Foodie Friday- Farmer's Market Lemon Stratta

Farmer's Market Lemon Stratta

You will need:

1 eggplant (thinly sliced)
1 zucchini (sliced)
1 yellow squash (sliced)
2 cups cherry tomatoes
2 lemons
1 can chickpeas (rinsed and drained)
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 package crumbled feta (if vegan just omit this)
1 package vegan mozzarella or regular mozzarella
1 1/2 cups white wine
balsamic vinegar/ glaze
crushed red pepper
paprika

This dish is several layers that you combine in a casserole dish. You can do all of the steps at the same time if you chose and have 4 different pans…or you can do them one at a time if its too overwhelming :) Preheat your over to 350 degrees.

1.  Put your cherry tomatoes in a skillet and simmer them with the lid on until they start to burst, about 10 minutes. Move on to the next step while they are simmering

2.  Next, the bottom layer of eggplant. Grill or sauté the eggplant with salt, crushed red pepper and lemon juice for about 5 minutes on each side or until soft. Spray a casserole dish with nonstick spray and layer the eggplant to cover the bottom of the dish. Spread the tomato sauce evenly over the eggplant and top with lemon zest.

3. The next layer is the zucchini and squash.  Sauté the sliced zucchini and squash with a little bit of salt and pepper. Add about half a cup of balsamic vinegar and let it reduce down till the liquid is gone. Add evenly to your casserole dish. Top with the package of feta.

4. Back to your simmering cherry tomatoes….add the 2 cloves of minced garlic and stir for about a minute. Next add a cup of the white wine and put the lid back on to let it reduce by half.

5. The next layer is the chickpeas. Add the rinsed and drained chickpeas to a saucepan and sauté with salt, pepper, paprika and lemon juice. Cook for about 5 minutes then add to the casserole dish. Top with lemon zest.

6. The last step is finishing the top layer of sauce. Once the wine reduces in the cherry tomato sauce add the package of vegan or regular mozzarella and let it start to melt, add the remaining 1/2 cup (or full cup if you desire) and stir frequently until the sauce melts together. Spread the sauce evenly over the casserole dish and put it in the over for about 45 minutes. Top with balsamic glaze and lemon slices.

Foodie Friday- Cilantro Lime Black Bean Burgers

Cilantro Lime Black Bean Burgers

You will need:

1/2 onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric
cilantro
1 lime
2 cups of button mushrooms, chopped
2 cans of blacks beans, rinsed and drained
all-purpose flour (just for dusting)

Favorite toppings:
hummus
pico de gallo
sliced avocado

1. Preheat your grill/grill pan or a broiler….a grill pan works best for these because they fall apart a little. Heat cooking spray or olive oil in a large skillet, add the onion and cook on medium until it softens. Then add the garlic, cumin and turmeric and cook down for a about a minute. Add the mushrooms stir through, cook for about 5 minutes.

2. Put the beans in a bowl and mash down with a fork, stir into the onion and mushroom mixture. Add the juice and zest of half a lime and as much cilantro as your heart desires…mine desires a lot. Toss in some salt and pepper as well to bring out all of the flavors. Let that mixture cook through for a couple of minutes then turn it off and let it cool down for several minutes so you can start forming the burgers.

3. Flour your hands and get a scoopful of the cooled mixture and shape into a flat, round burger pattie. Place on the grill pan and cook for about 4-5 minutes on each side. They will fall apart a little bit but they are still really daaaang good :)

A side dish that is good with this is grilled pimento peppers stuffed with hummus. But remember to rinse and seed the peppers….they are super hot!!

PS a HUGE thank you for the ladies and especially Inge over at You Look Fab for writing this article about me……as much as one can stand out in a sea of mindless drones who all want to look the same, its a lonely place. This article reaffirmed my notion that a tiger doesn't lose sleep over the opinion of sheep and to keep being a tiger, thank you guys so much!!!

Palazzo

top: for love and lemons ( available here) // pants: fab'rik (similar here) // shoes: stuart weitzman (available here) // jewels: vintage chanel and stella & dot
photos by common dove photography