Favorite vegetarian dishes

[Âme]

I know Frenchie's favourite vegetarian dish... [;-)]

[Frenchie]

???  

[Gemonimo]

Think MACAroni, Frenchie[:D]

[Gardengirl]

Some very good ideas on here. However, as it's so wet and cold here in the sunny south of France (it's now reached 9 degrees, and is wet and windy!) that I think a bean stew is called for. I rarely make one of those after abou March, even in UK!!

PM sent, Sweet; I'm having big problems with emails etc, so hope it arrives. No symbol for crossed fingers!

[Frenchie]

Hmmm    Y   E   S  !!!

any day ! [:D]

[Gardengirl]

I just got that one! Thought it must be a big veggie mac at first, but the penny's just dropped! It must be the cold asnd wet weather nibbling at my brain!

[Âme]

You got it Gem! That's the dish I was thinking of for Frenchie. :)

[mint]

[quote user="Gemonimo"]Think MACAroni, Frenchie[:D][/quote]

Gem, please don't encourage Frenchie:  she's bad enough mooning over that aging sex symbol all on her own without you stoking the fires!

Frenchie, PM later:  just thinking about your kind messages [:D]

[Âme]

To get back on topic, I'm not sure what my favourite dish is, up near the top of the list is the traditional British roast but without the meat :) I don't always bother with a replacement; I love the mint sauce and gravy combo over yorkshires and roast potatoes, brussels sprouts sautéed with cashew nuts, honey roasted carrots... since it is snowing [:-))] yes it really is snowing, this sounds particularly attractive right now.

To add another idea to the thread... I'm rather fond of an aubergine gratin, even though aubergines aren't one of my favourite veggies.

Dice aubergines and sauté (thoroughly; al dente aubergines are bleurk!) with onions, and some bell peppers. Use other veg as available, e.g. fresh or sundried tomatoes, courgettes, sweetcorn, mushrooms all work.  Season well.

Put the sautéed veg in the bottom of a casserole dish and cover generously with bechemel or cheese sauce.

Top with grated cheese, breadcrumbs, crushed nuts, pine nuts, sunflower or poppy seeds... whatever you fancy.

Cook in a hot oven to heat through & brown the topping.

Serve with a little bread and a lot of green salad. This dish needs lots of raw leaves to balance the heaviness of the aubergine and milk products.

There is plenty of protein in a dish like this: in the cheese, nuts & seeds.  Many people are surprised at how little protein is needed per day, a small piece of cheese, a yoghurt plus a few nuts & seeds is all that's required ...of course more for a very active person.

Hope that is some inspiration, Teapot. Stay well... eat as much raw food as you can. [geek] I don't always walk the talk, even tho' I know it's sound advice... you also have to enjoy your food, or what's the point, huh?

[PatHCA]

GOATS CHEESE STUFFED COURGETTES

Boil courgettes til softening .remove from the pan and cut in half .Scrape flesh from courgettes and place shells on a baking sheet.Mix flesh with equal amounts soft goats cheese and grated hard cheese, add chopped spring onion, herbs to taste and add an egg yolk to bind, mix well.Place cheesy mixture in courgette shells, top with bread crumbs and pour a small amount amount of melted butter over the top.Bake in the oven until golden brown and bubbling

[Dog]

[quote user="Théière"]

So are you saying rolled up leaves with tamarind and out of a tin is your favorite food?

 

[/quote]

No I didn't say that - I said I love fresh Patra but as it is unavailable in France and I have yet to grow malanga leaves, tinned Patra is one of the few tinned foods that is delicious and is ideal for a picnic as it can be eaten straight from the can.

Try some it's very interesting - perhaps accompany it with roast or deep fried cassava with a tamarind spicy sauce.

The weekends hosts in Normandy made a salad of just diced white mushrooms with dill which I had never had before and was a tasty bit tackle.

[Patf]

When we lived in Singapore we often had blocks of soya protein cooked in some way or other. Can't remember the name of it.  It was creamy yellow, had a chewy texture, and was quite tasty.

Do you ever eat that, Dog? Never seen it here.

[Dog]

There are various tasty things like that - it could be beancurd, soya or even fresh cheese made by bringing fullfat milk nearly to the boil and then adding a few drops of lemon juice. The milk separates and you pour through some old tights and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. The Indians call this paneer and it can be used in curries and takes on the flavour of the herbs and spices. To give it some texture it is usually pan fried first. An alternative for mattar paneer - cheese and pea curry - which is a great favourite in our household is to use Halloumi a greek cheese. I also marinade this cheese with tandoori spices and barbecue it's yummy.

I have found a brand of beancurd in France that is Chinese and is called faux duck? I am not mad on it but my wife occasionally puts it in stir fries.

[Frenchie]

I ve tried something like this recently,( I mean those blocks of soja protein, brownish).. ( from a veggie friend of mine )

 I couldn't say I found it horrendous, [+o(] , but , oh jeez, I chew it again and again .........

yuk

But, hey, we're all different !

[Dog]

[quote user="Frenchie"]

I ve tried something like this recently,( I mean those blocks of soja protein, brownish).. ( from a veggie friend of mine )

 I couldn't say I found it horrendous, [+o(] , but , oh jeez, I chew it again and again .........

yuk

But, hey, we're all different !

[/quote]

If you are going to use these soya protein chunks they should be used sparingly and it's best to choose the size of chunk to fit the dish. They should be marinated or take on the flavours of the sauce or dish - they shouldn't in my opinion be eaten alone.

[Frenchie]

I think you are right Dog.

 

[Gardengirl]

I remember trying soya chunks about 30 years ago - nasty chewy stuff! I think they were like those chewy things for dogs that you see in pet shops!  [:)]

[Patf]

It was definitely beancurd - I remember now. And much nicer than the pseudo-meaty chunks.

[Théière]

The Tofu in Thailand was a much better texture than the one you can buy in the UK, you actually needed to chew it so it gave that bit of texture so often missing.

[Âme]

I agree about Thai tofu. You can improve (European) tofu by draining liquid out of it: wrap it in a clean tea towel and sit on it. Then, when you fry/sautée it, it has a more crispy texture.

[Théière]

[quote user="Âme"] wrap it in a clean tea towel and sit on it. Then, when you fry/sautée it, it has a more crispy texture.
[/quote]

How did you discover this? do you sit on any other foods [:D]

 

[mint]

Teapot, I think she does put a plate or something over it first before sitting on it.

(Thanks for the giggle!)

[Âme]

Nope, I don't put a plate on it, it would probably break! And no, I don't usually sit on my nosh, it's just that tofu needs a lot of weight to squeeze out the liquid... several hours under a thick book or a minute sitting on it. Stand up before your trousers get damp [;-)] and go again with a fresh teacloth, if necessary. 

[mint]

This might not be tofu but Confucius did say:

Woman that cook carrots and peas in same pot very unsanitary

So, woman that sit on teacloth on tofu and wipe dishes with it also very unsanitary.

[Swissie]

I made my own tofu a few times years ago, using soja beans and nigari (vegetarian rennet) - and used my mum's old jelly press - which looks like a miniature wine press- to dry it out. In the Uk my local wholefood Coop sold good tofu and excellent spicy tofu burgers made with onions and barley- so stopped my own production.