Rice with Sausages and Vegetable Sauce

Ingredients: rice, 2 sausages, 1 onion, 1 garlic clove, chilli jam, 300 grams carrots, 1 yellow pepper, 200 grams peas, 1 tin diced tomatoes (400 ml), 100 ml water, thyme, salt, pepper,

Number of persons: 3

Boil the rice according pack instructions. Bake in hot oil 2 sliced sausages brown. When the sausages are brown remove it from the pan and keep aside. Bake in the remaining fat 1 finely chopped onion, 1 finely chopped garlic clove and 1 teaspoon chilli jam until the onion is soft. Add 300 grams sliced carrots and 1 sliced yellow pepper and stir fry a minute or 5. Add 1 tin diced tomatoes, 200 grams peas, thyme and 100 ml of water. Bring all to boil, put the sausages into the pan and then let it simmer 10 minutes on medium heat. Bring to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with rice. Enjoy!

Vegetable Curry

Ingredients: noodles, 1 red pepper, 150 grams shiitakes, 3 spring onions, 1/2 tablespoon mild curry paste, 200 ml coconut milk, salt,

Number of persons: 2

Boil the noodles according pack instructions. Stir fry in hot oil 1 sliced red pepper, 150 grams sliced shiitakes and 3 spring onions cut in rings about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 tablespoon mild curry paste (Patak’s ) and 200 ml coconut milk. Let all simmer for about 10 minutes on low heat. Bring to taste with salt. Serve with noodles. Enjoy!

Pasta with Roasted Provencal Vegetable Sauce

A nice, hearty pasta. We made the entire recipe and had more than enough for lunch the next day and then some. I’m not usually a big tomato sauce fan, but this was good even by my standards. Next time: less parsley, more garlic. :)

Pasta with Roasted Provencal Vegetable Sauce

Recipe from Epicurious. Makes 6 servings.

INGREDIENTS
1 16- to 18-ounce eggplant, unpeeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 large onion, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium zucchini, trimmed, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 28-ounce can seasoned crushed tomatoes with Italian herbs
12 ounces penne pasta
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400°F. Arrange eggplant and onion on large rimmed nonstick baking sheet or casserole dish. Drizzle with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast vegetables until beginning to brown, stirring occasionally, about 25 minutes. Stir zucchini and garlic into vegetables; continue to roast until all vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes longer. Stir crushed tomatoes into vegetables on baking sheet; roast until heated through, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Ladle 1/2 cup pasta cooking liquid into small bowl; reserve. Drain pasta. Return pasta to same pot. Add roasted vegetable sauce and all herbs to pasta and toss to blend. Gradually add enough reserved pasta cooking liquid to moisten as desired. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer pasta to bowl and serve.

Southern Italian Vegetable Ratatouille

The directions for this recipe are absurd… the reason for not letting any of the vegetables touch until the final moment is beyond me, but I have to say, the results are well worth it. Well worth the prep – chopping and dicing and mincing and more chopping – and the mind boggling instructions (wait, the zucchini goes in which pan?). It’s a two person job, that’s for sure. But if you’re brave, you will be rewarded with a truly delicious feast! Served on top of basmati rice (cooked with garlic and thyme)… mmmm!

A note about the leeks… we felt that 2 minutes was no where near enough time to cook them. Leeks can be very tough and fibrous, and can ruin a good meal if undercooked (unless you like your food chewey). We braised the leeks with some white wine for more like 10-15 minutes, or until tender. The addition of the white wine also added a lovely flavor to the dish! Our adjustments to the recipe are included below.

Southern Italian Vegetable Ratatouille

Makes 4 servings. Recipe from Michael Chiarello, with adjustments.

INGREDIENTS
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced fresh wild or domestic mushrooms
Gray salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 onion, diced
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 pound yellow squash, cut into 1/4-inch dice, about 1 1/2 cups
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper, cut into 1/4-inch dice
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
1/2 pound zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch dice, about 1 1/2 cups
1/2 cup thinly sliced leek, white part only
3/4 cup white wine
3/4 cup peeled, seeded, and chopped vine-ripened tomatoes, about 1/2 pounds (or about 3/4 cup of cherry/grape tomatoes, quartered).
1 cup loosely packed baby spinach, sliced
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

DIRECTIONS
Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the mushrooms and cook, without moving them, until brown on 1 side, about 1 minute. Continue to saute for another 1 to 2 minutes. Season mushrooms with salt and pepper and pour onto cookie sheet to cool. Set used pan aside.

In a separate, clean skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add minced garlic. Cook until golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. In the pan where the mushrooms were, add 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add yellow squash. Cook until browned, about 1 to 2 minutes and drain onto same cookie sheet with mushrooms.

Place peppers in hot pan where squash was cooking, sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of thyme. When heated thoroughly, add peppers to waiting mushrooms and yellow squash. Add zucchini to the same pan, add remaining thyme, cook until browned, about 2 minutes. Pull both pans (onions and zucchini) off the heat, and add to cookie sheet with other vegetables.

In the former zucchini/mushroom pan, cook leeks to soften, about 2 minutes. Add white wine, cover, and simmer until leeks are tender. In the other pan, bring the tomatoes to a simmer. Season the leeks with salt and pepper, to taste, and add spinach. When spinach is wilted, add cooked leeks to cooling vegetables on cookie sheet. Add basil to the tomatoes, then add tomatoes to cookie sheet. Return all vegetables to larger pan, and gently toss together. Top with Parmesan and serve.

