Veggie Delight

I am not a vegetarian, but there are many vegetarian-friendly dishes I enjoy eating and making.  This meal is so good it's sure to please all your vegetarian and meat-eating friends!

Drink...

The Swamp
Typically I don't drink things with vegetables in them, but this drink not only has vegetables, but it tastes wonderful!
This creation was inspired by a drink from one of our favorite bars in L.A, Seven Grand.  The drink is called "The Swamp."  I am not a whiskey fan, but this drink is from a whiskey bar and therefore has whiskey in it.  However, it doesn't have a strong whiskey taste and I love it! 
I never got the exact recipe for the drink from the bar, but I did my best to replicate it here.  I think I did a pretty good job!  I love this drink because it tastes so light and refreshing.  It's great for summer, but I would drink it any time of year!

Ingredients:

• Whiskey
• Ginger Ale
• Cucumber, chopped
• Mint leaves
• Sugar
• Lemon Juice

Directions:

1. Muddle together the mint leaves, cucumber, and sugar.  (I dont have a mortar and pestle, so I just put the mint, sugar, and cucumber in a glass and mushed them up with the wide, blunt end of a kitchen utensil)
2. Put the muddled mixture into a glass with ice.
3. Pour 1.5 oz (1 shot) of whiskey into the glass. 
4. Add 3-4.5 oz (2-3 shots) of ginger ale, to taste.
5. Add a splash of lemon juice.
6. Stir and enjoy!

Dinner...

California Veggie Sandwich & Oven Fries 

Simple, but delicious!  This recipe is great anytime of year and is a good change of pace from the dinners I typically make.

California Veggie Sandwich
*recipe adapted from allrecipes.com

Yum!  This sandwich has it all...delicious veggies, foccacia bread, and cheese!  These vegetables work really well in it, but I am sure you could substitute with other vegetables.
Ingredients:
(makes 4 sandwiches)

• 1/4 cup of mayonnaise
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tbs. lemon juice
• 1 cup sliced red bell pepper
• 1 small zucchini, sliced
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1 small yellow squash, sliced
• 1 loaf of foccacia bread (I used Trader Joe's this time, but many grocery stores have really good ones with herbs and tomatoes on top which I have used.  Those are even better if you can find them!)
• 1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese
• olive oil and rosemary for the foccacia (if yours doesn't already have herbs on it)

Directions:

The sandwiches before smooshing

1. In a bowl, mix the mayo, garlic, and lemon juice.  Set aside in the refrigerator.
2. Heat up a skillet and saute the veggies until they are cooked.  (The original recipe says to grill the veggies, which I think would be even better.  Too bad I don't have a grill here in NYC :(
3. Slice the foccacia bread horizontally and then divide into quarters to make 4 sandwiches.  
4. Spray olive oil on the bread and sprinkle with rosemary if it doesn't already have herbs on it. *see my product endorsement below :)
5. Spread the mayo mixture on the cut side of the bread.
6. Sprinkle with Feta cheese.
7. Layer the cooked veggies on top of the cheese.
8. Put the other slice of bread on top and place the sandwich in a heated skillet.  Put something heavy on top of the sandwiches (the bottom of another pan with something heavy inside of it works well) in order to smoosh them down and melt the cheese.  I used to put the sandwiches in my Forman Grill and put the lid down on them.  That worked great, but I don't have a Forman Grill anymore.
9. After they have heated up and the cheese begins to soften, they are ready to eat!

Great Product...

I usually don't talk about what specific products or appliances I use, but I got something new for Christmas and thought it was worth mentioning.  It is called a Misto.  All it does is spray olive oil, but it it very helpful and saves a lot of olive oil.  It is great for food that needs a coating of oil or for coating a pan.  Also, I find my olive oil lasts a lot longer when I use it because it uses a lot less than if you just pour the oil.  I used the Misto a lot in this recipe.  I sprayed the pan and veggies with it before cooking them.   I also sprayed the top of the Foccacia bread before I sprinkled on the rosemary.  Finally, I sprayed my pan and potatoes with it before I put them in the oven.
You can buy it on Amazon or other websites.  But I have also seen it at TJ Maxx and wouldn't be surprised if they have it at Bed Bath and Beyond.

Oven Fries

These fries were okay and they were healthier than typical french fries.  However, no oven-baked fry can beat a traditional fried french fry.  I seasoned mine with garlic salt and parsley, but you could season them with anything...the possibilities are endless!
Ingredients:
(serves 4)

• 2 potatoes, sliced into thin, long strips (I like my fries thin, but you could cut them thick if you prefer.  Just make sure to adjust the baking time)
• olive oil
• garlic salt
• parsley

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Spray the pan with olive oil to prevent the fries from sticking.
3. Spread the sliced potatoes out onto the pan.
4. Spray the potatoes with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt and parsley.
5. Bake for 40-60 minutes or until fries are golden brown,  turning the fries over halfway through baking.

Dessert...

Garden Party Cupcakes

*recipe adapted from Hello, Cupcake!
What could go better with a vegetarian dinner than a veggie garden for dessert?  I know I say this about everything, but seriously...these are so easy to make and they are soooo cute!!  The most time consuming part is making the veggies, but the time is well worth it.  I usually try to make the cake and frosting from scratch, but this time I was feeling lazy and used a box mix for the cake and pre-made frosting.  Oh well, it was still good!
Ingredients:

• 1 box of cake mix and ingredients called for on the box.  (I used Trader Joe's Vanilla cake mix and I would not recommend it.  Duncan Hines and Betty Crocker are much better.)
• Chocolate frosting
• vanilla frosting
• Oreo crumbs
• fondant
• 2 graham crackers
• toothpics
• icing colors
• edible markers
• cupcake liners

Directions:

1. Bake the cupcakes according to the directions on the box.
2. After the cupcakes cool, cover them with chocolate frosting.
3. Dip the frosting into the cookie crumbs to coat the tops of the cupcakes.
4. Break each graham cracker into 2 pieces.
5. Ice the graham cracker pieces with vanilla frosting.
6. Use the chocolate frosting and a piping bag to write the words Radishes, Peas, Carrots, and Lettuce on the graham crackers.
7. Dye a small amount of fondant orange and form into small carrots for the top of the cupcakes and the sign.
8. Roll some white fondant into the shape of radishes and use a red edible marker to color the tops of the radishes.
9. Dye some fondant green.  Form the fondant into balls for peas and flat, long pieces for the peapods.  
10. Use the remaining green fondant to make the lettuce.  Roll a small ball for the middle of the lettuce head.  Flatten small pieces of fondant and put 6-8 of those pieces (leaves) around the center ball to form the lettuce head.
11.  Place the vegetables on each cupcake.
12. Color some of the vanilla icing with green food coloring and use a piping bag to add leaves to the radishes, vines to the peas, and tops to the carrots.
13. Put two toothpicks into a cupcake and lean one of the veggie signs against it.
14. Repeat for the other three signs.