Barbecued Veggie Sandwiches

Yay for barbecue season!

My honey and I have changed locations, yet again.  After living on the farm for the last half year, we are now spending a couple months with my folks in southern Ontario.  This has changed our cooking yet again.  This summer it's boiling hot outside, and my folks have a fantastic barbecue, so cooking outside is a no brainer.  We've come up with a few tasty barbecue options.  The first here is a vegetarian lunch we came up with when a couple vegetarian relatives came for a visit.  My folks are meat eaters through and through, so I was looking for something that was pretty substantial to satisfy everyone.  Everyone was full and happy at the end, so I'd say it was a success.

Ingredients:

eggplant
zucchini (a combo of yellow and green is nice)
white onion
sweet red peppers
store bought or homemade hummus
gluten-free buns or wraps of your choice
olive oil
lemon juice
garlic

You'll notice here that I've left out measurements of the ingredients.  For the marinade use roughly equal parts lemon juice to olive oil, and enough to coat or brush the veggies with.  Add minced garlic to taste.

As for the veggies, slice the eggplant and zucchini into thin rounds if using buns, or long strips if using wraps.  Seed and chop the red peppers into fat slices.  Peel and quarter the onions.  Coat all the veggies in the marinade.  Allow to sit in marinade if you can, but if not, go ahead and throw them on barbecue at medium-high heat.  Turn veggies during cooking so that both sides are cooked.  The peppers may get slightly charred.  You'll know they're all cooked when the zucchini and eggplant have softened.  Eggplant can be chewy if undercooked, so let them get quite soft.

Once cooked, spread hummus on the wraps or buns, and fill with a variety of veggies.  Serve with a side salad if desired.

"Light" Roast Veggies

Recently I moved in with some folks on their farm, so my cooking has changed somewhat.  Now instead of cooking primarily for myself and my partner, I am treated to the cooking of others and pitch in the occasional side dish.  Since they raise beef here on the farm (and are therefore far more experienced in it's preparation than I am), I find myself looking for side dishes that I can add to the family meal. 

This recipe was something I mixed together last night.  I wanted something easy and fast, as in nothing that needed peeling!  I call it "light" not because of it's fat or calorie count, but rather because the veggies used weren't the heavy, starchy veggies so often roasted.  Ordinarily I would use olive oil in a dish like this, but we had grapeseed oil on hand last night and it turned out great.

Ingredients:

6 peppers chopped (I used 2 each of red, yellow and orange)
1 or more red onions, chopped
1 pkg (aprox 10-15) medium sized button mushrooms, stems removed and cut in halves
5 zucchini, chopped in large chunks

Throw all the veggies together in a roasting dish.  Splash with oil and toss so they are lightly coated.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 min or until it looks good.  :)

Serves 8.

Quinoa and Bean Salad

Quinoa was one of the best discoveries I made when I first gave up wheat.  Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) is a complete protein source, and can be eaten anywhere you'd have rice.  It cooks just like rice but in a fraction of the time, which is especially nice when you want a grain with dinner but don't have an hour to cook.  It can be found in bulk and health food stores.

This recipe is great year round, but is especially nice and light for summer.  I like it instead of a pasta salad at a barbeque, or as a light lunch on it's own.  Plenty of substitutions can be made as well.  Use black or kidney beans on their own if you don't have mixed beans, and if you're avoiding dairy leave the feta out or substitute avocado cubes.

Ingredients:

4 tbsp. olive oil
4 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. dried oregano
salt and pepper
1 cup quinoa
1 can mixed beans (or use black or kidney beans if you don't have mixed)
1/2 can chick peas
1/2 cup diced red onion
1/2 cup each green, red and yellow pepper slivers
1 cup green peas, cooked
crumbled feta cheese

Put quinoa in 2 cups water and bring to a boil, then stir, cover with lid and turn heat down to low.  Cook until water is gone, approximately 15 minutes.  Mix cooked quinoa, beans, vegetables and feta in large bowl.  Combine oil, lemon juice, oregano and salt and pepper, and shake in a bottle to mix.  Pour over salad and refrigerate 1 hour or overnight.