Eggplant "steaks"

I wanted to make these lotus root cakes for dinner tonight but the supermarkets I went to were all out of lotus roots (and i went to TWO).

So.... As I walked down the supermarket aisle wondering what I was going to do, I saw a flash of purple: eggplant. I love eggplant. I've featured two different ways of using eggplant in this blog so far, so here's a third:

Miso-glazed eggplant

Eggplant is really such a versatile vegetable, and it's pretty!! Plus it's really good for you. I won't bore you with the details, but let's just say it's low in calories, high in fibre and chockfull of vitamins.

The eggplant I used was pretty big so I divided the recipe by 3 and the glaze was just enough. Though I have to say it's not so much a glaze as it is a thick sauce. I used pre-seasoned miso because that was all I had on hand, though i know shiro miso would have been a much better fit. Didn't use that much oil too, I sliced the eggplant into quarters and just rubbed them with a little olive oil... Pan seared them because I was too lazy to broil them, but I did pop them into the toaster oven so that the sauce would caramelise a little. Garnished with a little sesame oil, raw sesame seeds (calcium!!) and spring onions.

I call them "steaks" because it really felt like I was eating a cut of meat; the eggplant is very filling and I felt good after I was done- the eggplant is "heavy" enough to make you feel like you had a full meal, yet light enough so that you don't feel gross after you're done.

Broccoli and shiitake garlic cream pasta

I was craving something creamy and did what I could with the ingredients I had on hand.

Broccoli and Shiitake Garlic Cream Pasta

1 portion wholemeal pasta (I used fusilli but any kind of pasta works, really)

1 tbs unsalted butter

1/2 onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 handful broccoli florets

4 emperor shiitake mushrooms, sliced

150-200ml whipping cream

coarsely ground sea salt

coarsely ground black pepper

1/4 tsp thyme

1. Cook the pasta in a pot of boiling water. When done, set aside.

2. Heat the butter in a pan, sauté onions and garlic over high heat until the onions turn translucent.

3. Throw in the garlic and shiitake mushrooms, continue to sauté until the broccoli turns bright green and the garlic begins to brown.

4. Add the whipping cream, turn down the fire to medium-low heat. Add more whipping cream if necessary.

5. Season with sea salt and thyme.

6. When the broccoli looks cooked, add the cooked pasta and sauté until all the pasta is covered with the cream sauce.

7. Pour the pasta into a large bowl, add the black pepper and more salt to taste. Serve.

You can make this dish with a combination of different vegetables. I think asparagus and shiitake mushrooms would work nicely. Alternatively, you could replace the whipping cream with half-and-half, and add parmesan cheese for more flavour. If you like to add white wine to your cream sauce, a tablespoon would give it a nice sweetness.

10 snacks for the stressed student

1. Frozen grapes
A good friend of mine who's constantly on a diet told me that grapes taste like sorbet when they're frozen. And he is absolutely right. I prefer frozen green table grapes to red, because the red ones don't have such a smooth consistency.

2. Bob's Red Mill Apple Strawberry Granola
I snack on these when I'm craving something chewy and sweet, but not too sweet. You can get it from Cold Storage outlets. I get mine from the Cold Storage at Ngee Ann City.

3. Toasted seaweed
One sheet is perfect for that salty craving.
I store the open packet in the chiller, but sometimes it still goes soft. When it does, heat up a pan and just place the sheet of nori on it. It'll become crisp straight away.

4. Yogurt popsicles
Adapted from one of Heidi Swanson's recipes in her book, Super Natural Cooking. I blended 3 cups of Greek yogurt with 8 ounces of mangoes and 3 teaspoons of vanilla extract, then sweetened the mix with honey diluted with a little hot water. Froze them in little plastic cups with ice cream sticks and they were the perfect cold treat. Swanson used acai berries puree in her recipe, but you can probably replace them with other types of berries, or sweet, soft fruit commonly used in smoothies like peaches and mangoes. If you're really lazy, then just use freeze store bought fruit yogurt. But don't forget the ice cream sticks!

5. Celery sticks with peanut butter
The combination sounds odd, but trust me when I say it's awesome. Organic peanut butter preferred. I favour Waitrose Smooth Organic Peanut Butter.

6. Heidi Swanson's Olive Oil Crackers
I threw sundried tomatoes and Italian herbs into the dough, and topped them with grated Parmesan or White Cheddar cheese. Delish, and so natural too.

7. Carrot, celery and cucumber sticks with ssamjang
Ssamjang is a spicy sauce Koreans eat together with meat. Here's the recipe I got from Maangchi's Korean recipes site.

To make ssamjang, combine these ingredients in a small bowl and mix them well:
1/4 cup soy bean paste
2 tbs hot pepper paste
1 stalk of chopped green onion
1 clove of minced garlic, 2 tsp honey or sugar (natural organic cane sugar if you have it!)
2 ts sesame seeds
1 tbs sesame oil

8. Carrot, celery and cucumber sticks with Thousand Island dressing
Chop a shallot and combine with store bought Thousand Island dressing. It's yummy but only for the desperate. When I'm stressed I get pretty desperate, so. :D

9. Kettle Chips Honey Dijon flavour
Not the healthiest of options either, but at least it's better than brands that are laden with transfat and preservatives.

10. Tempura sweet potatoes fried in olive oil
These are wonderful on their own, but even better when dipped into soy sauce. I like to think of them as a healthier alternative to McDonald's french fries. I could be wrong, but these taste so, so good.

I hope these help since exams are around the corner!

Eggplant and garlic spread

I've been crazy over a particular recipe lately.
If you love eggplant, you’re gonna love this; I got it from Student’s Vegetarian Cookbook by Carole Raymond. It features easy, quick recipes perfect for the lazy, hungry, broke vegetarian student, like me! This recipe has a lot more garlic in it because I love the garlicky flavour; if you don't like garlic that much, cut the garlic down to 1 clove only.

Eggplant and garlic spread

1 eggplant (approx. 1 pound)
2 tablespoons tahini
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 tablespoons onion, minced
Salt and pepper

I didn’t follow her instructions exactly; I pricked the eggplant all over with a fork, sliced it into half and zapped it in the microwave till soft. Then I scooped the flesh out and threw the eggplant flesh, tahini, lemon juice, garlic and onion into the blender. When it was done I seasoned it with salt and pepper to taste. Makes things a lot easier; you don’t have to mince the garlic cloves and onions! I hate mincing. Mincing is terribly tedious. The blender is my best friend!