Pharrell ~ Happy
Chris Cornell ~ Call Me A Dog
Nickelback ~ Fight For All The Wrong Reasons
Eddie Vedder ~ Waving Palms
Thunder ~ Backstreet Symphony
Richie Sambora ~ Stranger In This Town
Dido ~ Thank You
Kid Rock ~ Rock N Roll Pain Train
Heart ~ Strangled
VAST ~ I'm Too Good
Joan Jett ~ You Got Me Floatin'
The Cardigans ~ Don't Blame Your Daughter
Jamie Callum ~ I'm Glad There Is You
Beth Hart ~ Forever Young
My name is Red and I am a cook book addict.... For regular readers this will come as no surprise whatsoever. lol. I have a library of cook books and I am slowly but surely selling or giving away any of the non-vegan ones. Any recipes from them that I wish to keep I have written down and kept safe but I just don't want them in my collection anymore..with the exception of Mr Nigel Slater and ML 'needs' to keep the Nigella ones. With the non-veggie ones removed I still have a massive collection. During the packing for the move I considered ditching them all and going virtual but for me books have soul. I like to scribble down amendments and ratings amongst their pages. They are an extension of my passion for cooking. I hardly ever buy a cook book brand new these days...budgets don't always allow for that. I am often found looking for bargains on Amazon via the independent sellers on there.
Joanne Stepaniak is one of my favourite vegan cook book authors and I picked up a copy of her Table for Two cookbook and I hope to bring you recipes from that very soon. I was lucky enough to pick up her cookbook for a bargain...1p! Oh yes...lol Along with The Vegan Gourmet written by Susann Geiskopf-Handler & Mindy Toomay...again for 1p. I was a very happy addict when they arrived in the post a few days later. Thankfully my addiction is very cheap...it's just the space that is the issue. But these two books are quite small so they won't take up much room...ahem..anyway that's my thoughts on that. lol. Right, today's recipe...
I had two small aubergines/eggplants waiting to be used and whilst flicking through the pages of The Vegan Gourmet I found this very unusual recipe. I had no preconceptions about how it would turn out...I was just very intrigued by it. I had to make one substitution which was swapping the suggested chard leaves for dark spring greens. Chard is very difficult to pick up around here. The recipe itself is very easy to make and very quick once you have everything prepped. However a word of warning..the tomato and ginger sauce once blitzed is quite potent..lol But as soon as the sauce and greens have joined the aubergine in the skillet it dissipates..a little. I used brown rice vermicelli and I always forget just how I love them and how well they keep their texture. When the sauce is finished cooking you have a very tasty meal although it wouldn't win any best looking dish awards. I wasn't expecting to like it as much as I did but it really was something unusual and in this case..good unusual. There is an earthiness to the sauce and the spices blend in to make it very interesting with the greens giving it some wholesome edge. Unique...try it and let me know what you think?
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| The Vegan Gourmet's Vermicelli with Curried Eggplant/Aubergine and Greens in Ginger Tomato Sauce |
Vermicelli with Curried Eggplant/Aubergine and Greens in Ginger Tomato Sauce
(Recipe from The Vegan Gourmet/Geiskopt-Hadler & Toomay)
1lb fresh tomatoes
1 cup diced yellow onion
2 garlic cloves. chopped
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 tsp plus pinch of salt
1 cup veggie stock
1/2 lb greens, stalks removed and finely sliced
1 tbsp oil (I used coconut)
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp ground cardamon
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tbsp currants (I omitted these)
8oz dried vermicelli (I used Wholegrain Brown Rice Vermicelli), cooked & warmed
Cut out and discard the stems of the tomatoes. Dice the tomatoes and combine them in a blender or food processor with the onion, garlic, ginger, the 1/4 tsp of salt and 1/3 cup of the stock. Puree to a smooth consistency and set aside.
Trim off and discard the stem of the aubergine and cut it crosswise into 1/4" slices. Cut the slices into 1/4" strips, and cut the strips into 1" lengths.
Meanwhile, heat the oil over medium heat in a large saucepan that has a tight fitting lid. Add the cumin and mustard seeds, cardamom and turmeric. Stir and cook the spices for about 2 minutes, then add the remaining 2/3 cup of the stock and stir. Heat to the steaming stage, then stir in the aubergine and the pinch of salt. Immediately cover the pan tightly and cook for 5 minutes. Remove the lid and stir in the tomato sauce, greens and currants. Cover and cook 5 minutes, then remove the lid and cook, stirring frequently, 5 minutes longer.
Toss the pasta in with the sauce. Serve very hot, offering cayenne pepper for those who like very spicy food.
Enjoy!
Thanks for stopping by and I hope your Thursday has been a pleasant one...
~Red~
NB: This is not my recipe and therefore take no credit whatsoever. It is the hard work and creation of Susann Geiskopf-Hadler & Mindy Toomay and theirs alone. I thank them for an interesting recipe. ~R~
