Sunday, June 21, 2009

Eggplant Stew over Couscous

This stew felt like the perfect thing for this rainy night... even though technically now it is summer!

The original recipe began by combining 1 and 1/2 cups cubed and peeled eggplant in a microwave-safe bowl with 2 tablespoons water and 1/2 tsp. salt, and microwaving for 8 minutes. Since I lack a microwave, however, I combined those three ingredients in a baking dish, tossing to coat, and baked at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes, stirring once half-way through.

Next, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 1 and 1/2 cups (1-inch) bell pepper strips (the recipe didn't specify which color, but I chose red), 1 cup chopped onion, 2 minced garlic cloves, and 1 medium zucchini, (cut in half lengthwise and then thinly sliced); saute for 8 minutes.

Add the eggplant mixture from the oven, 1/2 tsp. dried basil, 1/2 tsp. dried oregano, 1/4 tsp. dried dill, 1/8 tsp. black pepper, 1 (14.5-ounce) can of diced tomatoes, undrained, and 6 ounces of canned tomato sauce (for those last two ingredients, I bought the ones from Whole Foods' 365 brand).

Cook for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, make 3 cups of cooked couscous according to package directions (about 1 cup uncooked couscous yields 3 cups cooked - I accidentally made a bit too much!).

Serve 1 cup of the vegetable mixture over 3/4 cups couscous, on each of 4 plates. Sprinkle each serving with 2 tablespoons shredded vegan cheese in place of Parmesan (I used the vegan mozzarella from Galaxy Foods). Each serving is 340 calories.

Cost:
eggplant $2.15
bell pepper $0.88
zucchini $1.42
canned diced tomato $2.19
tomato sauce $0.79
vegan cheese $3.39

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