before adding more. Cook until tender. Drain and then put back in kettle with some warm water to cover so they do not stick

Use a pan a little larger than 9 by 13...........spray and then line bottom with noodles to cover. (Sometimes, you might have to cut the noodles to fit properly.........no problem. Spread over noodles half the cottage cheese, half the spinach and a third of the montery jack cheese in that order. Cover with half the tomato sauce mixture. Repeat procedure. Top off with the remaining Montery Jack cheese and the Parmesan cheese. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 45 minutes or until bubbly.

If you use a 9 by 13 pan you will have extra noodles..........so just layer then on top of the 2nd layer of noodles and no one will know the difference. This is excellent and freezes beautifully.

quote:

Originally posted by RedPatti

Tiki, what a great topic. I have enjoyed reading this thread and will enjoy all of the recipes, especially the hummus and eggplant two of my favorites. Great tips.

Jelly Beans you really shine squeezing in time to give everyone that fab recipe. You get the BIG GOLD STAR for the day.

Thanks RedPatti--you and everyone is very welcome to the recipe! Hmm... maybe they should give out gold stars-or have some sort of icon for gold stars--here like in kindergarten That would be majorly cute

quote:

Originally posted by Rhodes

Here's three of my favorites, courtesy of Madhur Jaffrey:

I don't eat much Indian cooking (and I don't actually do any of it, with the exception of a grilled chicken marinated in lemon juice, yogurt, and spices), but I've seen Ms. Jaffrey on TV a few times, notably on "In Julia's Kitchen with Master Chefs," and she is absolutely mesmerizing to watch cook. Such precision and sureness.....

Here's a favorite recipe of me and my hubby. This may sound "just fine," but believe me -- it's better than that. It's fantastic. My non-veggie friends go crazy when I cook this for them.

Roasted Corn Tacos

You will need:

Fresh ears of corn (don't use frozen -- doesn't taste good)
Onion
Bell pepper

Corn tortillas
Grated cheese (we use Cheddar or Mexican white)
Salsa
Sour cream

Depending on how many you are feeding, shuck and wash fresh ears of corn, making sure to remove all corn silk. (In general, allow one ear per person -- but I always make more so I have leftovers.)

Stand up each ear of corn on end in a deep, large bowl or a deep cookie dish, and with a small, sharp knife, slice down the cob in sections to remove the corn. Cut away from you and watch those fingers! You want to remove as much of each corn kernel as possible, but don't cut into the cob. Use the knife to scrape the cob to obtain as much of the corn juice as you can.

Grab an onion and peel it, then slice it very thinly. Do the same with a bell pepper. The key is to slice very thinly so each slice is almost transparent. It is much tastier when you get subtle onion and bell pepper flavors in your tacos versus big slabs o' both.

Throw the corn kernels, sliced onion, and sliced bell pepper onto a large, deep cookie sheet, drizzle lightly with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, mix well, and put under the broiler. Broil, removing from oven and stirring every 5-10 minutes, until the corn is hot and sizzly and the onion/bell peppers start to blacken. Actual cooking time depends on broiler heat, how much corn ya got, and how roasted you like your veggies. (I think this is much tastier when the onion and bell pepper start to blacken slightly and carmelize, as they get sweet.)

Remove from oven; you can consume immediately or put it in the fridge and gently heat it in microwave before serving.

To serve, heat corn tortillas, fill with roasted corn mixture, throw on some cheese, sour cream, and salsa, and cram into mouth at high speed. Repeat numerous times.

This is a great company meal because you can cook the corn days in advance, then heat it up and warm some tortillas and you're ready to go.

I hope you will try this because it's fabulous...

Laurie

My husband likes beans of all types but is particularly fond of black beans. Here's one of my favorite ways to make them:

BLACK BEANS IN MANGO SAUCE

1 1/ 2 Tbs. olive oil
2 cups minced red onion
1 Tbs. minced garlic
1 3-inch jalapeno chile, seeded and minced
1 1/ 2 Tbs. minced fresh ginger
1 1/ 2 tsp. whole cumin seeds
1 1/ 2 tsp. salt
About 6 cups cooked black beans (or 3 15-ounce cans, rinsed and drained)
6 Tbs. fresh lime juice
2 large ripe mangoes, peeled and minced
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a medium-sized skillet. Add 1 3/ 4 cups of the onion, and the garlic, chile, ginger, cumin seeds, and salt. Saute over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Turn the heat down to medium-low, and add the beans and about half the lime juice. Cook for about 5 minutes more until the beans are heated through and then transfer to a bowl.

