vegetable pie

This is one of my favorite dishes. It's rich and comforting, it's full of vegetables, and it's (relatively) good for you. My mom has made it for years, and I started making it shortly after I got married. It's a great vegetarian option and I swear you won't even miss the meat. Serve this up with a green salad and you'll have yourself a nice little meal.

½ medium eggplant, cubed
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 green pepper, thinly sliced
1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½  teaspoon basil
1 large tomato, thinly sliced
1 cup shredded cheddar 
1 cup shredded mozzarella 
double pie crust 


Toss eggplant, onion, green pepper, zucchini and garlic with olive oil, spices, salt and pepper in a roasting pan or large baking sheet.  Roast at 425 degrees until soft, stirring every 10 minutes for about 30 minutes. 


In the meantime, prepare your pie crust (I swear I don't work for Trader Joe's, but they make a really really good frozen crust).

Once your vegetable are done, layer half of vegetables, half of the cheese, and half the tomato. Repeat. Make a lattice top pie crust (or fake it like I do)  and bake for 25 min at 425 degrees. Let cool about 10 minutes before serving.
And enjoy! 

a new take on tuna salad

This is so good. I served it with wild rice and sauteed spinach for a nice, light dinner. It was a nice change of pace. And I just set a little tuna aside to make a plain ol' sandwich for my toddler* who probably wouldn't appreciate this particular change of pace. I was inspired by a recipe I saw in Real Simple. Try it, I think you'll like it.

4 large tomatoes

2 cans albacore tuna, drained 

2 tablespoons capers

1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

1 large carrot, grated

juice from 1/2 lemon

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Hollow out each tomato, and add the pulp to a bowl. Combine with the remaining ingredients and spoon mixture back into the tomatoes. You'll probably have some left over, and it keeps really well. Top mixed greens with it, eat it on crackers - I think you're going to like this one.

Plus, it looks cool.

*mama note: grate a little carrot and cheddar into some tuna, mix with some reduced fat mayo, and make your little one a healthy melt. Mine never noticed the carrot, I promise. If he did, I'd be in trouble. No matter how many times I compare him to a bunny.

one of my most favorite foods

My experimenting was postponed.  Busy schedules, changed plans and snow storms intervened.  I promise a new and interesting recipe this week.  In the meantime, how about an old classic?  At least it is in my family.  This recipe is simple and quick to come together, and sure to please a crowd.  And I have loved it since I was a little kid, requesting it on every birthday.  Now that I am all grown up, I make it at least once a month.  

This meat sauce cooks all day in the crock pot.  We usually top off a big pile of spaghetti with it, but it's great in lasagna, atop ravioli, over grilled eggplant - whatever your heart desires.  And please don't be scared off by ground beef.  I use the leanest kind you can find (you can, of course, use ground turkey, but it's actually not that much better for you - they grind the skin and fat right in).   This rich, thick sauce is low in fat and extremely high in antioxidants (hello, tomatoes!).  It'll do your body good, and it'll make a cold day comfy.

Here's what you need:

1 lb. ground beef

1 large onion, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 32oz. can stewed tomatoes

2 6oz. cans tomato paste

1/4 cup fresh parsley 

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon basil

1 teaspoon salt

In a large skillet, brown the meat with the onion and garlic.  

Drain fat.  

Add meat mixture to the crock pot, along with the rest of your ingredients.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

How easy is that?

Try it, love it, pass it on.

wholesome homemade chicken stock

I am a reformed vegetarian.  For ten years, I stayed away from the flesh.  But then, one fateful night my love interest enticed me with a chicken burrito.  I ended up marrying him, and have been eating meat ever since.  

Even though that was almost exactly five years ago, I still had a major fear of cooking a whole chicken.  A fear and a fascination. I was determined to cook a whole bird - bones, skin and all.  And this last weekend, I did it - faced that big, pink, bumpy bird right in its decapitated neck.  It kinda grossed me out, but once it was all said and done (and fully cooked), I was proud, satisfied and ready to eat.  I followed this recipe, and it truly was Real Simple.

I can't believe I haven't done this before.  It's so cheap and so delicious - and you can literally use the whole chicken.  The next day I made chicken stock with the leftover carcass (pardon the gross word).   You can do it, too!  Here's how it started:

And here's what you need:

Chicken Stock

1 leftover chicken carcass 

1 large onion

2 stalks celery 

1 large carrot (optional)

fresh parsley (I had a ton in my herb container, you can throw in whatever herbs you prefer)

salt + pepper

water

Stick the chicken, vegetables (roughly chopped) and parsley in a large stock pot.

Add just enough water to cover the ingredients.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Bring to a boil.  Reduce to simmering and allow to simmer uncovered for 4-6 hours.

If there is any fat on top, skim it off.

Strain into a container and allow to cool completely before you cover and put in the freezer or refrigerator.  

It'll keep in the fridge for 3 days.  Otherwise, you can put them into individual bags and freeze for later use.  This is what it ended up looking like:

All that cooked down to four little cups of rich chicken goodness.  Perfect for soups, stews, sauces... 

So, if you haven't done it already, you really ought to try it.  A whole chicken for $5 and multiple meals?  Can't beat it.