Vegetarian Lasagne

This recipe has been a big hit recently, with a lot of people including myself.  I am realizing as time goes on that I am starting to prefer less and less meat.
This is a great dish which seems to be loved by both meat-lovers and vegetarians alike.  Absolutely meat-free, yet lots of beans and cheese to satisfy any hunger.  I know that sounds cliche, but once you taste this, I think you will agree.

INGREDIENTS:

500g dried lentils

6 cups water, or more as needed

2 carrots, cut into half and sliced

2 celery stalks, cut into slices

1 vegetable stock cube

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

400g of minced tomatoes

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, chopped

5 teaspoons fresh garlic, sliced

8 teaspoons ground cumin (more if necessary)

lasagne pasta sheets (sheets that don’t need to be pre-cooked)

cheese

(please keep in mind that, as I never really measure these ingredients while making this dish, these measurements are just approximations.  Change as you like.)

Step 1: Making the Lentil mixture (this can also be a stand-alone soup)

Put the lentils, water, carrot, celery, and stock cube in a deep skillet or medium saucepan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the lentils are tender, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, put the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until it softens, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir, then cook for 1 minute more and turn off the heat.

When the lentils are tender, stir the onion mixture into the soup.  Add ground cumin and more salt and pepper as necessary.  Add more hot water if the soup is too thick.  Adjust the seasoning as needed.

Step 1: Layering the Lasagne

Now we need to layer the lasagne so that it will cook evenly.  While the order of ingredients is not absolutely necessary, I usually set them in this order to all the pasta sheets to cook evenly and, at the same time, to allow extra water in the soup to evaporate evenly.

First, preheat your oven to 230°C (about 450°F).  In a glass rectangle dish, lay a thin layer of lentil soup on the bottom.  Add one layer of pasta sheets to cover.  Depending on the size of your dish, the number of sheets will vary.  It is alright to break pieces to fill up the sides.  Now add a healthy layer (probably about one to two cm. thick) of lentil soup.  On top of that, add a full layer of mozzarella cheese (about 250g).  Next add two layers of pasta sheets.  Then another healthy layer of lentil soup, and last a very strong layer of cheese (so much that you cannot see anything else from the top).

Put this in the oven and let bake for approximately 20 - 30 minutes.  Keep checking every five minutes or so to make sure what the best time for your oven is.  Next, turn on the broiler to 3/4 strength for approximately 5 - 7 minutes (or until the top cheese layer is golden brown).

Take out of the oven and let cool for as long as you like and serve.  

P.S. the taste gets even better when left out for one to two days in room temperature.

Salmon with Mushrooms

Lots of people think fish is difficult to cook.  Especially in the case of salmon, it is very easy to cook and very healthy to eat.
Here is a very simple recipe which you can cook within 20 minutes, yet you will get a gourmet class meal with the benefits of omega 3 fats and iron, without the ill effects of red meats.
If you are lucky enough to live in a country in which fish is in the daily diet, salmon will also be very inexpensive at the market, although it is quite expensive in the restaurant.

The secret to a great salmon steak is patience and not letting it dry out.

You will need:

1 Salmon fillet - any size (it doesn't shrink while cooking so it is easy to decide portions
      just by what you see in the market
Soy Sauce
Pepper
Mushrooms - sliced (Champignon or whatever you prefer)

Use low/medium heat to heat up a skillet.  After about 45 seconds, put the salmon fillet in, then turn the heat slightly lower (do not use any oils as salmon has its own oils which will come out while cooking).

Immediately pour three tablespoons of soy sauce over the salmon and add one teaspoon of freshly crushed pepper.  Then add two tablespoons of water and cover with aluminum foil or a large pot cover (this will keep the fish from drying out while cooking.  If well covered, the water will only slightly evaporate over time and the salmons oil will mix well with the soy sauce, pepper and remaining water).

After about five minutes, turn the salmon over and add the mushrooms.  Sprinkle one half teaspoon pepper on the salmon.  Add one tablespoon of both soy sauce and water only if the previous liquids have nearly dried and the salmon is in danger of drying.  Cook for about five more minutes.
Plate and pour remaining juices and mushrooms on top.  Serve immediately.

Caesar Salad

Especially when it get hot, this is one of those recipes that is extremely quick to make and easy to digest, yet especially tasty.  I like to make a lot so there is enough for each meal within the day.  This might seem like a no-brainer recipe, but it's astonishing how inexpensive and fast it can be made, yet how much it costs in a restaurant.

One head of lettuce - slice into medium-sized pieces.
1.5 cups or more croutons
ten or more cherry tomatoes
one cup of caesar salad dressing
Parmesan cheese

Chop up the lettuce into pieces of about 3 - 5 cm squares.  Put in a serving bowl and add all other ingredients.  Mix well.  There you go - Done.
You can also add corn, broccoli, and any other vegetables you like as well.

