I receive “The I love Trader Joe’s Vegetarian Cookbook” the other day in the mail and it was a perfect week for that. Because once a month I am doing a Veggie Week and it sometimes is difficult to find a meal for supper. Now I’ve got a book load full of recipes.
Right of the start though I have to say that we do not have a Trader Joe’s in town. But I find that not problematic, at least not for the recipes. Just make what you need from scratch. The recipe was chosen by my husband, he simply flip a page open and said he liked that.
The book is nicely divided into Breakfast, Bites and Snacks, Salads, Soups and Stews, Sandwiches, Sides, Main Dishes, Casseroles, Desserts, and Beverages. Furthermore you get a sections with Sample Menues and a Conversion table.
The very first thing I notices was a amount of pictures, loads and loads of them. Foodies are of course fans of pictures, it gives you an idea how it should look like. Not every recipe has a pictures but almost every other one.
The author Kris Holechek Peters personalized every recipe with a little thought. Like for example that she is not a big fan of eggplant but this recipe really kicks her taste buds (paraphrased by me). On the left side of the recipe you will find the ingredients list, simple visible. Also, and I find that important, she tells you how many servings you will get out of the recipe. I find her explanations simple and easy to follow as well.
Excerpted from The I love Trader Joe’s Vegetarian Cookbook by Kris Holechek Peters. Copyright © 2012 by Ulysses Press. Reprinted with permission from the publisher Ulysses Press.
Ingredients:
– 1 larg eggplant
– salt
– 3 cups TJ’s Organic Whole Wheat Penne Pasta
– 2 tbsp. olive oil
– 2 cups chopped white mushroom
– 12 ounces TJ’s Giotto’s Bruschetta
Cut the eggplant into 1 inch thick slices and sprinkle them with salt. This will remove the bitter taste. Let it rest for 30 min. Then rinse off the eggplant and cut into cubes. Heat the oil in a large pan on medium and add the mushrooms and eggplant. Let this cook until the mushrooms are dark and have released their juices. This will take about 15 min and you should stir quite often so that nothing bakes to the bottom. If there are not enough juices, add some water by the tablespoon.
Now add the bruschetta and cook until everything is hot and bubbling, about 10 min. Cook the pasta to taste and serve both hot.
Tip: Bruschetta is basically chopped up tomatoes with some garlic, oil, balsamico, and basil leaves. You can make this easily at home.
The only downside with this recipe is the colour because eggplant tents to turn a brownish-grayish colour. But it was wonderfully filling and most delicious. Even for my not vegetarian husband.
Happy cooking!
Baking in Saskatoon 