Vegetable-based main meals can be tasty

Press, 21 March 1983, Page 16

Vegetable-based main meals can be tasty

COOKING with

Celia Timms

Vegetarian, or vegetarian type meals become more and more popular. Last week friends who have a family of three boys decided to stop eating meat. I am very interested in the outcome as I expect some healthy opposition from the sons. However, I could be so wrong, because vegetarian food can be appetising and tasty when imagination is used in the preparation. I submit four recipes which I trust you will consider imaginative and enjoyable — two vegetable quiche; a courgette pizza with cheese; and tomato and bread souffle, with mushroom and bacon as flavouring, which makes marvellous excuse for a Sunday brunch. Spinach Quiche with optional bacon: The bacon certainly improves the flavour of this quiche, but the strict vegetarians can omit it if they so wish. The pastry shell is pre-baked before filling which avoids a soggy base to the cooked quiche. For an 8 to lOin pan you need: PASTRY: cups flour % cup hard, frozen butter 1 egg-yolk 3 tablespoons chilled dry table wine FILLING: 3 eggs 2 cups cream or evaporated milk ‘A-14 teaspoon nutmeg Vi teaspoon white pepper 1 cup cooked and chopped spinach 3 rashers bacon 14 cup finely cubed cheese (preferably Swiss) Method: Sift flour with salt and cut butter in small bits or grate on coarse grater; combine with the flour until mixture resembles meal or coarse breadcrumbs. Add egg yolk and wine, enough wine to form dough into a ball. Dust ball of dough with flour and roll into a round to fit pan. Trim and crimp edge. Prick base with fork and chill for. 30 minutes. Line the pastry shell with foil and bake at 200 C for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven. Reduce oven heat to 150 C. Beat eggs with cream and seasonings. Remove rind from bacon and cut into pieces. Poach in a very little water for five minutes; drain. Drain the cooked spinach very thoroughly ' bafcre

chopping. Blend in to custard with cubed cheese and and add bacon pieces, dried on paper towel. Pour most of the mixture into the cooked pie shell. Bake for 50-60 minutes, adding the left-over mixture into the quiche after the first 15 minutes of baking. NOTE: This is my favourite pastry recipe for any quiche, be it fish, vegetable, meat or chicken. Carrot quiche: This is perhaps a carrot custard, but is cooked in a quiche pan and as the ingredients are the same as those for a quiche, that is what I call it. For a 9in pan you need: 2 large cups finely shredded carrot 6 eggs PA cups cream or evaporated milk *A cup grated or minced onion Vi teaspoon salt 1 clove garlic, crushed Vi teaspoon ground ginger % teaspoon pepper PA cups grated Cheddar cheese Method: Cook the grated carrot in one inch of boiling salted water for about five minutes; drain very thoroughly, pressing out liquid with back of wooden spoon. Beat eggs with cream, onion, salt, ginger, crushed garlic and pepper. Stir in carrots and cheese and blend well. Pour into a buttered 9 to lOin quiche pan or pie plate. Set it in a larger baking dish on the oven rack. Very carefully pour hot water into baking dish to within half an inch of the top of the quiche pan. Bake at 180 C until a knife inserted near centre comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Leave to stand for five minutes after removing from oven and before serving. Courgette pizza: This is the result of experimenting with pastries. The grated courgette is in the pastry shell and the filling is of the usual tomato, onion, cheese mix-

ture. I believe it was a successful experiment; and therefore an improvement on the usual pizza base. You need, to serve four to six:

3 cups grated courgette 3 eggs % cup wholemeal or plain flour ■A teaspoon salt 2 cups grated mozzarella cheese % cup chopped black olives % cup grated or minced onion 1 teaspoon dried oregano V2 teaspoon dried basil 3 large tomatoes, thinly sliced Salt Method: Press all excess liquid from courgettes after grating, with back of wooden spoon. Beat eggs well and mix in courgettes, flour and salt. Grease a round pizza pan or a 9 x 13 swiss roll tin, or a cookie sheet with a lip. Spread the dough evenly in the pan and bake in hot oven, 230 C for eight minutes. Remove from oven and reduce oven temperature to 180 C. Spread the grated cheese over baked base. Combine olives with onions and distribute over cheese; sprinkle with herbs. Arrange tomato slices on top and sprinkle lightly with salt. Bake for 20 minutes or until topping is softened and bubbly.

Brunch souffle: This mixture is prepared on Saturday and refrigerated overnight, or up to 24 hours, and cooked for a Sunday brunch, allowing for that beautiful Sunday lie-in. Bacon is included in the ingredients, but for the strict vegetarian it can be omitted. For six servings you need: 2 cups day-old brown bread, cubed 1 cup grated cheddar cheese 5 eggs 2 cups milk % teaspoon dry mustard Vi teaspoon salt ’A teaspoon onion powder, or teaspoon garlic powder Dash of pepper 4-5 rashers bacon Vi cup sliced mushrooms Method: Arrange bread cubes in a well greased ovenproof dish; sprinkle over cheese. Beat eggs with milk, mustard, salt, onion or garlic powder and pepper and pour evenly over the cheese and bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight or up to 24 hours. Cook bacon and crumble. Before cooking, sprinkle over bacon and mushrooms and bake at 160C-180C for about one hour, or until set and a knife inserted near centre comes out clean.