Health for life

I never made lasagna until this winter.

I don’t remember the order of events – it had something to do with me coming across a delicious tofu ricotta recipe. It had even more to do with looking for meal ideas that were healthy, easy, cheap, and leftover-friendly for kitchen adventures with my cooking-averse guy. (This path of making cooking less scary, it is a long one.) Ultimately, we ended up with no-boil noodles, jarred sauce, a bowlful of tofu, and a lot of deliciousness.

Lasagna! It’s amazing! Even for cooking-averse boyfriend and lactose-averse me!

Even in the island of warmth that is wintertime kitchen, I was thinking ahead to summer. Wouldn’t it be awesome, I gushed to my probably not-as-excited-about-this boyfriend, if we replaced the noodles with slices of grilled vegetables?! Like, eggplant and zucchini? Sliced real thin ,like noodles, and broiled? I don’t even love eggplant, but OMG, that would be so good!

I was probably met with an Uh huh… sure. But I would not be daunted. I held to my dream through the end of winter, through the veggie-less early warmth of spring, through the first months at the farmers market, the lettuce and berries and asparagus. Ramps? Whatever. Give me midsummer vegetables and long-dreamed of lasagna!

Finally, a few weeks ago, piles of zucchini started showing up at the greenmarket. We’ll be sick of them by the end of summer, but those first green squash meant I was almost there.

A couple of weeks later came the eggplants. Finally! I filled my bag, hit the supermarket, and turned on my oven.

This was a few weeks ago. Remember, in the middle of that month-long heat wave? Yeah, that was awesome. But I did not care because, A) I had become a little consumed by my dream of a delectable, noodleless lasagna, and B) it was DELICIOUS.

Sure, I burned some zucchini. And sure, my apartment was just about as hot as my oven, but there it was: a scrumptious, saucy, rich and satisfying lasagna. No grains. No gluten. No dairy. Just veggies and tofu and some alchemy.

(When I set out to recreate it this weekend, my oven stopped sparking, and they’re coming to fix it tomorrow, so I don’t have a picture, but I promise it’s pretty. What I do have is three pounds of sliced, prepped eggplant wrapped up in my fridge. I should probably sauté them tonight or something. Also, the weather’s calmed down so this isn’t quite such a crazy-person endeavor anymore.)

The recipe isn’t nearly as labor-intensive as the number of steps implies. The tofu ricotta takes just a few minutes to put together, and it and the grilled veggies can be prepped in advance. The rest of the work is just layering sauce, veggies, and tofu, and you’ll be done with that before the oven’s even preheated. Plus, this makes delicious office leftovers, and can easily be doubled for a larger pan.

When you put it in the oven, hide out in a cooler room while it bakes. Trust me, it is very, very worth it. Even my carnivore boyfriend agrees. Tofu and all.

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If this recipe appeals to you, you might also enjoy:

• Baked Eggplant with Mushroom-Tomato Sauce
• Eggplant Mini-Pizzas
• Fresh Tomato Lasagna

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Noodleless Veggie Lasagna
Serves 4
Note: Unfortunately, we don’t have a picture for this one. The following photo is from a site called Living in the Real World (which you should visit!), because it’s the closest we could find. We hope they forgive us.


For the Tofu Basil Ricotta:
1 lb firm tofu, pressed
2 T lemon juice
2 T olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
¼ t salt
¼ cup nutritional yeast flakes
Large handful fresh basil leaves, chopped
Dash black pepper
Dash red pepper (optional, but tasty)

For the lasagna:
1 24 oz jar (~ 3 cups) of your favorite pasta sauce
1 large eggplant
3 medium zucchini
Olive oil or cooking spray
Salt

1) Make a batch of tofu basil ricotta. Stash that in the fridge.

2) Slice eggplant and zucchini lengthwise in thin, even strips. 1/4”-1/2” thick is good. (This is a great time to own a mandolin.)

3) Salt the eggplant and let sit in a colander for 30 minutes. Rinse and pat dry.

4) If you have a grill, lightly coat the slices with oil, sprinkle with salt, and grill.

4a) If you don’t have a grill, crank up your broiler. Cover your broiler tray or a cookie sheet with aluminum foil; spray with cooking spray or spread a little olive oil. Lay out your veggie strips in a single layer; spray with oil and sprinkle with salt. Broil until browned but not burned, flipping midway. 5-30 minutes, depending on your oven. (NOTE: This will vary WIDELY from oven to oven, so its best to keep an eye on things.) Repeat until all the veggies are cooked. Let cool a bit, at least so you can handle them. Or rigerate until you’re ready for the next bit.

5) Preheat oven to 325°F. Lightly grease an 8x8 (or so) baking dish with olive oil.

