Here you are, folks! Another Meatless Monday miracle. I first tried calabacitas in Colorado last week, from this awesome restaurant, Kachina. They offer it as a side dish. It's really spicy so adjust the recipe to your taste! Here's my take.
Time: 20 mins
Ingredients:
- 1 zucchini
- 1 summer squash
- 1 small onion
- 2 red chilis
- 1/4 cup corn (I used frozen)
- 1 tablespoon shredded Romano cheese (or whatever you have on hand that will melt well)
- 1 whole tomato
- 1 tablespoon butter
- salt & black pepper to taste
Recipe:
- Dice the zucchini, squash, tomatoes & onion.
- In a medium skillet, heat the butter. Chop the chili peppers into little slices.
- Then add the onion when the butter is slightly melted.
- Sauté the onion for 1 min before adding in the chilis.
- Once the onion is slightly golden, add in the corn, tomatoes, squash & zuchini. Sprinkle with salt & pepper.
- Stir to combine then cover the pan, leaving the heat on low. You should check on it & stir every so often so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan.
- After about 10 mins, remove the cover & turn off the heat (the squash & zucchini should be cooked but not mushy).
- With the heat off, sprinkle some cheese & stir it in while it melts. This will help offset the spiciness of the chilis & also give the calabacitas a creamy taste.
Serve as a side dish or in tacos as a veggie filling!
How many of you are jumping on the spaghetti squash bandwagon? It's wonderful until you sadly realize that it's never really going to have the same flavor profile as spaghetti. I started experimenting ways to make spaghetti squash pop on its own. Think fresh ginger slices, coriander & cumin, tossed with crunchy bites of zucchini... yes, you need this recipe!
Time: 15 mins + time to soften/bake the spaghetti squash
Ingredients:
- Filling from 1 spaghetti squash, seeds removed
- 1 zucchini
- 1 small piece fresh ginger (~ 2" length)
- 1.5 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- Salt/pepper to taste
Recipe:
- Peel & dice the zucchini into small cubes.
- Peel the outter skin off of the ginger & slice it into thin strips.
- In a medium frying pan, heat oil to medium heat & add the zucchini, ginger, cumin, & coriander.
- Toss for a few minutes (~3) so the ginger infuses the zucchini.
- Add spaghetti squash, salt & pepper. Toss to incorporate all ingredients.
- Enjoy cool or warm, up to you!
Vegetarian, gluten-free, carbless & delicious! Basically no reason to not get up & make these right now.
Time: 30 min
Ingredients:
- 2 small/medium chubby eggplants
- 1 medium tomato (I used a deep red heirloom)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt/pepper to taste
- Glutenfree breadcrumbs (optional)
Recipe:
- Preheat oven to 450
- Wash the eggplants & cut them in half vertically
- Use a spoon to hollow out the middle of the eggplant, place them in a greased Pyrex with the hollow side facing up
- Slice the first clove of garlic & put a few slices at the bottom of each boat
- Drizzle 1 of the teaspoons of olive oil over each boat
- Dice the tomato & fill each boat with some
- Slice the other clove of garlic & sprinkle those pieces on top of the tomatoes
- Sprinkle each boat with some crumbled feta cheese
- Drizzle the last tablespoon of olive oil over the boats & top with breadcrumbs if desired
- Bake for 20-25 mins or until the tops are golden & the eggplant cuts through easy
