Couscous with Roasted Vegetables

Who isn't a fan of roasted vegetables? They are delicious any time of the year. This meal does take about 45 minutes in total, but you spend most of the time waiting for the vegetables to roast in the oven.

-Sarah

Couscous with Roasted Vegetables

From “Vegetarian: Create Great-Tasting Dishes through the Seasons” by Ting Morris, Rachel Lane and Carla Bardi

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 shallot, finely chopped

1 eggplant, cut into small squares

2 zucchini, cut into small cubes

1 large red bell pepper, seeded and cut into small squares

1 large yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into small squares

3/4 cup pitted black olives

Salt

1 1/4 cups water

1 1/2 cups couscous

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh fennel leaves, to garnish (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400*F. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a small frying pan over medium heat. Add the shallot and saute until softened, 3-4 minutes. Arrange the eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers, and olives on a baking sheet. Add the shallot and drizzle with 3 tablespoons of oil. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and slightly charred. Season with salt. Bring the water to a boil and salt to taste (about 1/2 teaspoon). Stir in the couscous and mix well. Remove from the heat, cover, and let rest for 2 minutes. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and return to the heat. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly with a fork to separate the grains. Stir in the roasted vegetables, and garnish with the fennel, if using. Serve warm.

Baked Polenta With Tasty Tomato Topping

If you want an easy-to-make pasta dish, but don't have the time to stand in the kitchen preparing one, this is a good alternative. While it isn't pasta, I love it just the same. The recipe calls for fresh polenta, but like my last polenta recipe, I use the store-bought polenta to save preparation time. If you are really in a hurry and don't have time for the sauce, just use your favorite red-pasta sauce.

-Sarah

Baked Polenta With Tasty Tomato Topping

From “Vegetarian: Create Great-Tasting Dishes through the Seasons” by Ting Morris, Rachel Lane and Carla Bardi

Ingredients:
Polenta
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 cans tomatoes, with juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 400*F. Lightly oil a large baking dish. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until pale gold, 3-4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and simmer until reduced, 15-20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Cut the polenta into 1/2 inch-thick disks. Arrange in the baking dish, overlapping slightly. Cover with sauce and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until the cheese has melted.

Rice with Tomato Pesto and Mozzarella

As you can see from the massive amounts of recipes I'm posting tonight, I haven't spent much time sharing recipes with you! For the past few months I haven't branched out to try very many new recipes. I've spent a lot of time re-making the recipes already posted on the blog. Tonight, I decided to try a new recipe with ingredients that I've never even tasted before. I have never tasted capers (partially because I always thought they were fish eggs) and I've never tried arugula. While the strange combination of ingredients in this recipe seem  not quite right on paper, they sure taste great together!

The recipe does call for almonds, but I omitted them due to allergies.

-Sarah

Rice with Tomato Pesto and Mozzarella

From “Vegetarian: Create Great-Tasting Dishes through the Seasons” by Ting Morris, Rachel Lane and Carla Bardi

Ingredients:

12 sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon salt-cured capers, rinsed and drained.

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Freshly squeezed juice of 1/2 lemon

1 1/2 cups long-grain rice

2 cups arugula

6 ounces mini mozzarella balls

Combine the sun-dried tomatoes, cheese, capers, oil, lemon juice (and almonds, optional) in a food processor. Process until smooth. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the rice, and boil until tender. Drain well and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in the tomato pesto and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the arugula on four serving dishes and top with rice. Place the mozzarella balls on top. Serve immediately.

Cream Cheese Tarts

The lovely thing about Facebook is that it customizes my ads to: me! I was re-directed to an amazing website where I found a delicious quick-and-easy dessert. The first time I made these, I forgot the Nilla wafers, and so the cheesecake was difficult to eat without making a mess. The second time I made them, I followed the recipe to a T and it came out perfect. Enjoy!

-Sarah

Cream Cheese Tarts

From: www.JustAPinch.com

Ingredients:

2 8oz packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs

12 vanilla wafers

1 21oz cherry pie filling

Preheat oven to 350*F. Place a paper cupcake liner in each cup of muffin pan (12 total). Beat cream cheese with electric mixer until fluffy. Add sugar and vanilla, beating well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Place a vanilla wafer FLAT side down, in each muffin cup. Spoon cream cheese mixture over wafers filling each to about 1/4 inch from top of paper. Bake for 20 minutes. Allow tarts to cool completely before filling. When you remove the tarts from the oven, they will be puffed up, but as they cool, the center will sink, creating the perfect well to fill with a couple of spoonfuls of your favorite filling. Chill thoroughly before serving.

Lunch Time Bliss

I have become jaded at lunch time, with the overplayed recipes cards of peanut butter sandwiches, tuna-fish sandwiches, and ham with cheese sandwiches. I decided to try some new sandwich combinations that I found to be AMAZING! Lunch time is boring no-longer!
-Sarah

Ingredients:

Dave's Killer Bread, Whipped Cream Cheese, Provolone Cheese, Alfalfa Sprouts, Cucumber, Carrot, Tomato, & Avocado

Ingredients:

Dave's Killer Bread, Butter, Olive-Oil Mayonnaise, Mozzarella Cheese, Tomato, Basil

(Grill like a grilled cheese sandwich)

Recipe Repeats Itself

Back in September I blogged about Roasted Rack of Lamb. Since my brother was in town on military leave, I decided to treat him to the most fancy meal I know how to make. Below is a photo of the meal. It was accompanied by mashed potatoes, as well as a delicious fruit dish that Michael cut up for me.

Baba Ghanoush

I have a resident at work that makes the most fabulous hummus and tabbouleh. I thought I'd give my hand a try at making something delicious like this. My attempt for tabbouleh was a fail. While the bowl of tabbouleh looked amazing, it was flavorless and bland. I also tried making falafel, and they fell apart in the frying pan. The only part of the meal that was worth eating was the baba ghanoush. It was absolutely amazing, and I think I like it even more than hummus!

-Sarah

Baba Ghanoush

From the Better Homes and Gardens "Garden Fresh Meals" cookbook

Ingredients:

1 large eggplant (about 1 1/2 pounds)

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons tahini

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons snipped fresh parsley

Pita bread rounds, toasted

1. Preaheat oven to 400*F. Halve the eggplant lengthwise and place, cut sides down, on a baking sheet lined with foil. Prick skin all over with a fork. Bake about 25 minutes or until tender when pierced with a fork.

2. Peel eggplant; cut eggplant into chunks. Transfer eggplant to a food processor or blender; add the lemon juice, tahini, olive oil, garlic, and salt. Cover and process or blend until smooth.

3. Transfer dip to a bowl; stir in the parsley. Serve with toasted pita bread.

Failed attempts: