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!

While this soup can accompany a meal, it also can be eaten as the main course. Kemal and I most generally eat soup as an entree because it’s filling, delicious, and sets so well on our stomachs. Of course, we always have bread and butter to go along with our soup.

Anyway, here’s Vesna’s recipe which I know you’re going to love as much as we do.

Vesna’s Vegetable Soup:

Ingredients:

• 1 onion, diced
• 1 carrot, diced
• 2 celery sticks, diced
• 1 cup cabbage, shredded
• 2 large potatoes, shredded
• 1 cup cauliflower (chopped)
• 1/2 cup peas (frozen)
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 tbsp. sour cream
• water
• pepper to taste
• parsley to taste
• Vegeta to taste (If you don’t have Vegeta or can’t buy it where you live, just season the soup with whatever spices you like and happen to have on-hand)

Note about ingredients: I made a few changes when I made this recipe. Since I didn’t have frozen peas on hand, I used canned peas. I also forgot to shred my cabbage, but instead chopped it. I used 2 tbsp. of oil instead of one, and since I didn’t have any sour cream in my refrigerator, I just added some milk (I think around 3/4 to 1 cup). Finally, I thought some corn in my soup sounded good, so I added some frozen corn that came from my parents’ garden. Also, I kept the skins on my potatoes and carrots because they’re so full of nutrients. You can peel them though if you prefer. Even though I made some changes, the soup still turned out delicious.

Instructions:

• Dice the onion, carrots, and celery
• Shred the cabbage on a grater
• Heat the olive oil in pot, and then add the onions, carrots, celery, and cabbage, stirring and cooking a few minutes on medium high heat until the veggies become a little tender.
• Add 2 cups of hot water, and when the water starts to boil, turn the heat down to medium and cover the pot with a lid
• Cook for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. You can set a timer if you like. Add more water as necessary.
• While the soup is cooking, shred the potatoes using a grater, and then chop your cauliflower.
• When the 30 minutes is up, add the cauliflower, potatoes, and peas. I added the frozen corn at this stage too. Add some more water to the soup; I added about 2 1/2 cups I think.
• Turn the heat up to med-high again until the soup boils.
• Then turn the heat back down to medium and cook for about 30 minutes more.
• When the potatoes are cooked and tender, the soup is done cooking.
• When the soup is done, add the sour cream (or milk if you don’t have sour cream), pepper, parsley, Vegeta, or any other spices you like.

Note about the density of the soup: If you like your soup to be more dense, use less water. If you like your soup leakier and less dense, use more water.

It’s a beautiful soup that’s light, incredibly nutritious, and it makes your stomach purr how content it is. It makes you feel all warm and satisfied inside without weighing you down. I love this soup, and I feel quite sure that you will too!