Recipe: Eggplant parmigiana

I recently posted about my eggplant glut and asked my Instagram followers for some suggestions to use up the harvest. Someone said eggplant parmigiana and I thought that sounded amazing.

It worked out well, because Mr Fork was craving chicken parmigiana so it was a nicely themed meal for everyone.

It was such an easy dish to make, very flexible and uses simple staple ingredients that I generally have on hand. I grew the eggplants and the basil used in it, I made breadcrumbs from the crust of my sourdough, and I got to include a few sneaky extra vegetables in the sauce. I was so happy with how it turned out, I thought I'd share. I think this would be great for a festive meal, and I know it's going to be fabulous as leftovers for work lunches this week too. Everyone wins!

In my opinion the key to making this dish especially delicious is the tomato sauce. I made mine from a mix of tinned and fresh tomatoes that I cooked up with onion, garlic and other seasonings, let it reduce until it was thick and concentrated, and then added fresh herbs to really jazz it up. You could always use pasata and add your own seasonings as well.

Vegan Eggplant Parmigiana
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Ingredients

• 5 medium sized eggplants (or maybe 3 large ones)
• olive oil
• garlic, minced
• dried oregano
• 1 onion, diced
• tomatoes (I used a 400g tin of chopped tomatoes, and maybe another 400g fresh ones, diced)
• fresh basil
• salt
• pepper
• nutritional yeast
• a large handful of breadcrumbs (mine was made from the stale crusts of my sourdough loaves)

Method

1. Slice the eggplants into rounds, and salt them. Leave that to sit for 10 minutes or so while you get the sauce going.
2. In a saucepan, add a little olive oil, the garlic and onion, and a shake or two of dried oregano. Fry that up until it gets fragrant and then add the tomato. I also added a little water to mine, but you may not need to do that - you want the sauce to be thick and not too watery. Cover and let it simmer away for 15 minutes or so.
3. Rinse the eggplant rounds and then fry or grill them. I did them in batches in a fry pan, putting the done ones aside on a plate while I cooked the next lot.
4. Check on the sauce and season it. It should be reduced, and the tomatoes should be broken down - I added a little salt, pepper and a bit of red wine vinegar. I also stirred in some fresh basil and some baby spinach leave that needed using up. 
5. Time to assemble! I used a square dish, about 25 x 25 cm. I started with a thin layer of sauce, then a sprinkling of nutritional yeast, then a layer of eggplants. Keep going in that order: sauce, nutritional yeast, eggplant until everything is used up. Finish with a layer of sauce then a sprinkling of nutritional yeast.
6.  In a small bowl, mix the breadcrumbs with some dried oregano, salt, pepper and olive oil. I also added a bit of fresh minced garlic, but I know that's not to everyone's tastes. Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture over the top of the dish.
7. I baked it for about 30 minutes in a 200C fan forced oven until it was all bubbly and golden.

Notes/Variations

• This was so good. Served hot from the oven and cold as leftovers for lunch, both ways were delicious. I plated it topped with torn basil on my plate, and little pieces of mozzarella for the kids.
• If you wanted, you could sub parmesan for the nutritional yeast, but I wanted a vegan version. You could also mix cheese into the breadcrumb layer as well.
• Next time for more protein and to help absorb a bit of the moisture from the eggplants as they cook, I will add some quinoa into the sauce to help thicken it up a bit. Also, I think sliced mushrooms would be a great sauce addition. 

What will you be eating for Christmas festivities?

Recipe: Barley and cous cous bake

It's a Christmas tradition that even though we are guests for Christmas lunch, as I am the only vegetarian, I supply the vegetarian main. Gradually, this has morphed into me being responsible for all the 'picky' eaters - that is, the vegans, the vegetarians, the gluten free and those who want a healthier option. I therefore always play it safe with my contribution and make it relatively spice free and appealing to most palates and diet types.

This year, I wanted a change from my usual mushroom and sage loaf, particularly as we are still in a delicate stage with Jimmy's feeding, and sage tends to dry up breast milk supplies, something I really didn't want to inflict on my baby on a day when he'd want the extra comfort of nursing with all the new people around him.

I decided that I would make a spiced grain bake, flavoured with spices and some lemon juice to keep it fresh as it was a hot Christmas this year. It turned out quite tasty, although not as 'sliceable' as my loaf option, so there were no perfectly cut portions, more of a delicious heaped serving upon plates.

Barley and cous cous bake
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Ingredients:

• 1 cup pearl barley
• 1 cup pearl (israeli) cous cous
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 tin green lentils
• 1 tbsp ginger, chopped finely
• 1 tbsp garlic, chopped finely
• 4 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1 tbsp tumeric
• 4 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 small carrots, grated
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp coconut oil

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180C and line your baking dish with baking paper
2. Cook the barley and cous cous in boiling water. Just before the water is completely absorbed, remove from the heat and leave it to sit, covered, for an extra 15 minutes
3. While the grains are sitting, saute the onion in the coconut oil until softened
4. Place all the ingredients into a large bowl and mix. Add salt and pepper to taste
5. Transfer the mix into your prepared baking dish and press down firmly
6. Bake for 45 minutes and allow to sit an additional 15 minutes before serving

Notes:

• You could easily use other grains if you prefer. Quinoa would be nice and give it a slightly nuttier flavour. I think brown rice would also be delicious
• Feel free to switch up the spices and even add herbs for a different taste. I played it safe and omitted chilli, but if it was just for me, I would have added it in
• This was super easy to prepare. In fact, I made it the night before I needed it, then just removed it from the fridge, allowed it to come to room temperature and then baked it on the day I needed it. I think this really helped the flavours to infuse throughout too

How was your Christmas? What was on the menu and are you still eating the leftovers?

