Two New Recipes and the End of Summer????

It is September 1st and summer in Maine shows no signs of slowing down. We’ve had record heat the last few days – temps in the 90s – which is unusual for this time of year. As I write it is 6:00 p.m. and the temp is still 85 degrees. There are a few signs of autumn coming though (notice I call it autumn and not fall – my friend Ros in England hates it when I use the term “fall.”) This week the Kids started back to school (well not mine – other people’s), the acorns are falling off the trees all over my yard (some leaves too) and today I purchased my favorite seasonal brew from Shipyard Brewing – Pugsley’s Signature Series Smashed Pumpkin Ale. Haven’t had it in almost a year and am looking forward to a cool crispy evening to enjoy a pint. I also know it is the end of summer because the Red Sox are in third place with no chance of catching up to Tampa Bay or the Yankees. This means I will have lots of extra time for cooking in October when I won’t have to stay up late to watch the American League playoffs or the World Series.


Last week we had guests to dinner two different nights and the dishes I served were a big success so I thought I’d share the recipes with you. The first – Asian Noodles with Peanut Sauce and Tempeh – was my own creation. The second, Vegetarian Moussaka, came from a beautiful cookbook called “The Food of Greece” by Aglaia Kremezi. Aglaia is a Greek journalist who spent years researching the forgotten traditional foods of Greece – the foods that, even in Greece, were pushed aside for Americanized fast food versions such as “souvlaki”, pizza, hamburgers and “Greek Salad.”


Maura’s Asian Noodles with Peanut Sauce and Tempeh


Note: I don’t usually weigh and measure my ingredients so you’ll have to decide how much of each to ingredient to use. I fed four people with my recipe and had leftovers for two more meals.

1 small to medium sweet onion sliced thin
1-2 cloves garlic minced
2 carrots sliced thin on the diagonal or cut matchstick style
1 small to medium red (or orange or green) pepper sliced into thin strips
Shitake mushrooms (cleaned with a damp paper towel), stems removed and sliced thin
Assorted veggies (okay don’t panic – hear me out. What you use in this dish is really up to you. I usually just use what is on hand in my kitchen or what is the freshest at the local farmer’s market or grocer. To tell you the truth I don’t remember what I put in last week but it was probably spinach, diced tomatoes, maybe some diced zucchini or summer squash. You can also use bok choy, broccoli, eggplant, etc.)
Olive oil or peanut oil for cooking
Salt and pepper to taste
1 lb. package of Buckwheat Soba Noodles or Udon Noodles (I prefer the Soba but they do tend to stick together when cold)
1 package of Tempeh (see my blog post from July 21st)
1 T. Tamari or soy sauce
Water

Peanut Sauce:

¼ to ½ cup peanut butter
1-2 T tamari, shoyu or soy sauce
½ to 1 t. toasted sesame oil (if you have some)
1 t. chili garlic paste
Juice of 1 lime
Hot water (enough to make it a sauce)

First make the sauce. Add all the ingredients together (except the water) then whisk in enough hot water (a little at a time) to make a sauce. If you do this the day before the sauce will probably thicken so go ahead and let the sauce come to room temp and then add more water if needed.

Next prepare the tempeh. Heat some oil (olive or peanut oil is fine) in a pan and brown the tempeh on both sides. Add Tamari and enough water to come half way up the tempeh. Turn down the heat, cover and simmer until the liquid is absorbed. Cut tempeh into cubes and set aside.

Sauté the onion and garlic (add this after the onions so it won’t burn) for a few minutes. Add carrots and peppers and sauté for a few more minutes. Add mushrooms and other assorted veggies and sauté for a few more minutes. Don’t let the veggies get mushy – I tend to like mine on the crunchy side.

While the veggies are cooking bring a pan of water to a boil and cook the noodles according to package directions. These don’t take long – 3-5 minutes so be ready with your sauce and veggies. Drain the cooked noodles and rinse with water in a colander.

Add the noodles and sauce to the pan of veggies and stir to combine. Add the tempeh. Serve immediately. Great served with a Sauvignon Blanc or even a Spanish Rose.


Vegetarian Moussaka (Moussaka Nistisimos)

Note: Don’t let this dish scare you. There are lots of ingredients and it takes a little time to put together but it is so worth it. It holds over nicely for a few days so it makes great leftovers.

2-3 medium eggplants
Sea salt
3 large green bell peppers
1/3 c. olive oil
1 very large or two small potatoes, thinly sliced

Tomato Sauce:

2 large onions (2 c.) coarsely chopped
1 large green bell pepper diced
1½ teaspoons minced fresh chili pepper (I left this out)
1/2  c. dry red wine
5 large tomatoes (2 ½ c.) peeled and diced
4 large garlic cloves, minced
Grated nutmeg
Ground cinnamon
½ c. dark raisins (don’t leave this out! I almost did and it turned out to be the best part of the dish)
1 T. Sea salt

1 c. feta cheese, crumbled (please buy imported feta – it is so much better than domestic)
½ c. ground (use a food processor or nut grinder) walnuts
2 ripe tomatoes peeled and sliced
½ c. bread crumbs
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

First prepare the eggplant. Cut off the stems and peel in strips leaving roughly half the skin on the eggplants. Cut across into 1/3 inch slices. Salt well on both sides and let drain in a colander for 30 minutes. Rinse and pat dry before using. Brush each slice with olive oil and grill until both sides are golden. You can also do this in a broiler.

Next prepare the peppers. Cut the peppers in halves or quarters lengthwise to obtain flat pieces. Discard the seeds and stems and roast on a gas burner or a gas grill skin side down until the skins blister (about 10 minutes). Place in a bowl, cover and let sit for 10-15 minutes. Peel.

Potatoes. Heat remaining oil in a frying pan and fry the potatoes for 3-4 minutes until just soft. Remove and arrange on the bottom of a clay or glass baking dish (approx. 15 ½ by 10 ½). Don’t worry if there are gaps between the potatoes.

To make the sauce. In the same pan as you fried the potatoes sauté the onions, bell pepper, chili pepper for about three minutes. Add the wine and cook for two minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for 10 minutes. Add the garlic, nutmeg, cinnamon and raisins and simmer for yet another 10 minutes or until sauce starts to thicken. Taste and add more salt if necessary.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Arrange the eggplant slice on top of the potatoes. (Now the recipe doesn’t say to use only one layer so I did two as I had plenty of eggplant). Spoon half the sauce over the eggplant then sprinkle with the feta and ground walnuts. Cover with the roasted peppers and spoon the rest of the tomato sauce on top. Spread evenly. Top with the tomato slices and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.

Bake on the bottom rack of your oven for about an hour. Check after 45 minutes. If the top has browned cover with aluminum foil.

Let cool completely on a rack before serving.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you do make either of these recipes let me know how you liked them.

“Eat, Drink and be Merry”
Maura