Stir in the remaining lime juice and about half of the chopped mangoes directly into the hot beans, mashing the mangoes a little as you stir. Grind in some black pepper, then cove and let stand for about 15 minutes to let the sauce develop.

Serve warm, at room temperature, or even cold, topped with the remaining red onion, and some minced parsley or cilantro, if desired.

Good served with plain cooked white or brown rice.

Ruby, your black beans sound fantastic. I'm gonna try them!

Laurie

Michael, In recent years the eggplants I buy haven't been bitter at all. Years ago, they generally were bitter.

Here's what we did with bitter eggplants: after peeling and slicing, we would salt all the pieces, and let the salt draw out the bitter liquids. I think we left the eggplant sitting out like this about an hour. Then we would thoroughly rinse the eggplant in fresh water.

Maybe the varieties I find have had the bitterness engineered out of them. I use eggplant quite a bit, so I know something's changed.

Here's an eggplant recipe I much enjoy and make for very special company.

GABRIELA’S CHOPPED EGGPLANT WITH MAYONNAISE

Gabriela Z______ , a celebrated cook from Bucharest, Romania, made this dish for friends while visiting the United Sates in the summer of 2001. Similar to baba ghanouj, this recipe is a terrific way to use the versatile eggplant as a party dip or first course. As eggplants vary in size, the measurements are approximate.

Directions:

Use a fork to puncture a 1½ lb. eggplant in several places. In a preheated 400 degree oven, roast the eggplant in a baking dish for approximately 50 minutes or until it is cooked and soft throughout, turning once to prevent the bottom from burning.

After it cools a bit, remove the skin and drain in a strainer to remove excess water. Then, thoroughly mash the eggplant--pulp, seeds and all.

Add:

1 small onion, very finely chopped (more or less, according to taste)

1 tablespoon of vegetable oil

1 – 1 ¼ tablespoon mayonnaise

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper (optional, but recommended)

Stir the mixture thoroughly, taste, and correct the seasonings. Cover, refrigerate, and let stand several hours or overnight, for flavors to develop.

A serving suggestion:

Warm the eggplant mixture in a microwave oven. In a shallow serving dish, garnish with black olives and sprigs of parsley, and serve with crackers or quartered pieces of warm pita bread. I prefer the eggplant served warm.

From the recipe file of JimInKy,
Lexington, Kentucky. October 2001.

My goodness, I just ate dinner, yet now my tongue is lolling for more foods! I find that I have to be very careful when following threads on roadfood.com, especially not to get up and go into the kitchen for food that I don't really need.

I love eggplant parmesan and haven't had it in a very long while; jellybeans, your recipe looks delicious and I think I will try it, baking the eggplant in the oven. Last time I made it, I used some frozen eggplant cutlets (really they worked out just fine!) but I've been unable to find those cutlets in the past couple of years. The hardest part of this dish for me has always been frying the battered eggplant slices--maybe I didn't let them sit salted long enough or something. But I'll definitely give the Jellybeans recipe a try.

I also love Indian food but don't get a chance to have it very often--I have fixed curries and tandoori chicken, but that's as exotic as I can get my kids to try, usually. I love Palak Paneer (spinach & curd cheese) but I think my favorite is Masala Dosa, which is a huge lentil batter pancake stuffed (usually) with spicy potatoes. It's usually served with a spicy-type of soup as well as a coconut chutney-like dish--I'm sorry I don't recall the names of either of those dishes right now! But take my word for it, the masala dosa is excellent and vegetarian. Oh yea, sorry for all you Atkins/South Beach folks out there, btw.

I like plain stir-fries too, with the flavored tofus. I've even gotten my kids to eat them from time to time. I could probably do vegetarian fairly easily, I think ... if it weren't for that craving I do get for meat every once in a while.

--tarragon

Ashbury's Aubergines is a Web site with eggplant recipes from around the world:

http://home.att.net/~ashburysaubergines/All_Recipes.htm

Thanks for the lasagna recipe, Chezkatie!

Thanks for the other recipes coming in, everybody!

