spicy eggplant and zucchini

Eating out vegan can be a challenge at times, but should be no more difficult than asking a few pointed questions. Some establishments are more accommodating than others, nevertheless finding something to eat on any menu is always possible - even if that means ordering a green salad with oil and vinegar. Boring, but still possible.

Dining at P.F. Chang's, a chain casual Chinese-American restaurant, is more on the easy side because the personnel tend to be more educated regarding their menu and are more knowledgeable about items that are vegan or vegan-friendly.

Each ethnic restaurant comes with its own set of standard questions to ask in order to discover hidden animal ingredients. Asian restaurants tend to use fish sauce, oyster sauce, lobster or other shellfish sauce and egg in pasta or a specific dish. This is, of course, in addition to the usual meat and dairy.

P.F. Chang's has a vegetarian menu, so the work is done for you, but if you want to replace tofu in any meat-centered dish, it is wise to inquire in particular about the sauces.

All this is leading to one of our favorite dishes on the menu - Stir-fried Eggplant. My son loves this especially, but when we discovered that the eggplant is deep-fried, we were a little startled. In fact, that vegetarian dish, thanks to the frying, is one of their most calorie and fat laden menu item.

Ouch. Stir-fried, huh?

Making the eggplant at home is a better option and avoiding the deep frying is a must - but the eggplant has to be tender while at the same time not so tender that it completely falls apart.

Roasting the eggplant is a great way to go, but that is not a pleasant prospect in the middle of summer. Anything to keep the oven off! Because grilling uses minimal oil and still cooks the eggplant, I went in that direction. No secret about my love of my cast-iron grill pan.

And since my CSA is bursting with zucchini, that got into the mix, too. It is actually a welcome textural addition. I also added cashew nuts for crunch and because my youngest loves nuts in savory dishes - and I agree with her. Besides, cashews are a pretty standard fare in Indian and Asian recipes.

Use my method to cook brown rice, and this meal can be ready in about 30 minutes. The sauce is sweet and spicy, the eggplant is tender and this is another make-at-home dish that is better than the original.

SWEET AND SPICY EGGPLANT AND ZUCCHINI PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

Sweet and Spicy Eggplant and Zucchini

Serves 4

8 tablespoons (½ cup) vegetable broth, divided

1 tablespoon neutral oil, divided

Fresh ground black pepper

1 medium eggplant (about 1 pound), cut into 1-inch slices

2 medium zucchinis, cut into 1-inch slices

½ cup cashew pieces

1 tablespoon arrowroot starch or cornstarch

6 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari

1 to 2 tablespoons sambal oelek

2 tablespoons brown rice vinegar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 celery ribs, cut into ¼-inch slices

8 garlic cloves, minced

1 (1-inch) piece ginger, grated

4 scallions, cut into 2-inch pieces

1. Heat a grill pan over medium heat. Combine 2 tablespoons broth, 1 teaspoon oil and plenty of black pepper in a large bowl. Toss the eggplant slices with the marinade and grill the slices until almost tender, about 4 minutes on each side. Turn the slices a quarter turn after 2 minutes to achieve a hashtag pattern. This will help the eggplant cook but not burn. Transfer the eggplant to a work surface and cut each slice into quarters. Set aside.

2. Toss the zucchini slices with the remaining marinade and grill until almost tender, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a work surface and cut into bite-size pieces. Set aside.

3. Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Stir in the cashews and cook until golden, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

4. Combine 2 tablespoons of broth with the cornstarch in a small bowl and set aside. Combine the remaining 4 tablespoons of broth, tamari, sambal oelek, vinegar and sugar in a small bowl and set aside.

5. Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon of oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in the celery and cook 1 minute. Stir in the garlic, ginger and scallions and cook 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium and add the reserved eggplant, zucchini and tamari mixture. Stir, cover and cook until the eggplant is tender, about 3 to 5 minutes.

6. Stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook just until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the reserved cashews. Serve with cooked rice.

© 2014 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

I am linking to these recipe parties: Healthy Vegan Fridays, What I Ate Wednesday and Virtual Vegan Linky Potluck. 

