Category Archives: Vegetarian

Beets Cucumber and Tomato Salad

Beets, cucumber and tomato salad
Beets, Cucumber and Tomato Salad

Ingredients:

3-4 whole beets, (I used candycane beets),
1 iceberg lettuce,
1 cup grape tomatoes,
1 seedless cucumber,
greeen onion, sliced,
purple onion, chopped,
fresh parsley, chopped,
your favorite dressing

Recipe:

  1. Peel, dice and boil the beets.
  2. Strain the beets and let them cool down.
  3. Cut the rest of the vegetables and mix them with the beets and the dressing.

Penne Pomodoro Pasta Recipe

Penne pomodoro pasta
Penne Pomodoro Pasta

Ingredients:

1 can (500 gr.) peeled Roma tomatoes in tomato juice,
4 tablespoons olive oil,
1 tablespoon chopped basil,
1 small onion, chopped,
1 tablespoon minced garlic,
2 teaspoons sugar,
1 teaspoon salt,
2 bay leaves,
1 teaspoon dry oregano,
1 tablespoon butter,
1 teaspoon white pepper.

Recipe

1. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and sauté the chopped onion and garlic until slightly golden.

2. Blend briefly the tomatoes with a stick blender and pour them in the saucepan. Add the salt, white pepper, oregano and bay leaves.

3. Simmer the tomato sauce over low temperature for about 30 min. (or until the desired consistencyis achieved), stirring occasionally.

3. Add the sugar, chopped basil and butter 10 minutes before the sauce is ready. 

Cooking tip: Make sure you are using real butter, not margarine, in this recipe. Use this Italian tomato sauce for pastas or on top of veal or chicken parmesan.

Rigatoni Melanzane Eggplant Pasta Recipe

Rigatoni melanzane eggplant pasta
Rigatoni Melanzane Pasta (with eggplant)

This recipe serves three or four dinner servings. Rigatoni Melanzane is a very simple and tasty recipe, one of the best ways to enjoy the great taste of the eggplant.

Ingredients:

1 lb. rigatoni pasta,
2 cups tomato pasta sauce,
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil,
2 cups diced eggplant,
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil,
2 garlic cloves, chopped,
1/4 small yellow onion, chopped,
1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese,
1/2 teaspoon dry oregano, salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe

  1. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy skillet and saute the eggplant, onion and garlic until the eggplant cubes are soft and nicely browned.
  2. Add the tomato sauce, basil and oregano and reduce the sauce slightly by simmering it at low heat for about 5-10 minutes.
  3. Boil the rigatoni pasta according to the package instruction, usually about 12 minutes. Strain the boiled rigatoni and toss them with the melanzane pasta sauce.
  4. Serve the Rigatoni Melanzana with some grated Pecorino Romano cheese on top.

Vegetarian Nigiri Sushi Recipe

Vegetarian nigiri sushi
Vegetarian Nigiri Sushi

There is no such a thing in traditional Japanese cuisine as a vegetarian nigiri sushi, except the nigiri with tofu skin (and omelette nigiri doesn’t use fish, but it can hardly be called vegetarian). For my sushi bar, which I owned between 2009 and 2013 I created many kinds of vegetarian nigiri – with roasted bell pepper, avocado, asparagus, shiitake mushrooms and sprouts to cater to the tastes of customers who aren’t fish lovers.

Ingredients:

1 cup sushi rice,
1 tablespoon rice vinegar,
1 teaspoon sugar,
1 1/2 cups cold water,
1 red bell pepper,
little sesame oil oil,
several nori strips cut from a large sheet of nori,
for serving: soy sauce, pickled ginger and wasabi.

Recipe:

  1. Rince the rice until the water runs clear and place it in a rice cooker with the cold water. When the rice is cooked, let it stay for 10 minutes before lifting the lid.
  2. Stir the rice gently with a spatula and fan the excess steam with a fan. Combine the rice vinegar and sugar and fold it gently into the rice. Let it stand for about 20 minutes to cool down, but not completely cold, as nigiri is better made with warmer rice.
  3. Make as many oblong rice balls as you can using vynil gloves.
  4. Meanwhile, cut the red bell pepper to diamond shapes large enough to cover the nigiri balls, toss them with a tiny bit of sesame oil and saute them in a cast iron pan. Smear a small amount of wasabi over each rice ball, place a piece of red pepper over them and secure each nigiri with a nori strip.

Vegetarian No Meat Chili Recipe

Vegetarian no meat chili
Vegetarian No Meat Chili

Ingrediets:

1/4 cup sunflower oil,
1/2 medium onion, chopped,
3 garlic cloves, chopped,
2 stalks celery, chopped,
1 carrot, diced,
1 red bell pepper, chopped,
2 cans (13 oz. each) black beans,
1 can (13 oz.) diced tomato,
500 ml. tomato passata (strained tomato),
1 bay leave,
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder,
1 teaspoon chili flakes,
1 teaspoon smoked paprika,
1 tablespoon chili seasoning (or to taste),
1 heaping tablespoon of sugar,
salt to taste (if needed),
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese product.

