July 2014

Eggplant Lasagna

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon olive oil for brushing

2 eggs

2 tablespoons water

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs

salt and ground black pepper to taste

2 large eggplants, peeled and sliced into

1/2-inch rounds

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound ground beef

48 ounces chunky tomato sauce

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Oil two baking sheets with 1 teaspoon olive oil.  Whisk eggs and water together in a shallow dish.  Combine Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, salt, and ground black pepper in a separate shallow dish.  Dip eggplant slices in egg mixture.  Press slices into the crumbs and tap off excess.  Arrange slices on the prepared baking sheets.  Bake eggplant slices in the preheated oven until tops are golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.  Flip eggplant and bake an additional 20 to 25 minutes.

Remove eggplant from the oven and increase temperature to 400 degrees.  Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and stir in ground beef.  Season beef with salt and ground black pepper.  Cook and stir until beef is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Drain excess grease.

Stir tomato sauce into ground beef; bring to a simmer and set sauce aside.  Oil a 9×13 baking dish with olive oil.  Place 1/3 of the eggplant slices on bottom of the dish.

Tomato Zucchini Casserole

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups grated Cheddar cheese

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

2 cloves garlic, minced

salt and/or pepper to taste

2 medium zucchinis, thinly sliced

5 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced

1/4 cup butter

2 tablespoons finely chopped onion

3/4 cup fine bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly butter a 9×9-inch pan.  In a large bowl, combine Cheddar, Parmesan, oregano, basil, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, and set aside.

Arrange half of the zucchini slices in the pan. Sprinkle 1/4 of the cheese and herb mixture on top. Arrange half of the tomatoes, and top with another 1/4 of the cheese mixture. Repeat layers.

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in onions, and cook until soft and translucent. Stir in breadcrumbs; cook until they have absorbed the butter. Sprinkle on top of casserole.

Cover loosely with foil, and bake in a preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake until the top is crusty and the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.

How to make Sauerkraut

Ingredients:

8 cups finely chopped cabbage, purple or green

1 tbsp. Himalayan or sea salt

Wash and drain cabbage well.  Cut off any outer leaves that don’t look good.  Cut and save one of the nicer leaves and put it to the side.

Add the sliced cabbage into a large mixing bowl, along with the salt.  Massage the salt into the cabbage.  Try grabbing handfuls and squeezing it like a sponge.  Repeat until cabbage starts to get soft.

The cabbage will produce a juice from squeezing.  Do not drain the juice!  That will allow the cabbage to ferment.

Massage until the cabbage is the consistency of being steamed.

Get a few handfuls of cabbage and stuff it into a mason jar and add a bit of the juice, just on top.  Press the cabbage down as tightly as you can with something, and continue to pack the cabbage in until the jar is full.  Add some more juice.

Take the piece of cabbage you set aside earlier and fold it up so that it will fit inside the mouth of the jar.  Use it almost like a lid.

Put the lid on and leave it out at room temperature for about 4 days.  Keep out of direct sunligt.

Be sure to take the lid off once a day to release any gasses that may build up from the fermentation process.

You can start taste testing around day 3 or 4 until it has a taste you like!  Once it’s there, put it in the fridge to slow down the fermentation process.

Purple Cabbage Salad Recipe

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups shredded red cabbage

1 (10 ounce) can mandarin oranges,

drained

1 green onion, chopped

1/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/3 cup canola oil

1/4 cup vinegar

1 tablespoon white sugar

2 pinches salt

Lightly toss red cabbage, mandarin orange segments, green onion, and cranberries together in a salad bowl.  Toast pine nuts in a small skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Remove immediately to a bowl and let cool.

Whisk canola oil, vinegar, sugar, and salt in a bowl until sugar and salt have dissolved.  Stir toasted pine nuts into salad and pour dressing over the top. Toss again to coat salad with dressing.

