Vegetarian dishes?

[toku]

Well, for my 16th birthday party my mom offered to have a profesional chef come over and have my friends and I cook dinner for ourselves.
The thing is that one of my friends is a vegitarian, and another only eats meat that's killed a certain way. One of my other friends suggested pasta, but *another* friend is Sicilian, so she'd probably be tired of it. So I was wondering... doesn anyone know of any extremely good vegetarian dishes?

 

[norgeskog]

My daughter is vegetarian and she eats a lot of pasta with lots of sauted vegies in the tomatoe or alfredo based sauce. Her favorite is the alfredo with peas, mushrooms(f0r those who eat them she does not), asparagus, brocchli and topped with crunchy fried shallots. She also often add hard tofu sauted in garlic and evoo.

 

[marmalady]

If you like Mexican, here's a great veggie enchilada -

GREEN ENCHILADAS WITH SPINACH AND TOFU

Serves 4-6

3 cups tomatillo sauce
¼ - ½ cup chicken broth
1 medium red onion, sliced thinly 16 corn tortillas
2 pounds fresh spinach
1 lb.sliced mushrooms
12 ounces Monterey Jack,shredded
¼ cup cilantro leaves
1 cup thinned yogurt or 1 cup thinned crema
1 lb.firm tofu,drained and sliced thinly
2 poblano or long green chiles, roasted and seeded

Prepare the tomatillo sauce, adding the poblano when blending the sauce. Some chicken broth may be needed if the sauce is too thick. our into a saucepan and warm over low heat.
Arrange tofu on a single layer on a pan and brush on 1 cup of the tomatillo sauce so flavors will permeate the tofu; let sit 30 minutes before using.
Put onion rings in a bowl, cover with warm water and soak. Steam the tortillas in a damp paper towel in the microwave for 30 seconds, and let sit for 10minutes, still covered.
Wash spinach and place in large skillet over high heat with water still clinging to leaves. Sprinkle with salt and saute just til wilted. Drain, coarsely chop and set aside. In same skillet on high heat, add 1T oil and saute mushrooms for 2 minutes. Add to spinach and along with the crema, and mix well.
Preheat oven to 350; Coat a flat baking dish with oil. Coat bottom of dish with about ½ cup of the tomatillo sauce. If necessary, thin it with a little stock so it pours. Uncover the tortillas, dip each one into the hot tomatillo sauce, and slide onto a plate. Quickly fill each tortilla with spinach mushroom crema mixture and tofu and a sprinkling of cheese. Bend in half, and place inside the baking dish, slightly overlapping. When all all tortillas are filled, cover with the rest of the tomatillo sauce and the rest of the cheese, and bake for 15-20 minutes. Put 3-4 enchiladas on a plate; garnish with cilantro and sliced onions.

 

[SierraCook]

Garlic Basil Tomato Pie

1 (8-oz.) can Pillsbury® Refrigerated Crescent Dinner Rolls
2 to 4 teaspoons olive or vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1 to 3 teaspoons minced garlic
8 oz. Provolone cheese, thinly sliced
8 Italian plum tomatoes, thinly sliced lengthwise, seeded
1/4 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Freshly ground black pepper, if desired

Heat oven to 375°F. Lightly spray 10-inch pie pan or tart pan with nonstick cooking spray. Separate dough into 4 rectangles. Place rectangles in sprayed pan. Press evenly over bottom and up sides; firmly press edges and perforations to seal. Prick dough generously with fork. Bake at 375°F for 15 to 17 minutes or until golden brown.

Meanwhile, in small saucepan, combine oil, basil and garlic. Cook over low heat just until heated, stirring occasionally. Cover to keep warm.

Remove partially baked crust from oven. Arrange half of the Provolone cheese slices over crust. Top with half of the tomatoes. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers. Spoon basil mixture evenly over pie. Sprinkle with pepper.

Return to oven; bake an additional 15 to 18 minutes or until cheese is melted and crust is deep golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.


Savory Feta-Filled Shells
From Athenos

1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, well drained
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 pkg. (8 oz.) ATHENOS Traditional Feta Cheese, crumbled, divided
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
12 jumbo macaroni shells, cooked, drained
1-1/2 cups marinara sauce

Mix spinach, ricotta cheese, 3/4 of the feta cheese and garlic powder. Fill shells with spinach mixture. Place in 10x6-inch baking dish. Pour sauce over shells. Top with remaining feta cheese. Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

 

[kyles]

My mum used to make vegetarian lasagne for my sister each Christmas. When she was sixteen she decided not be strict veggie anymore, so mum thought she was off the hook, but everyone in our family demanded veggie lasagne, it had become part of our Christmas tradition.

Mum would make a rich tomato vegetable sauce. Then layer it with lasagne noodles, a white sauce made with a large tub of cottage cheese beaten with two eggs a little nutmeg and a lot of black pepper, and mozzarella cheese.

Vegetable lasagne sauce

Saute 2 finely chopped onions and garlic to taste (2 - 4 cloves) in olive oil until soft and translucent.

Add chopped green and red pepper, one diced eggplant, chopped mushrooms and fry until soft, add two tins of tomatoes, and allow to cook gently for half an hour. Add fresh or dried herbs to taste, and tomato paste if the tinned tomatoes need it (some are richer than others).


That's just a rough guide, my mum has used broccoli, cauliflower, sweet potato, all sorts of diferent veggies can be added or substituted.

 

[wasabi woman]

how about gourmet pizzas? It would be fun to cook together and a good way for everyone to have the kind of toppings that they like.

I think your party sounds like a lot of fun! Happy Birthday!!!

 

[WayneT]

So I was wondering... doesn anyone know of any extremely good vegetarian dishes?

Hey, Toku, we have on DiscussCooking a "Vegetables and Vegetarian" section. There are 4 pages, around 50 Posts on each. I have seen quite a few recipes that I would class as "extremely good vegetarian dishes". Good luck.

 

[WayneT]

In case I am not around in January 2005, Happy Birthday

 

[toku]

Wayne T- oops. Sorry about that.... wow...thanks....

Thanks for the recipes!

 

[Audeo]

A big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you, Toku! And please DO let us know what you end up cooking at that party -- what a great way to celebrate!

 

[amber]

Happy Birthday Toku! Why not ask the professional chef for suggestions? Maybe invite your friends over to discuss the menu and make a plan with the chef?