Eggplant Zucchini Chickpea Casserole with Arborio Rice

• 2 medium eggplants
• 3 medium zucchini
• 3 red bell peppers
• 1 bunch green onions
• 1 large yellow onion
• 2 cups dry arborio rice
• 1 14.5 oz. can petite diced tomatoes
• 2 pkgs. Sazon Goya con azafran seasoning
• 1 vegetable bouillon cube
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 can chickpeas (a.k.a. garbanzo beans)
• black pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Peel and dice the eggplant (into 1 inch-long pieces), and then fry it in 1/2 cup of olive oil…just until the eggplant is about halfway cooked.
• In the meantime, peel and dice the yellow onion into 1 inch-sized pieces.
• Wash and dice the green onions, zucchinis, and red bell peppers into 1 inch-sized pieces.
• In a large bowl, mix together the fried eggplant, all the other diced vegetables, and the beans.
• Place the bouillon cube and both of the packets of Sazon Goya seasoning in the water.
• Heat the water until the seasonings are are dissolved.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Scatter the dry rice on the bottom of a large baking pan. (We used a 9 1/2 inch x 14 inch baking pan)
• Spread the vegetable/bean mixture on top of the rice.
• Evenly pour the water over the vegetables, beans, and rice.
• Spread a can of petite diced tomatoes on top of the mixture.
• Sprinkle with black pepper.
• Bake uncovered for about 45 minutes or until the rice is cooked.

It’s easy to make and it tastes great!!! But don’t take my word for it. Give it a try one day and see for yourself!

Cheesy Spinach, Potato and Egg Casserole

Yield: 8 very large pieces

Ingredients:

• 15 eggs, beaten
• 16 oz. (450 grams) fresh baby spinach leaves
• 10 small Yukon gold potatoes
• 11 oz. (300 grams) goat cheese
• 5 oz. (142 grams) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 16 garlic cloves
• 1 large onion
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 4 tbsp. butter, salted
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Wash the potatoes, and then cut each of them into 6 small pieces.
• Pour the olive oil in your baking pan. (We used a 13 inch x 9 inch pan)
• Toss the potato pieces in the olive oil so they all get coated, and then spread the potatoes evenly over the pan.
• Bake uncovered until the potatoes are almost fully cooked.
• In the meantime, peel and dice the garlic and onion.
• Melt the butter in a large frying pan, and then fry the onions and garlic until they’re soft.
• Sprinkle the onions and garlic with salt and pepper to taste.
• Wash and drain the spinach, and then put the spinach in a large mixing bowl.
• Beat the eggs and then mix in some salt and pepper to them.
• When the onions and garlic are done, add them to the spinach. If there’s any butter left in the pan, add that too.
• Melt the goat cheese over low heat in the same pan that you fried the onions and garlic in, stirring constantly.
• After the goat cheese has melted, add it, along with beaten eggs and Parmesan cheese to the spinach mixture, stirring well until all the ingredients are combined.
• When the potatoes are almost done, remove them from the oven and then mix the hot potatoes into the spinach mixture, stirring well.
• Lower the temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Pour the spinach and potato mixture back into the baking pan.
• Sprinkle the crumbled feta cheese on top.
• Bake uncovered until the eggs are cooked and the casserole is firm. We both forgot to look at the clock when we put this in the oven, but I believe we baked it around 45 minutes.

While the baked omelet tasted great, I didn’t like how the cream cheese looked like pats of butter on top. It sure did taste good though.

Oven-Baked Veggie Omelet (Adapted from: Southern Living)

Lucky for us I made a large pan so we will enjoy this tasty casserole for a few more nights!

