In this entrée, tender eggplant embraces a filling of quinoa, peppers, and baby spinach, creating a wholesome blend of flavors. Topped with a velvety romesco sauce enriched with pine nuts and cashews, this dish is a symphony of tastes and textures. This recipe was inspired by a recipe of the same name by drfuhrman.com and Chef Martin Oswald.
Serves 6.
Ingredients:
Cannelloni Ingredients:
2 medium (900g) eggplant, unpeeled
1 cup (150g) red peppers, diced
½ large onion (80g), chopped
1 cup (100g) carrots, chopped
½ cup (50g) celery, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
3 cups (200g) baby spinach
1 tablespoon Galaxy Dust
1 scant cup (150g) cooked white quinoa
Pine Nut Romesco Sauce Ingredients:
1 clove garlic
3 ounces (75g) roasted red bell peppers
3 tablespoons (50ml) red wine vinegar
Pinch of chili flakes
2 ounces (50g) pine nuts
2 teaspoons nutritional yeast
Tomato Sauce Ingredients:
3 28-ounce cans (2500g) plum tomato purée
1 large (150g) onion, chopped fine
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
4 teaspoons Galaxy Dust
2 teaspoons date powder
1½ teaspoons cracked pepper
2 tablespoons chopped basil
4 teaspoons cornstarch
Cashew Paste:
½ cup (65g) cashews
½ cup (125ml) water
1. Preheat oven to 175°C/350°F.
2. Cashew Paste: Using a blender, prepare a smooth paste of cashew and water. Transfer to a squeeze bottle and set aside.
3. Cannelloni: Slice eggplant lengthwise in ¼-inch thick slices. Arrange eggplant in a single layer on a sheet pan. Pat dry to remove excess water and season with Galaxy Dust. Bake for 15 minutes, until eggplant is cooked and flexible enough to roll up easily. Set aside.
4. Filling: Heat a few tablespoons of water in a large pan; when sizzling, add the bell pepper, onion, celery, and garlic. Sauté until just tender, adding more water if needed. Add spinach and Galaxy Dust and cook until spinach is wilted. Add the cooked quinoa. Place a spoonful of filling at one end of an eggplant slice and roll to form a cylinder. Repeat for all eggplant slices and set them aside.
5. Pine Nut Romesco Sauce: Roast bell peppers in oven for 15 minutes. Remove and allow to cool. Once cooled, peel skin and deseed peppers. Combine the peppers with the garlic, vinegar, chili flakes, pine nuts, and nutritional yeast in a blender and blend to a smooth paste. Season with Galaxy Dust. Add water to adjust the consistency, if necessary.
6. Tomato Sauce: Heat a few tablespoons of water in a large pan, and add chopped onion and garlic; sauté until tender. Add puréed plum tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and allow to simmer until slightly thickened. Season with Galaxy Dust, cracked pepper, date powder, and chopped basil. Prepare a slurry of cornstarch and stir it in to thicken the tomato sauce. Remove from heat and set aside.
7. Assembly: Spoon tomato sauce onto plate and spread evenly. Warm the eggplant rolls in oven (4 minutes at 175°C/350°F) or microwave each for 20 seconds. Place the rolls in the middle of the plate on top of the tomato sauce. Spoon romesco sauce over the top of the eggplant rolls. Drizzle cashew paste on top of the romesco as shown in the photo and garnish with microgreens.