What's in my Kitchen, September 2014

In my kitchen is...

Experimental ginger cookies. My friend came over and helped me bake a batch of the most delicious cookies. They are yummy anyway, but being something Attila will tolerate makes them extra yummy. Packed full of fresh ginger, walnuts, pepitas and other delicious things, these are one of my favourite things to eat at the moment when Attila won't let me eat anything else. We plan to change up the recipe a bit and turn them into lactation cookies for later on. Stay tuned for that recipe too.

In my kitchen is... 

Hugh Hamilton Ring-in Shiraz Cordial from the McLaren Vale. This was a gift from my fabulous baker friend who thought of her pregnant friend while on a wine tour. It's a non-alcoholic cordial made from grapes and packaged in a beautiful wine bottle, available from a vineyard, but it's not wine. It tastes remarkably like the real thing, and is delicious with both sparkling and still water. One of my favourite things right now! Mr Fork even serves it to me in a wine glass for added authenticity...

In my kitchen is... 

Jelly cups. Not the fun sort I used to make with vodka back in my younger clubbing days either. These are toddler friendly and perfect for the times when Ellie just won't eat anything else. Lately she has been teething again (when is she not!?) and there are meals where she flat out refuses to chew. We were spending a fortune on those pre-made cups with fruit, and I thought it was just as easy to make them myself. I kept a few of the cups, washed them and made up my own mix of jelly and whatever fruit I had handy. She thinks they're pretty awesome and I'm happier knowing that a) they cost a fraction of the pre-made price and b) I can sneak in extra fruit to make me feel like there is some nutrition there. Pictured is strawberry pieces in lime jelly.

In my kitchen is...

Cat Grass. Not edible and not for me, these luscious specimens were a gift for a friend. She has a vegetable garden and a visiting cat thinks it's a lovely place to lie down, usually on top of whatever she is growing. I saw this grass at my local farmers market and thought it might be just the thing to convince that feline to lie elsewhere. I haven't heard whether it was a success yet, but the little pots looked so lovely on the windowsill that I couldn't help take a picture of how green and delicious the grass looked.

In my kitchen is...

Red Bean and Taro Cake. I had a birthday recently, and I was absolutely spoiled. My mother in law made me a layered red bean and taro cake in the style of those desserts you get at yum cha to celebrate. I can't tell you exactly what is in it, but there is definitely coconut, agar agar, and of course, red bean and taro. It is absolutely delicious but very dense, and best eaten often and in small pieces.

 

In my kitchen is...

 

Fresh flowers. I adore flowers in the home, but I don't often spoil myself and indulge. I was thrilled to receive this beautiful bunch from Mr Fork and Ellie for my birthday. I'm a huge fan of oriental lilies and I'm waiting impatiently for these beauties to open up and fragrance my kitchen. 

I am linking this post in with Fig Jam and Lime Cordial's monthly In My Kitchen event. Go have a peek through other kitchens around the globe!

What's in your kitchen this month?

Recipe: Anti nausea cookies with ginger

I have a good friend who loves to bake. I honestly think there is nothing that she cannot make in a kitchen. While I can cook well enough, she really knows her stuff and how things work together, so, when I wanted to create something to eat that would be relatively healthy but help to quell my nausea, I knew just who to turn to for help.

 

We started off knowing that I wanted cookies. There is a real cookie-palooza going on at the moment, everywhere I turn I see cookies being made and shared. Rightly so. Who doesn't love cookies? They're portable, delicious and very flexible and forgiving.

The brief was that they were to contain lots of ginger and be yummy and textural and just all around amazing. I think we succeeded pretty well actually, and so, I'm going to blog about it! 

Measurements are a bit funny because we wanted to make a small batch and sort of made it up as we went, but I assure you, the end result is delicious and more-ish. It was pretty apparent they were going to work when the raw dough itself was delicious (yay for vegan dough and eating it straight from the bowl!). Apparently that's an early marker of a good cookie!

 

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup coconut sugar
• 1 1/6 cup wholemeal flour (we used spelt but you could use regular too)
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 tblsp coconut oil
• 1/3 cup walnuts, roughly chopped
• 1/3 cup pepitas
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 1/3 cup dessicated coconut
• 2 tblsp grated fresh ginger
• Pinch salt
• 1/2 tsp bi carb soda

Method:

Preheat your (fan based) oven to 180C. Line your cookie trays.
 

I like a low fuss recipe and I don't think you could get less fussy than this one. It's pretty simple really. Add everything into a bowl and combine. You want the mixture to be sticky but not too wet. You may need to add a little more flour or water to get it to the right consistency.

When you're happy, roll the mixture into appropriately sized balls, flatten slightly and put onto your trays. I found it was easier to do this with wet hands. My balls were probably 2 inches or so across when flattened. They didn't spread very much which was surprising.

 

Bake 15 minutes (but check progress at 10 minutes).

I didn't count exactly, but I'd say the recipe probably made 20+ cookies, and I'd say they'd keep fresh for at least a week. They are a soft cookie, which is my preference, but not too soft.

 

 

Notes:

• The raw recipe will freeze beautifully if you wanted to multiply the batch and store some away. Just defrost the dough completely before cooking.
• Add as much ginger as you like. I personally think I'll add in some more next time.
• I don't think the spelt flour made that much of a difference to the recipe. At $7.49/kg versus $0.79/kg for regular whole meal flour, I would be ok using regular flour next time.
• You could mix up the nuts and the coconut. I think next time for added texture I will use a shredded coconut instead.
• They could definitely cope with more nuts and seeds added if you wanted some extra crunch when you bite in.

Do you have a favourite cookie recipe? I'd love to hear about it!