Vegetarian "Meatballs" or "Meatloaf"

Veggie "Meatballs"

Did not have the camera handy for the prep and cooking, but if I make these again, I'll take photos.

I am interested in vegetarian dishes, but for the most part find vegetarian is nice as a side dish, not so great as a main course.

I thought I'd make some "meatballs" and be sure they had as much flavor as my ground beef meatballs. I think they are as tasty, but I need to work on the consistency.

Here is what I did:

BROWN RICE:
Saute a finely diced clove of garlic with a finely diced onion and some finely diced celery - about 1/4 cup each of onion and celery, in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.  Add 1 cup of uncooked brown rice.  Stir to coat rice.  Add 1 and 1/3 cup water and a teaspoon of salt.  Cook about 30 minutes or until all water is absorbed.  Set aside.

EGGPLANT and BABY BELLAS:
Finely dice a clove of garlic or two, an onion and a small green Italian frying pepper.  Peel and slice a medium size eggplant, salt the slices and allow to rest for 10 minutes.  Dab off the moisture that is exuded. Finely dice the eggplant.  Process about 8 oz. Baby Bella Mushrooms in a food processor.  Saute the garlic, onion and green pepper in four tablespoons of olive oil (enough to coat the bottom of a large skillet).  After the onion is cooked through, add the eggplant and the mushrooms.  Saute the mixture until the eggplant is tender, about 10 to 15 minutes.  Add a little Marsala wine and a little salt and pepper.  Cook off the wine. Remove from heat.

CHICK PEAS (GARBANZO BEANS):
Open a can of garbanzo beans and process them in a food processor.

Put all of the above prepared ingredients into a large bowl.

Add: A small handful of fresh parsley chopped and a four or five leaves of fresh basil, chopped.  Add 3/4 cup prepared Italian breadcrumbs, one half cup grated parmesan or Romano cheese, two eggs. (I used 4 eggs and my mixture was too soft and the meatballs did not stay round- they're more like triangles.  I think 2 or 3 eggs at most should do). Mix everything together.

Heat several tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet.  Form the mixture into balls and fry in the oil, turning when brown on one side, until more or less evenly browned on all sides.  Makes about 32 meatballs.

Not Pretty - but Tasty

I was eating these as they came out of the frying pan.  I guess you can serve them with spaghetti, but I would not cook them in the tomato sauce because they will probably fall apart.

I think this would also make a nice "Meatloaf".

Pasta With Bacon and Eggs? OR Linguine alla Carbonara con Funghi

I know I've done this one before, but it was almost a year ago and is worth repeating, I think.  At least it's worth having again.

This is called Carbonara (I won't explain the origin of the term, if you're interested, you can check Wikipedia HERE).  I first learned about this dish from the Romagnoli's Table, a Public TV Cooking Show in the early/mid seventies.

If you go to most any "Italian" restaurant today and order Spaghetti alla Carbonara, you will get a dish loaded with cream and very heavy.  The Romagnoli's recipe does not call for cream and all the flavors of the pancetta, black pepper, egg, and cheese create a delightfully salty-meaty-slightly sweet taste on the palette.

I have been known to tinker with a good thing, adding some other favored ingredient, like mushrooms.

So here is my Linguini alla Carbonara con Funghi: You will need Spaghetti or linguini, pancetta (Italian bacon, NOT smoked), olive oil, garlic, Crimini (Baby Bella) mushrooms, black pepper, eggs.  So  bacon and eggs are not just for breakfast anymore.

I'm trying to be more healthy, so I'm using whole grain pasta.  Whole wheat pasta used to be heavy and chewy, but now Barilla makes a good whole grain pasta that tastes and feels like white pasta.

Put your pot of salted water on to boil.

Cover the bottom of a large skillet with olive oil, saute some garlic in it.

Pancetta

Dice up five or six thick slices of pancetta and add to the skillet.  Saute until browned slightly, not really to a crisp.  Remove the pancetta from the skillet, leave the oil and drippings.

Cut up 8 oz of Crimini mushrooms (you can use white mushrooms, but the Baby Bellas have a nice meaty taste.  Add the mushrooms to the skillet and saute in the oil/pancetta fat left in the pan.  Add more olive oil if needed.  When the mushrooms are cooked through and tender, return the pancetta to the skillet.  Keep warm.

Now the water should be boiling so you can throw in a pound of pasta.  Set your timer for al dente.

Meanwhile crack 2 or 3 eggs in a large bowl and beat them well with a whisk.  Add fresh ground black pepper.  Add a little more pepper.  Whisk.

When the pasta is done, drain it in a colander and IMMEDIATELY toss it with the beaten egg mixture which will be cooked by the hot pasta.  Really, it's OK.  I'm not dead yet.

Add the mushrooms and pancetta and toss again.

Serve with grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese.

Benissimo!
AS GOOD AS THIS IS, IT IS NOT GOOD AS A LEFT-OVER!