6) Assemble:

• Pour a thin layer of tomato sauce over the dish, spreading evenly.
• Lay strips of zucchini to make an even layer on top off the sauce.
• Add another thin layer of sauce.
• Spoon in half of tofu ricotta mixture, using your fingers to spread it in an even layer.
• Top with sauce.
• Lay down a layer of eggplant.
• Another layer of sauce.
• Spoon in the rest of the ricotta, spreading into a layer.
• Top with sauce.
• Top with a layer of zucchini (add any eggplant you have left).
• Cover with the last of the sauce.

7) Bake 20-30 minutes, until heated through and the sauce is looking thicker. If the top starts to get dark, cover with aluminum foil.

8) Let sit 10 minutes before serving.

Approximate Calories, Fat, Fiber, Protein, and Price Per Serving
327 calories, 17.4g fat, 10.4g fiber, 19.6g protein, $1.90

Calculations
1 lb firm tofu: 365 calories, 22g fat, 5.8g fiber, 39.8g protein, $1.69
2 T lemon juice: 8 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.33
2 T olive oil, plus for greasing pan: 315 calories, 35g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.10
1 clove garlic: 4 calories, 0g fat, 0.1g fiber, 0.2g protein, $0.02
¼ t salt: 0 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.01
¼ cup nutritional yeast flakes: 107 calories, 1.3g fat, 6.7g fiber, 12g protein, $0.74
large handful fresh basil leaves: 9 calories, 0.3g fat, 0.6g fiber, 1.3g protein, $0.50
dash black pepper: 0 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.02
dash red pepper: 0 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.01
1 24 oz jar of pasta sauce (~3 c): 270 calories, 9g fat, 3g fiber, 12g protein, $2.15
1 large eggplant: 132 calories, 1g fat, 18.5g fiber, 5.5g protein, $0.75
3 medium zucchini: 94 calories, 1.1g fat, 6.5g fiber, 7.1g protein, $1.25
TOTAL: 1307 calories, 69.8g fat, 41.4g fiber, 78.4g protein, $7.59
PER SERVING (TOTAL/4): 327 calories, 17.4g fat, 10.4g fiber, 19.6g protein, $1.90

This week, I planned to present you with an alternative to the Christmas cookie, as well as one of my favorite sweets: daifuku, Japanese rice balls stuffed with sweet red bean paste. Three tries ended with me covered in sticky, gelatinous goo.

Let’s just say my technique needs work.

Time was ticking when I decided to scrap the daifuku. My baker’s pantry is still pretty well stocked from Thanksgiving, so cookies seemed like the best choice for a quick and dirty replacement. I turned to the dependable and consistently marvelous How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman.

Bittman’s How to Cook Everything books take the guesswork out of cooking and baking by showing you how to customize recipes for any situation. If you’re a novice or by-the-book cook, you’ll feel at liberty to make substitutions to suit your tastes or pantry, and you’ll eventually gain the confidence to switch things up on your own.

One recipe reminded me of my mom and I just had to try it: Oatmeal Apple Cookies.

My mom was always trying to get me and my siblings to eat healthy snacks when the rest of our friends and classmates were eating ding dongs and zingers. Oatmeal Apple Cookies are just the kind of cookies she would have made to put in my Muppet Movie lunch box next to the carrot sticks and carob-chip trail mix.

So, at least for today, think of me as your wacky, veggie aunt, offering you whole-grain and fruit cookies when everyone else has laid out chocolate-coated, butter-infused treats rolled in nuts and dripping with icing.

I made a ton of changes, based on MB’s variation ideas and some based on my own perences. He provides a vegan option for most of the recipes in the vegetarian cookbook, and I used his applesauce-for-egg and almond milk for cow’s milk suggestions. I also used nonhydrogenated vegan butter for dairy butter.

Here’s where I ventured out on my own: the original recipe calls for dried apples. I’m not a fan of dried fruit in general and don’t keep it around, so I took a chance and used the real thing. I also swapped granulated sugar for maple syrup. Excellent decisions all around.

The cookies are moist, sweet, and delicious. They may be a little on the soft side —no crispy edges, my favorite part of a cookie—but full of apple flavor and definitely a crowd pleaser; CB, my Roommate, and two of my officemates gave thumbs-up.

The recipe whipped up quickly too, from peeling and grating the apple to pulling the last pan out of the oven, the whole enterprise took less than 90 minutes. Oatmeal Apple Cookies would add a tasty and fast, if not entirely festive, option to the Christmas cookie rotation. And they’re much less sticky than daifuku.

