# Vegetarian challenge?



## CharlieD (Mar 6, 2010)

Or almost vegetarian. Here are the only ingredients I could use: any vegetables and any fruits that can be peeled, for example apples or oranges, potatoes or zucchinis, or juices from the above. Also wine or grape juice. I can use salt or sugar. And non vegetarian part is eggs and chicken fat, but the last ingredient though perfectly ok, but not desirable.

Any thoughts?


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## masteraznchefjr (Mar 7, 2010)

Souffle with asparagus.
Can you use dairy products?


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## merstar (Mar 7, 2010)

Do you need a main course or a side dish or both?


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## PrincessFiona60 (Mar 7, 2010)

Zucchini frittata.


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## 97guns (Mar 7, 2010)

isn't tofu a mainstay in the vegitarians diet. i like it, it seems to keep me full for a while as well. i just started making some stirfry dishes with it, i add blackbean sauce with a bunch of different veggies and its pretty good. im thinking of making a curry with it next time.


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## froggythefrog (Mar 7, 2010)

You did not mention vegetable oil, and this recipe can be done without olive oil, but would be far more desirable with it.

Dice and roast potatoes. (Toss in olive oil first if available)  Do this in advance of the vegetables which will have a shorter roasting time.  

Roast asparagus, zucchini. (Toss in olive oil first if available)  Zucchini could be wheeled or cut lengthwise.   

Meanwhile, squeeze the juice of several oranges, and reduce over heat with brown sugar.  During reduction, add cumin, black pepper, or coriander if available.   After reduction, if you did not add coriander and you have cilantro leaves available, de-stem the cilantro and add the leaves for color and flavor. 

Glaze the vegetables with orange sauce and serve.


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## froggythefrog (Mar 7, 2010)

@97guns: Some vegetarians like tofu and others hate it.  It's the stereotypical vegetarian protein.  Just as often, though, vegetarians will incorporate legumes, whole grains, gluten, nuts and mushrooms into their diet as sources of protein.


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## danpeikes (Mar 7, 2010)

do I smell non-gebrachts pesach challenge here?


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## danpeikes (Mar 7, 2010)

roast potatoes, potato starch and egg crepes filled with mushroom and onion, apple carrot cabbage cole slaw....


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## niquejim (Mar 7, 2010)

Tonight I pan roasted some(12 oz's) of mushroom slices in batches, after they finished I added some onions and garlic then add a few Tbs sour cream and a bit of cheese( although the cheese could be omitted) . In a separate pan cook up some refried beans. Put some flour tortillas in the oven to soften. Then put some beans, mushrooms, cilantro, fresh onions, tomatoes and lettuce on the tortillas, wrap and toast in a hot oven for 2-3 minutes. This will make you forget about meat


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## CharlieD (Mar 8, 2010)

It is not a diet, it is something that I need to do. No dairy, no tofu, no oils, no spices of any kinds, only salt. Only fruits and vegetables that have skin and can be peeled easily, so peppers for example are ok, but I'd rather not to deal with them because it is not an easy item to peel. Thank you.


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## CharlieD (Mar 8, 2010)

merstar said:


> Do you need a main course or a side dish or both?


 

Anything, anything you can come up with is good, but probably more on the side dish, vegetarian soups are pretty easy and plenty of recipes around for them. Thank you.


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## CharlieD (Mar 8, 2010)

danpeikes said:


> do I smell non-gebrachts pesach challenge here?


 
you got that right.  add to it no cabbage, no mushrooms.


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## CharlieD (Mar 8, 2010)

froggythefrog said:


> ...
> Dice and roast potatoes.
> Roast ..., zucchini...
> Glaze the vegetables with orange sauce and serve.


 
That sounds nice, albeit minus spices oil and asparages. Thank you.


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## CharlieD (Mar 8, 2010)

Any body else? where are our vegans and vegetarians?


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## cara (Mar 8, 2010)

without oil and spices it's really getting into a challenge...


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## CharlieD (Mar 8, 2010)

for cooking i could use some rendered chicken fat, but that is about it. Chalange indeed.


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## froggythefrog (Mar 8, 2010)

Okay, I reread and came up with a similar idea to my last one with some adjustments. 

Pour a cup or two of wine into a sauce pan,  juice your fruits, add the juice along with sugar and reduce to a thick syrup.  

Take all culinary vegetables (ie., zucchini and tomatoes are botanical fruits, yet culinary vegetables) and tubers and begin to grill them, flipping them much more frequently than you would if you were able to oil the grill.   Being a vegan cook, I don't really see the chicken fat as an option for oiling the grill, especially since it's been mentioned as "undesirable".   If available, the vegetable can be grilled in some aluminum foil in which a few holes have been pierced to allow some smoke in.  This may also help retain some of the moisture of the vegetables, which they will lose if they're out open on the grill.  

As the vegetables cook, slather some of the reduced syrup onto the vegetables and allow the syrup to cook on.  As the syrup cooks on, keep adding a new layer of syrup until the vegetables have cooked to the point that they are nice and tender.

The zest of any citrus fruits can be sprinkled on as a seasoning once the vegetables are done cooking.


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## Janet H (Mar 8, 2010)

How about some sort of eggplant roll up?  If you slice whole eggplant thinly length wise and grill (no oil) the slices become sort of meaty.  They seem to have oil even though there is none.

