eggplant escalivada

my favorite food on the planet are spanish tapas.  a couple of weeks ago i had dinner with some good friends at one of my favorite tapas restaurants in sf, esperpento in the mission district.  one of my favorite dishes i order is an eggplant dish that is basically sauteed with tomatoes, onions and peppers.  here is my version of escalivada.  my twist to this dish is to serve it as a stuffed eggplant.  hope you like it.

ingredients:
1 large purple eggplant
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
1/4 purple onion, sliced
4-5 garlic cloves, minced
1/4-1/2 cup of tempeh, crumbled
vegetable broth
olive oil
salt and pepper
red pepper flakes
paprika

directions:
1) preheat oven to 400 degrees
2)  slice eggplant in half and brush eggplant with olive oil all over.  season with salt, pepper, and red pepper.  line baking sheet with foil and place eggplant face up.  place another sheet of foil on top of eggplant and wrap eggplant with both sheets of foil.  bake for 50 minutes.
3) while eggplant is baking, prepare the stuffing by heating 3 tbs of olive oil in a pan on medium high heat.  when oil is hot, saute onions until cooked.  stir in tomato slices.  cook for about 2-3 minutes.  add 1/2 cup of vegetable broth and cook for another 3 minutes until some of the broth has evaporated.  add tempeh and garlic and saute for 3 minutes.  add a cup of vegetable broth, salt, pepper, red pepper, and a couple of dashes of paprika and simmer on medium low until broth has evaporated. set aside until eggplant is cooked.
4)  when eggplant is ready, spoon out eggplant into saute mixture making sure you are careful not to pierce through the skin of the eggplant.  when all the mixture is added to the saute mixture, add 1/2 cup of vegetable broth and cook on medium high heat.  using a fork, smash in the eggplant while cooking.  when the vegetable broth has slightly evaporated, it is ready.  spoon eggplant mixture back into cooked eggplant shells.  enjoy!

patatas aioli

another one of my favorite tapas.  fried potatoes with a spicy garlic aioli sauce.

ingredients
6 medium potatoes, cut into medium cubes
olive oil 
salt and pepper
red pepper
paprika

1) heat olive oil in a deep frying pot/pan on medium high heat.
2)  in a large bowl combine cubed potatoes, seasoning and 2 tbs of olive oil.
3)  when oil is ready, fry half of the cubed potatoes for about 8 minutes.  take the cooked potatoes out and fry the rest of the potatoes.
4)  for aioli sauce, refer to sauce section.  i just added sriracha sauce to make it spicy.  you can add any type of hot sauce you have on hand.

bean tostada

here's one of my quick and dirty trader joe's recipes.  so easy you'll want to add this to your busy week night dinners

ingredients:
trader joes vegan refried beans
whole wheat flour tortilla
trader joes guacamole hummus
shredded lettuce
taco seasoning, 2-3 tsps ( i eyeball it.  I basically just use enough to season the beans)
salsa
shredded vegan cheese
water 2-3 tbs
canola oil to fry tortilla

directions:
1) cook refried beans on medium heat.  add water and taco season to mix. constantly stir until beans are heated through.
2)  in another pan, heat oil on medium high heat.  when oil is ready, fry up tortilla.  it will only take a minute or less to cook each side.
3)  on the tostada, add the beans, salsa, lettuce and shredded cheese.  enjoy.

mom's peach cobbler

ingredients
1 cup of bisquick
1 cup of almond milk (you can also use rice or soy)
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup of melted vegan butter
1/2 cup of sugar

1 can (29 oz) sliced peaches

directions:
1)  preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2)  drain peaches and in a large bowl mix together the sugar and peaches.
3) in a round or square pan, mix the bisquick and nutmeg.  add the melted butter and milk.  stir until mixture is well blended.
4)  spoon in the peaches over the batter.
5)  bake for 55 minutes.

still thinking of a name for this recipe

recipe will be updated soon.

thai fried rice

recipe will be updated soon.

fried okra

ingredients:
okra, sliced
cornmeal (at least 1 cup)
salt and pepper
canola oil (2-4 cups)

directions:
1)   preheat canola oil in a large pot on medium high.
mix cornmeal, salt, and pepper in a large shallow dish.
2)  wet okra slices in cold water, drain.
3)  roll okra slices into cornmeal mixture.
4) fry okra slices until golden brown.