Hummus and Vegetable Sandwiches

We found a good hummus! Hooray! I couldn’t tell you what was wrong with the last one, but this hummus recipe is wonderful. Paired with the bread and veggies, it really can’t be beat. A refreshing, flavorful, and super-healthy lunch (or dinner).

Hummus and Vegetable Sandwiches

Makes 4 servings. Recipe from Epicurious, with adjustments.

INGREDIENTS
For hummus:
2 garlic cloves, minced and mashed to a paste with 1/2 teaspoon salt
a 16- to 19-ounce can chick-peas, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup well-stirred tahini (sesame seed paste)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves

Pita or flatbread, warmed
1/2 cup sliced seedless cucumber
1 large carrot, cut into ribbonlike strands with a vegetable peeler (about 1 cup)
1 small sweet onion, sliced thin
1/2 cup finely shredded radish (about 6)
1/2 cup alfalfa sprouts plus additional for garnish
1 1/2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted

DIRECTIONS
To make the hummus:
In a food processor blend together garlic paste, chick-peas, tahini, lemon juice, oil, and cumin, scraping down side, until smooth. Add water, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste and pulse until just combined. Hummus may be made 2 days ahead and chilled. Makes about 2 cups.

Spread hummus evenly on pita and top with cucumber, carrot, onion, radish, 1/2 cup sprouts, and 1 tablespoon sesame seeds. Top with another pita and slice in half. (You could also put the fillings inside the pita).

Coconut Vegetable Curry

We’ve done the Thai curries. We’ve done them darned good. But we were ready for a change. So when we saw this vegetable Indian curry in Bon Appetit, we had to try it.

Unfortunately, our Okra went bad before we made it. We have never had Okra, and were both looking forward to it. We were not, however, looking forward to moldy okra. Maybe next time.

We’d also peel the eggplant next time, and try cooking it differently. The skin was tough and the flesh was too bitter. We ended up picking out all the pieces of eggplant and eating the rest of it. If anyone here has a tip for non-bitter eggplant, please share!

If you do choose to make this, chances are you’ll need to run down to your friendly neighborhood international food store to get many of the ingredients. We somehow managed to find curry leaves (which oddly smell like burnt rubber), used what we needed and froze the rest for next time. The Black Mustard and Fenugreek you’ll also need to find. If you want to save yourself some time, pick up some “ghee”, which is basically browned clarified butter. If not, you’ll have to clarify your own, simply by melting the butter and scooping off all the white solids that rise to the top and sink to the bottom.

If I haven’t scared you with the complexity of this recipe yet… you really should try it! It’s darned good (sans bitter eggplant, of course!)

Coconut Vegetable Curry

Makes 6 servings. Recipe from Bon Appetit.

INGREDIENTS
Vegetables:
5 tablespoons Clarified Butter, divided
12 pearl onions, blanched 1 minute, peeled
10 fresh okra pods
6 Indian eggplants (each about 3 inches long) or 4 Asian eggplants, trimmed, each quartered lengthwise 2 large carrots (about 10 ounces), peeled, cut on diagonal into 1/4-inch-thick ovals
1 1/2 pounds tomatoes, cored, cubed

Sauce:
5 tablespoons Clarified Butter
1 pound white onions, chopped
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 large garlic clove, chopped
2 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh or frozen curry leaves* (about 16 leaves)
1 1/2 teaspoons black mustard seeds**
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds***
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt 3 1/2 cups canned unsweetened coconut milk (preferably organic)
1/4 cup fresh lime juice

DIRECTIONS
For vegetables:
Heat 1 tablespoon butter in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions; sauté until golden, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and sauté until onions are just tender, about 8 minutes. Transfer onions to bowl. Heat 1 tablespoon butter in same skillet over medium-high heat. Add okra; sauté until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Add okra to bowl with onions. Heat 1 tablespoon butter in same skillet over medium-high heat. Add eggplants; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sauté eggplants until brown on cut surfaces and just tender, about 6 minutes. Add eggplant to onions. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter in same skillet. Add carrots. Sauté until carrots begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes and stir to blend; add to vegetable mixture in bowl. Reserve skillet for sauce.

For sauce:
Heat butter in reserved skillet over medium-high heat. Add chopped onions and sauté until golden, about 14 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add ginger and garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add curry leaves, mustard seeds, turmeric, fenugreek, and cayenne; sauté 1 minute. Add vegetable mixture and 1§ teaspoons salt. Add coconut milk and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered until vegetables are just tender, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Mix in lime juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer curry to bowl. Serve over basmati rice.

Ugly Ravioli (aka Roasted Vegetable & Pancetta Ravioli)

Ugly, maybe, but good? Definitely! We found this recipe for Roasted Veggie Ravioli with Crispy Pancetta on Jaden’s blog.

I tried (somewhat unsuccessfully) to capture the sheer scale of the mess I made while making this pasta. Homemade pasta is fun and delicious, but oh so messy. Which makes it even more fun in my opinion. :)

Our raviolis were ugly. I think we made them too big and they broke and had to be patched and weren’t square by any means. Not nearly as nice-looking as Jaden’s. But once you got beyond their looks, they really were quite delicious. The sauce is light and flavorful, which in our experience is hard to do in a pasta sauce.

Want to try your hand at these? Hopefully yours will be prettier than ours!
Check out the recipe here.