Italian Vegetable and Potato Stew

(recipe adapted from May All Be Fed: Diet For A New World by John Robbins)

1 large eggplant, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
Olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, with leaves, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 medium boiling potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 28-oz. can diced tomatoes
1 cup vegetable stock or water
1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil or 1 tsp. dried basil
1 cup black olives, pitted and chopped

Place the eggplant in a colander and toss with 1 tsp. of the salt.  Let stand for 1 hour to draw out the bitter juices.  Rinse well, drain, and pat dry with kitchen towels.  (I didn't rinse or dry...)

Heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a large pot.  Add the onion, celery, bell pepper, and garlic.  Cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes.  Stir in the eggplant, potatoes, tomatoes with juice, vegetable stock, 1/2 tsp. salt, and the red pepper flakes;  if using dried basil, add it now.  Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes.

Stir in the olives and, if using, the fresh basil, and continue cooking to blend the flavors, about 5 minutes.  Serve the stew hot.

(Very tasty and fairly simple to make.  The salting of the eggplant needs a bit of wait time.  The recipe called for pan frying the eggplant before adding to the dish, but I just threw it right in and the results were fine for me.)

Braised Chard with Tomatoes and Olives

(recipe from The Vegan Gourmet by Susann Geiskopf-Hadler & Mindy Toomay)
1 1/2 lbs. Swiss chard (about 2 bunches)
1 Tbsp. olive oil (I used coconut oil)
3 cloves garlic, minced
One 14.5-oz. can diced tomatoes
1/4 tsp. salt
Several grinds black pepper
1/3 cup chopped dry oil-cured black olives

Coarsely chop the chard, removing the stem ends if they are tough. Place chard in colander and rinse - do not dry; water should still cling to the leaves.

In a large, heavy-bottomed pan that has a tight-fitting lid, heat oil over medium heat and add the garlic.  Sauté for about 1 minute, stirring constantly, but do not brown.  Add the tomatoes and their juice, then add the salt and pepper.  Pile in the chard, stir briefly, and cover.  Cook over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes.  Stir halfway through the cooking time to bring some of the tomatoes to the top.  Add the olives, stir to incorporate, and serve.

Salsa Con Otra Cosas

(recipe from Whole Foods Market)

3 tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped finely
1/2 large onion, chopped
1/4 cup chopped or sliced black olives
1/8 cup vinegar
3 small cloves garlic, minced
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
1/4 tsp. salt, or to taste
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 ripe avocado, chopped

Mix all ingredients at least one hour prior to serving.

(I brought this to a party and everyone asked for the recipe.  Quite tasty!)

Harissa Spaghetti

(recipe from 101cookbooks.com)

3 medium cloves garlic, peeled
a big pinch of fine grain sea salt
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbsp. harissa paste

8 oz. (1/2 lb) spaghetti (I used a quinoa/corn/amaranth pasta, since I'm trying not to do wheat)
1 small bunch kale, washed, deveined, and cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 cup oil-cured black olives, pitted (I also cut these into quarters)
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
zest of 1 lemon

Bring a big pot of water to a boil.  In the meantime, place the cloves of garlic on a cutting board and sprinkle them with a big pinch of salt.  Crush with the flat side of a knife.  Now crush and chop, crush and chop until you have a garlic paste.  Alternately, you can use a mortar and pestle.  In a small bowl, whisk together the garlic paste, harissa, and olive oil.  Set aside.

Generously salt the boiling water, add the pasta, and cook per package instructions.  Just before the pasta is done, add the kale to the pasta water, count to six, drain and set aside.

Heat half of the harissa dressing in the now empty pasta pot.  Add the pasta and kale, black olives, pine nuts, and lemon zest.  Stir over the heat for a minute or so, then turn everything out onto a platter and drizzle with the remaining harissa olive oil.  (I just stirred all of the harissa olive oil into the pot along with the other ingredients.)

(Amazing.  At first, it seemed a bit too salty, but after a day (I split this up for lunches over many days) the flavors blended into an amazing spicy yummy dish.  So good.  And with that, I finally used all of my small can of harissa!  Yay!  What a culinary adventure!)