Zizi's Adventures - Real Food, Real Stories

Stuffed Butternut Squash With Mushroom And Couscous

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I started the pumpkin season with this stuffed squash recipe and it became one of my favourite autumn main courses. Sweet soft butternut squash with a nice spicy heat from chili and packed with porcini and couscous and other herbs. Yum!

I found the recipe in one of Jamie’s cookbook (Happy Days with the Naked Chef). The dish is really perfect for cold fall and winter days because it warms our heart and soul. 🙂 Jamie made it with rice and pine nuts but I changed these ingredients for couscous and walnuts. The interesting thing is that the rice or couscous cooks in the squash using only the moisture from its flesh.

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Stuffed Butternut Squash With Mushroom And Couscous

Ingredients (serves 4)

– 1,5 kg butternut squash, cut in half lengthways and scoop out the seeds and soft fibres
– 1 small handful dried porcini mushroom
– 1 red onion, finely chopped
– 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
– 5 pieces sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
– 100 g couscous
– 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves picked and finely chopped
– 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
– 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
– 1/2 handful walnuts, very coarsely chopped
– olive oil
– salt, black pepper

Method

In a bowl soak the porcini in 200 ml water for about 5 minutes. Preheat the oven to 200C (392F).

Using a spoon, score and scoop out some extra flesh from the length of the squash. Finely chop this flesh and set aside. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a  frying pan and add chopped red onion and garlic. Saute them for a few minutes, then add coriander, chili, rosemary, the chopped butternut squash flesh and the sun-dried tomatoes. Cook for 5 minutes until tender. Add the porcini and soaking water, season with salt and black pepper and cook for another 2 minutes. Stir in the couscous and walnuts, then spoon the mixture tightly into the 2 halves of the squash and then press the halves together.

Rub the skin of the squash with olive oil, wrap it in foil, place in a baking tray and bake in the preheated oven for about 1,5-2 hours until the squash is tender.

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Chickpeas And Tomatoes Pasta Or Pasta E Ceci

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Pasta e ceci… the famous, delicious comfort pasta dish from southern Italy. I learnt the recipe from my friend, Emiko but I also read about it in Jamie Oliver’s cookbook, Jamie’s Italy. In the book he says he can’t quite decide if it is a pasta or a soup (a kind of thick one). He thinks it leans slightly more toward being a soup – so he put it in the soup chapter in the book. (Read more about the history of this pasta on Emiko’s blog here.)

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Me and my friends cooked this pasta dish on a cloudy, grey summer afternoon when we gathered together to spend a long weekend at lake Balaton just like a year before. Although the weather was slightly cool we sat at the terrace and warmed up our bodies and souls with this comforting pasta lunch, served with a big bowl of mixed salad.

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The usability of chickpeas is very versatile, they can be cooked and eaten cold in salads, cooked in stews, soups, ground into a flour, ground and shaped in balls and fried as falafel. They are a noted ingredient in many Middle Eastern and Indian dishes such as hummus and curries. I didn’t know that some varieties of chickpeas can be popped and eaten like popcorn.

As for the nutritional value chickpeas are rich in fiber and it’s one of the best source of protein for vegetarians and vegans. Combined with a whole grain such as whole-wheat protein, they provide amount of protein comparable to that of meat or dairy foods without the high calories or saturated fats. They can boost your energy because of their high iron content. They are also a great source of zinc and folate. So why not eat as much as you can?

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We followed exactly Emiko’s recipe to cook this pasta meal so if you would like to try it, head over to my friend’s blog and cook it for yourself and your family!

Enjoy!

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Vegan Fig Yoghurt Dessert With Walnut Vanilla Crumble

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Finally I’m brave enough to go out with my cute son, Adam to run a few errands and to do shopping. The best way to travel in the city is using the public transport that means it’s better to take your baby in a carrier than using the pram (at least in Budapest). Public transport and the whole city is not ready for moms and disabled people. Hopefully it’ll change very soon.

Using a carrier (like this one) has its advantages: both of my hands are free, easier to walk, to get on and off buses and the best part is that Adam is so close to me that I can feel his snuffle and his own special baby smell. 🙂

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Finally when we get home we always happily tell dad what we did, where we went and what an incredible day we had (at least I enjoyed it but we should ask Adam too if he likes shopping or not 🙂 ).

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On a day when we went shopping I bought these delicate, juicy purple figs. It’s so rare to get figs in Hungary (although the weather is suitable to grow!) that’s why I was over the moon to get my hands on them. I was wondering how to use them… baking a fig frangipane tart or something else? Then I found one of Slyvie’s recipes and I decided to make a similar parfait dessert using these wonderful purple figs. It is not only a dessert but it’s perfect for a Sunday brunch as well.

