Vegan eggplant bolognese

This is a variation on the lasagna bolognese recipe in the Silver Spoon, with two main differences. The first is that it is vegan. The second is that instead of pasta, eggplant is used.

Begin by slicing a large eggplant into thin (1/8") slices. Fry each of these (both sides) in a little olive oil. Then fry

1 chopped onion and
1 chopped carrot

in olive oil for a few minutes. Add

2 chopped plum tomatoes,
1 package (12 ounces) of Morningstar griller crumbles
1/4 cup water, and
a dash of black pepper.

Simmer this until the water is absorbed. (Note that the Morningstar griller crumbles are vegan, while Morningstar grillers are typically not.)

In a separate pan, mix

1/4 cup flour (whole wheat pastry is good)
pinch salt

in enough olive oil to make a thin paste. Apply heat and brown the paste slightly (be careful -- this burns very easily), then whisk in

1-1/2 cup soymilk.

Incidentally, the store-brand plain organic soymilk at Genuardi's is very tasty! Cook until sauce thickens.

Heat the oven to 400 deg F. Grease an 8"x8" baking dish and layer the eggplant, meat mixture, and sauce, ending with the sauce. Bake for 30 minutes.

Sorghum, oats, and collards

This is a vegan, low-fat dish which features sorghum a somewhat less-common grain. Begin by rinsing

1/2 cup red sorghum (obtained from a local asian market) and
1/2 cup steel-cut oats (groats)

in cold water for a few changes of water. Then add

2-1/2 cup water

and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer, and cook partially covered. The grains will cook into a very thick, syrupy liquid. Be careful to avoid burning it!

To the cooked grains, mix in

1 handfull of roasted peanuts and
1/4 cup soy sauce.

In a small wok, cook

3-4 sprigs chopped fresh cilantro,
5-6 chopped large collard leaves (probably about 8 ounces or so),

in

1/4 cup lemon juice.

When the collards have cooked enough (they soften, darken in color, and reduce in volume considerably), mix the contents of the wok into the grains.

Fruits of FORTRAN?

Not a recipe, but... Edwin doesn't say "raspberries" correctly, and it's amusing. At first, he called them "red blackberries", which makes sense since blackberries are his favorite. But now, he's calling them "BLASberries", which is just amusing, though only to me.

Broccoli raab and pasta

So we're starting to get acclimated to our new home in Philadelphia, at least food-wise. The following simple meal was made from ingredients we bought in town, rather than those we brought with us from Ithaca. It's essentially the recipe "Orrecchiette con broccoli" on page 274 of The Silver Spoon.

Start by bringing a pot of water for the pasta to a boil. While that is heating, fry

1 minced clove garlic (gotten from Farm Fresh Express)

in olive oil. Once browned, add to it

1 chopped plum tomato,
1 diced banana pepper (both from the 9th Street Italian Market),
salt and pepper

and cook for a few minutes. Boil

1 chopped bunch of organic broccoli raab (from Genuardi's, a local grocer)

for about 3 minutes, drain, and add to the skillet. Cook for a few minutes on low heat.

The pasta was obtained from Talluto's in the 9th Street Italian Market, and was a pesto-filled agnolotti, though other pasta would also work fine. Top the pasta with the broccoli raab and grated romano cheese (also from Talluto's).