Cauliflower crumble

Time for another vegetarian recipe!  I really liked this cauliflower dish: 

   -  despite the lengthy description, it is quite easy and requires about 15 minutes of active cooking

   -  it is light, flavourful, and filling

   -  it keeps and reheats nicely, making left-overs ideal for a next-day-lunch.

Original recipe comes from one of my French cookbooks: "Les indispensable plats végétariens" so most of the measurements are in grams - I provided conversions in bracket.

What you need

1 cauliflower, separated in medium sized florets

2 tsp of oil (sunflower, olive or any of your favorite)

25 g of flour (it's a little bit less than 1/4 cup)

350 ml of milk (about 1 1/2 cups)

325 g can of corn, drained

2 tbsp fresh parsley, minced

1 tsp fresh thyme, minced

140 g grated Emmental cheese (could be replaced by cheddar, Parmesan, or even mozzarella)

Crumble

55 g flour (a little bit less than 1/2 cup)

25 g butter (a little bit less than 2 tablespoons)

25 g rolled oats

about 25 almonds, crushed (I used a mix of walnuts and hazelnuts instead)

What to do

• Preheat the oven to 375F
• Boil cauliflower for 5-7 minutes.  Let cool.  Reserve the water. (I roasted my cauliflower instead of boiling)
• Meanwhile, heat oil in a medium saucepan.  Add flour and keep stirring for one minute.
• Remove from heat, add milk and 1/2 cup of cauliflower water, mix well. (I replace water by an equal amount of homemade vegetable broth)
• Place the saucepan over medium-high heat and bring the mix to boil.  Cook for 3-5 minutes, until it thickens and, once again, remove from heat.
• Add corn, parsley, thyme, and half of the cheese - mix well.  Taste the filling and add salt and pepper to taste.
• Gently mix in cooked cauliflower florets. 
• Laden the filling into the cooking dish (I used a square 9x9 one).

• The topping
• The easiest way to make the topping is to pulse butter and flour in a food processor until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
• If you do not want to get your food processor out, you can mix flour and butter with your hands.  
• Once you achieve the coarse crumb consistency, add oats, remaining cheese and nuts.

• Spread the topping evenly over the cauliflower mixture
• Bake crumble for 30-40 minutes.
  

Tips and Suggestions: 

Like many other recipes, this one could be used as a base for your own creation: use different vegetables and spices to create a taste you like.

For an interesting presentation, bake individual portions in small oven-proof forms. 

Vegetarian Moussaka

Some dishes are less photogenic than others, but this does not diminish their yuminess.  The moussaka recipe comes from a French Cookbook: "Les indispensable plats végétariens" - it is a perfect dish for colder wintery days!  
I  pretty much followed the recipe - the only big modification was baking eggplants, instead of frying them.

What you need

2-3 tbsp olive oil (if you are frying eggplants you will need much more than that, about 1/2 cup)

1 medium onion, cubed

4 celery stalks, cubed

1 garlic clove, minced (I used 3 cloves - you can never have too much garlic)

1 can (about 19oz) diced tomatoes

1 can (about 12oz) lentils (I recommend using green or red lentils, I experimented this time with small brown ones and did not like the consistency of the filling)

2 tbsp parsley, minced (you can use more if you like)

salt and pepper

1 large eggplant, cut into 1/2 inch circles

Béchamel sauce

25 g butter (a little bit less than 2 tablespoons)

25 g flour

300 ml milk

a pinch of nutmeg

1 egg

55 g freshly grated Parmesan cheese

What to do

 

• Preheat the oven to 355F
• Meanwhile, in a large saucepan heat 1 tbsp of oil, add onions and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft
• Add celery, garlic, tomatoes (with juice), lentils (with water), and parsley.  Salt and pepper to taste and let simmer for 15 minutes.
• I did not use the water from lentils, instead I added 1/4 of water.  I also like to add a half of parsley towards the end of cooking.
•  In a pan, fry eggplants in batches, till golden.  Let cool down on a paper towel to absorb oil.
• To bake eggplants, brush them with oil and arrange on a parchment-covered cookie sheet.  Depending on your oven it will take between 10 to 15 minutes to cook for each side.
• In a 9x9 oven-proof form, brushed with oil, layer the ingredients: lentil mix, eggplants layer, another lentil layer, and eggplants on top.   

• To prepare the Béchamel sauce, combine butter, flour, and milk in a small saucepan.
• Cook, stirring constantly on a medium heat.  As the mix will get hotter, it will thicken.  
• Add salt and pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg.  Remove from heat and let cool down.
• Pour Béchamel over moussaka, sprinkle with Parmesan, and cook for 30-40 minutes (or until golden) in the oven.

Brownies

This is my slightly adapted version of the recipe from Jen at Use Real Butter (the recipe originally comes from Fine Cooking magazine).  Jen has some nice and informative step-by-step shots of the whole process - go check them out!!!  Please, be patient and let the brownies cool - they'll become more chewy and chocolate-y.