Sundancer: how did my recipe pan out with American measurements?

quote:

Originally posted by Sundancer7

I had eggplant parmesan at a veggie restaurant on High Street in Columbus, OH just north of the Ohio State University. I do not remember the name of the place but it has been there for years. I had this during my vegan period in the mid 70's. It was wonderful and I have never cooked eggplant before. If anyone has a recipe for this, I would appreciate it.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

Was the name of the place Casa di pasta?

quote:

Originally posted by Sundancer7

Michael Hoffman: Thanks for the recipe and your time. I did not know that egg plant had a bitter side. I noticed that Jellybean indicated slicing and waiting but I did not understand it was because it was bitter.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

Most fresh eggplants are not bitter at all these days. However, even with fresh ones I still do the salt thing. Tradition?

By the way, I don't slice my eggplant into rounds. I slice them the long way. It's less work and less time when frying them than if you had all those round slices.

quote:

Originally posted by JimInKy

Michael, In recent years the eggplants I buy haven't been bitter at all. Years ago, they generally were bitter.

Here's what we did with bitter eggplants: after peeling and slicing, we would salt all the pieces, and let the salt draw out the bitter liquids. I think we left the eggplant sitting out like this about an hour. Then we would thoroughly rinse the eggplant in fresh water.

Maybe the varieties I find have had the bitterness engineered out of them. I use eggplant quite a bit, so I know something's changed.

Yes, eggplants have had the bitterness bred out of them, although older, less fresh ones will have a touch of bitterness. I still salt and rinse the darned things, though, regardless.

Michael Hoffman: To tell you the truth, I do not remember. It was on the west side of High Street and it was in the middle 70's. It was north of the campus about 3 blocks and I think it is still there.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

quote:

Originally posted by Sundancer7

Michael Hoffman: To tell you the truth, I do not remember. It was on the west side of High Street and it was in the middle 70's. It was north of the campus about 3 blocks and I think it is still there.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

My goodness.............I just noticed .............14 more posts and what do you become

quote:

Originally posted by Sundancer7

Michael Hoffman: To tell you the truth, I do not remember. It was on the west side of High Street and it was in the middle 70's. It was north of the campus about 3 blocks and I think it is still there.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

I believe that's it.

I posted this under another thread ("Unusual ingredients and exotic little touches") but thought that it's appropriate for this thread as well. It's not my own recipe but by a cookbook writer who is famous in Malaysia/Singapore for her fool-proof recipes for local favourites (so no worries about the recipe not working as I suspect my eggplant parmesan recipe didn't work for Sundancer, probably due to different measurements or tastes):

Gluten--the stuff that Chinese mock meats are made of. We call it "Meen Kahn". We season it in all different ways to approximate the flavours of the different types of meats we are trying to copy. Accprding to Amy Beh (the Delia Smith/Martha Stewart of Malaysian cooking):

"Meen Kahn means flour veins and these veins are all that is left after the dough is washed free of residual flour. By itself, it is tasteless but when cooked as part of other dishes, it takes on the flavour of the other ingredients by absorbing the sauce through its porous skin. Making Meen Kahn is simple. One kilogramme of flour should yield about 500g depending on how long you knead the flour. The more you knead the less you waste. But when you knead, do not use full-force strength otherwise the gluten will be destroyed."

Here's the recipe for gluten if you want to make it yourself, courtesy of Beh:

Gluten

1 kg strong white flour
1 Tbsp salt
2 and 3/4 to 3 cups water combined with a few drops of alkaline water (available in bottles at a good Asia/Chinese grocer. The alkaline water is to make the gluten crunchy and fresh).

Sift flour into a grease-free basin. Sprinkle in salt to mix. Add enough water and mix in gradually until a stiff dough is formed (do not press the dough too hard). Knead for about 20 to 25 minutes until the dough turns smooth. The more you knead, the more 'veiny' the dough and the less flour is wasted. Cover the dough with a damp cloth for 30 minutes.

Fill a basin with water and wash the dough by kneading and pressing it until it is spongy. Repeat the washings for about 3 to 4 times until water is no longer milky.

As you wash it may break into pieces. Feel for lumps of flour and remove these. When the water that runs through is clear and transparent and the texture of the dough is rubbery, that is the gluten you want (you should be able to stretch this lump-like bubblegum. In fact, it looks like bubble gum too).

Soak the bouncy and spongy gluten in clean water for an hour or until the surface is smooth. The gluten can be turned into whatever dish that is desired.

