agoodwinsmith: (Little Seagull)
One of my frivolous uses of LJ is to record recipes that I will no doubt lose if I put them anywhere else.

So.  One can't roast all the vegetables for the same amount of time, or some are undercooked and some are burnt.  So, here is my rough and ready rule: roast them as you chop.  The expanded version is to then chop them in the longest-to-cook to shortest-to-cook order.  In general, each batch of veggies spends at least 10 mins in the oven before the next batch is added.

So.  Start with your emply pan in a 400 F oven.

Scrub your veggies and dry them.

Chop any of: potatoes, beets, parsnips, carrots, pearl onions, and hardskinned squash like acorn or butternut.  I peel my squashes because I can't digest their skins, but other people leave them on - let your tummy be your guide.  I don't peel anything else (okay: I peel the onions, fiddly things that they are).  (I may break this veggie group into two, just for ease of oil coating.)

Chuck them in a bowl with a dollop of olive oil plus your preferred herbs (see below), and stir until thoroughly coated.

Throw them into the hot pan, and put the pan back in the oven.

Chop any of: sweet peppers, cherry tomatoes, cauliflower.  Roll in herby oil & fling in pan & return pan to oven.

Chop brussel sprouts.  Oil, pan, oven.

Chop mushrooms.  Oil, pan, oven.

After the last addition, keep in oven for an additional 20 to 30 mins (or longer, as needed).

Serve with a creamy cheese like cream cheese or goat cheese.  And bread for sopping up the juices.

PREFERED HERBS

I use different herbs in each oil bath, depending on the veggie.

Potato + rosemary
Tomato + basil
Onions + parsley
Beets + marjoram or dill
Carrots + savoury
Parsnips + savoury
Butternut or acorn squash + ginger or cumin
Cauliflower + cumin or paprika & turmeric or paprika & chili powder
Sweet pepper + oregano
Brussel sprouts + nutmeg
Mushrooms + thyme

Oh yes: I salt & pepper every oil bath.

I confess that I haven't used potatoes yet because even only one each (except onions, brussel sprouts, & mushrooms) fills your pan pretty quickly.  I make a big pan on Sunday & we use it for lunches throughout the week.
agoodwinsmith: (Default)

Yves puts out some excellent fake ground round, ground chicken, beef strips and chicken strips.  I have for a long time made a very good vegetarian chili with the fake ground round, that even meatavours scarf up.  I have been experimenting with the chicken strips in a pasta salad I am developing (good, but still needs work).

Tonight I made Boeuf Bourguignonne with the fake beef strips.  Now, I confess that I did use a good bottle of red wine (Chateau Le Marquisat La Perouse Bordeaux 2005, France), which we drank the rest of with supper, but it was very good indeed.  Here's what I did:

Melt butter over medium high heat.
Reduce heat and add one yellow onion diced about 2 to 3 cm square.
When starting to be transclucent, add about two cups sliced white mushrooms.
Keep stirring regularly until mushrooms are wilting and changing to dark beige.
Squish one small garlic clove through a garlic press and add the squishings, but discard the stuff in the press.
Add one package of fake beef strips, and keep stirring as they warm up and the garlic gets fragrant.
Crush in your hands 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme, and add to pan.
Add 1/2 cup water and scrape the yummies off the bottom of the pan.
Add about a cup of red wine and reduce heat.
Cover and allow to simmer.
Dust over the surface of the mix about 2 teaspoons of flour, and mix in to thicken.
Cover and continue to simmer until raw flour taste gone.
More red wine can be added, if desired.
Continue to simmer, but do not allow to scorch, burn or stick to the pan.
Serve over starch of your choice.
Drink the remainder of the red wine with the meal.

We had it over small fusili noodles, but I think it would have been good over rice.  I think also that if you boiled up some small new potatoes, they would go very well with this.

Here is the fake meat product I used:
http://yvesveggie.ca/index.php/products/product/veggie_tenders_beef/


agoodwinsmith: (Default)
So, I have discovered why people don't make Plum Betty.  It is very tasty, and very pretty, but very very *very* juicy.
agoodwinsmith: (Default)
http://www.navitasnaturals.com/products/cacao.html

I bought some of these today (different packaging because I am in Canada).  The individual beans look like slightly plump darkish almonds.  The skin is a little tougher, but certainly easy to eat.  The meat, however, is very dry and crumbly - and very tasty.  They are not sweetened, of course, but they are not harsh.  And they are kind of more-ish, just like chocolate covered coffee beans.  Not cheap, but yum.
agoodwinsmith: (Default)
Hola - I wish to share a very tasty recipe.  If you have everything in the cupboard, you really can be sitting down to eat in 90 minutes, maybe less.

Natcho Casserole

preheat oven to 400 F.

1 yellow onion, peeled & finely diced
1 sweet red pepper (maybe 2), seeded & finely diced
1 tin (284 ml) mushroom pieces, drained by pressing
1 tin (127 ml) Old El Paso chopped peeled green chiles
1 package (880 g) Yves veggie ground round
1.5 cups your favourite salsa, not runny
2 eggs
1 package (35 g) Old El Paso Taco Seasoning mix
shredded cheese - old cheddar and mozzerrella (or your favourite tasty melty cheese)
natcho chips
sour cream

Pictures here:
http://pics.livejournal.com/agoodwinsmith/gallery/0001q6tk

Dice onion and red pepper, add to bowl.  Drain mushrooms by squishing the tin lid down upon the pieces several times.  Add mushrooms and chopped peeled green chilies to bowl.  Add fake ground round and mix everything up thoroughly.

Mix salsa, eggs, and taco seasoning together and add to bowl.  Mix every thing up.

Grease shallow oven-proof dish with olive oil, bottom and up the sides.   Pour mix into casserole dish and smooth flat.  Place casserole in 400 F oven for 20 to 25 minutes - until the center is just starting to show bubbles.

While casserole in oven, shred and mix cheese.  Once bubbling around the edges, remove casserole from oven and top with cheese.  Spread evenly, BUT DO NOT BURN YOUR TENDER SELF.

Return to oven for another 20 minutes, or until cheese is melting and starting to show browning.

Remove from oven (turn off oven), and allow casserole to stand for 10 minutes.  Serve with natcho chips and sour cream.

Previously I have crushed the natcho chips, put them on top of the casserole and then topped them with the cheese and returned it to the oven to melt and brown, but I prefer the use the chips and scoop up hot casserole and sour cream.
agoodwinsmith: (Default)

I took a finger food that was a big hit to the dance: dates stuffed with cream cheese and toasted pecans.  Toast whole pecans and allow to cool completely.  Split a date, leaving it hinged.  Remove the stone/pit/hard thing.  Stuff hollow with plain full-fat cream cheese.   Insert cool toasted pecan in the cream cheese.  Make lots.  Eat a few.  Wash your hands after stuffing your face and before continuing with stuffing the dates.

Sludge.

Oct. 30th, 2007 08:32 pm
agoodwinsmith: (Default)
Gosh, I hate pasta packets - ravioli and similar.  It's always doughy, and the filling tastes like a cross between finely milled sawdust and clay.  Not garlic chicken.  Suspension of disbelief not engaged.  I haven't eaten some for five or more years, because I know that I don't like it and that it always disappoints me.  But there it was, and it looked so simple.

Ugh.

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