Favorite Vegetarian Entrees?

[cmarchibald]

A Friday night favorite around here is spinach and beans over polenta. Make your polenta by what ever your favorite method may be; I like using the microwave, set on a lowish power and running for a long time to get that creaminess going. You are going to want about 2 cups of polenta for this dish.

I've never heard of polenta and actually had to google it. I'll have to dig into that one and see if I can get the right ingredients here to make it. That said, anything with cheese, spinach and garlic is going to be a WIN in this house.

 

[Zhizara]

A Friday night favorite around here is spinach and beans over polenta. Make your polenta by what ever your favorite method may be; I like using the microwave, set on a lowish power and running for a long time to get that creaminess going. You are going to want about 2 cups of polenta for this dish. When you are bored with cooking the polenta and ready to move on, stir into it the cheese(s) of your choice, parm and/or mozz usually, enough cheese to get a good cheese flavor. While the polenta cooks, saute a bunch o'garlic (the "no, go on and throw in the rest of the head", kinda bunch) in olive oil. The olive oil and the cheese are the only high calorie things in this dish, so use enough so that the garlic infused oil gets all through the dish. When the garlic has indeed flavored the oil well, add a can of white beans and heat. Add a box of frozen spinach and let cook until the spinach is thoroughly done. Serve over the polenta in large bowls. Amazing stuff, though you would think not just reading the ingredients.

I loved your narrative. I printed out a copy to make my grocery list.

I have the remainder of a 5# bag of yellow corn grits that makes a delicious polenta.

It would also be easy to add almost any kind of meat for us Meatatarians.

 

[Josie1945]

A Friday night favorite around here is spinach and beans over polenta. Make your polenta by what ever your favorite method may be; I like using the microwave, set on a lowish power and running for a long time to get that creaminess going. You are going to want about 2 cups of polenta for this dish. When you are bored with cooking the polenta and ready to move on, stir into it the cheese(s) of your choice, parm and/or mozz usually, enough cheese to get a good cheese flavor. While the polenta cooks, saute a bunch o'garlic (the "no, go on and throw in the rest of the head", kinda bunch) in olive oil. The olive oil and the cheese are the only high calorie things in this dish, so use enough so that the garlic infused oil gets all through the dish. When the garlic has indeed flavored the oil well, add a can of white beans and heat. Add a box of frozen spinach and let cook until the spinach is thoroughly done. Serve over the polenta in large bowls. Amazing stuff, though you would think not just reading the ingredients.

Nora this sounds awesome! I love Polenta, Love everything in the recipe.
Yummy

Josie

 

[Zereh]

Amazing stuff, though you would think not just reading the ingredients.

Fantastic stuff! I just wish I had room for more... I highly recommend this one. Thanks for sharing, NoraC. =)

 

[NoraC]

Zer. I am glad you enjoyed it. For sentimental reasons, it is a recipe dear to me.

 

[LAJ]

I love eggplant milanese. Doesn't get any better than that.

 

[Kathleen]

Grilled cheese on fresh made bread.

Served with a bowl of creamy tomato soup!

Zer. I am glad you enjoyed it. For sentimental reasons, it is a recipe dear to me.

I love everything in that list! I will definitely have to try that!

I love eggplant milanese. Doesn't get any better than that.

I love eggplant Parmesan too, but I have never made it well.

 

[LAJ]

Eggplant

Served with a bowl of creamy tomato soup!



I love everything in that list! I will definitely have to try that!



I love eggplant Parmesan too, but I have never made it well.

I pound mine very very thin and soak it in milk and egg before cooking. It tends to rid it of any bitterness and softens it nicely.
I confess, I often buy eggplant milanese from an Italian specialty store called Vince and Joes. It is delicious. One of the few items I buy that is already prepared. so good.

 

[cmarchibald]

So many great ideas on this thread, thank you for all your responses. I haven't gotten around to trying any of these yet but will soon!

 

[LAJ]

Polenta

So many great ideas on this thread, thank you for all your responses. I haven't gotten around to trying any of these yet but will soon!

Polenta is great to have on hand. For breakfast, lunch or dinner. Many uses.

 

[Mimizkitchen]

I pound mine very very thin and soak it in milk and egg before cooking. It tends to rid it of any bitterness and softens it nicely.
I confess, I often buy eggplant milanese from an Italian specialty store called Vince and Joes. It is delicious. One of the few items I buy that is already prepared. so good.

Just curios but why would you pound your eggplant??? I would think that would just break it down...

 

[LAJ]

eggplant

Just curios but why would you pound your eggplant??? I would think that would just break it down...

I pound it between saran wrap or waxed paper to tenderize and I prefer a thin product. I do the same for chicken marsala. I do not like thick eggplant or thick chicken. You just dont pound as hard with the eggplant as you do the chicken.

 

[Zhizara]

Just kind of give it a firm pat?

 

[FrankZ]

Can you slice eggplant thinner?

I am not seeing pounding eggplant... maybe I am missing something.

 

[LAJ]

Eggplant

Can you slice eggplant thinner?

I am not seeing pounding eggplant... maybe I am missing something.

I pound it and it tenderizes it and it gets thinner. Thats the way I like it.
You can slice it with a mandolin. I like it very thin like that. When my sister owned an Italian restaurant they always prepared it that same way.
Especially for eggplant parm subs. No one wants to bite into a thick eggplant on a roll. At least, that was our experience in the restaurant.

 

[FrankZ]

I would think it wouldn't tenderize as much as mulch it. Do you cut it a certain way so it stands up to the hammer?

 

[Mama]

I like to make stuffed shells. These were stuffed with a mixture of spinach, canned artichokes, mushrooms, onions, garlic, egg, black pepper, ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese and then covered with homemade spaghetti sauce and a little more mozzarella cheese.

 

[LAJ]

eggplant

I would think it wouldn't tenderize as much as mulch it. Do you cut it a certain way so it stands up to the hammer?

I use a rolling pin.

 

[FrankZ]

I still don't see how blunt force trauma works with eggplant. Meat yes. All the recipes I have found that call for pounding eggplant seem to be to make it a mash, not to thin it out or tenderize it.

 

[CWS4322]

I still don't see how blunt force trauma works with eggplant. Meat yes. All the recipes I have found that call for pounding eggplant seem to be to make it a mash, not to thin it out or tenderize it.

My thoughts as well. Perhaps I'm biased--I grow eggplant and the thought of "tenderizing" them is somewhat contradictory after the babying I do of the plants to get them to reward my efforts with their lovely purple (or white) fruits. I am always crushed in the fall when the eggplants yield to frost and give up. I've wondered if I could bring eggplant in before the first frost and have the plant continue producing into the winter months...