 

     

ratatouille fideo + "more quick-fix vegan" winner

Ratatouille is a popular French dish that I'm sure we've all heard of. The dish is a mixture of stewed squash and eggplant. However, most of the ratatouille I've seen recipes for do not cook the veggies long enough. While I love most of my veggies with a crisp-tender texture, this is one of those exceptions, very much like the Southern way of cooking greens. The vegetables simply melt in your mouth.

The vegetables in this recipe are first sauteed then braised and finally baked. This leaves the vegetables tender and flavorful.

Where does fideo come into action? Fideo is a Spanish or Mexican dish using toasted noodles. The word fideo actually means noodles in Spanish.

Capellini or angel hair pasta is toasted and then braised with broth. Toasting the pasta adds a unique nutty flavor to the final dish. In this instance, I put them together. It was so delicious! I am a complete fan of ratatouille now and even the chilled leftovers were a delight.

The recipe is simple enough to toss together, but make it soon, before your kitchen becomes an inferno in the middle of summer. Strangely, my kitchen was extremely hot these past few days while I hear snow is blanketing parts of the US. Odd weather patterns!

RATATOUILLE FIDEO PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

Ratatouille Fideo   

Serves 4

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 large onion, diced

½ teaspoon red chili flakes

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch dice

6 garlic cloves, minced

1 small zucchini, cut into 1-inch dice

1 yellow squash, cut into 1-inch dice

1 small eggplant, cut into 1-inch dice

2 ripe roma tomatoes, chopped

¼ cup tomato paste

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 ½ cups vegetable broth, divided

8 ounces angel hair pasta

¼ cup minced parsley

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and chili flakes. Stir and cook until the onion is softened, about 4 minutes. Stir in the bell pepper and garlic. Continue to cook, stirring, until the onion is golden brown, about 4 more minutes.

2. Stir in the squash and eggplant. Continue to cook, stirring, until the squash is beginning to brown, about 4 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and and tomato paste. Cook until the paste is  browning, about 2 minutes. Season well with salt and black pepper.

3. Add 1 cup of vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, cover and cook for 20 minutes.

4. Preheat the oven to 400-degrees F.

5. Toss the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil with the dry pasta and transfer the pasta to a 9x13-inch baking dish. Bake the pasta until golden, about 5 to 6 minutes, stirring once halfway through.

6. After the vegetables are done simmering, transfer them, along with the remaining broth to the baking dish. Add the remaining 3 ½ cups vegetable broth. Do not stir. Bake the casserole until the pasta is tender, about 30 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Stir in the parsley and serve.

© 2014 Copyright Zsu Dever. All rights reserved.

I'd like to apologize for not posting the winner yesterday, as I said I would. I got very busy and I dropped the ball. I realize how frustrating it can be when you actually return to check on who the winner is (as I've asked you to do!) and then search in futility for something that isn't posted. I will make sure to do better from here on!

Check out a few more of the pics of recipes from Robin Robertson's much-needed and sure-to-be-loved  "More Quick-Fix Vegan" cookbook.

Out of 32 entries, the winner is comment number 11, Kelly G.

Congratulations! Please contact me at zsu [at] zsusveganpantry [dot] com. Please contact me by Monday night.

Someone asked in a comment if I would try to contact the winner. The answer is: of course! In fact, I have tried to contact winners before for past giveaways. Unfortunately, I've either been unable to since there was no contact info or the person never responded. 

Stay tuned for another giveaway coming on Monday! 

CHAI-SPICED RICE AND CHICKPEAS

RASPBERRY ZABAGLIONE

UPDATE: NEW GIVEAWAYS

Enter to win Vegan Finger Foods on this blog:

Click book to enter

MY Cookbook, Everyday Vegan Eats is now available for purchase, but you can enter to win a copy at:

Canned-Time.com by Angela McKee (Contest ends May 20th)

Fudge Brownie. Recipe at Canned-Time.