Recipe:

1. Heat the oil in a large heavy saucepan and saute the garlic and onion for 3 minutes.

2. Add the diced carrot, celery and red pepper and saute for 5 more minutes. Stir often.

3. Add the black beans without the liquid, and the seasonings without the sugar.

4. After 2 minutes add the diced tomatoes and the passata.

5. Stir well, cover with a lod and simmer for about 25 minutes while stirring occasionally.

6. Add the sugar to the vegetarian chili 5 minutes before it is ready.

7. When the chili is ready remove it from the heat and stir in the parmesan cheese.

8. Serve the vegetarian chili in bowls and top with some shredded cheese. Enjoy.

Mixed Beans Salad with Cheese Curds

Mixed beans salad
Mixed Beans Salad with Cheese Curds

Ingredients:

1 can mixed beans,
1/4 cup chopped purple onion,
1 roasted red pepper,
1 cup diced cucumber,
3 diced tomatoes,
1/4 cup sliced celery,
4 oz. cheese curds,
extra virgin olive oil to taste,
lemon juice to taste,
salt and pepper to taste,
chopped fresh parsley (optional).




Recipe:

1. Open the can of mixed beans, pour the beans in a colander, rinse off the original liquid and let it drain properly.

2. Put all the vegetables in a mixing bowl and season to taste with the olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

3. Cover the bowl and leave it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes in order to cool and blend flavors.

4. Serve the mixed beans salad in salad bowls with the cheese on top.

Cooking tip: It’s much better if you roast a fresh red pepper for this salad as opposed to using one from a jar. Simply bake the pepper in the oven until the skin gets color and starts falling off, then put the pepper in a plastic bag for 10 minutes so you can peel it easily, then cut and use in the salad. Cheers.

Egg Salad and Cheese Wrap

Egg salad wrap
Egg Salad and Cheddar Cheese Wrap

Ingredients:

12 eggs,
1/2 purple onion, chopped,
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese,
3 tablespoons light mayo,
1 tablespoon lemon juice,
1 teaspoon sugar,
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika,
salt and pepper to taste,
1 tablespoon sunflower oil,
4 nice leaves of leaf lettuce,
4 white tortillas (12-inch diameter).

Recipe:

1. Heat the sunflower oil in a non-stick pan and make scrumbled eggs from the 12 eggs. Transfer the scrumbled eggs in a container and let them cool down in the fridge.

2. Mix the scrumbled eggs with the rest of the ingredients, except the lettuce and tortillas.

3. Place each lettuce leaf in the middle of each tortilla and top it with the egg salad.

4. Make the four egg salad wraps by folding first the sides of the tortillas and then rolling the wraps from end to end.

The egg salad wrap is designed to be served cold, but it can be briefly toasted in a panini press if desired. Enjoy.

Orzo Mediterranean Pasta Salad

Orzo pasta salad
Orzo Mediterranean Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

1 lb. orzo pasta,
1 romaine lettuce heart,
1/4 cup chopped purple onion,
3 ripe tomatoes, diced,
10 green olives, pitted and sliced,
1/4 cup sunflower oil or light olive oil,
1/2 cucumber, diced,
1/2 lemon, juiced,
2 tablespoons light mayo,
4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled,
salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe:

1. Boil the orzo pasta according to package instructions, strain it, spread it thinly in a hotel pan or a tray and mix it with the oil. Let it cool down and then refridgerate for at least 30 minutes for the orzo to get cold. The oil serves two purposes – it’s part of the dressing, and it prevents the orzo from sticking together.

2. Cut the other ingredients and mix everything together with the cold orzo.

I love the texture of the orzo pasta salad compared to say penne, macaroni or fusilli pasta salad. It’s also more compact and presentable.

Cooking tip: You can give the orzo pasta some extra flavor by putting a few cubes of vegetable stock in the boiling water.

Quinoa Salad Recipe

Quinoa salad
Quinoa salad

Ingredients:

2 cups quinoa,
2 1/4 cups of water,
2 tbsp. EV olive oil,
2 garlic cloves, chopped,
1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped,
1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper,
1/4 cup chopped celery,
1 cup chopped broccoli,
2 cups diced tomato,
1/4 cup chopped red onion,
1/2 lemon, juiced,
4 tablespoons sunflower oil,
salt and pepper to taste,
200 grams feta cheese.

Recipe:

1. Pour the EV olive oil in a heavy saucepan and saute the garlic, yellow onion and bell pepper for 5 minutes.

2. Add the quinoa, stir it in and immediately add the water. Cover the saucepan with a lid and reduce the heat to medium-low. It is even better if you cover the saucepan with aluminum foil first and then put the lid. Cook the quinoa for about 15 minutes or until ready. You can open the lid and check, but don’t do it often.

3. When the quinoa is ready spread it on a baking tray and let it cool down. When all the steam is gone stir it gently and put the tray in the fridge until the quinoa cools down completely.

4. In the meantime, cut the rest of the vegetables if you haven’t already done so.

5. Mix all the quinoa salad ingredients in a bowl and serve in 6 bowls. Crumble the feta cheese on top of the quinoa salads.

I cook my quinoa the same way I cook rice pilaf. If you would like to use the quinoa as a side dish you can replace the water in the recipe with chicken stock or vegetable stock. Even a spoon of butter wouldn’t be a bad idea if the quinoa is to be used as a side dish.