Fig and Sweet Potato Bake

oh and so much more.

I am so excited about figs these days.  I have bought dried black mission figs, and now, since they are in season, I am seeing fresh figs in stores (mostly Wegmans and Whole Foods)!  Yay!

I was looking for a recipe to utilize them in.  And I found something yummy!  Of course, I adapted the recipe to make it mine own, based on the ingredients I had.  Here goes!

Fig and Sweet Potato Bake

Ingredients:

1 eggplant, chopped into 1 inch chunks
1 sweet potato, chopped into 1 inch chunks
5-6 fresh ripe black mission figs, quartered
1 zucchini, chopped into 1 inch chunks
1 red pepper, chopped into 1 inch chunks
1-2 T olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
1 lb sausage, cooked
2 cups cooked quinoa
1 cup kale, chopped
1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
1 can (15 oz) garbanzo beans, drained
1/2 cup coconut milk
3 oz cheddar cheese, grated
2 oz goat cheese, crumbled
1 T cinnamon
1 t nutmeg
1 t vanilla extract
2 T balsamic vinegar

Instructions:

1. Coat eggplant, sweet potato, red pepper, zucchini and figs with olive oil, salt & pepper.  Cover a sheet pan with foil and roast for 20-30 min on 400 degrees until soft and edges are caramelized.
2. Place veggies into a mixing bowl. Add rest of the ingredients and mix well.
3. Grease a 9 X 13 baking dish and place the mixture into it, adding an additional amount of grated cheddar and goat cheese on top.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes on 375 degrees until cheese is bubbly and everything is heated through.
5. Top with the tahini-coconut sauce (I have added the tahini sauce to a small section on the left side of the picture below) and serve.

Serves 4-6.

I have adapted it from this recipe:

http://thekitchenchopper.com/indexBlog.php/fig-delicata-eggplant-quinoa-baked-chopped/


Tahini-Coconut Sauce

Ingredients:

1 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup tahini paste
salt to taste

Instructions:

Mix well and serve with Fig & Sweet Potato Bake.  :)  Yum!!


and the inspiration for my tahini sauce I gathered from this one:

http://www.theroastedroot.net/vegetable-stir-fry-coconut-tahini-sauce/

Delish Eggless Salmon Cakes (& Dairy free too!) with Creamy Dill Sauce

This one turned out rather well, given that I didn't think it would work well without the egg binder!  I thought it was delicious--and it's great my son can have some!


Eggless (& Dairy free!) Salmon Cakes

Ingredients:

4 cans of pink salmon
1/2 red onion, minced
3-4 portobello mushrooms
1 T Earthbound (brand name), soy-free butter substitute
1/4 roasted red pepper, chopped small
2 t capers (whole or chopped up)
1/2 avocado, chopped small
1 1/2 T coarse grain mustard
juice from half of a lime
dash of hot sauce
1 t salt
1/4 pepper
1 t fish seasoning
1 t seafood seasoning
1/2 t marjoram
1/2 t oregano
2 c panko bread crumbs
1/4 c flour
2-3 T coconut milk
1/2 c olive oil

Instructions:

1. Saute red onion and mushrooms in butter substitute until slightly browned and aromatic.
2. Add to a mixing bowl along with salmon, red peppers, capers, avocado, mustard, lime juice, salt, pepper, hot sauce, seasonings and 1/2 cup of the bread crumbs.  Give a stir, but don't break up the salmon flakes too much.
3. Add the coconut milk and stir again.
4. Mix the flour and rest of bread crumbs (1 1/2 cup) together on a plate.
5. Into a medium pan, add 1/4 cup of olive oil and heat up on medium-high heat.  While that is heating up, shape one patty at a time coating with crumb mixture until brown on each side, watching them carefully.
6. Work in batches (about 2) until all the salmon cakes are nice and brown, about 2-3 min on each side.
7. Place on a paper towel to absorb excess oil. Keep warm in a 250 degree oven until ready to serve.

Makes 12 patties, about 4 servings.  Serve warm with creamy dill sauce (recipe below).

Creamy Dill Sauce (not Dairy free!)

Ingredients:

1/2 c 2% yogurt (I used Fage)
1 T mayonnaise
1/4 c fresh dill
1 t garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste

Mix well and serve with salmon cakes.

Enjoy!!!

Very loosely adapted from: http://www.thecandidappetite.com/2014/02/21/salmon-cakes-with-creamy-dill-sauce/ & http://fastpaleo.com/recipe/salmon-cakes-egggrain-free/