Baked Brains! (Baked Cauliflower)

The perfect thing for Halloween.  Baked brains, but really it's just pizza over a whole head of cauliflower.

Start by setting out the spice profile: basil, onion powder, salt, garlic and oregano.  Stir it in the tomato paste and mix thoroughly.  Wash and shake dry a head of cauliflower.

Spread the spiced tomato paste on the cauliflower and cover with thinly-sliced vegetables.

Bake at 350F for 30-45min.  Doneness can be tested when a knife can be easily inserted.

Slice and serve drizzled with olive oil and sliced green onions.

Vegan Lasagna

I'm so busy this week, but I wanted to post this. Vegan Lasagna!

So many vegan lasagnas only use tofu instead of ricotta. It's alright, but it's not great. So, I still used tofu, but the base was grated cauliflower, tamari sauce, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, onion powder and a smidgen of smoky paprika.

I started by preparing the base and then crumbling in the extra-firm tofu. Set it aside while grating the rest of the veg: broccoli, peppers, courgette, carrots and the non-woody stalks of asparagus.

Then add those greeted veggies to a heated pan with olive oil and sauté until tender. This helps reduce the water content and helps build flavour. I was in a rush, so I used canned pasta sauce.

I decided to grill the aubergine instead of grating it. So, just in a hot skillet, I seared it with a bit of olive oil. The spinach also seemed to be too good to chuck through a grater, so I wilted it quickly with olive oil. And salt! Carefully season everything after it's been reduced/seared/sweated.

Sometime when all of this was going on, I boiled the lasagne noodles. You could totally go gluten free, but these are just regular wheat noodles. Either way, be sure not to over cook them. Just soften them - ultra al dente? They'll get more cooking in the oven.

Then, begin building the dish: layer sauce, noodle, spinach and then "ricotta" filling until the dish is almost full. Be sure the top layer is sauce, and that the noodles are fully covered - otherwise they get hard and dry. Then arrange extra veg on the top. I think this makes a nice addition to any lasagna. I topped it with asparagus spears, tomatoes, olives and more grilled eggplant.

Bake for about 30-45 minutes.

I served it with a fresh sprig of basil and a drizzle of aged balsamic and olive oil.

Focaccia: baking watery bread #notgross

Focaccia is a delightful bread.  It's a little unique that it contains ~60%-70% water.

As usual I just threw things together; so bad at measuring.  After you work for years with bread it becomes second nature.  So, now's the perfect time for you to start!  In no time, you'll be making bread from scratch.

Begin by mixing flour, salt, yeast and water to form a very soft dough.  I like to let the dough ferment overnight in the refrigerator to allow it to develop complex flavours.

Scoop the dough out on a floured surface.  Here's the trick, the dough should be folded over itself rather than traditionally kneaded.  This forms the gluten, gives the bread shape and it keeps the air bubbles intact.

After folding, place the dough on a baking tray (lined with a silicon baking mat, oiled parchment, or simply oil the baking tray).  Let it raise until doubled in size and then use your fingers to make indentions on the surface.  This keeps the bread from raising too high and it gives the topping a nice home.

Then drizzle with good olive oil and top with delightful Italian flavours.  I chose red onion, olives and tomatoes.  Bake at 400F until golden brown.  It's a delight!

Avocado Salsa

Avocados are amazing! To take it to a new dimension, I added corn, tomatoes and olives and salt. This builds on the mellow avocado flavour a complex and savoury dimension.

This recipe works best with avocados that are almost fully ripe. They shouldn't be plasticky or mushy.

Pasta Fresca

I just got to try my new pasta attachments.

Make the dough and let it rest:

This is a buckwheat and semolina dough.

Then roll it to the desired thickness:

Then cut as desired - this is a fettuccine:

Start the water boiling and lay the pasta aside - boil when ready.  Then drain, rinse and keep warm (for no more than 10 minutes):

Prepare the fresh veg:

• basil
• parsley
• onions
• cayenne
• oregano
• tomatoes

Mince the herbs and pepper:

Marinate with Italian salad dressing:

Sweat the herbs and onion in olive oil with a dash of salt.  Add toasted pine nuts to the mix:

Turn off the heat and add the tomatoes.  You don't want to cook them, just allow them to soften slightly:

Add ripe green olives (not the pickled variety) and julienned green peppers:

Pasta Fresca, served with sauteed green beans and (veggie) sausage.

Mediterranean Grilled Tofu Sandwich

Marinate and grill extra firm tofu to desired colour.

This compilation includes:

• fresh lettuce
• fresh from the garden tomatoes
• grilled bell pepper
• feta & olive relish