January 30, 2007: Penne Amongst Roasted Eggplant, Peppers Together With Parmesan Cheese

A quick scan of the pasta department of The Bold Vegetarain Cookbook on Tuesday morning time turned upwards this fairly delicious sounding recipe. Cindy too I aren't averse to eating eggplant, but I don't think we'd e'er roasted it earlier too that, along alongside the hope of pino nuts too cheese, was plenty to brand this recipe our repast for the night. Of score I didn't actually read the recipe inwards the morning time too hence I was a fiddling surprised that it all took hence long to prepare. Luckily, it was generally worth it, alongside the blended eggplant too capsicum sauce too the fresh oregano making for a tasty repast - of score if I'd remembered to tip the toasted pino nuts into the mix, it would belike convey been fifty-fifty better.

Penne alongside roasted eggplant, peppers too feta cheese*
*we replaced the feta alongside parmesan, mainly because nosotros had a proficient sized chunk of parmesan inwards the fridge, but I think it was belike a improve flavour to combine alongside the other ingredients anyway.

500g eggplant (I used three smallish eggplants, but I've no sentiment how much they weighed)
1/4 loving cup pino nuts
1 medium onion, chopped
3 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 roasted blood-red capsicums
300g penne
1/4 loving cup crumbled parmesan
2 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh oregano
fresh lemon juice
salt too pepper

The first, too most time-consuming, stride is to roast the eggplants. Pre-heat the oven to close 200 degrees too pierce each eggplant a few times. Place the eggplants on an oven tray too stick them inwards the oven, turning occasionally. After close an hr the eggplant should endure really soft - it volition basically collapse if yous hand it a gentle squeeze. At this point, it's done. Take the eggplants out too allow them cool.

In the meantime, toast the pino nuts inwards a dry out frying pan until they're lightly browned. When they're done, laid them aside somewhere, but don't forget all close them.

In the frying pan, ready the onion too garlic inwards one-half of the olive fossil oil for close 5 minutes, until it's lightly browned.

By now, the eggplants should convey cooled, hence yous tin cutting them inwards one-half too scoop out the delicious innards (the cookbook, strangely, calls this 'the meat').

Combine the eggplant innards, the peppers, the onion too garlic too the residue of the olive fossil oil inwards a nutrient processor. Just pulse them a few times, yous don't desire a completely smoothen paste, rather a overnice chunky consistency.

At this signal it's pasta cooking fourth dimension - everyone belike has their ain methods for cooking pasta, hence I'm non going to endure likewise specific. If yous similar tabular array salt or fossil oil inwards your boiling water, too then larn correct ahead. When the pasta is almost ready, gently reheat the chunky sauce inwards a frypan or saucepan. Once the pasta is done, drain it inwards a colander too combine it alongside the sauce. Stir inwards the cheese too oregano, flavor alongside tabular array salt too pepper too pinnacle alongside a splash of the lemon juice.

Kung Pao Seitan Amongst Asparagus

February 24, 2014

This dinner had me pulling some home-made seitan from the depths of the freezer in addition to our ol' Charney cookbook from the shelf. It's a formula nosotros know good - produce some rice, chop some veges, stir-fry 'em rapidly amongst a few condiments from the pantry. But there's something near this recipe that I don't intend nosotros would convey managed on our own: the seitan chunks are chewy in addition to satisfying but non overpowering, the asparagus in addition to capsicum are fresh in addition to crunchy, there's simply plenty savoury sauce clinging to the veges, in addition to at that topographic point are whole dried chillies that I'd never permit Michael toss inwards without a chef's limited instructions.

The residuum was dead on - I consider this kung pao is at to the lowest degree equally practiced equally the ones we've eaten around town.

Kung pao seitan amongst asparagus
(adapted slightly from a recipe inwards Ken Charney's Bold Vegetarian Chef)

two tablespoons tamari
two teaspoons mirin
two teaspoons chocolate-brown sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dark edible bean or chilli edible bean sauce
1/4 teaspoon dark pepper
1 tablespoon arrowroot
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 carrot, thinly sliced into half-moons
1 large bunch asparagus, chopped into bite-sized lengths
340g seitan, preferably chicken-style, chopped into 1cm cubes
three cloves garlic, minced
10 modest dried ruddy chillies, 1-3 of them broken open
1 ruddy capsicum, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1/4 loving cup roasted peanuts
230g tin H2O chestnuts, drained

Chop the vegetables in addition to seitan equally directed higher upward in addition to develop them aside.

In a modest bowl, whisk together the tamari, mirin, sugar, sesame oil, Worcestershire sauce, edible bean sauce, pepper, arrowroot in addition to 1/4 loving cup water. Set the sauce aside.

Heat upward the vegetable crude oil inwards a wok or large frying pan. Add the carrot in addition to asparagus in addition to stir-fry them for near a minute. Pour inwards 1/4 loving cup H2O in addition to allow them to steam for a farther minute. Add the seitan, garlic, in addition to chillies in addition to stir-fry for one-half a minute. Add the capsicum in addition to peanut in addition to stir-fry for some other half-to-one minute, until the capsicum is slightly softened. Pour over the sauce in addition to gently stir it through the vegetables until the sauce is thickened. Stir inwards the H2O chestnuts in addition to serve over rice.

August 23, 2007: Roasted Pumpkin In Addition To Shallot Soup

Indian mango pudding, together with me having a crevice at a pumpkin soup recipe from Ken Charney's The Bold Vegetarian Chef.

The recipe had a few quirks compared to regular pumpkin soup - non to the lowest degree the incorporation of a roasted pear. I was uncertain whether the pear was going to conduct keep whatever touching on on the overall season (it was 1 smallish pear inward alongside a kilo of pumpkin later on all) together with speculated that it may conduct keep only been a gimmick to brand Ken's recipe audio exotic. It turns out I was wrong, the pear (along with a decent splash of lemon juice) added a bird of unexpected sweetness to the pumpkin together with shallots, to the hollo for that this savoury alternative turned out to live a picayune on the sugariness side given Cindy's express nutrient choices. The recipe besides suggested a span of crispy garnishes (fried sage leaves together with roasted pumpkin seeds) that nosotros skipped to avoid whatever unpleasant chewing issues.

Roasted pumpkin together with shallot soup
4 shallots
1 pear, peeled, cored together with chopped
1 - 1.5kg pumpkin
2 teaspoons dried sage
olive oil
200g silken tofu
4 cups vegie stock
juice of ane lemon

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees.

Chop the shallots coarsely together with toss with the pear, the dried sage together with a teaspoon of olive oil.

Bake the shallot/pear mix together with the pumpkin (cut it inward one-half if yous didn't purchase pre-chopped chunks). The pear together with shallots in all probability conduct keep close 25 minutes, field the pumpkin takes a flake longer - tell 35. You desire it to live squeamish together with soft all the agency through.

Once everything is baked, peel off the pumpkin peel together with mix together the pumpkin flesh with the pear together with shallots, along with the stock, tofu together with about common salt together with pepper. You tin add together a 1/2 loving cup of vino or a splash of vinegar hither equally good if yous experience similar it.

Blend upwards the mix inward batches inward a nutrient processor until it's a smooth, non-chewable consistency together with lay the whole lot inward a large saucepan over depression rut on the stove. Simmer for close 10 minutes together with add together inward the lemon juice (along with to a greater extent than common salt together with pepper if required) together with and thus simmer for a lastly few minutes. Depending on how your oral cavity is working - serve either with crusty staff of life or a frustratingly pocket-size teaspoon.