Vegan cooking: It’s all Greek to me

Roasted Eggplant

• 1 eggplant, halved lengthwise
• 2 teaspoons (or extra) olive oil
• salt and pepper
• herbs of your selecting: strive garlic salt, oregano, and somewhat lemon juice

Preheat oven to 400 levels. With a pointy knife, cross-hatch the flesh of the eggplant with out piercing the purple pores and skin. Brush the flesh with olive oil, salt and pepper, and high with herbs. Place the eggplant on a baking sheet reduce aspect down. Bake for about half-hour. The eggplant is completed when the flesh is browned and comfortable.

The purple pores and skin of the eggplant is edible, and the eggplant may be eaten with a knife and fork. Nonetheless, the comfortable flesh may be scooped out with a spoon if most well-liked.

Spiced roasted grapes on saltines with vegan cream cheese.
Contributed / Susan Alexander

Roasted Grapes

This recipe is tailored barely from thegreekvegan.com.

• 2 kilos crimson or inexperienced seedless grapes, washed
• ½ teaspoon floor thyme
• 1½ tablespoons brandy
• 2½ tablespoons oil
• 1 teaspoon every: salt and coarsely floor black pepper

Preheat oven to 450 levels. Take away grapes from their stems. Mix remaining elements. Cowl a baking pan with parchment paper. Place grapes on the baking pan and pour the moist combination over the grapes, stirring to mix. Bake for 20 minutes.

Serve on potatoes, rice, or crackers. I like to recommend topping a saltine with somewhat vegan cream cheese and some roasted grapes.

Felafel pie contains layers of hummus, cucumbers and tomatoes.
Contributed / Susan Alexander

Falafel Pie

This delectable creation is tailored from the “Vegan Stoner Cookbook” by Sarah Conrique and Graham I. Haynes. I heartily suggest this cookbook for all aspiring vegans. The recipes are simple and enjoyable. Few measurements are offered within the e book past a “handful of this” or a “spoonful of that,” so there’s a lot of room for creativity. This recipe serves 4.

• 1 field prompt falafel combine
• 1 container of hummus
• 1 tomato, sliced
• 1 cucumber, reduce in half
• 1 cup non-dairy yogurt
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• black olives or kalamata olives, sliced

Preheat oven to 350 levels. Observe package deal instructions to reconstitute falafel then pat the reconstituted falafel right into a pie plate to type a crust. Bake quarter-hour or till browned. Take away the pie from the oven and high with a thick layer of hummus, slices of tomato, then cucumber slices from half of the cucumber. Mix yogurt with the opposite half of the cucumber and lemon juice. High the pie with yogurt combination then a handful of olives. Minimize into wedges or squares to serve.

Vegan moussaka is made with frozen veggie crumbles.
Contributed / Susan Alexander

Moussaka

This recipe would possibly look advanced, however it comes collectively shortly.

• 4 russet potatoes, washed and sliced about ¼-inch thick
• 1 eggplant, sliced ¼-inch thick
• olive oil

filling:

• 1 giant onion, chopped
• (1) 12-ounce bag of frozen veggie burger crumbles
• (1) 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 crimson bell pepper, chopped
• 1 zucchini, sliced
• 8 ounces mushrooms
• seasoning: salt, pepper, nutmeg and cinnamon

béchamel sauce:

• 6 tablespoons vegan margarine
• 6 tablespoons flour
• 3 cups soymilk

Preheat oven to 375 levels. Boil the potato slices for about 5 minutes, or till barely tender. Drain and place in chilly water till prepared to make use of. Place eggplant slices on a baking sheet and brush with olive oil and sprinkle of salt and pepper. Broil for about 10 minutes on all sides till browned.

In a skillet, fry the onions and veggie burger crumbles till onions are softened. Stir in tomatoes, bell pepper, zucchini and mushrooms. Prepare dinner a short time longer till the pepper and zucchini are softened. Season with salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg and cinnamon.