Vegetarian Stuffed Bell Peppers

Ingredients:

1 cup quinoa

1 cup water

2 red bell peppers

1/2 Granny Smith apple, cored and

chopped

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

1 cup chopped tomatoes

3 green onions, thinly sliced

sea salt and pepper to taste

Bring the quinoa and water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a small baking dish. Halve the red peppers lengthwise. Remove the seeds and ribs, but leave the stem intact so the pepper bowls hold their shape; place cut-side-up into the prepared baking dish.

Toss the chopped apple with the lime juice, olive oil, garlic, parsley, mint, tomatoes, and green onions. Fold in the quinoa, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Fill the cut peppers with this mixture, and fill the baking dish with about 1/4 inch of water.

Bake in preheated oven until the peppers are tender, and the quinoa is hot, about 20 minutes.

Cranberry Quinoa Stuffed Zucchini

Ingredients:

4 Medium zucchini, washed

Salt and Pepper

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 cup Uncooked quinoa, rinsed (makes about 2 cups cooked)

1 cup Water

1 cup Fresh spinach

1/4 cup Kosher for Passover dried cranberries

1/4 cup Scallions, sliced thin

4 ounce Temp Tee Whipped Cream Cheese

1/2 cup Toasted walnuts, diced (optional)

Directions

Super yummy!

Crisp Tuna-Cabbage Salad

Ingredients:

One 5-ounce can tuna, drained

2 cups finely chopped green or red cabbage, from about 4 ounces or 1/4 of a small head of cabbage

1/4 cup minced chives, from about 1/4 ounce chives

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

3 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Shred the tuna with a fork and mix thoroughly with the cabbage. Stir in the chives, mayonnaise, and yogurt. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. Eat immediately or else refrigerate for up to two days.

Cole Slaw

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup white sugar

1/4 cup milk

2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 1/2 tablespoons vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

9 1/2 cups shredded cabbage

1/2 cup grated carrots

1/4 cup minced sweet onion

Whisk together mayonnaise, sugar, milk, lemon juice, vinegar, and salt and pepper in a large bowl.  Toss the cabbage, carrots, and onion into the dressing; mix well. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to overnight before serving.

These are great if you aren’t fond of veggie patties!

Kale Quinoa Patties

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups cooked quinoa, cooled

4 cups kale, cleaned, deveined, chopped small

3 large eggs, beaten

1 tsp sea salt

½ yellow onion, diced small

½ cup chives, chopped

½ cup Parmesan, grated

2 cloves garlic, minced

¾ cup finely ground bread crumbs (use gluten free breadcrumbs to make this dish gluten free)

2 Tbsp olive oil plus more for frying

Combine quinoa, eggs, Parmesan, chives and salt in medium mixing bowl.

Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil in skillet on medium heat then sweat onions and garlic, approximately 3 minutes. Add kale to skillet and cook until kale is bright green and soft.

Add kale mixture to quinoa mixture, then add breadcrumbs and stir to combine.

Place clean skillet on medium heat and add enough oil to coat bottom of pan.

Form patties using ½ cup of quinoa mixture and place patties in skillet being careful not to splash hot oil or overcrowd the pan. Fry until golden brown on each side, approximately 5 minutes per side.

Remove patties, drain on paper towel and serve.

Zucchini Risotto

Ingredients:

7 cups vegetable or chicken stock

1 tbsp. butter

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cups Arborio rice, uncooked

½ medium zucchini, thinly sliced

10 sun-dried tomatoes, softened & chopped

1 tsp. dried thyme, crushed

6 tbsp. freshly grated parmesan cheese (or mozzarella)

1 tbsp. chopped fresh basil

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

Bring vegetable or chicken stock to a boil in a medium pot, then reduce heat to a low simmer.

Melt butter in a large, heavy bottom stock pot over medium heat.  Stir in onions and cook for 2 minutes, until softened.  Add the rice and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until lightly toasted.  Ladle in simmering vegetable stock, stirring continuously.  Risotto will become creamy and slightly sticky, yet firm in the center.

When almost finished, stir in the zucchini, sun-dried tomatoes, and thyme, adding stock as needed and stirring continuously.  Stir in basil and 3 tbsp. cheese before serving.  Sprinkle with remaining cheese and season with pepper to taste!