Veggie Girl by Dianne Wenz (Contest ends May 19th)

Scampi Pasta. Recipe at Veggie Girl.

Cadry's Kitchen by Cadry (Contest ends May 20th)

I am linking to these recipe parties: The blogs hosting Healthy Vegan Fridays are Suzanne at Hello Veggie, Anna at Herbivore Triathlete, and Kimmy at Rock My Vegan Socks. I’ve also decided to submit this dish to What I Ate Wednesday hosted by Peas and Crayons. 

FNF - bayou eggplant and cauliflower pasta

Food Network Friday, hosted by Tami Noyes, author of American Vegan Kitchen, is veganizing Emeril Lagasse's Bayou Chicken Pasta this month. In case you are new here, FNF is open to anyone! All you have to do is veganize the chosen Food TV recipe. Tami posts the  cookalong on her site well in advance and you cook and post. That's all there is to it.

Emeril's recipe is a creamy, spicy pasta dish with chicken and tomatoes. The spice comes in the form of his Essence, which contains cayenne, and habanero peppers. Not only will this clear up all sinuses in the house and make everyone cough like mad while it is being cooked because of the fumes, it also gets a bunch of kids to ask for an alternative dinner option. 

That is not to say they didn't like it, though - in fact, they did quite a bit. But the heat was a little too much for them. Be warned, but don't skip it entirely since the flavor of the habanero is delicious and it tends to mellow a bit after cooking.

A few veganized ingredients in the dish are the chicken and the cream. I replaced the chicken with eggplant and cauliflower and the cream with vegan milk mixed with some arrowroot. The arrowroot thickened the sauce up a bit (as cream would) and added body to the dish. The flavors of the habanero, tomato and green onions, along with his Essence, were delicious. This was a quick and easy way to make a nice creamy sauce. As for the veggies, you could substitute something else, zucchini, squash, green beans, or use only cauliflower or only eggplant. 

This was a deliciously spicy and pleasant meal to have - nothing too difficult about it. Just watch the spice and have water and bread handy.

Cost Breakdown

pasta: $3

eggplant, cauliflower: $5

habanero, garlic, onion, olive oil: $1.50

almond milk, arrowroot, green onion: $3

Total to make 6 servings:

$12.50

BAYOU EGGPLANT AND CAULIFLOWER PASTA

FNF - deconstructed eggplant-sausage pasta in tomato-basil cream sauce

Food Network Friday

Tami Noyes, author of American Vegan Kitchen, is again hosting her Food Network Friday. We have recently acquired this fabulous logo for FNF, designed by Kip, and would love you all to join us in recreating Food TV recipes - but veganized! This time around Kip joins Tami as well as the fantastic Liz from across the ocean. Tami hopes that with our newfangled logo more of you will participate in an FNF!

 Here is my rendition of Emeril's Sausage and Eggplant-Stuffed Shells in Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce. 

My version is a Deconstructed Eggplant-Sausage Pasta in Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce. Emeril created an eggplant-sausage-ricotta filling stuffed into shells and covered with Tomato Cream Sauce and cheese. I've been busy with recipe testing, hectic with life, getting ready to move, preparing to take the kids on vacation to visit their friends in Maryland, hosting a Harry Potter sleepover, and preparing for a Teen Night; in other words, stuffing pasta was not high on my list. As late as I am with this dish, I didn't want to miss it, so I decided to take the easy way out and deconstruct it.

I started with multitasking: I put three pots on the stove (1) pot of water for the pasta (2) pot for the sauce and (3) pan for the filling. I sauteed the eggplant, onions, and plain seitan in the pan with lots of Italian spices - fennel, basil, oregano - and in the other pan made my tomato-cream sauce. I used regular almond milk (2 c) and a can of diced tomatoes with lots of garlic for the sauce. I reduced the sauce while the eggplant was cooking. When the eggplant was done I set it aside and poured the pasta sauce in that same pan, adding some Daiya. I then tossed the cooked pasta into the simmering sauce. Having more surface area to cook helped reduce the sauce more and tossing the pasta with the sauce helped to thicken it in a jiffy. I served the pasta with the filling on top.