What you need:

4 oz unsalted butter (115 g)

4 oz semi-sweet or unsweetened chocolate (I used chocolate chips)

1 ripe banana (very ripe), mashed (could be replaced by an egg)

1 cup sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg

1 cup flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

3 tbsp cocoa powder

What to do:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees 
• In a double boiler or bain-marie melt butter and chocolate chips
• Remove from heat and stir in banana, sugar, and vanilla
• Beat in an egg
• Add flour, baking powder, and cocoa powder.  Mix well
• Butter an 8x8 baking pan, pour batter, and bake for 30-40 minutes
• Check if brownies are ready by inserting a toothpick in a middle.  It should come out almost clean
• Be patient and let the brownies cool (they are much, much tastier when cooled)

Tips and Suggestions: 

Do not let anyone know you are making these. "Sharing is caring" is quite overrated, if you ask me!

Chips and Nuts Pumpkin Squares

Maybe it was Dana, who started it all with her pumpkin choc chip cookies..... or maybe it was Elana and her gluten-free pumpkin bars that gave me an idea ..... or maybe it all began a long long time ago, when I mixed 2 of my least favorite ingredients and realized that I like pumpkin .... or maybe it was just a happy accident that brought these yummy, light, and moist pumpkin squares filled with chocolate and carob chips, nuts, and love.

The picture was taken early in the morning, thus the grainy and overall crappy quality ;)

What you need:

2 cups pumpkin puree

1/2 cup molasses (could be replaced by sugar)

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup ground almond (could be replaced by flour)

1 cup flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

Chips and nuts:

1/4 cup shredded coconut

1/4 cup carob chips (could be replaced by chocolate chips)

1/4 cup chocolate chips

1/4 cup walnuts

Extra:

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cloves

a pinch of nutmeg

What to do:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• In a smaller bowl mix pumpkin puree, eggs, vanilla, and molasses/sugar
• In a big bowl mix flour, almond flour, soda, salt, coconut, and dry spices (cinnamon and cloves)
• Fold (pour) wet ingredients into dry ones and mix thoroughly.  If the mix is too runny, add more flour
• Mix-in chips and nuts
• Grease an 8x8 baking dish.  Pour the dough in.  Put in the oven and set your timer to 30 minutes
• Check if the squares are ready by inserting a toothpick in a middle.  It should come out slightly wet (mine took about 33 minutes to cook)
• Let cool a little bit and enjoy the yuminess

Tips and Suggestions: 

Although the pumpkin season is pretty much over, at least in Montreal, you can use canned pumpkin puree or try substitute pumpkin with squash (roast and puree it in a food processor)

This super easy recipe can be easily veganized (use egg replacer or try ground flax seeds)

You can use a food processor to mix wet and dry ingredients  

Be creative, experiment: try your own spice mix, use different nuts, and serve the squares topped with icing or even whipped cream! 

For a vegan version, use egg-replacer, vegan sugar, and vegan chocolat chips

Maple Baked Apples

This recipe comes from the Real Simple magazine.

Image from Real Simple

Gala and Rome Beauty apples are ideal for baking because they retain their shape.

4 large apples

1/4 cup golden raisins

3/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup (about 2 ounces) walnut pieces

2 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Ice cream (optional)

• Heat oven to 400° F.
• Using a paring knife, remove the cores and trim about a 1/2-inch slice from the bottom of each apple, so they sit flat. 
• Place the apples in an ovenproof skillet or 8- to 9-inch baking dish. Drizzle with the syrup.
• Divide the walnuts and raisins among the apples, filling the cavities, and place any extra in the dish. 
• Dot the apples with the butter. Bake until tender, 40 to 50 minutes. 
• If using a baking dish, pour the liquid from the dish into a skillet. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook until it thickens slightly, 2 to 3 minutes. 
• Spoon the sauce over the warm apples and serve with the ice cream, if desired.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

Wild mushroom and potato strudel

This is the veganized and slightly modified version of the recipe from Wish magazine

Image from Wish

2 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, parboiled and cut in 1/4-inch cubes

2 tbsp olive oil (more for brushing phyllo)

1 cup finely diced onion

1 garlic clove, minced

3 cups sliced button mushrooms

3 cups sliced shiitake mushrooms

2 tbsp white wine (you can use vegetable broth instead)

4 tbsp of fresh parsley

1 tbsp of fresh terragon

1 tsp of dried oregano

1 tsp of lemon garlic

3 sheets of phyllo dought

• To parboil potatoes, cut them in quarters and boil for 5 minutes.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. 
• Cook onion and garlic until soft, then add button mushrooms and saute until lightly browned. Add this mixture to the parboiled potatoes.
• Heat remaining olive oil in the same pan and cook shiitake mushrooms until golden. Add shiitakes to potato mixture.  
• Deglaze pan with white wine and add to potato-mushroom mixture. Gently mix in herbs. Season with salt and pepper.
• Lay one sheet of phyllo on a clean, dry surface and brush with a small amount of oil. Continue layering with two more sheets of phyllo, brushing each side with oil.
• Place mushroom mixture ver the lower third of the phyllo layers. Roll up the strudel, tucking in the sides to seal-in the mixture, and place on a parchment-lined baking tray.
• Brush the outside of the strudel with small amount of oil and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 400 F. Bake strudel for 20 minutes, rotate tray and lower heat to 350 F, and bake for 20 more minutes until golden brown.
• Serves 6

You can use different herbs for the recipe. Also I would recommend using 4 or 5 sheets of phyllo.