VEGETABLE DOLMA ( STUFFED GRAPE LEAVES)

These vegetable dolma are easy to make, but do take a little time to prepare. This recipe uses about a half of a jar of grape leaves

Ingredients 

1                 onion, chopped, about 1 cup

2                 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup          mushrooms, diced finely

1 small       zucchini, diced finely

1/4 cup       parsley, chopped

1/4 cup       cilantro, chopped

1 tblsp        dill, chopped finely

1 cup          rice

1 1/2 tblsp  tomato paste

2 Tblsp       red pepper paste

1/4 cup       roasted walnuts, chopped

2 Tblsp       mushroom seasoning, or other bouillon powder of choice to taste

 1                lemon , juiced

1/2 tsp        black pepper

1 jar           grape leaves, rinsed and drained

2 cups        broth of choice for baking.

Instructions

1.  In a bowl, combine all of the ingredients, but the grape leaves and broth for baking. Mix well, ensuring that the tomato and pepper paste are well incorporated

2.  To assemble, lay a grape leaf shiny side down. Take about 1 Tblsp of the filling and place it near the base of the leaf. Starting at the bottom, fold the leaf over the filling, and then fold in the sides. Try and keep it tight. Continue rolling the dolma until it is rolled up like a burrito. Continue making all of the dolma until the filling is used up. 

3. Place the rolled dolma seam-side down in a small roasting pan. Stacking the dolma is okay. 

4. Pour the broth over the dolma until it comes up to the top of the dolma, but does not cover completely.

5.  Cover with a lid and bake at 350 F for 45-60 minutes.

6.  Enjoy.

NOTE

Some of my grape leaves were small, so I combined two leaves side by side or cut a leaf in half and used it to make a  bigger leaf by placing it across the bottom of a second leaf.

Mushroom Pastitsio

Mushroom Pastitsio



This is one of my families favourite entrees. It does take some effort, but you will not be disappointed. This recipe will make a 11x13 inch pan. It is a hefty amount of food. This recipes freezes well so you may want to divide it up between two smaller casseroles and eat one now and freeze one for later. If you are making two smaller pans, it may be necessary to double the topping.

 Ingredients

For the Mushroom Filling

2 lbs mushroom, large dice
1 cup onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup red wine
38 oz canned tomatoes, diced ( or 1 1/2 - 19 oz cans)
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vegetable stock powder, ( more or less to taste)
1/8 tsp black pepper

Topping

1 lb soft tofu
1 cup cooked and cubed potato
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp vegetable stock powder
2 Tblsp lemon juice
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Sauce to mix with Pasta

1/2 cup water
6 Tblsp whole wheat flour
2 cups soy milk, unsweetened
1 cup nutritional yeast
1 Tblsp lemon juice
3/4 tsp vegetable stock powder, or to taste
2 Tblsp cornstarch

Other Ingredients

6 cups cooked pasta, I like tube shaped

Directions

For the Mushroom Filling

Add mushrooms, onions and garlic to a pan. Cook until most of the liquid has been evaporated.

Add wine, tomatoes, oregano, cinnamon, stock powder and black pepper. Cook until the liquid has evaporated.  If you are pressed for time, you could drain the tomatoes. This mixture should not be runny.

While the mushrooms are cooking, make the topping and sauce to mix with the pasta.

Topping

Place all of the ingredients into a blender and mix until well combined. Set aside.

Sauce to mix with the Pasta 

In a separate pot, add the the water and bring to a boil. Add in the flour stirring well so that there are no lumps. If lumps develop, carefully use an emersion blender to blend until smooth.

Combine the soy milk and cornstarch together. Pour into the boiling liquid and cook for a minute.

Add in remaining ingredients. Stirring well. cook for about a minute, stirring constantly to avoid burning.

Remove from heat and set aside until ready to use.

To Assemble

Preheat oven to 350 F.


Use a 11x13 inch pan.

In the pan, layer in the following order:

  -2/3 of the pasta on the bottom

  -All of the mushroom mixture

  -Remaining pasta, it will not completely cover the mushroom mixture

  -All of the topping

Bake in a preheated 350 F oven for 40-45 minutes until golden. 


Enjoy!

Tip

Sometimes I double the topping mixture to make a creamier top to the pastitsio. 

Adapted from the cookbook Vegan Eats World by Terry Hope