Very delicious. And much easier. I used pappardelle pasta because I needed something thicker and hardier to substitute for the shells. 

Thanks, Kip, for a great recipe to try!

baked eggplant over scampi pasta

Italian Night

Over the MoFo I made a Chick'n Scampi pasta dish from Olive Garden. This dish impressed Mikel so much he requested it again. I wanted to change it up somewhat, so I married Eggplant Parm and the Scampi dish and came up with this course: Baked Eggplant over Scampi Pasta.

As the name implies, Scampi includes lemon and garlic.

I baked the eggplant which turned out just as crunchy as frying it, but without the obvious oily texture. You can add some Daiya to it at the end to get the Parmesan effect.

The pasta sauce is soy free, using cashews as the base of the creamy sauce. Mikel's only complaint was the size of the peppers. Therefore, I have adjusted the recipe since the picture to reflect his concern; dice the peppers and not slice them.

I served these over rice pasta so if you are using gluten free pasta, make sure not to over cook it; it'll turn to mush.

Cost Breakdown:

eggplant, bread crumbs, spices: $4

cashew, nutritional yeast: $2.50

pasta, lemon: $3.50

garlic, pepper, onion: $3

Total to make 4 servings:

$13.00

Baked Eggplant over Scampi Pasta Recipe

thai curried coconut eggplant with noodles

Asian Night

Mikel requested this as a repeat. I had made it once before - last year. Having made it before, I felt free to experiment a a bit. The original recipe is from Buddha's Table, a vegan Thai cookbook, but whereas most of the recipes form this book have been a knockout, I had cryptically written "Find galanga next time?" as my note. Yeah, not too helpful regarding our thoughts of the recipe, I'm afraid.

Having made more than a few of his recipes, and realizing that while having the original-authentic ingredients is ideal, substituting appropriate equivalents is at least acceptable. So galanga became ginger and lemongrass became lemon zest. Also, the original recipe is a bit complicated so I simplified it.

The outcome was outstanding - even David loved it and asked if there was more.

I'm positive he didn't last time.

I salted my eggplant slices to remove a lot of the moisture so the eggplant would keep its shape during cooking. I stir fried my eggplant until golden and removed them to set aside. I repeated the same for any of the vegetables I wanted cooked.

I had made red curry paste for another recipe a few months ago and froze half. This was what I used as my red curry paste which I fried in a little oil. I added some vegetable broth and coconut milk, added back the eggplant slices and simmered the curry until the eggplant was tender.

As accompaniments, I had bean sprouts, tomato slices, yellow and green pepper slices, lime, green onions, the stir fried green beans, cabbage and garlic slices.

I poured the curry sauce over the noodles and added the accompaniments to the dish.

Cost Breakdown:

noodles: $2

peppers: $1

tomato, green onion, garlic: $1.50

bean sprouts, green beans: $2

lime, cabbage: $2

coconut oil: $1

red curry paste: $1

Total to feed  a family of 5:

$10.50

grilled vegetable lasagna

Summer is ebbing and my garden is ripening. Cat has been asking for lasagna again, so I granted her wish, although maybe not her vision.

I made this lasagna using grilled vegetables with a grilled eggplant-tomato sauce. I grilled whatever I could for this dish: eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, fennel, onions, carrots and garlic. The sauce I made with the eggplants and the tomatoes I grilled and added the other grilled veggies, chopped, into the lasagna.

I made a tofu-ricotta-style filling with fresh basil, grilled garlic, tofu and olive oil. I added the Daiya and Follow your Heart cheezes to satisfy my daughter, but had I made it for just myself I would have skipped it. The irony is that she didn't like it - too many vegetables. The other two scarfed it, though!

This was really good and so satisfying. The summer vegetables were so welcome, knowing that summer is leaving and fall vegetables are arriving in my CSA. Sort of a grand exit, if you will.