To make béchamel sauce, soften the margarine in a saucepan over low warmth, combine in flour, then slowly add soymilk, a few quarter cup at a time, absolutely incorporating earlier than including one other quarter cup.

In 9-by-11-inch casserole dish, layer somewhat of the tomato combination, then half the eggplant, then a layer of tomato combination, and half of the potatoes. Add one other layer of the tomato combination, the remaining eggplant, one other layer of the tomato combination, and the remainder of the potatoes. Pour the béchamel sauce on the highest.

Bake coated for half-hour then uncovered for one more 20 minutes.

Serves six.

Vegan spanikopita is is straightforward and scrumptious.
Contributed / Susan Alexander

Spanakopita

For those who’ve by no means labored with phyllo dough earlier than, you’re in for some enjoyable. Phyllo dries out shortly, so phyllo sheets are greatest coated with a moist towel when you’re assembling the layers. Utilizing olive oil spray simplifies this recipe fairly a bit.

This recipe is straightforward and scrumptious!

• 1 medium onion, finely diced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• (1) 14-ounce field of extra-firm tofu, drained
• ½ teaspoon dried dill weed
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper
• (1) 10-ounce package deal of frozen chopped spinach, defrosted, drained, squeezed dry
• About 1 tablespoon vegan margarine
• (1) 16-ounce package deal of vegan phyllo dough, defrosted

Preheat oven to 350 levels. Saute onions within the olive oil till tender. Mix the sautéed onions with crumbled tofu, dill, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and spinach. Stir completely to mix. Cool.

Brush a 13-by-9-inch baking dish with somewhat margarine. Place two phyllo sheets within the dish and press in evenly. Give the phyllo sheets a really mild spray with olive oil. Be certain to get the sides. High with two extra sheets and spray with olive oil. Repeat till you will have used half the phyllo dough.

Unfold the spinach combination in dish on high of the phyllo dough. High with remaining phyllo dough, two sheets at a time sprayed with olive oil. Tuck within the edges of the highest sheets.

Bake 45 minutes till the highest is golden and the filling is scorching. Let the dish stand 10 minutes earlier than serving.

Serves eight.

Constantinople cake is made with rosewater, a really potent flavoring. Do not be tempted so as to add greater than is required.
Contributed / Susan Alexander

Constantinople Cake

This cake tastes like nothing I’ve ever had earlier than. This is perhaps one of the best cake I’ve ever made. The cake is moist, mild, and excellent in each means. The flavoring offered by the rose water won’t be all people’s cup of tea, however mixed with the spices, that is one scrumptious cake.

A little bit of trivia: Constantinople, Turkey, was renamed Istanbul in 1930. The tune “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)” was written in 1953 in recognition of this momentous occasion. The tune has been coated many occasions. Put in your favourite recording of “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)” and dance round your kitchen as you put together this cake. The flavors of your cake won’t enhance, however you’ll persuade your loved ones that you simply’re nuts.

This recipe is tailored from thegreekvegan.com.

dry elements:

• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1½ teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon floor cardamom

moist elements:

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1½ teaspoons rosewater
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon almond extract
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• About 10 ounces of your favourite jam (mine was seedless raspberry)

Preheat oven to 350 levels. Line the underside of a 9-inch spherical cake pan with parchment paper reduce to suit the spherical pan.

Mix dry elements. Mix moist elements, apart from the jam. (The jam will probably be unfold on high of the cooled cake). Pour the moist elements into the dry elements. Stir till simply moistened. Pour the batter into the ready cake pan. Bake till the cake has risen and a toothpick poked into the middle of the cake comes out dry. (The cake baked for 40 minutes in my convection oven.)

Flip the cake out onto a rack and permit it to chill earlier than spreading the jam on high and adorning.

Observe: Rosewater is a really potent flavoring. Don’t be tempted so as to add extra rosewater until you’re accustomed to the product. An excessive amount of rosewater will make your cake style soapy.

Susan Alexander is meals columnist for the Duluth Information Tribune. She loves gardening, farmers markets and creating scrumptious meals consisting of entire grains, recent greens and fruits.