A delicious, different, tasty spread for your TV dinners, parties or to accompany your main dish.Very low-fat if you use soy cream instead of" crème fraiche".I ate some with turkey breast.Should be great with fish. Try it also with vegetable chips.
Ingredients:
- 1 large eggplant,halved
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 shallot
- 1 ts tandoori powder
- 1 Tbs soy cream
- Himalaya salt
- sichouan pepper
Cut piece of parchment paper to fit under eggplant on baking sheet. Place eggplant, cut side down, on paper. Bake in oven in preheated 375 F for about 45 min until eggplant is very tender and skin is charred.
Scoop eggplant out of skin into food processor. Add garlic, shallot, tandoori, sichouan pepper and soy cream. Serve this dip cold. Enjoy!
Pour les français:
- 1 aubergine
- 1 gousse d'ail
- 1 échalotte
- 1 cuillère à café de tandoori
- 1 cuillère à soupe de crème de soja
- sel de l'Himalaya
- poivre du Sichouan moulu
Tandoori Eggplant Dip
Spaghetti Squash with Shitake Mushroom Sauce
Nutritionally, most winter squash varieties qualify as "superfoods" because they offer plenty of fiber and the antioxidant vitamins carotene and vitamin C. They also have folic acid as well as several minerals many of us need more of -- calcium, magnesium, and potassium.I discovered this vegetable while living in California but haven't seen many on Parisian markets until last Sunday at the Richard Lenoir/Bastille Market! I love the bursting with vitamin color of it and the crunchiness of the texture even once it's cooked.
This squash is usually prepared by cutting it in half lengthwise with a knife and baking it in a micowave oven for 10 min, cut-side down, in a baking dish with 1/4-inch of water. Or in a traditional oven.(At 375 degrees, baking will take about 35 minutes.).I boiled half of mine in salty water for 20 minutes.Oops!Normally you should'nt cut it before.As I didn't cook it for too long, it wasn't at all bland and remained crunchy.Here's the fun part: When you scrape out the inside flesh of the squash halves it easily separates and has the appearance of spaghetti.I added some grounded nutmeg.
Ingredients for 2:
-1/2 squash
-200g of mushrooms (whichever you prefer).I mixed "champignons de Paris" and dried shitake(soak them in boiing water for 30 min)
- 2 shallots
- 2 Tbs of soy cream which contains less fat but you could use half and half.
- 1/4 cup white wine
- fresh parsley
While spaghetti squash is cooking prepare sauce.Heat olive oil in skillet.Add sliced mushrooms. Increase heat and cook until all liquid has evaporated.Add soy cream.Stir and serve with parsley and Parmesan.Season with salt and pepper to taste
Quinoa with Smoked Paprika,Peppers and Cheddar Cheese
If you're looking for new ways to prepare quinoa and in need of vitamin C,iron,magnesium:here's a quick crunchy and fluffy lunch recipe.
Ingredients:
- 3 Tbsp quinoa
- 1 clove garlic chopped
- 1 small yellow sweet pepper,1 green pepper
- smoked paprika
- "piment d'espelette"
- cheddar cheese
- fresh cilantro
Rinse the quinoa in a fine-meshed strainer. In a pot heat water until boiling.Add quinoa, reduce heat cook for about 15 min. Quinoa is done when you can see the curlique in each grain, and it is tender with a bit of pop to each bite. Drain any extra water and set aside.Meanwhile heat wok on medium heat with some olive oil. Add peppers,garlic,smoked paprika.Mix well and cook for about 10 min.Add cheese,piment d'espelette.Taste and season with salt and pepper.Sprinkle with cilantro when ready to serve.
Pour les français:
- 3 cuillères à soupe de quinoa(par personne ou plus selon régime)
- 1 gousse d'ail
- 1 petit poivron jaune,1 petit poivron vert
- paprika fumé
- piment d'espelette
- cheddar
- coriandre fraîche
Mussel Risotto
Don't miss the mussel season in France between July and November!
Moules de bouchot(AOC since 2006) are generally the most sought after mussels to be found on French market stalls.The orange-yellow flesh is outstandly firm.
Named after the huge wooden piles driven into the seabed for them to grow on – is attributed to their habitat. They grow underwater at high tide but are exposed to the sea air at other times.
Ingredients for 2
-1 pound of Moules de bouchot
-1 garlic clove,minced
-65 mg of saffron(I use Jm Thiercelin)
-shallot
-1/2 medium onion
-white wine such as muscadet
-1 cup short-grain Italian rice
-olive oil
-fresh basil
-1 Ts grated fresh Parmesan cheese
Clean the mussels by scraping them with an old knife and removing the beard which allows them to cling to the rocks or stakes.
Peel and dice the shallot.
In a fairly large saucepan, sweat the minced garlic with a little bit of water. Add the mussels and cover. As soon as the mussels have opened, remove from the heat and shell gently. Filter the juice and set it aside.
Heat oil in another large saucepan.Add the shallot,onion.Cook gently until tender.Add rice to shallot mixture and combine well.Cook for 1 minute.Add 1/4 cup white wine stir and cook,stirring until all liquid is absorbed.Keep adding the filtered mussel juice and vegetable stock 1/4 cup at a time until evaporated.after 10 min add saffron .Add next amount of liquid until rice is tender but still firm.Stir in salt,pepper,basil and cheese.
Pour les français:
Ingredients pour 2
-1/2 l de moules du bouchot
-1 gousse d'ail haché
-1 echalotte
-1/2 onion moyen
-65 mg safran(Jm Thiercelin)
-vin blanc genre muscadet
-130g de riz italien,arborrio
-huile d'olive
-basilic frais
-parmesan reggiano rapé
Bulgur with Squash and Peppers
This recipe come's from Bonnie Stern's book,the owner of one of Canada's most prestigious cooking school.Also,she is a regular contributor to 'Canadian Living Magazine.Originally in this recipe you need Israeli couscous but I replaced it by boulgour which was just fine.
Ingredients
-1 ts olive oil
-1/2 onion,chopped
-1 clove of garlic
-1 ts ground cumin
-1 sweet red pepper,seeded and diced
-1 cup of butternut squash
-1 cup of chicken stock
-1 cup of bulgour
-chopped fresh cilantro and mint
Heat oil in wok.Add onion and garlic.Cook on low heat until golden.
Add cumin and boulgour.Brown lightly.Add red peppers and squash and mix together well.
Add hot chicken stock and bring to boil.Reduce heat and simmer gently for 15 min.Taste and season with salt and pepper.Sprinkle with fresh herbs before serving.
Ayurvedic Rice
This is the perfect dish after decadent cravings.Helps you balance doshas.
Ingredients
-clarified butter
-1 onion peeled,diced
-1 stick of cinnamon
-2 cloves
-cardamom
-"mille et une nuit"curry or turmeric
-1 cup of basmati rice
-1/2 cup of cooked lentils.
Heat a pot with the clarified butter and spices.Add rice and lentils,salt. Pour 1/2 cup of water.Cook on medium heat for about
15 min.
