Roast Veggies with Squash Sauce

Yummy yummy veggies in my tummy. I really enjoy roast veggies, well I think by now it's evident that there is very few kinds of veggies I don't like. But I'm attempting to try new things with them. So I've decided to try an old favourite (roast veggies) with a new twist (squash sauce).

Roast Veggies

Ingredients

1/2 eggplant, cubed

1/2 zucchini, cubed

1 head broccoli, cut into little trees

1 large onion, cubed

4 cloves garlic

5 potatoes, cubed

1/4 C olive oil

1 tsp basil

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp chives

1 tsp sage

1 tsp oregano

Method:

Mix the oil and herbs in a bowl. Place all the veggies into a large bowl and toss in oil mix. Let it sit in the fridge over night. 

Heat oven and cook the veggies to your liking. 

Note: as something different I piled the veggies into two pyrax dishes and poured a bottle (330 mL) of beer over them. Then I placed al-foil over the top and cook in the oven like this until the potatoes were soft. Then I took the al-foil off and let them crisp a little. Turned out really well, they weren't as crunchy as roast veggies often are but so full of flavour. Well worth a try. 

Squash Sauce

Ingredients

1/2 kg yellow squash

2 small onions (or one large ones)

2 cloves garlic

1 tbs olive oil

1 tbs lemon juice

1 tsp vegemite

3/4 C oat milk

1/4 C white wine

salt and pepper to taste

sprinkle paprika and turmeric

Method

Boil the squash until cooked, drain and set aside to cool. Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Add additional liquid if required. Drizzle sauce over roast veggies.

Happy Eating!

Broccoli balls with cauliflower sauce

I made broccoli balls ages ago and have been meaning to try them again ever since. So in this veggie order I got some broccoli and set about making balls.

For the sauce I used cauliflower,  just about every blog I follow seems to have a cauliflower sauce recipe these days, and when you make a good one you'll know why. The sauce was creamy and full of flavour without any cream or butter, so great for the waist line too. Plus cauliflower is an inexpensive veggie making this meal nice on the pocket too.

The cauliflower sauce made a LOT, so if you have nothing else to use it on I suggest half / quarter the recipe. However, I used the rest to make a very tasty potato bake (see post), which is a great way to use up some left overs.

Broccoli Balls

Ingredients

1 head broccoli

1/2 large onion (or one small one)

3 cloves garlic

1/4 C chia seeds

1/4 C boiling water

1/4 C fresh coriander

Method

Preheat the oven to about 180 C. Mix the chia seeds and boiling water to make egg sub. Add all ingredients into a food processor until combined. Using a dessert spoon scoop the mixture into hands and roll into a ball. Place the balls in a hot pan with some olive oil. Once nicely browned remove and place into a hot oven for about 10 mins until cooked through but not dried out. 

Enjoy. 

Cauliflower Sauce

Ingredients

1 head of cauliflower

4 cloves of garlic

3 tbs olive oil

1 tsp basil

1 tsp onion powder

1 tbs balsamic vinegar

1 tsp brown sugar

1 tbs corn flower

salt and pepper to taste

oat milk, as required to get the desired texture.

Method

Cut the cauliflower up and lightly steam it until cooked. (If you are not set up to steam, you can boil it). Place all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Add the oat milk about a 1/4 C at a time until the desired texture is reached. I had mine so it was the texture of syrup. 

Once the sauce is made place over the broccoli balls and enjoy. 

Cauliflower sauce is also very tasty over rice / pasta / mash potatoes / well really anything. 

Happy Eating!

Burgers

Burgers are one of the foods I've avoided since the soy discovery. Mainly because I've always enjoyed a meat burger and was worried I'd try a vegetarian one and it just wouldn't be the same. But after almost a year without a burger I finally caved. So, with the help of Chuck, I set about making a lentil patty better than most meat ones.
I chose lentils because on their own they don't have a strong flavour, giving me more freedom with the herbs and spices. This recipe has been adapted from one of Jamie Oliver's.

Note: we also made soy free meat ones for chuck which were so good he's requested I add them here.
 

Lentil Burgers

Ingredients

1 can lentils drained (or fresh if you have them)

1 small onion grated

1/2 C Carrot grated

1/4 C chia seeds

1/4 C boiling water

1/4 C oats

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp mustard seeds

pinch of garlic granuals

1/4 C beer

2 tbs tomato sauce

1/2 tsp vegemite

1/2 tsp pepper

Method:

Pre-heat oven to about 180C. Mix the lentils, carrot and onion in a bowl. Place in some muslin cloth and squeeze out all the moisture. This is important otherwise the patties wont stick together. Mix the Chia seeds and boiling water to make egg sub.

