When your veggies are nearing the end of their shelf life....

I hit the farmer's market approximately every two weeks and buy a crap-ton of vegetables. The problem with this strategy is that sometimes I get busy and forget to cook. Yesterday I made up some fun and easy recipes to avoid wasting some of my delicious veggies from my last shopping spree.

Bell pepper and Asparagus Curry Soup

My red and yellow bell peppers and asparagus were all a little soft. I was at the junction of "freeze" and "throw away" when the inspiration hit... SOUP!

I chopped all of these and put them in a deep frying pan with a tablespoon of olive oil, 2 cups of water and a vegan bouillon cube (because other types typically have MSG). Once the cube was dissolved and the mixture was warm I put it in a blender with a tablespoon of Thai red curry paste. Puree, put back into a saucepan, and season to taste.

Spinach With Cheese and Turkey

After returning from my dance class, I went to the refrigerator to evaluate the possibility of a spinach salad. As suspected, my spinach had reached the point where the raw option is pretty much out of the question. I threw it in a frying pan with about a quarter to half cup of water to steam it, moving around with a spatula regularly. For taste I added a sprinkle of Adobo and squeezed a lime wedge on the spinach. Then I threw in some cheddar and a chopped up slice of cold cut turkey for added protein.

The spinach was flavorful enough on its own from the lime and salt, for those not looking to add cheese and turkey, but they were definitely a nice touch. No oil required if you use water and don't leave it sitting in the pan to stick.

I am an eggplant junkie, Part 2: Eggplant and chick pea madras curry

Lately I have been on a kick with dishes that are... less vegan, but this is a good one I made a couple months ago upon request for eggplant recipes... It's also ridiculously easy, and you can add chicken instead of or in addition to chickpeas...

Ingredients:
Eggplant (fancy or Chinese)
Chickpeas, cooked and drained/rinsed
Madras curry powder, hot
1 cup coconut milk (1 small can)
Garlic (minced, powder, salt)
Olive oil

I recommend Chinese eggplant for this, but a fancy eggplant works if you cut the circles into fourths.

Slice the eggplant, lightly coat the pan with olive oil, and saute the eggplant until it is soft all the way through. I will either throw some minced garlic with the oil or sprinkle salt/powder on top of the eggplant. Add the can of coconut milk into the pan and begin adding curry powder to taste. I usually start with 1 tsp and work from there, until it is yummy. (As you can tell, I am very scientific about my cooking style.) Throw in some chick peas for protein. You can also cook small chunks of chicken and throw those in. I recommend cooking the chicken in garlic.

Serve as a quick, easy side dish or over rice or quinoa.

Greek fish tacos - because you need to find something to do with all that tzatziki sauce...

I love tzatziki sauce so much I would take a bath in it. It's just that good. So the day my boss's wife gave me a giant container of it out of their party leftovers 4 years ago, I was beside myself with joy. The catch? I did not have a spit of lamb in my kitchen, and gyro meat isn't exactly something you find ready-made at Kroger. The need to improvise was upon me...

This was the advent of the Greek fish taco. It's pretty basic. Pan fry fish (white fish is best, I typically use tilapia, but sometimes in a monetary pinch I will throw in a can of tuna) with butter or butter flavored cooking spray (depends how healthy you are trying to go - I typically use the spray). Season with garlic (minced, powder or salt) and a LOT of dill. This should take no more than 5 minutes. I will basically chop the fish as it cooks the way I would do for a ground beef taco.

Line your tortilla with tzatziki, chopped lettuce or cabbage and diced tomatoes. I recommend soft whole wheat tortillas, though lately have been using soft corn, toasted so they won't crumble, because corn tortillas are mad cheap ($1.50 for 30 tortillas).

It's also delicious in flatbread or a pita, but then it loses the title of taco...

Final note: Finding tzatziki sauce after I finished the giant vat of it was no small challenge. I finally discovered a good one at Whole Foods, near the guacamole (I make trips to Whole Foods solely for this and because they have cheap quinoa - buy the store-brand 1 lb bag to save $0.70 per pound over the bulk bin price).

Hi, my name is Denise, and I am an eggplant junkie, Part 1 - Eggplant parmesan with a twist..

My eggplant parmesan is awesome. It just is. I have a few variations on it with regard to cheese and sauce, but the core recipe is essentially the same. The twist is that it's also pretty good for you.

I used to make the eggplant breaded. This is delicious, and can still be healthy if done correctly. (Dip sliced eggplant in water - doesn't stick as well but less calories than egg - and then in Italian breadcrumbs. Pan fry with non-stick spray or a VERY LIGHT coating of olive oil, and apply garlic salt generously, as well as other seasonings of choice - oregano, basil, etc.)

I have come to realize two things since this time: 1. It doesn't need to be breaded to be awesome, and 2. Tofu has a similar texture to ricotta cheese and takes on the flavor of whatever you put in it. From these discoveries comes my healthier version of eggplant parmesan.

Recipe:

Cut one large fancy eggplant into circular pieces. I will often halve or quarter them to fit more into the pan at one time.

Coat a frying pan with a light coating of olive oil or nonstick spray. Olive oil is healthier, but don't forget to go light because it still has a LOT of calories (120 per tbsp). Place one layer of eggplant slices in the pan. Season with garlic salt, basil and cayenne (or your own blend of preferred seasonings). Wait for one side to get soft, flip and wait for the other side to get soft. Repeat until the whole eggplant has been cooked this way, in the meantime pre-heating your oven or toaster oven to 350-375. (Note: This takes awhile. I tend to speed up the process by occasionally throwing a little bit of water into the pan to steam the eggplant.)

While you are waiting for your eggplant to get soft (I'm sure Pam would have an inappropriate comment here), mash up about one serving of tofu until the texture reminds you of ricotta cheese. Blend garlic powder and herbs generously with the mashed tofu. (Basil, oregano, rosemary are a few good ones. I usually use one, and it varies, but basil is the current favorite. You should smell the mixture and make sure it reeks slightly of garlic and herb. Tofu is pretty flavorless on its own. I will also usually slice a few garlic stuffed olives into tiny pieces to distribute in the final mixture.

Take out a small baking dish (mine is deep and round like a cereal bowl) and start the layering process. The bottom will have a layer of your pasta sauce of choice (I like Hunts in the can myself - cheap date), then a layer of eggplant. Next layer about 1/3 to half of the tofu mixture and a little cheese (my favorite is cheddar, but you can go with the more traditional Italian cheeses if you prefer). Continue layering in this fashion. The top three layers should be as follows: eggplant, sauce, cheese. The top layer of cheese should have more cheese, while the lower layers should use fairly little (but contain the tofu "fake cheese"). Sprinkle some garlic salt on the top layer of cheese.

Cover with foil and bake about 45 minutes. After the 45 minutes I will remove the foil and broil for 5 minutes to make the top layer of cheese perfect.

Serves 2 without a side of pasta, 3 or 4 with a side of pasta.