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Vegan Fig Yoghurt Dessert With Walnut Vanilla Crumble

Ingredients (serves 2)

For the crumble
– 1 cup walnuts
– 1/4 cup raisins
– 1 vanilla bean, split and seeded
– 1/4 teaspoon salt

For the yoghurt cream
– 1 cup soy yoghurt / yoghurt
– 1 medium lemon’s juice and zest
– 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
– fresh figs, sliced

Method

Place the walnuts, raisins, vanilla and salt in a food processor. Pulse until chopped and crumbly.

In a bowl mix together the soy yoghurt with lemon juice, zest and honey (or maple syrup).

Place sliced figs in the bottom of a glass and top with a layer of walnut crumble, then lemon yoghurt. Repeat to create multiple layers.

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Superfood Breakfast: Vegan Banana Chia Pudding

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I love my superfood breakfasts. I wish I could have time every morning to make one of them. In real life I usually eat one or two pieces of seasonal fruit (nowadays it is an apple) and have a quick bite a bit later: most of the times it’s a piece of toast with almond or cashew butter and my mom’s sugar-free plum jam on top.

Chia seeds and chia pudding is getting more and more popular. The seeds are native to South America and have been a staple in Mayan and Aztec diets for centuries. The word chia is derived from the Nahuatl word chian, meaning oily.

I’m trying to eat as much as I can because of its nutritional benefits:
– they can help your diet by making you feel full (it’s because they absorb 10 times their weight in water, forming a bulky gel)
– they are the richest plant source of Omega-3
– chia seeds slow down how fast our bodies convert carbohydrates into simple sugars, studies indicate they can control blood sugar
– they are an excellent source of fiber, with a whopping 10 grams in only 2 tablespoons
– chia seeds are rich in antioxidants that help protect the body from free radicals, aging and cancer
– chia seeds contain no gluten or grains
– the outer layer of chia seeds swells when mixed with liquids to form a gel (this can used in place of eggs to lower cholesterol and increase the nutrient content of foods and baked goods)
(More info here.)

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I used chia seeds before but mostly to place an egg in vegan cakes. Chia seeds are very similar to flax seeds – if they are mixed with water its consistency becomes gel.

Don’t miss this pudding, it’s not only a healthy choice for breakfast but it tastes divine!

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Vegan Banana Chia Pudding

Ingredients (serves 2)

– 2-3 ripe bananas, smashed with a fork
– 4 tablespoons chia seeds
– 1 and 1/4 cups almond milk (you can use rice, oat or soymilk too)
– 1 vanilla bean, split and seeded
– hazelnut

Method

Prepare your breakfast a day before. In a bowl mix chia seeds with almond milk and let it rest in the fridge for the night.

The next day toast the hazelnut in a dry non-stick pan for 7-8 minutes and chop them roughly.

Mix together the chia almond milk pudding with the smashed bananas and vanilla. Serve in little bowls with the toasted hazelnut.

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Roasted Eggplant With Tahini Yoghurt Sauce

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I’m sharing a Middle-Eastern recipe with you today. It’s called baba ganoush and a dish of eggplant (aubergine) mashed and mixed with virgin olive oil and various seasonings. The Arabic term means “father of pestle”. Baba ganoush can be an appetizer or starter but also a side dish or salad. It is made of roasted, peeled, and mashed eggplant, blended with tahini, garlic, salt and lemon juice. Cumin and chili powder can be added.

The eggplant is first roasted, then the softened flesh is scooped out, squeezed or salted to remove excess water and then is pureed with tahini. There are many variants of the recipe, especially the seasoning. I learnt this version from a Japanese friend of mine, Maki.

I didn’t scoope out the softened flesh, I served it in the eggplant skin and I made a tahini lemon yoghurt sauce to go with it. I served it with Arabic bread and a big bowl of salad.

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At the end of August we spent a a long weekend with friends at a wonderful place, called Lake Balaton like last year. During the weekend I was responsible for the salads and side dishes to make. I had many helping hands (I needed) to cook everything while I was also nursing my son. 🙂

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Roasted Eggplant With Tahini Yoghurt Sauce

Ingredients (serves 6)

– 2 large eggplants, halved the long way
– 6 tablespoons + 4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
– 400 g soy yoghurt / yoghurt
– 4 tablespoons tahini
– 1/2 teaspoon cumin
– juice of 1 lemon
– 1 clove garlic, chooped
– 1 small bunch of parsley, chopped
– salt
– sesame seeds, for garnish

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Place eggplant halves on a glass baking pan lined with paper. With a sharp knife, cut crisscross vents about 1 cm (0,39 inch) apart across the flesh. Drizzle olive oil on top, sprinkle with a few pinches of salt, then bake in the oven for approximately 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a bowl mix together yoghurt, tahini, 4 teaspoons olive oil, chopped garlic and parsley (leave a bit for garnish), lemon juice, cumin. Season with salt.

Serve the eggplant halves with the sauce, sprinkle with sesame seeds and the remaining parsley. Also serve with pita as a spread or as a side dish with steamed brown rice and salad.