I might try something along these lines:

Slice and grill eggplant as mentioned.  Whisk some eggs and cook into a thin omelet-esque sheet in a no stick pan, salt. 

Next roll a slice of eggplant and a similar size piece of egg up making sure that the eggplant is on the outside layer.  Place these in a baking dish and cover.

Can you use tomatoes?  Make a sauce of fresh tomatoes, parsley, onion or garlic and raw carrot whirled in a blender.  Use salt and white wine to season.  Heat rolls in oven, heat sauce till hot but not boiled (may break) and sauce rolls just before service.

Could work...


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## CharlieD (Mar 8, 2010)

Thanks folks, any I am open for any sugestions, since i am tired of same old thing every year.


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## Janet H (Mar 8, 2010)

Next idea:
How about a vegetable version of shepards pie complete with the whipped potato topping? A google search for vegetarian shepards pie reveals many versions out there.

Maybe a potato/mushroom croquette?

Homemade gnocchi with a raw sauce?


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## CharlieD (Mar 8, 2010)

Sorry no flour, and no mushrooms either.


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## froggythefrog (Mar 8, 2010)

Just curious:  What did you do last year?   Why do you have these particular restrictions?  Is this an actual contest?


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## merstar (Mar 8, 2010)

CharlieD said:


> Anything, anything you can come up with is good, but probably more on the side dish, vegetarian soups are pretty easy and plenty of recipes around for them. Thank you.



Another vote for roasted vegetables, and since you can't use oil, maybe you can toss them in a little chicken broth. Lots of choices for vegetables that can be peeled, and they make a very colorful dish: carrots, red onions, red and yellow bell peppers, garlic, beets, etc.


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## CharlieD (Mar 9, 2010)

froggythefrog said:


> Just curious: What did you do last year? Why do you have these particular restrictions? Is this an actual contest?


 
There is no contest. The Passover is coming. During that time the common prohibition against leavened bread in reality is much more. There is no end to how strict people get. This is what we do during that time. We only use home made products. The only thing that is not homemade is wine (and there are some people that do make their own wine) Grape juice, actually I do make my own grape juice and salt. That is it. If it is fish, for example I buy whole fish with head and scales and clean it myself. If it is vegetables or fruits they must have skin so they can be peeled. No spices are used in my house, no garlic, even though garlic can be peeled but there is a tradition of not to use it, in my family. I can go on. But those are the general rules that we fallow.

As far as last year, we had some kugels, you know grated veggies, some salt, some chicken fat that I render myself, eggs baked in the oven. The mash potato is very popular during that time. But how much mash potato can one have during 8 days period. Fruit salads, homemade apple sauce. That is about it.


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## cara (Mar 9, 2010)

well.... first I would make a veggie brooth, that's something you could always use

If potatoes are allowed, there are lost of things to combine with that... maybe some sort of potatoe gulash..


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## CharlieD (Mar 10, 2010)

I understand my mistake now, I should have posted this tread in "I only have these ingradients" forum, with a list of fruits and vegetables.


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## froggythefrog (Mar 10, 2010)

Charlie:  That's really cool...  I love the idea of cooking with restrictions but have a feeling I would find myself quite challenged over an 8 day period with these restrictions.  

Another suggestion would be stuffed peppers (any vegetable you can hollow out such eggplant or squash).  You could do a little variation on the theme using completely raw, cooked, and combinations thereof.   If you have access to a dehydrator, you can make dried thin slices of vegetables or fruits, which can then be used to stand in for wraps... 

Depending on just how creative you want to get, less tasty vegetables can be dried to a crisp with a low setting in the oven and then put in the food processor to produce a flour which then could be combined with egg to make crepes with.  The crepes might taste okay, but would lack baking soda and be unleavened.


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## CharlieD (Mar 11, 2010)

Well, ready or not the time for coocing is coming up pretty fast. I will let you know what I made in the end.


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## expatgirl (Mar 16, 2010)

really small baby carrots, butter, sugar (white or brown), salt, white pepper.....steam or cook in a small amount of water for about 4-6  minutes depending on thickness and add some orange juice and butter/margarine at the end....your kids will more than likely eat them up......Dennis the Menace might actually have given them a try


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## 97guns (Mar 16, 2010)

how about some spinach pies - i chop up frozen spinach add some cream sauce, grated cheese and wrap up in filo dough. my greek friends make a version of this, i guess its a very popular greek dish.


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## cara (Mar 20, 2010)

I think there is nothing like filo dough...

I think I just make a pile of the veggies allowed and pick see what might be possible...


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## MoodyBlueFoodie (Mar 20, 2010)

refried bean soup


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## Kathleen (Mar 20, 2010)

*Question*

Can fresh herbs be used as they are essentially veggie.

If so, something like a stuffed pepper with bulghar, fresh tomatoes, chopped onion, salt and pepper, and chopped parsley and basil. Stuff it into the peppers and bake with a bit of broth or simply some water to keep it from burning.

~Kathleen


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## Jeff G. (Mar 29, 2010)

Sounds like a good time for a mixed fruit, vegetable grill!

Zucchini, potatoes, leeks,  peaches, pineapple, potatoes, asparagus, carrots, etc. 

Get the grill fairly hot.. brush the veggies with olive oil(if allowed, if not regular oil). 

Place on the grill and cook.  Start the carrots and potatoes before everything else they take the longest to cook.  While cooking lightly season with salt, pepper. 

TASTY!!!!


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