I came up with the recipe below a few nights ago.  Sometimes those made-up meals can be a huge flop, but sometimes you can surprise yourself with something super tasty.  These eggplant rolls definitely fall into the latter category (at least in my opinion – try them and let me know what you think!).  I’ve been trying to work winter greens into most of my meals (they’re packed full of amazing nutrients like iron and Vitamin K), and quinoa has the highest protein content of any grain, so these are great for adding some extra nutrients to your diet.  These eggplant rolls have it all – vegetables, protein, and whole grains!!

Ingredients:

2 cups vegetable or chicken broth

1 cup quinoa

1 large eggplant

olive oil

1 bunch chard

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 lb. dark ground turkey (beef or tofu can be substituted)

paprika

italian seasoning (or other herbs – your choice)

1 1/2 cups tomato sauce

1/4 cup Parmesan

Instructions:

1.  Turn oven to 425° F.

2. Bring broth to a boil in a pot and add quinoa.  Cover and turn down heat to medium-low and let simmer until the quinoa has fully absorbed the broth.

3. Slice eggplant length-wise into 1/4 inch thick slices.  Brush both sides of the eggplant slices with a bit of olive oil and lay them on baking sheets.  Bake for about 7 minutes until they’re just starting to brown and are flexible (easy to roll).

4.  Cut the chard leaves away from the stalks and discard the stalks.  Slice the leaves into strips, and then slice the strips into smaller pieces cross-wise.

5.  Sauté onion and garlic in a large pan over medium-high heat until soft.  Add ground turkey and continue to sauté until turkey is almost cooked through.  Add paprika and italian seasoning, sauté for another minute, and then add chard.  Continue cooking until the turkey is cooked through.  Turn off the heat and add cooked quinoa to this mixture.

the filling

6.  Turn oven down to 375° F.  Oil a lasagna dish.

7.  Scoop a mound of filling onto the middle of one of the eggplant slices.  How much you’ll use will depend on the size of the slices – I used about 1/3 cup for the large slices and much less for the smaller ones.  Fold both sides over the filling, and turn upside down to put in the dish so that the edges are on the bottom.  Continue with all of the eggplant slices.

8. When all of the eggplant slices have been used up, spoon the tomato sauce over the eggplant rolls and sprinkle the Parmesan over the top.  You’ll probably have filling left over, and this is great in a pita or wrap!

9. Bake the rolls for about 25 minutes.

mmm...

]]> http://foodingandfueling.wordpress.com/2010/02/10/stuffed-eggplant-rolls/feed/ 2 foodandfuel P1010139 P1010145 http://foodingandfueling.wordpress.com/2010/02/09/blueberry-buckwheat-pancakes/ http://foodingandfueling.wordpress.com/2010/02/09/blueberry-buckwheat-pancakes/#comments Wed, 10 Feb 2010 01:02:27 +0000 foodandfuel http://foodingandfueling.wordpress.com/?p=62 ]]> Breakfast is, by far, my favorite meal.  Nothing beats a fluffy Dutch baby that rises to impossible heights in the oven, or a plate of sunny-side up eggs with biscuits and bacon (this one is absolutely necessary after an indulgent night involving a few too many glasses of Rioja).  Places that serve breakfast all day are amazing, since having breakfast for dinner is just so much fun.  Pancakes (one of the most versatile breakfast options) don’t generally tend towards the healthy side (they are pan – cakes…cakes in a pan…), so it was necessary for me to find an alternative that I could eat often.  I came across the recipe below in the GOOP newsletter that pops up in my email once in a while.  I changed it up a bit, and came up with a recipe that I make at least twice a month.  Buckwheat is a great source of iron, flax seeds add some Omega-3s, and the blueberries contribute loads of antioxidants  A big batch made on the weekend can be used as healthy snacks throughout the week.  After you’ve eaten the hot ones on the first day with lots of maple, you can eat the cold ones for snacks plain, but I usually smother mine with some homemade apple or plum butter (courtesy of my mom).

Ingredients (adapted from GOOP)

1 1/4 cups rice milk (or soy, almond, or whatever you prefer)

1 Tbsp. lemon juice (optional)

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 Tbsp. maple syrup

1/2 cup buckwheat flour

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 cup ground flaxseed

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1 1/2 cups frozen or fresh blueberries (or more if you prefer)

Instructions

1. Mix wet ingredients in a small bowl.

2. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.

