Last night I made this vegetarian tart I found in the Dish magazine. It is all vegetables apart from some cheese and two eggs. How about that for healthy? The majority of the vegetables create a kind of pizza base which hangs together reasonably well as long as you bake it for long enough. I would suggest turning it in the oven a few times to get it browned evenly. Make sure you time the cooking of the asparagus so they are ready just as the base comes out of the oven. That way, you will have a hot meal. This is not a low Fodmap recipe. And now a quick summary of The Taste of Auckland food festival, which I went to last weekend. My sister and I had a wonderful time sipping and nibbling on endless free offerings and bought a few small courses from the top chefs in Auckland. I had a prawn concoction from Euro Restaurant, which was packed with flavour but had very little substance and also a deconstructed cheesecake dessert. I am not sure why a cheesecake has to be deconstructed … [Read more...] about Asparagus and Vegetable Tart – vegetarian and gluten-free
vegetarian cooking
Spicy Potato & Pea Patties – vegetarian meal
If you are in need of a little spice in your life, cook these patties for dinner tomorrow night. As soon as I saw them on the Flavors of Mumbai blog, I knew I had to cook them. They are a nice surprise for the family if they don't see you preparing them because when they cut into what seems like a potato patties, they will find this delicious spicy pea mixture inside. This is not a low Fodmap recipe. Spicy Potato & Pea Patties - vegetarian meal Print Author: Suzanne Perazzini Serves: 4 Ingredients 2 tbsp oil for shallow frying + 1 tbsp butter 1 onion chopped finely 1 carrot chopped finely 10 to 12 cashew nuts chopped quite finely 1.5 tbsp flour 6 potatoes medium sized 1 cup boiled green peas 2 green chillies chopped finely 1 tbsp cumin seed 2cm piece of fresh ginger 2 cloves of garlic 1 tsp turmeric ½ tomato chopped finely 1 tbsp garam masala powder Breadcrumbs for coating the chops Salt Method Firstly boil potatoes and green peas until tender. … [Read more...] about Spicy Potato & Pea Patties – vegetarian meal
Vegetarian Samosas & Leftover Pizza
Tonight I didn't have to cook. I have written before about the gentle lady who comes into our office once a month selling fresh, warm, delicious vegetarian samosas and apple pies. This morning on the way to work, Adriano asked me when she was coming again because he wanted samosas for dinner and who should come in but just the lady to stave off his cravings. And I knew I didn't have to cook so a win-win situation. We had leftover pizza that Adriano had made as well, so I heated them up and made a salad. I snapped a couple of photos and we ate. All in about 20 minutes instead of the usual hour to an hour and a half. I think I cook slowly, so I have a plan - I am going to buy Jamie Oliver's book on cooking meals in 30 minutes and I will check if he is telling the truth. His meals include dessert which we don't have, so I should take about 20 minutes each night to finish preparing dinner. I'll believe it when it happens. … [Read more...] about Vegetarian Samosas & Leftover Pizza
Caramelized Onion & Vegetable Tart
When I visited Stirling with my family on a road trip around England, Scotland and Wales, we dined at a small restaurant on a back street and I had a totally delicious caramelized onion tart and I have never forgotten it. The tart I made tonight was different but just as good. The flavours are excellent. I adapted it from a recipe I found at My Tasty Curry. This is not a low Fodmap recipe. Caramelized Onion & Vegetable Tart Print Author: Suzanne Perazzini Ingredients Frozen sheets of puff pastry Mushrooms - chopped Yellow bell pepper - chopped Cottage cheese 2 tomatoes 2 onions sliced salt & pepper 1 red chilli - sliced thinly 1 clove of garlic sliced 1 tbsp of tomato chutney Olive oil Parmesan Method Defrost three or four sheets of pastry - each one makes a tart. Cook the onions in oil and salt until caramelised. Add all the vegetables, seasoning and the cottage cheese and cook a few minutes to wilt the vegetables. Pile the vegetable mixture onto a sheet … [Read more...] about Caramelized Onion & Vegetable Tart
Mushroom Risotto with Poached Egg
Risotto in its various configurations and permutations is a fairly regular meal around here. Tonight's variation had no meat, white or red. The protein came in the form of a soft boiled egg. The runny yolk flowing over the rice mixture made it colourful and scrumptious. A little lemon juice and the addition of sour cream at the last minute really brought out the flavour in the dish. By the way, this really is a cheat's risotto. The rice shouldn't strictly be cooked separately and then thrown in with the other ingredients but it works flavourwise even if the texture is different. The upside is that it is much simpler and quicker to cook this way. If you are not used to the way the Italians cook it - the correct way - then you won't know the difference. So enjoy! This recipe is not low Fodmap. Mushroom Risotto with Poached Egg Print Author: Suzanne Perazzini Ingredients Rice - ½ cup /person 1 onion - chopped Dried thyme Mushrooms - chopped Salt and black … [Read more...] about Mushroom Risotto with Poached Egg
Spicy Eggplant Couscous – Vegetarian
You might have noticed that we eat quite a bit of couscous. It's a great alternative grain to the usual potatoes and rice, it takes all of about five minutes to cook and it's delicious. When I was in my early twenties, I decided to become vegetarian but it was really difficult to make sure that I was getting enough of the right kinds of proteins in the right combinations and when I went to live in Italy, I au paired for a year before getting a teaching job and the family I lived with were not vegetarian and I would have starved if I had not changed back to eating meat. However, I still believe we here in New Zealand eat too much animal protein and a sprinkling of vegetarian meals is a good thing. Tonight's dinner was one of those times. This is not a low Fodmap recipe. Spicy Eggplant Couscous - Vegetarian Print Author: Suzanne Perazzini Ingredients Couscous Eggplant - diced Zucchini - diced Spring onions - sliced Red chilli - sliced small Garlic - crushed Leek - … [Read more...] about Spicy Eggplant Couscous – Vegetarian