Cost Breakdown:

eggplant, pepper, tomato: $9

onion, garlic, carrot, fennel: $3

Daiya and Follow Your Heart: $8

basil, tofu, olive oil: $4

pasta: $2

Total to make 10 servings:

$26.00

thai noodle salad

I made a lite lunch pasta salad. I grilled a bunch of vegetables and cooked up some pasta. 

I am trying to make different dressings that do not need oil, so for the Thai influence I blended the meat of a young coconut with some fresh lime juice, and added a diced chili pepper. 

It all came together very nicely. It was fresh and still crisp tender. The only change I would make is the eggplant. While it is delicious fresh off the grill, the eggplant doesn't have quite the flavor after it sits for a bit. 

Cost Breakdown:

corn, green beans: $1

eggplant: $1

arugula:$.50

zucchini: $1

onion: $.50

peppers: $1

tomato: $1

pasta: $2

young coconut, sunflower seeds: $2

lime: $.25

Total to feed a family of 5:

$10.25

alfredo primavera

When I was in my twenties, many moons ago, I worked with my brother who was the executive chef of some posh restaurant on the beach in Fort Lauderdale. I told you we have this culinary-curse. We worked long hours and were exhausted. Before we'd leave for home after yet another 14 hour day, he'd always make me Primavera Alfredo. Tons of cream and cheese and some vegetables to honor the 'Primavera' part - summer squash, carrots, cauliflower and broccoli.

I had tried for years to make Alfredo vegan. So many recipes with tofu and soy cheese and soy cream cheese - oh! the variations! No good. Hadn't found a single one that was up to par.

Until the humble cashew. As I've blogged before, nuts are our friends. Nuts are healthy, terribly delicious and marvelously versatile - much like soy. Since soy is something I love but know that, say it with me,...too much of a good thing is not necessarily a good thing, I wanted an alternative. Besides, soy always left a gritty texture in the sauce, unless it was silken and silken tofu and I do not get along. It has an odd flavor that I just can't get past.

On to the Alfredo...easy, creamy and delicious! Just make sure to strain your cashew milk before using it otherwise you will get the same texture as with the tofu - gritty!

Use whatever summer veggies you have (or spring veggies as the name 'Primavera' implies), but if you use eggplant, salt it a little and let it drain for 15 minutes - the eggplant will hold its shape better. Use tomatoes in the sauce cautiously as you are not going for tomato sauce here. In fact, adding them raw at the end is great.

Cost Breakdown:

cashews: $2

nutritional yeast: $.50

summer veg: $5

pasta: $3

Total to feed a family of 5:

$10.50

roasted vegetables

Nothing extravagant today. I was craving summer veggies and my CSA delivered a bunch last week. There are very few culinary treats as lovely as fresh summer vegetables. Japanese eggplant, tomatoes, yellow squash, zucchini, onions, basil, peppers, oh my!

I sprinkled some balsamic vinegar on them and poured them over some brown rice. I'm still a little tired from the bug, so this was just right.
 Fresh, fast and fabulous.

Gives a new meaning to "Dollar Meal."

Cost Breakdown:

zucch: $1

squash: $1

pepper: $1

onion, basil: $1

tomato: $1

eggplant: $1

rice: $1

Total to feed a family of 5:

$7.00

vegetable ommes anna

The kids are still an hiatus and I am still cooking. I had a bunch of veggies in my fridge that didn't have a home on my menu, but I needed to get them cooked because my CSA is coming Friday and I need to make room for the new veggies. Out with the old!

Anyway, Pommes Anna is a dish of crispy, buttery potatoes that has layers of potatoes baked in tons of butter until the cake is crispy and golden. I thought - well, why not sub veggies instead. So I took my trusty well-seasoned cast iron pan (ask me if you need to know how to season your pan - it is worth it!), layered a few rows of potatoes, added my diced, lightly sauteed corn, green beans, red pepper, eggplant, onion, garlic and zucchini, topped it with a few more layers of potato and baked it for 30 minutes and broiled it for 10 minutes.

The outcome was the aforementioned buttery-crispy dish, albeit with a  vegetable medley added that turned out to be a delicious light lunch.

