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Leftover Spaghetti Pie

Madhuram — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 22:34:25 +0000

I was having a lot of leftover spaghetti and kidney beans sauce. We didn’t want to eat the same again and was looking for ideas. I saw a recipe for spaghetti pie in the Deceptively Delicious book. Like The Sneaky Chef, this book by Jessica Seinfeld (yes Jerry Seinfeld’s wife) is also aimed to get children to eat healthy by sneaking in vegetables and fruits. Her recipe includes broccoli and carrot puree to the regular tomato sauce to make it healthy. Since I was going to use the kidney beans sauce, it’s already packed with proteins. So I simply pureed it in the food processor. My son loved this spaghetti pie, but my husband not so much. I think this is a good idea to use any leftover pasta.

Ingredients

Spaghetti, cooked 3 cups

Any leftover pasta sauce (I used the Kidney beans sauce 2 cups

Mozarella, part skim, shredded 1/2 to 1 cup

Procedure 1 Preheat the oven at 350F for 15 minutes. Spray a pie pan with non stick spray.

2 Since I was using the leftover kidney beans sauce, I pureed it in a food processor until nice and
smooth.

3 In a bowl combine together the spaghetti and sauce.

4 Transfer it to the prepared pie plate and spread it evenly.

5 Top it with the cheese and bake it for 25 minutes.

My Notes 1 The taste was very good. My son loved it. But I think a binding agent was missing, so that the slice would retain it’s shape. Later I googled “spaghetti pie” and found that egg is also used while mixing the spaghetti and sauce. So I think we can use either pureed silken tofu, mashed potatoes, a mixture of corn starch/whole wheat flour and water to bind the ingredients. Also adding little (around 1/2 cup) cheese to the spaghetti mixture would be even more tasty.

2 The pureed bean sauce can also be used as a dip. My son was eating baby carrots and I tried to
persuade him to dip it in the bean sauce and to my surprise he did like it.

Spaghetti with Kidney Beans Sauce

Madhuram — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 12:26:49 +0000

Couple of months back I tried a spaghetti recipe. I prepared some rajma using red kidney beans, cooked whole grain spaghetti as per package directions and topped the pasta with rajma. That was one satisfying meal. I wanted to prepare something similar with Italian flavors. I came across a sauce recipe with borlotti beans in a book called Vegetarian Bible. I didn’t have that beans in hand, so I thought I would use canned kidney beans instead, add some Italian seasoning and top it over the cooked spaghetti. And that’s how this spaghetti recipe was born.

Ingredients

Spaghetti, uncooked I used half a pack of 13.5oz pack

Olive oil 2 teaspoons

Onion, large, thinly sliced 1

Kidney beans One 15.5oz can or 2 cups cooked beans

Tomato sauce, I used Prego Heart Smart Italian Sauce 2 cups

Itaian seasoning/or fresh/dried herbs of your choice as per taste

Salt and Pepper to taste

Baking soda a pinch (optional)

Yield: The above measurement makes a lot of pasta and sauce. It was definitely more than enough for the 2 of us. So you may want to halve the measurements to make a smaller serving. I found out another way to use the leftovers, will post it shortly. Actually that leftover spaghetti recipe was a bigger hit with my son than the original one.

Procedure 1 Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Simultaneously boil water in a large stock pot to cook the spaghetti.

2 Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes, until softened.

3 Stir the tomato sauce into the skillet with the cooked beans and seasoning of your choice. I used 1
teaspoon of dried Italian seasoning.

4 While the sauce is cooking, cook the pasta as per package directions. Once the pasta is cooked,
drain it, reserving 1/2 to 1 cup of the water. Add the reserved water to the sauce if required.

5 Increase the heat and bring the sauce to a boil, stirring. Add baking soda, if using and lower the heat, partially cover, and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until th sauce has slightly reduced.

6 Add salt/pepper to the sauce as per taste, transfer to a serving bowl. Serve the sauce over pasta and enjoy a hearty meal.

My Notes 1 For the pasta I used Barilla whole grain thin spaghetti. It tastes
so good and is healthy too. My tall stockpot is burried somewhere in the closet and I didn’t have the patience to take it out. So I broke the spaghetti into half and cooked it in a big sauce pan.