Cashew Chicken

Often, I get a request for this when we are hungry and want to eat something right away. It seems and tastes complex, but is really simple and quick to make for those times when you've just finished a taiko rehearsal and it's either healthy food or junk food to eat right away. Of course, healthy is the way to go...so:

1 cup - Cashew Nuts
2 cups - Chicken Breast (diced into 3 cm. chunks)
1 cup - Garlic Chives (finely chopped)
2 cups - Celery (sliced into 1 cm. slices)
1/4 cup - Potato Starch, or corn starch (I prefer potato starch as it is finer and no taste. Best is called "Katakuriko".)
1 small Consomme Cube
Soy sauce


First, coat frying pan with olive oil, then cook chicken and chives adding two teaspoons of soy sauce until chicken is well cooked. Then put chicken into a bowl and set aside. In the same pan, add about 2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Then add cashew nuts and cook for about three minutes. Add Celery and cook for about two more minutes. Add consomme cube and one to two tablespoons of soy sauce. Once the consomme cube is disolved, in a small cup, put potato starch and 1/4 cup cold water. Stir well until the starch has completely disolved and until just before pouring into cashew mix. While quickly stirring cashew mixture, slowly add potato starch until mixture comes to desired thickness. Add chicken in the end, stir and serve on top of rice or hard noodles.

Tomato Sauce Spaghetti with chicken

In the last year, I've been coming up with different variations of pasta recipes, partly because I don't really like the italian restaurants that are close-by as they put too much oil in their pasta sauces.

Here is one of my favorites, even though it is one of the easiest. For this recipe, I don't usually measure out the ingredients, but will do my best to approximate here. I like lots of garlic taste, though you can add or subtract to each measure to find your own preferred taste.

Sauce Ingredients:
1.5 cups - Minced Chicken (if you can't find it, just get boneless chicken breast and mince with a knife)
3/4 cup - Garlic Chives, finely chopped
1/2 cup - finely diced onion
Three cloves - garlic, finely chopped
Six medium sized tomatoes or two tins of peeled tomatoes (not diced)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Soy Sauce
Salt
Pepper
Basil

Heat frying pan to medium heat and add two tablespoons of olive oil, moving around the pan until the bottom is covered.
Add chicken, chives, onion and garlic. Stir and cook until chicken is lightly golden brown. Add tomatoes, mash and mince. (I tend to use tin peeled tomatoes recently as the price of fresh tomatoes has skyrocketed. I don't use diced tomatoes because these often contain more processed sodium and artificial preservatives added). Add two tablespoons of soy sauce, one teaspoon each of salt and pepper, and two teaspoons of basil. Stir well and continue to stir frequently for about seven minutes, until some of the water from the tomatoes has evaporated. By this time, your sauce is ready.

Now you just need to boil the pasta. I won't go into actually making your pasta from scratch as that take a bit of time, so just use dried pasta from any supermarket. You can either start boiling it before starting your sauce so that everything is ready at the same time, or you can make it later if you like. It's just important to make it only just before eating it. After bringing a large pot of about a liter of water to a boil, add about 1/6 cup of salt. Wait for a few seconds for it to liquify, then add whatever amount of pasta you wish. Once it's boiled to your preferred consistency, you can strain it and eat with the sauce right away.

This recipe usually makes about 4 to 5 servings. Hope you enjoy it.

Recipe for Four-Cheese Pasta with Cauliflower

Not my original recipe, but a tasty one.

Four-Cheese Pasta with Cauliflower
1 1/4 cups skim milk
2 tablespoons light cream cheese
1 1/2 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
3/4 cup shredded cheddar
1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
4 cups cooked whole-wheat spiral pasta
2 cups chopped cauliflower (about 1/2 a medium head), steamed

In a medium saucepan, combine milk, cream cheese, flour, salt, pepper, garlic powder and cayenne, if desired. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until mixture comes to a slow boil, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove pan from heat; stir in remaining cheeses and mustard until cheese melts. In a bowl, toss pasta with cauliflower; pour cheese mixture over top; stir. Divide pasta evenly among 7 bowls; serve immediately.

Split Pea Soup

A nice bean soup is great just about any time of year. Though when served in winter next to a nice fire, it is like a small dream.
I like to make different kinds of bean soups, but one of my favorite is a simple split pea soup with a small amount of pasta mixed in.

Ingredients:
One packet of split peas - about 250grams (more if you are making for a group of people)
1/3 onion - finely diced
one clove of fresh garlic - minced
1/4 cup of mushrooms - finely diced
around 15 spaghetti sprigs, broken into two.

First, soak a packet of dried split peas in a pot of water the night before. The amount of water depends on how much you are planning to make, but basically, one part peas to three parts water (example: one cup peas, three cups water). Up to two hours before you would like to eat, mix the peas and bring pot to a boil. You may need to add water as you boil.
In a skillet, grill onions and garlic until onions are almost brown, then add mushrooms and grill for one more minute. Once peas are soft, add onions, garlic and mushrooms into pot with peas and mix. Then add spaghetti and mix. Turn off the heat and let sit for up to 15 minutes or until the spaghetti is fairly soft.