I used olive oil instead of the butter and since I was not trying to 'fry' many layers of potatoes as in the original Pommes Anna, I didn't need to drench it with fat. (Not that you need to drench the original in fat anyway.) I only used salt and pepper to season it - the vegetables were enough seasoning.

Cost Breakdown:

zucchini: $1

corn: $1

onion, garlic: $1

eggplant: $1

green beans: $1

potatoes: $1.50

Total to make 6 servings:

$6.50

grilled vegetables

What better way to kick-off August summertime than with a delicious grilled vegetable plate? Grilling veggies is such a taste treat! There is nothing like it. The sweetness of the vegetables is enhanced with grilling and the smokiness of them has no parallel.

There are so many ways to serve these scrumptious grilled vegetables: between slices of bread with veganaise or hummus, chopped and mixed into a grain like couscous or quinoa, drizzled with balsamic reduction or just plain right of the grill. I also grilled some lemon and lime to be squeezed on the veggies after they cam off the grill.

Grilled citrus is  so exciting!

These are just basic grilled vegetables: sliced 1/4 in  thick, rubbed with some olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper. You can make them more regional or ethnic by adding certain seasoning or marinading them before grilling. Any way you like it is bound to be wonderful.

Cost Breakdown:

squash: $1

zucchini: $1

eggplant: $1

onion: $1

corn: $1

lemon and lime: $1

potatoes (leftover baked): $1.50

Total for a platter of grilled goodness:

$7.50

eggplant and zucchini stroganoff

European Night

I have made stroganoff before, using seitan or tofu or some other meat substitute, but tonight I used all vegetables. Except for the pasta, there is no processed anything in this dish. No sour cream substitute or soy cream or anything that you need to get off the shelf at the grocers.

I seared criminis, Japanese eggplant and zucchinis. I sauteed onions, garlic and peppers. I blended 1 c cashews with 3 c water and strained it through a nut bag. I added 3 T of Bryanna's homemade chicken-style broth mix and heated the whole thing together. As I've blogged before, the fresh nut milk thickens when heated. To sour it up a bit, I added 1 T of white balsamic vinegar.

I cannot find non-egg, wide noodles at the stores here, so I made them using lasagna noodles that I sliced into thick strips after cooked.

Heaven on a plate. So, so good.

Even the kids who do not like zucchini loved this. Of course, they said it would have been even better without the zucchini.

Not the adults! Perfect as is!

Cost Breakdown:

cashews: $1

nutritional yeast: $.50

eggplant, zucchini, mushrooms: $5

onion, garlic, pepper: $1

lasagna noodles: $2

Total to feed 8 people:

$9.50

EGGPLANT AND ZUCCHINI STROGANOFF PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE

piri piri summer vegetables with jollof rice

Tuesday nights are Asian/African nights

...or anything that is nice with rice. Tonight I made an African meal complete with red palm oil, a distinctive African flavor. Piri Piri means 'hot chilis' in Swahili and so the name of the marinade echoes the content of it. Unfortunately, I could not find any thai bird's eye chili, so I made my piri piri marinade with Fresno and serrano peppers - less spicy. It seems to be a chili week, here at my house! After the vegetables - eggplant, green beans, zucchini and yellow squash - were marinated for 20 minutes, I grilled them on the griddle I still had out (but cleaned, of course :) from lunch. I served it in butter lettuce to cut the heat and provide a vessel to the mouth. Yum!

The rice is cooked with tomatoes, onions, cinnamon sticks, fenugreek seeds, coriander and cumin, and the ubiquitous African red palm oil. I love African food. The family is still getting used to the unique flavor - especially of the palm oil (which you can skip and just spice your neutral oil by simmer it with onions, garlic and the spices for 15 minutes, straining it and using it as the cooking base). The flavor of the vegetables - spicy and sweet with a little tang from the lemon in the marinade - were well received, though.

Cost Breakdown:

vegetables: $5

peppers: $1

rice: $.50

tomatoes: $2.50

red palm oil : $1

lettuce: $2

spices: $.50

Total to feed a family of 5:

$12.50