In a large bowl mix all the other ingredients, with the drained lentil mix and egg sub. Once well combined form into patties and fry in a hot pan. Once nicely browned on the outside place in hot oven for about 10 mins until cooked through but not dried out.

Enjoy on a bun with your favourite burger ingredients. 

Note: There were really good the next day for lunch burger.

Meat Burgers

Ingredients

400 g mince

swig of beer

1/2 C carrot grated

1 small onion grated

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp ground pepper

1 tbs tomato sauce

1 tsp dijon mustard

sprinkle of mustard seeds

1/2 tsp of the following: cayenne pepper, thyme, oregano, vegemite

Method

Squeeze the juice out of the carrot and onion as per above. Mix all ingredients into a big bowl and using your hands (yes it is the only way this works well), mix all the ingredients together until well combined. Cook in a hot pan until done. Serve with burger fillings and enjoy.

I hope you enjoy this meal, it's a great one for households with different eating (veggies and non-veggeis) because everyone is eating the same thing (mostly). And there is little extra effort to make two patty types. Esp. if you have two people doing it :).

Happy Eating!

Lasagne, Veggie Style

I have always enjoyed a good lasagne. And it really is one of those things that seems really simple but is SOOO easy to stuff up. People seem to think it's just chuck the pasta, bol and cheese together with some white sauce and you're good to go but there is so much more to it then that. Since becaming a veggo lasagne is one of the meals I think I miss the most, not that greasy crappy thing you get from the corner store but the one my mum makes. It has taken me a while to find a lasagne recipe I enjoy as much as hers but, sorry mum, I think i've found it. Some of the ingredients may seem a bit unconventional for a lasagne but when all mixed together the flavour is amazing. 

This recipe comes in 3 parts as I made everything from scratch (well as scratch as I could, I didn't mill my own flour or anything). The three parts are the pasta, sauce and filling. 

The Pasta

If you've never made your own pasta you are missing out, very simple and extremely delicious. With the added benefit of knowing EXACTLY what goes into your food. This recipe is not vegan (I make egg pasta) but I'm sure there are ways around that using egg supp's or by making flour and water pasta. Alternatively you can just buy your fresh pasta sheets and use them, but the flavour will never be the same. 

To make this recipe vegan / gluten free just sub out the pasta for their vegan / gluten free alternatives. Or if you're feeling adventurous try making vegan / gluten free pasta yourself. Let me know if you find a recipe that works!

Ingredients:

400 g flour (I used 200 g whole wheat and 200 g bread flour, bread flour works better but I'm a fan of whole wheat)

4 eggs

1 tbs paprika

1 tbs basil

Method:

Mix the ingredients in a food processor using the dough hook. I had to add a bit of water to get it to come together nicely. If you do this add the water SLOWLY. if you add too much you have to add more flour and it just goes around and around like this until you've made enough pasta to feed a small army. 

Once the dough is mixed place it through the pasta maker as per it's instructions. If you don't have one ($15 from K-Mart), and feel like a good upper body work out you can roll it out by hand. To do this, break the dough up into small balls. dust a bench with flour (and keep some more handy). Roll out one of the balls onto the floured surface until as thin as you can make it. 

Flour the top surface and fold the dough in half, this is called laminating and is an important step. Then roll the newly folded dough until as thin (evenly) as you can make it and re-laminate. Repeat. You only want to laminate 2 - 3 times, once complete roll as thin as you can and then cut into lasagne sheets. Repeat the process with the other balls.

While making the sheets it's important to not let them dry out, if you live in the tropics this may not be an issue, however if you do not i recommend placing a damp tea towel under and above the lasagne sheets to keep them moist. 

The filling

For this recipe I used the left over pesto (see post on creamy pesto pasta) as the filling of the lasagne. I didn't have quiet enough so I blended some nuts and silver beet to make extra filling. Any dark green leafy veggie would do, I used silver beet because it grows a little wild in my garden and there's no point letting it go to waste. 

I also cut up 1/4 of a pumpkin and grilled it (without any oil) using my grill pan. The trick is to get the pan hot and then turn the temp right down. Then place a single layer of pumpkin on the pan, once soft and to your liking flip over. This process too me about 30 minutes as I had to do it in batches. But you can be doing other parts of the recipe while this is cooking away. 