3.  Add wet to dry and stir just enough to combine.  If you want thicker pancakes, add some more flour.

4.  Add blueberries and stir in.

5.  Heat griddle or pan and cook pancakes, using about 1/4 cup of mix for each pancake.

Image via http://www.ort.org.il

I’ve found a new favorite snack.   Dates filled with ricotta both  satisfy my sweet tooth and fill me up (which is no easy task).  I first came across this idea at a cheesemaking workshop that I went to last year (http://www.cheesemaking.com/ cheesemakingworkshops.html), when we were served dates stuffed with the ricotta we had just made.  It was a much-needed break from the massive amounts of cheese we had been injesting (don’t get me wrong – I love cheese, but this was to the extreme and there wasn’t even any bread to even things out a bit!)  Up until then, I’d only ever had dried dates, but these fresh dates were so unbelievably tasty.  They’re like nature’s version of gummy bears- chewy and sweet.  However, unlike those bags of Haribo gummy bears that I just cannot seem to resist, dates are packed with nutrients and are digested very easily.  These ricotta-stuffed dates are especially good with a cup of green tea as a mid-morning snack or can also be served as an hors d’oeuvre at your next cocktail party!

Dates with Ricotta

(enough for 1 snack)

5 dates

1/4 cup ricotta

1 tsp. honey (or more to taste)

nutmeg (preferably freshly grated)

1.  Slice the dates in half lengthwise and remove the pits.  Try to ignore the fact that the inside looks like those weird gooey alien guts in movies  (or maybe that’s just my opinion).

2.  Mix together ricotta, honey, and nutmeg in a small bowl.

3.  Use the tip of a butter knife to smear the ricotta mixture into the dates.

Note: If you are making these as an hors d’oeuvre, you can leave the nutmeg out of the ricotta mixture and sprinkle it on top instead to make them look nicer.

Also, if you are lucky enough to have freshly made ricotta, you don’t even need the honey.  The ricotta alone has such a wonderful taste that you can just put it right in the dates and enjoy!

Image via http://wikimedia.org/

Ingredients:

1 onion, diced

4 large cloves of garlic, minced

6 cups vegetable or chicken broth

4 large carrots, quartered and sliced

8 medium potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/2 butternut squash, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

2 cups red lentils

Instructions:

1.  Sauté onion and garlic together in a bit of EVOO until soft, about 5 minutes.

2.  Add the broth, and then add the vegetables.  Bring to a boil, and then cover and turn the heat down to medium.  Cook until the vegetables are tender.

3.  Add lentils, and cook until the lentils have absorbed the liquid and are cooked through.  This will be very quick – about 10 minutes or so.  Stir the stew occasionally while the lentils are cooking, since it tends to stick to the bottom of the pot easily.

4.  Add salt and pepper to taste – I find that the bouillon that I use for the broth usually flavors the stew enough, but go ahead and add some seasonings if it needs a bit more oomph.

Variations:

• Add some kale to get some winter green nutrients in here.  Chop it into small pieces and add it about halfway through the cooking time of the vegetables.
• Add protein – chicken sausage, tofu, or whatever your little heart desires.  I’m not sure red meat would taste so great in this, but I’ve never tried, so let me know if it works!
• Use green or brown lentils instead of red.  Make sure to soak them before adding them to the stew (for at least a couple of hours).  Taste the stew once the lentils have absorbed the liquid, and if they’re still not cooked through, add some more broth and keep cooking them.  The great thing about red lentils is that they cook obscenely quickly.
• Add hot sauce if you like to spice things up a bit.
• Do all of the above.

Chocolate Turds

2 cups mixed nuts (almonds, walnuts, cashews, pecans, etc.)

1 cup mixed dried fruit (i.e. prunes, apricots, cranberries, dates…feel free to explore!)

1/4 cup orange juice

2 Tbsp. maple syrup

1 Tbsp. cocoa powder  (optional if you are one of those strange people who doesn’t like chocolate)

cocoa powder, chopped nuts, or coconut for rolling

Instructions

1.  Bring out the Ferrari.  (This is how I refer to my food processor. I figure I will never actually have a Ferrari, and since my food processor is sleek, red, and has a powerful motor, it’s probably the closest I’ll ever get!)

yeah, baby

2.  Put nuts in the food processor, and pulse until they’re finely chopped.  Add the dried fruit, and pulse again until all of that is finely chopped.