Vegetable Casserole with Chicken Frankfurters

Ingredients:

• 16 oz. shredded cabbage
• 1 onion, sliced
• 6 potatoes, peeled and sliced very thin
• 1 can diced petite tomatoes
• 2 small eggplants
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• chicken frankfurters, sliced
• 5 garlic cloves, diced
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• chili pepper
• black pepper
• salt
• Hungarian sweet paprika
• water

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Grease a large baking pan (I used one that was 12 inch by 17 inches) with a tbsp. of olive oil.
• Peel and slice the potatoes.
• Slice the cabbage and onion.
• Peel and dice the garlic.
• Thinly slice one eggplant with the skins on. Set it aside.
• Peel the skin off the other eggplant, and then dice it.
• Boil the eggplant that’s been peel and diced in some water about 10 minutes.
• Then drain the eggplant and puree it in the blender.
• In a large bowl, mix together the potatoes, cabbage, onion, sliced eggplant, pureed eggplant, garlic, and seasonings.
• Pour the mixture into the greased baking pan.
• Mix together the can of tomatoes and olive oil, and then pour it over the vegetables in the pan.
• Cover with aluminum foil and bake for about 1 hour.
• Slice the frankfurters, grate the mozzarella, and crumble the feta cheese. Refrigerate until it’s time to add it to the casserole.
• When the potatoes are done, place the sliced frankfurters on top of the baked vegetables.
• Then sprinkle the Parmesan cheese and feta cheese on top of that.
• Finally sprinkle the mozzarella cheese on the top of everything.
• Reduce the heat to 350 degrees and bake uncovered until the cheese is melted, bubbly, and golden. Slice and enjoy!

Besides being incredibly nutritious, djuvec also tastes wonderful! You can eat it as the main course, or you can also serve it as an accompaniment to a meat dish. Either way, you’re going to love it!

Djuvec (Baked Vegetable Casserole)

Ingredients:

• 1 onion
• 1 carrot
• 2 celery stalks
• 3 bell peppers, each a different color (you can use all the same color, but it’s more visually appealing with all the different colors. I used yellow, red, and orange peppers.)
• 2 medium-size zucchini
• 3 potatoes
• 1 can diced petite tomatoes (or you can use fresh cherry tomatoes instead like I did.
• 1/2 cup rice
• 1-2 tbsp. olive oil
• Vegeta (you can use other spices of your preference if you don’t have Vegeta.)
• water
• parsley
• black pepper
• Optional: eggplant

Note: If you make this with eggplant, soak the eggplant in salt water for about 15 minutes so it’s less bitter.

Instructions:

• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
• Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan with olive oil.
• Clean all your vegetables.
• Slice the carrots into thin rounds. You can peel the carrots if you like, but I prefer to eat the skins since they’re so nutritious.
• Dice the onion, and cut your peppers into strips about 4 cm. long.
• Cut the celery into small pieces (about 1 1/2 cm. long)
• Put 1 to 2 tbsp. of olive oil in a large pan or pot. (I used 2 tbsp while Vesna used just 1 tbsp. It all depends what you prefer.)
• Take all the vegetables you just sliced and cut and put them in the pan for about 10 to 15 minutes on medium well heat. If you make your djuvec with eggplant, add the eggplant with the other veggies.
• Reduce the heat to medium after 5 minutes and stir frequently.
• While the veggies are cooking in the pan, dice the potatoes into small pieces. You can peel the potatoes first if you like, but I don’t because the skins are so nutritious.
• Add the potatoes to the pan/pot after the carrots/onion/peppers/celery have cooked for 15 minutes.
• Add some water and your diced or fresh tomatoes. I added about a cup of water, but you can a little more or less. Cook for 15 minutes.
• Slice the zucchini into thin slices while the veggies are on the stove, and then add the rice and zucchini after the veggies have cooked for 15 minutes.
• Add more water as necessary, and cook for another 15 minutes.
• Add Vegeta, parsley, and pepper to taste.
• Pour the mixture into the greased 9 x 13 inch pan, adding a little water (maybe 1/2 cup to 1 cup).

Here’s what my djuvec looked like when the vegetables were cooked and ready to be baked. The potatoes were about half cooked.

• Bake on 350 degrees approximately 45 minutes or until the water evaporates.

Note: I baked my djuvec 1 1/2 hours and the water still wasn’t evaporated. Apparently I added too much water, so I just used a ladle to remove some of the juice after I took it out of the oven. I kept the juice I removed and then added it back the next day after it sat in the refrigerator for 24 hours.

We’re still enjoying the leftover djuvec, and I’ll definitely make this again. Kemal said that he would like to have more potatoes in it when I make it again, so I’ll probably make it with five potatoes next time. I also made some rosemary flat bread to go along with the djuvec, and it matches perfectly, especially when you dip it in the juices of the djuvec. Yummmmmmmm!