1 I read in a magazine that adding baking soda to tomato sauce or any other tomato dish would reduce
the acidity of the tomatoes. Since we are slightly sensitive to excessive tomatoes I added it.

This spaghetti recipe goes to Vaishali’s It’s a Vegan World – Italian event.

Note: There is a print link embedded within this post, please visit this post to print it.

Vegetarian Mexicitos for AWED – Mexico

Madhuram — Sat, 10 May 2008 12:10:42 +0000

In Mexico these turnovers are also called Empanaditas. This is a Mexican Appetizer. I found this recipe in Better Homes and Gardens’ “Off the Shelf Baking” book. The original recipe did not have a vegetarian filling. So I decided to use black beans instead. Added benefit, more fiber and protein than the original version. My husband suggested to use soy granules, but what can be more Mexican than black beans? I think I will try his suggestion the next time.

Dough for the outer cover:
Refrigerated Buttermilk biscuits 16.3 oz package(8 biscuits total) – 1

Ingredients for Filling (for 12 turnovers):

Black Beans 15.5 oz can – 1
Tomato Sauce/Crushed Tomatoes – 3 tablespoon
Chili Powder – ¼ teaspoon (I would increase a little bit the next time)
Salt – ¼ teaspoon (next time I would use even less)
Dried Oregano – ½ teaspoon
Garlic Powder – ½ teaspoon
Cilantro/Scallions – little
Oil – 1 tablespoon

Optional:
Milk for brushing
Salsa for dipping

Prepare the filling:
1. Drain the beans from the can in a colander and wash it under running water. Mash the beans with a potato masher or a fork. My little helper was more than happy when I asked him to mash the beans for me.

2. In a skillet add the oil and after it heats add the mashed black beans, crushed tomatoes, chili powder, oregano and garlic powder.

3. Fry it for 2-3 minutes until all the ingredients combine well.

4. Transfer it to a bowl and let it cool. Stir in cilantro/scallions. I didn’t have cilantro so I used scallions instead. The filling tasted very good by itself.

Preparing the Empanadas:
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a large baking sheet.

2. Remove the biscuits from the pack as the per the instructions and place them either on a floured surface or in the prepared baking sheet so that it doesn’t stick to the surface.

3. The original recipe specifies to cut each biscuit in half horizontally (so you will have 16 circles for a box of 8 biscuits) and roll each piece of biscuit on a lightly floured surface into a 4-inch circle. I did try this method but it was a bit difficult to get even shaped circles while cutting.

4. Instead I cut each biscuit into 2 pieces using a pair of scissors and rolled them into balls.

5. Then rolled it out into circles.

6. I did have a doubt if handling the dough too much may make the end product very hard. I tried with one turnover first to be sure and it baked very well and it had the same texture as the turnover which was cut horizontally. So I followed the same method for the rest of the biscuits. This method was so easy.

7. Place about 1 tablespoon filling onto half of each circle. Brush edges with very little milk. Fold opposite side of circle up and over filling and seal edges with a fork.

8. I also did not cut all the biscuits at once because I did not know if the filling would be sufficient. So I dealt one by one. I got 12 empanadas, for the filling, i.e., I used 6 full biscuits. The remaining 2 biscuits I just baked it as it is.

9. Place filled turnovers 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet, brush with milk.

10. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. The aroma was so appetizing. Immediately remove from baking sheet. Cool slightly on a wire rack. Serving warm is key. The turnovers tasted good later also, but it was best when warm. We had store bought salsa at home and the turnovers tasted even better when dipped in salsa.

Freezing Tips:
These turnovers can be made ahead and frozen for later use. Prepare it as per the above directions. Let it cool completely on wire racks. Place in an airtight freezer container; freeze for up to 3 months. We ate only 6, so I froze the remaining 6 in Ziploc bags. To reheat, transfer frozen turnovers to an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake, uncovered, in a 350F oven for 10-12 minutes or until heated through.

My Notes:
1. Watch the amount of salt because the canned beans also has sodium and so does the refrigerated biscuits. I used 1/4 teaspoon only, even then it was a bit salty. Either I should have increased the chili powder or reduced the salt.
2. I used reduced fat buttermilk biscuits.

I would like to send this recipe to DK’s AWED – Mexico event. Thanks DK for giving us a nudge to experiment different cuisines.