3. Add the optional cocoa powder, maple syrup, and orange juice.  Pulse again until you have a delicious-looking brown paste

4.  Take the treachorously sharp blade out of the food processor bowl (believe me, this thing can slice a huge chunk out of your skin without you even noticing it – I figured that out the hard way).  Put the cocoa powder/chopped nuts/coconut into a small bowl.  Reach into the brown paste mixture (now that the blade is safely out of the way) and scoop out about a tablespoon or two (depending on how large you would like them to be).  Roll this between your palms until you have a ball and then roll the ball around in your coating of choice.  Do this with all of the paste until you have a nice pile of chocolate-y turds.

And there you have it – chocolate turds packed full of nuts, dried fruit, and a bit of sugar that makes a perfect pre or post-workout snack.  I find that one or two is great right before a workout, because it will give you just the right amount of energy without making you really full.

P.S. If you don’t have a Ferrari, you can also make these by chopping the nuts and dried fruit very finely (this will be a lot of work, but at least you can feel good about the fact that you actually do your own work instead of those lazy people who use Ferraris to do it for them).

Guten Appetit!

(serves 2)

4 slices bread

grainy mustard

1 sweet potato

1 apple

cheddar

I didn’t really have the time to roast the sweet potatoes whole and then slice them, so decided to try slicing them first and then roasting them.  It actually worked out really well!  The oven was at 400 F, and I oiled a Pyrex pan, and laid the slices in there.  Some of them were overlapping, but that was fine.  I took the pan out a few times to turn the slices, and it only took about 15 min. before they were perfectly tender.

Then I laid the bread slices on a baking sheet and threw them in the oven to toast them quickly.  Next came the pungent grainy mustard on the bread, and then I laid slices of sweet potato and apple on top of that.  The cheddar came last, so that once melted, it would hold the rest of the ingredients all together on top of the bread.  Back it all went into the oven for a few minutes until the cheese was melted, and then it was time to eat!!

Quick, easy dinner that’s completely local (well, except for the French mustard), and very satisfying!  This would be great with a mesclun salad as well.  Siena Farm at the Copley Square farmer’s market has the most amazing mesclun mix I have ever had.  I believe their last farmer’s market of the season is this Tuesday (the 24th), so if you get a chance to head over there, grab some of their mesclun mix to treate your taste buds.

This article is absolutely incredible – so many ideas!  I love how all of the “recipes” are short and to the point.  I feel like this is how I tend to cook.  I never use exact measurements, and I cook according to taste and whim.  Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t!  I sort of love the unaccountability of it.  You can either discover unbelievable new tastes (like the sweet potato, apple, cheddar, and bacon pizza I made the other night – now my new favorite), or flop majorly (like the Italian soccer players during the last World cup).  There’s always something new to discover in cooking.  Here’s to (raising a glass of 3-buck Chuck Cabernet Sauvignon – true class right there) new tastes, whether they be scrumptious or downright foul!

I have also jazzed this cake up for birthdays (since it’s much easier to make than a fussy genoise) by slicing it into 3 layers, slathering homemade whipped cream between the layers,  sprinkling strawberries over the whipped cream, and spreading ganache liberally over the entire thing.   So easy, and so good.

This cake can also be easily halved, doubled, tripled, or whatever else might be needed to satisfy your personal chocolate craving.  And the best part by far?  No eggs means lots of spoon-licking (as well as happy vegan friends).  The chemistry behind this cake is all based on the fun explosiveness of baking soda and vinegar.  Remember those volcanoes in elementary science class?  This cake is a volcano cake!!  It’s also a delicious batter and I always leave some extra in the bowl to enjoy while the cake is doing its thing in the oven.   Enjoy, chocolate lovers!!!

Chocolate Cornell Cake

3 cups flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

6 rounded Tbsp. cocoa

2 cups sugar

3/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tsp. vanilla

2 Tbsp. vinegar

2 cups cold water

Sift first 5 ingredients together.  Add the rest of the ingredients, and beat until smooth.  Bake in a greased and bread-crumbed 13″ x 9″ pan at 350˚F for 30-40 min.  (This can take longer depending on your oven – just bake it until a cake tester comes out clean).