Purée Broccoli

 Purée broccoli to add to other ingredients.

1. Finely chop 1 cup (200 g) organic broccoli.
2. Process until very fairly chopped.
3. Add to meat patties, meatballs, meatloaf, veggie burgers, etc. before cooking.
4. Add other finely chopped herbs of your choice, shredded carrots, or grand flax seed.
5. Cook and serve.

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Orange Marmalade Butter

 Orange marmalade is my favorite jam.-Mike

Mix it with butter and spade over toast, biscuits, muffins, endless usage.

Makes 1 1/4 cups (250 g)

JUST...

1 cup (240 ml) (dairy-free) unsalted butter at room temperature

1/4 cup (60 ml) organic orange marmalade

1. Use an electric mixer to whip the butter until it is fluffy and smooth.

2. Add the marmalade and continue to whip.

3. Put in a serving bowl, cover, and chill until real to use.

4. Bring back to room temperature to serve.

5. Then, too, other jams make great jam-butter!!

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Stuffed Eggplant from Puglia, Italy

Puglia is located at the heel of the Italian peninsula. Though seafood, lots of vegetables, and olive oil are mainly found on the local menu, eggplant is popular as well.

Melanzane Ripiene Pugliesi (Italian)

Serves 6

(not dairy-free, 

but can be substituted with goat cheese)

Preheat the oven to 400F (200C)

6 small organic eggplants*, about 1 1/2 pounds/680 g)

1/3 cup (80 ml) olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. (6,5 g) sea salt

2 chopped organic cloves of garlic

2 chopped organic tomatoes

1/4 tsp. (1,25 g) crushed red-pepper flakes

1 cup (130 g) grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 cup (130 g) grated Italian Fontina cheese (cow's milk cheese)

2 Tbs. (40 g) each chopped: mint and  parsley

uno 1. Cut the eggplants in half length-wise.

due 2. Scoop out any seeds, then the flesh, leaving a shell.

tre 3. Cut the eggplant flesh into small cubes.

quattro 4. In a skillet, over medium-high heat, add 2 Tbs. (30 ml) olive oil.

cinque 5. Season the instead of the eggplant shells with 1 tsp. (2,25 g) salt.

sei 6. Brown them, cut side down, in the oil, about 2 minutes.

sette 7. Remove and place in an oiled baking dish, cut side up.

ptto 8. In the same skillet, heat the remaining oil.

nove 9. Add the eggplant flesh and garlic.

dieci 10. Once the flesh begins to wilt, add the tomatoes and red pepper. 
undici 11. Cook until the eggplant is tender but the tomatoes are still retain their shape, about 5 minutes.

dodici 2. Scarp the mixture into a bowl, stir in half of the cheeses, parsley, and the mint.

tredici 13. Stuff the filling into the eggplant shells, top with the remaining cheeses.

quattordici 14. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

quindici 15. Uncover and bake until the eggplant shells are tender and the top is browned, about 10-15 more minutes.

*Choosing an eggplant:

• firm flesh
• no bruises
• glossy skin
• no blemishes
• tight skin so it "squeaks" when your rub it
• long green, not brown, steam means it was just picked

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Georgian Chilled Yogurt Soup

 I enjoy yogurt on fruit, in cereal, on waffles, diluted with water (aka Turkish ayran),  but I have not tried it as a soup.-Mike

There is more than cow's milk in this blended or chunky soup! 

P.S. Similar soups are Matnabrdosh (Armenian: Մատնաբրդոշ), Abdoogh Khiar ( ابدوغ خیار Persian), Cacık /jah-juhk/ (Turkish), and Dzhadzhik (Bulgarian: Джаджик), each with its own "yogurt". 

მაცვნისის წვნიანი (Georgian)

/matsvnisis ts'vniani/

Serves 4

Refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

~Use organic as best as possible.~

2 cups (480 g) yogurt

1 cup (240 ml) water

grated cucumber

2 chopped green onions, both green and white

1 Tbs. (6 g) each chopped: dill, mint, coriander/cilantro/parsley, dill, garlic

mint leaves and chopped chives

optional: green chili to taste

ერთი /erti/ ა 1. Whisk the yogurt and water.

ორი /ori/ ბ 2. Whisk the rest of the ingredients except the mint and chives. 

სამი /sami/ გ 3. Mix in the yogurt. Blend or stay chunky.

ოთხი /otkhi/ დ 4. Refrigerate. 

ხუთი /khuti/ ე 5. Serve chilled with sprinkle of mint leaves and chopped chives.

Try another Georgian dish

Leeks with Walnut Pâte: https://veggiefernandezs.blogspot.com/2026/02/walnut-paste-la-georgia.html

Soup with Fruits and Onions à la Georgian:  https://veggiefernandezs.blogspot.com/2026/03/soup-with-fruits-and-onions.html

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Salmon Spaghetti

Take your pick. Do you want an Italian cuisine (tagliatelle or penne al salmone) or a Japanese dish (サーモンクリーム /sāmonkurīmu/) or 味噌スパゲッティ/miso supagetti/? Flip a coin and we'll have Italian tonight.

Spaghetti al salmone (Italian)

Serves 4

Heat the oven to 390ºF/170ºC

4 skinless wild salmon fillets

organic cherry tomatoes

organic garlic

organic spinach

1 tsp. (5 g) organic honey

1 cup (240 ml) organic lemon juiced

1 cup (240 g) organic beans: Great Northern, navy, or cannellini 

linguine, fettuccine, or a GF pasta

1 Tbs. (15 ml) olive oil

cheese: 

ricotta (creamy, mild taste)

ricotta salata (crumbly texture with salty flavor)

grated pecorino romano or parmesan (sharp savoy kick)

feta (sharp, salty, with tangy flavor)

uno 1. Except the pasta, mix everything together.

due 2. Bake for 15 minutes or until the salmon is just cooked (inside temperature 145ºF/630C)

tre 3. Cook the pastas as directed.

quattro 4. Flake the salmon into large chunks.

cinque 5. Toss in the pastas.

 

 sei 6. Top with parsley

 sette 7. Serve with an Italian salad:

Italian Salad with Wisdom

Tuscan Salad

Carrot and Apple Italian Salad

tomato & Mint Italian Salad

otto 8. Don't forget the (GF) bread and 

nove 9. the dry white wine

Buon Appetito!

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