My current Friday night dinner from the weekly menu plan (yes the same one still - but I'm speeding up the recipes so that I can change it soon. Promise) is vegetable streudel, potato kugel and ratatouille. That's Austria, Germany and France on one vegetarian plate (which is ironic as these cuisines are not known for their vegetarian selections). As I've already given a recipe for the streudel and I wanted to do the kugel today, I thought I'd also include the ratatouille and voila - dinner!
Potato kugel (potato cake) is an Ashkenazi Jewish traditional dish from the kitchens of Eastern Europe. It is basically a big savoury potato bake - like a large hash-brown with fried onions. There are many variations but here is a simple version which you can doctor by adding grated carrots or other vegetables to taste.
Potato Kugel
Finely chop a large onion and fry it until golden.
Pulse 4 potatoes in the food processor and put them in a bowl.
Mix in the fried onion, 2 eggs, I tbsp flour, 1/4 cup cooking oil, salt and pepper to taste.
Put an oiled baking dish into the hot oven until the oil is hot. Pour in the potato mixture and bake for about an hour or more. Don't get scared if the top goes a deep brown - it's supposed to. The finished kugel should be crispy on the outside and soft in the middle.
Ratatouille
Fry a large onion and chopped garlic in a pot until they are soft. Add sliced courgettes, green pepper, peeled and chopped tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste. Cook until all the vegetables are soft in a light tomato sauce. I usually spice it up a bit with some soy sauce, tumeric, or even a vegetarian stock cube.
This post is linked to Meal Planning Monday at At Home With Mrs M. You can click on the link for more weekly meal plans.
I was vegetarian for a large portion of my life - but now when I entertain vegetarians I find it hard to think of something easy but filling to make - I started making a shepherds pie out of a ratatouille base - and then serving the ratatouille as a side dish for everyone else.
ReplyDeleteThe shepherd's pie idea sounds good. I also make shepherd's pie with baked beans on the bottom. I call it shepher's pie without the shepherd.
ReplyDeleteThe Kugel sounds delicious and definitely something I would enjoy, as would all of the family.
ReplyDeleteRatatouille is already a firm favourite of ours!
The kugel is delicious Nicki - I've had it almost every Saturday my whole adult life.
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