And here is one way of using/preparing this gluten (also courtesy of Beh):

Mock Char Siu (Mock Chinese red-barbecued pork)

500gm raw Meen Kahn
Enough oil for deep-frying

Marinade (A)

2 star anise
3 cloves
1 tsp Szechuan peppercorns (since it's illegal in the States, I guess you'll have to omit it)
1/2 piece fermented red beancurd (nam yee)
1 Tbsp light soy sauce
3 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp MSG
1/4 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp thick soy sauce

350 ml water
3 Tbsp oil

Seasoning (B)

2 Tbsp light soy sauce
1 Tbsp maltose (mak nga tong)
1 Tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp red colouring

Pull the raw Meen Kahn into a cylindrical shape or into strips to resemble pork fillet. Twist and plait the strips and tie a knot to secure.

Boil the plaited strips of Meen Kahn in hot water to cook for 20-25 mintues over a medium heat. Remove with a slotted spoon and soak in a basin of cold water. Untie the knot and drain well, then deep-fry in hot oil until almost golden in colour. Remove and leave aside.

Heat 2 Tbsp oil and fry the star anise, cloves and Szechuan peppercorns for 5-10 seconds. Discard the star anise, cloves and peppercorns, leaving the oil in the wok. Add the rest of the marinade (A) and add in water. Put in the cooked gluten strips and simmer over a gentle heat for an hour or til the gravy turns thick.

Heat a non-stick pan with the 3 Tbsp of oil. Add in the marinated and cooked gluten strips. Stir in seasoning (B) and cook over a low heat until fragrant and dry.

Cut into thin slices like char siu and serve with scalded won ton noodles or plain white ric and veggies. Can also be used as stuffing for vegan char siu pao (barbecued pork buns).

Somebody asked for a good vegetarian chili recipe - I like this one a lot. It's from Julie Jordan's WINGS OF LIFE cookbook.

Cashew Chili

2-3 cups cooked kidney beans
2 Tblsp. olive oil
4 medium onions, chopped
2 green peppers, chopped
2 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
freshly ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 Tblsp. chili powder
1 quart tomatoes
1/2 to one cup cashews
handful of raisins OR 1 Tblsp. molasses
1 tsp. salt
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
OPTIONAL: one chopped carrot
a dash or two of sherry
some beer (lemon beer is excellent)

Saute vegetables and garlic in olive oil and add remaining incredients except for the vinegar. Simmer until flavors are blended (at least 1/2 hour or more.) Just before serving, add the vinegar gradually, tasting as you go.

Julie Jordan rocks! I had the priviledge of living in Ithaca NY while her Cabbagetown Café was open in the 80s, and used to eat there with delight at least once a week. There's a Cabbagetown Café cookbook that I use quite frequently (made her cornbread recipe yesterday as a matter of fact), and I will try to post some items from there in the near future.

Mediterranean Linguine with Broccoli Rabe


Olive oil
2 cups sliced fresh portobello mushrooms
4 medium sized bell peppers (2 green & 2 red) seeded and cut into thin strips
2 clove garlic, minced
2 (14 oz.) cans artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
1 cup Italian dressing
6 tablespoons sliced, pitted ripe olives
2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
12 oz. whole wheat linguine, uncooked
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 pound (or more) broccoli rabe
Fresh lime juice

Coat a large nonstick skillet with olive oil; place over medium-high heat until hot. Add mushrooms and next three ingredients; sauté until vegetables are crisp-tender. Add artichokes, Italian dressing, olives, and parsley; cook three minutes until thoroughly heated; stirring occasionally.

Cook linguine according to package directions, using no seasonings and/or fat; drain well. Combine linguine and vegetable mixture; toss well. Transfer mixture to a serving dish; sprinkle with cheese; **(see step 2)**, and serve immediately. Yield: Approx. 10-12 (1 cup servings).

--Step 2--

Lightly steam broccoli rabe until crisp-tender. Drench with fresh lime juice & place desired portions on top of prepared pasta.

Additional serving suggestions:

Serve with a nice loaf of crusty French bread, reeking of garlic butter and freshly ground black pepper.

For the more adventurous, serve the pasta as a side dish with Sautéed Red Snapper with Pancetta Salsa. ;)







One of my favorites. Fish dish optional (and another story).