"MEATLESS LASAGNA"

I am sharing with you my "Meatless Lasagna" recipe that my family truly enjoys! My husband said this lasagna tastes like it has meat in it, and that it has the texture of a regular lasagna. The chunky vegetables do the trick. Try it, and you'll be surprised how good it is.

[CHICHAY TIP: if you wish to add meat in this recipe, replace portions of the vegetables and tofu with the ground meat, and brown the meat and drain it (the fat liquid) first before cooking it with the sauce.]

-CHICHAY
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"MEATLESS LASAGNA"

What You Need:

• 12 lasagna noodles


• 2 teaspoons olive oil


• 1 small onion, finely chopped


• 2 cloves garlic, minced


• 1 1/2 lbs fresh mushrooms of your choice (assorted or plain mushrooms, try
  portobello, cremini, shiitake, brown, button...), chopped


• 1/2 cup chopped eggplant


• 1 stalk celery, finely chopped


• 2 blocks hard tofu, drained and chopped


• 1 1/2 cups tomato pasta sauce (homemade or store-bought)


• 1/2 cup grated asiago cheese

How To:
-Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions. Then drain and set aside.
-Heat oil in skillet and saute the garlic, onions and then all the vegetables together for about 5 minutes.

-Stir in the tofu, and cook for another 3 minutes.

-Season with sat and pepper. Set aside.
-Spread the bottom of a 13"x9" inch baking pan (or any baking pan you have)
with 1/4 of the sauce.

-Top with 3 noodles, then 2 tbsp cheese a bed of the cooked vegetables and
some sauce.

-Repeat layers twice.

-Cover with remaining noodles and sauce. Cover with foil.

-Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

-Remove foil, top with the remaining asiago cheese, and bake some more for about 5-10 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

-Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

"SALMON STEAK AND SQUASH"

This oven-grilled salmon steak needs only a quick prep. Coming back from the market one time, I only had about 15 minutes to prepare for lunch, and so I came up with this tasty dish of salmon and buttered summer squash as sides.

You can't go wrong with a good salmon steak cut, so make sure you choose well. If you are buying fresh salmon from the market, remember to check the meat:it should be firm. The meat should not smell bad: if it smells like seafood, then good...if it smells like any other foul odor, then try to go find another piece, or even another fish variety which is the freshest that day. Try to befriend your fish monger to get some help. It pays to have a "suki", right?

If you are buying frozen steaks, make sure you cook the fish at room temperature, otherwise your steak will come out really dry.

Feel free to use any combinations of veggies with the summer squash side dish.

I like combining it with long beans, snap peas or sweet peas, or even whole corn kernels.

- CHICHAY

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"SALMON STEAK AND SUMMER SQUASH"

What You Need:

• 2-4 pcs salmon steaks
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• black pepper and salt
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup squash, cubed
• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp water
• black pepper and salt

How To:

-Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

-In a bowl, whisk together the honey, worcestershire sauce, garlic powder and olive oil. Make sure this glaze sauce is enough to cover all the fish. Double the measurement of the sauce if necessary.

-Sprinkle all sides of the fish with salt and pepper

-Lightly oil (with olive oil or canola oil spray) a baking dish that will accommodate the fish steaks

-Lay the fish steaks on the baking dish, and pour the glaze sauce over the fish

-Cover the dish with foil, and cook for about 15 minutes in the preheated oven.

-Remove the foil, and cook for another 15 minutes, or until the fish is browned , but not burned. -In a heated sauce pan, saute the squash and garlic in butter for a few minutes (you can add beans or corn kernels if you want)

-add 2 tbsp water, 1 tbsp honey plus salt and pepper, stir well, and cover for a few minutes, or until the squash is softened.

- Serve the salmon with the squash on the side.

"MUNGGO GUISADO (Sautéed Mung Bean)"

I was inspired to cook "Munggo Guisado" yesterday when I saw the fresh bunch of "malunggay" at the Cerritos Farmers Market! I got so excited, so I went to the Filipno store and got some freshly cooked "chicharon" plus my other ingredients for this dish. 'Could have skipped the chicharon, but this time, I really wanted to make an authentic Munggo Guisado complete with all the ingredients that my mom and grandma used when they cooked this dish for my family when I was still young.
I used "bagoong" (shrimp paste) to season my Munggo, but you can always use "patis" (fish sauce) or even simply 'bouillon' or salt as substitute.

Spinach, "ampalaya" leaves, chilli leaves or even "kangkong" leaves are good substitute for the "malunggay" leaves.

Instead of pork, you can use dried fish or fried fish flakes, and you can also substitute the fresh shrimps I used here with "hibe" (dried salted peeled shrimps).

CHICHAY TIP: Ask your local Filipino or Asian store associate for these traditional Pinoy cooking ingredients if you find it difficult to locate in the store.

-CHICHAY

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"MUNGGO GUISADO (Sautéed Mung Bean)"

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 1 cup munggo (mung beans)
• 3 cups water (for boiling the munggo)
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 lb. pork, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• 10 pieces medium-sized shrimps, peeled and deveined·
• 2 cups water or broth
• 1 tbsp. cooked bagoong
• 1 cup malunggay leaves
• 1/2 cup chicharon
  

HOW TO:
-Boil mung beans in water until soft and easily mashed. While cooking, check
occasionally and make sure you add more water if you see the beans absorbing all of the water even before it gets soft. Set aside onced cooked.
-In a pan, heat oil. Cook pork until it turns slightly brown.

-Add garlic, onions and tomatoes. Sauté for a minute until tomatoes are wilted.
-Stir in the shrimps and cook until bright orange.
- Add in the boiled mung beans and the bagoong, stir a few times, and add water
(depending on how thick you want your soup to be).
-Bring to boil and let it simmer until thick.
-Stir in the malunggay leaves and the chicharon, cover and remove from
heat. Serve hot.

"CHICKEN STIR-FRY WITH QUAIL EGGS"

This "Chicken Stir-Fry With Quail Eggs" was one of my favorite "ulam" during my college days, when my friend Gloria and I used to go to the restaurant near our university for a quick and cheap lunch. We enjoyed an order of this dish with a cup-and-a-half of steamed rice! Yumm!

Here it is, easy to prepare and yet so delicious. Try to add more vegetables or even substitute the chicken with beef or pork.

You can use either fresh young corn, or just the canned ones.

-CHICHAY

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"CHICKEN STIR-FRY WITH QUAIL EGGS"

What You Need:

• 1/2 lb chicken meat, cut in strips
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 small onion (or 2 shallots), chopped
• 1 cup long beans
• 1 medium-sized carrot, chopped
• 12 pieces hard-boiled quail eggs, or as many as you like, shelled
• 1 cup baby corn, cut into bite-sizes
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• freshly-ground black pepper
• 1 tsp of cornstarch, dissolved in 3 tbsp water + 1 tbsp soy sauce
  

How To:

-Place the chicken meat in a bowl, and add the soy sauce, mix and and leave to marinate while you prepare the vegetables.

-In a large saute pan, heat up the oil on high.

-Strain the chicken and add to the hot oil. Stir fry for about a minute.

-Add the garlic and onions, carrots and beans. Keep on stirring for about 2-3 minutes.

-Add the corn and cook for a few more minutes.

-Add the sesame oil, hard-boiled quail eggs and the water and cornstarch mix, lower the heat, stir, cover and let simmer for about 2 minutes.

-Taste and adjust seasoning if you prefer.

-Add plenty of freshly ground black pepper, stir a few more times then turn off the heat.