College Vegetarian Cooking_ Feed Yourself and Your Friends - Megan Carle [37]
Place the canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, onion, and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the onion is softened. Add the spinach and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until all the liquid has evaporated.
Lightly beat the eggs in a large bowl, then stir in the ricotta cheese.
Place a large spoonful of the spaghetti sauce in the bottom of an ungreased 9 by 13-inch baking pan and spread it around. Place a layer of lasagna noodles over the sauce and top with half of the ricotta mixture. Spread one-third of the spaghetti sauce over the cheese and top with half of the spinach mixture. Sprinkle one-third of the mozzarella and one-third of the Parmesan over the spinach. Continue the layering process with noodles, the remaining ricotta mixture, one-third of the spaghetti sauce, the remaining spinach, and one-third of the mozzarella and Parmesan. Top with a final layer of noodles, the remaining sauce, and the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan.
Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour. Remove the aluminum foil and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the cheese begins to brown. Remove from the oven and let stand for 15 minutes before serving.
Cooking 101:
To make garlic bread to go with the lasagna, pre-heat the oven to 350°F. Take a loaf of fresh, crusty bread and cut into 1-inch slices, but keep in the loaf shape. Brush ½ cup melted butter on the bread slices and sprinkle with a little bit of garlic salt. Place on aluminum foil and wrap the loaf. Bake for 15 minutes.
Pizza
Pizza
As a college student, you probably donate a large portion of your money to the local pizza chain, especially since it’s an easy vegetarian option when you don’t feel like cooking. Making your own pizza allows you to be a bit more creative and is way cheaper. This is a perfect version in my book, because you don’t have to wait for the crust to rise. Try some soy pepperoni and see if your nonveggie friends notice the difference, or just stick to vegetables. –J
Makes 2 (8 by 14-inch) pizzas; serves 10
5 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 (¼-ounce) packages active dry yeast
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups warm water (about 105° to 115°F)
¼ cup canola oil
3 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
4 cups topping ingredients (optional)
4 cups grated mozzarella cheese
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Stir together the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add the water and oil. Stir until completely combined. Coat your hands in flour to prevent sticking and spread half of the dough into an 8 by 14-inch rectangle in the center of each of 2 large ungreased baking sheets.
Peel and finely chop the garlic or pass it through a garlic press. Stir the garlic and Italian seasoning into the can of tomato sauce. Spread half of the sauce onto each crust. Spread the topping ingredients over the sauce and sprinkle with the mozzarella cheese. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.
Cooking 101:
Pineapple, olives, peppers, mushrooms, spinach—everyone has his or her favorite pizza toppings. Most are pretty self-explanatory, but any vegetables should be cleaned before you use them. They should also be chopped fairly thin so that they cook all the way through by the time the rest of the pizza is ready. Make Hawaiian-style pizza with diced pineapple and soy ham or try a more authentic Italian pizza with ricotta cheese, spinach, fresh basil, and tomato.
Vegetable Tagine with Couscous
Vegetable Tagine with Couscous
I used to be very apprehensive about different ethnic foods until I studied abroad. The first time I had a tagine was in France and I wondered where it had been all my life! That first tagine was the furthest thing from being vegetarian-friendly, as it