The Sauce

Ingredients:

1 kg roma tomatoes
3 carrots (leave the skin on)
2 onions (or one really big one)
1 tbs paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tbs ground oregano
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tbs basil
1 tbs olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 preserved lemon
1 tbs balsamic vinegar
3/4 C red wine
1 can coconut milk

Method:

First, wash the roma tomatoes and then in on the pointy end cut a small cross in each one. Bring a big pot of water to boil and add the roma tomatoes, leave for a few minutes (until their skin starts to come off and they are a bit soft). Then drain and allow to cool.

Meanwhile, grate the carrots and onions, leaving the carrot skin on, into a large bowl. Add the herbs and spices and a preserved lemon, sliced thinly. 

Note: I don't tend to measure when I cook (takes the fun out of it) so the amounts of the herbs and spices have been 'guesstimated', feel free to alter depending on your taste.

Once cooled (at least enough so you can handle them) de-skin the tomatoes. Their skin should slip off easily. Place the skinned tomatoes into a bowl and mash roughly with a fork. You don't want them to be too smooth or the mixture will loose textile but also don't want giant chunks of tomato. 

Add the oil to a hot pan and fry the carrot and onion mixture, once the pan is hot turn down the heat so the carrot and onion do not burn. Add the tomatoes, vinegar, wine salt and pepper to taste and mix. Turn the temp right down and allow the mixture to simmer for a few minutes. If there is not enough liquid feel free to add some more wine (or stock or just water).  Turn off the heat, and stir though the coconut milk, then allow to sit for about 10 minutes. Don't worry if the mixture is a bit watery, the coconut milk will thicken up. 

Lasagne

Method:

Get a nice big pyrax (or other glass oven proof dish). Place a small amount of the tomato sauce along the base and then add a layer of pasta. Onto this add some of the pesto filling, some pumpkin and more sauce. Then add another layer of pasta and repeat until the dish is full / you've used everything. Make sure there is enough sauce to have a top layer of just pasta and sauce. 

Once all together I like to let it sit for about 30 minutes to allow the flavours to mix but if you're really hungry just put it into a hot oven (about 180C) for about 10-15 minutes. The best way to tell if it's done is to stick a fork in the middle and leave it for a second, then pull it out and put the fork on your tongue, if it hurts, the lasagne is done. :) 

Happy Eating!

Creamy Pesto Pasta, without the cream

So last night I had one of those nights where all I wanted was creamy comfort food pasta. I'd had a long day and wanted something really quick and easy to make but still tasty and healthy. So after a bit of thought and a quick assessment of the cupboards I came up with this creamy pesto pasta, made without cream. Now obviously if you have cream on hand and would prefer it you can easily sub it in. Also as one commenter has stated they prefer zero fat yoghurt, this can be sub'd in as well. But as the recipe stands it is very tasty vegan creamy pesto pasta. This makes about 3 - 4 nice sized servings so alter the recipe depending on your family size and appetite. 

Creamy Pesto Pasta

Ingredients: 

4 big handfuls of dried pasta

1 can Coconut milk

1 tbs Corn flour

Pesto:

1 Carrot
2 handfuls spinach
1 Onion

1 red apple
2 handfuls of mixed nuts
3 cloves of garlic
2 tbs Oil (I used olive)
1 tbs Chilli (ground or flakes)
2 tbs dried basil

Method:

Cook the pasta as per the instructions. Once cooked drain and set aside.

Place all the pesto ingredients into a blender / small food processor and blend until well mixed. (Don't blend until smooth or you loose the great texture of the nuts.)

Place a small amount of olive oil in a pan, once hot add the pasta, pesto, coconut milk and cornflour. Stir until well heated and the sauce has thickened.

Serve and enjoy. 

Variations:

- The pesto can be made with a variety of different greens depending on what you have on hand. This includes fresh herbs like coriander, basil, parsley etc. Even a mixture with some mint would give it a sharp fresh flavour. 

- Meat can be easily added to this recipe, Chuck put some of the left over sausages (see the Curry recipe) in his and said it was very good.  

- Also for the gluten intolerant, this can be easily made with gluten free pasta. 

Happy Eating!

Addit:

I had some of the left overs for lunch yesterday, I mixed in some chickpeas with extra chilli and basil. Made a wonderful lunch, filling and tasty.

Today I'm having the very last of it with a carrot, tomato, onion and some chickpeas. kind of like a pasta salad, very excited. 

Happy eating!