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If this xx tips your canoe, swim on over to:

• Vegan Ginger Cookies
• Snickerdoodles
• Vegan Bran Muffins

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Oatmeal Apple Cookies
Makes about 4 dozen; 2 cookies per serving


1/2 cup nonhydrogenated vegan butter
1/2 cup maple syrup
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup apple sauce
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups rolled oats (not quick oats)
1 cup apple, peeled and grated (about 1 medium apple)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp clove
pinch of salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup soy, almond, or rice milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

1) Preheat oven to 375. Peel and grate apple and set aside.

2) In a large mixing bowl, cream together vegan butter, syrup, and sugar with mixer, then stir in applesauce.

3) In a medium bowl, combine flour, oats, apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, baking powder, and salt.

4) Alternately, add milk and dry ingredients to butter and sugar mixture until dough is formed, mixing in a little more milk if dough is too dry.

5) Spoon out tablespoon-sized dollops of dough onto ungreased baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes. Allow to cool for a minute or two, remove from baking sheet, and continue on a wire rack.

6) Serve with a glass of almond milk or hot tea.

Approximate Calories, Fat, Fiber, Protein, and Price per Serving
137.3 calories, 3.8g fat, .9g fiber, 1.74g protein, $.23

Calculations
1/2 cup nonhydrogenated vegan butter: 800 calories, 88g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.96
1/2 cup maple syrup: 420 calories, 0.5g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $2.38
3/4 cup brown sugar: 628 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.43
1/4 cup apple sauce: 51.75 calories, 0g fat, 1g fiber, 0g protein, $0.26
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour: 682.5 calories, 1.5g fat, 4.5g fiber, 19.5g protein, $0.32
2 cups rolled oats: 609 calories, 9g fat, 16g fiber, 22g protein, $0.24
1 cup apple: 77 calories, 0g fat, 2g fiber, 0g protein, $0.50
1/2 tsp cinnamon: 0 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.02
1/4 tsp nutmeg: 0 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.02
1/4 tsp clove: 0 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.02
pinch of salt: 0 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.02
2 tsp baking powder: 4 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.04
1/4 cup almond milk: 10 calories, 0.75g fat, 0.25g fiber, 0.25g protein, $0.12
1 tsp vanilla extract: 12 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber, 0g protein, $0.26
TOTALS: 3294.3 calories, 90.75g fat, 21.75g fiber, 41.75g protein, $5.59
PER SERVING (TOTALS/24): 137.3 calories, 3.8g fat, .9g fiber, 1.74g protein, $.23

Freelance work is light this month, and I’m finding myself with more time to spend in the kitchen. My good pal JBF, however, is busier than ever.

As are most worker bees these days, she is doing the jobs of several, keeping late hours, and coming home exhausted. She manages to cook healthy dinners, but making lunch to take to work is a challenge.

She finds herself eating on the run, spending insane amounts of money for midtown Manhattan lunches, and making less than healthy choices that sabotage the good work she is doing in other areas.

Since my unceremonious kick to the curb (from the job where I was doing the work of several), I’ve been working from home. For the most part, I have time to cook healthy meals for myself every day. (These habits were already in place, so it wasn’t much of a shift.)

JBF’s struggle gave me an idea. What if I made lunch for both of us—kind of like a personal chef-lite?

The Proposal

1. Share food costs, saving us both money (I’d make enough for both of us.)
2. JBF: Kick me a little extra for my effort 
3. Leigh: Make 5 inexpensive, healthy lunches and snacks per week
4. Leigh: Provide variety, but dishes can repeat (We both easily lock into dishes we love.)
5. JBF: Report back with perences every couple of days
6. Leigh: Call/email to arrange drop off/pick up
7. Leigh: Submit an invoice with food and labor at the end of the week
8. Everybody wins: I stay on a schedule and make a little extra scratch, and JBF gets healthy lunches and snacks for less than she was spending on take out.

While JBF is an omnivore, she eats primarily vegetarian when dining sans hubby. She gave me carte blanche to make the meals veggie, even vegan. She also loves to try new things, so I’m at liberty to be creative. And as we know, keeping it interesting is the golden rule of sticking to any kind of healthy eating plan.

Here’s how it’s been shaking out.

JBF’s Take-out Stats
(click on graph to enlarge)




Lunch Buddy Stats for Week One
(click on graph to enlarge)


That’s over 40%!

Week two demonstrated similar savings, though we operated on a four-day week. So far our little arrangement has been a success! I’m sticking to a meal plan, which is hard for me, as well as experimenting with new dishes. JBF is getting healthy, home-cooked meals delivered to her door (We live near one another; it’s no big.), and we’re both in the black.

We’ve even made time to eat together on occasion, and that’s the best part of the deal.

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If this article had you dancing in the aisles, shimmy on over to

• Vegetarian Meal Planning for Meat Eaters
• The Brown Bag Brigade: Your One-Stop Shop for Work Lunch Ideas
• Meal Planning—An Experiment and A Conversion