Tomato Casserole

Brrrr.....it was so cold today....only in the mid 40's.  We went out for a walk earlier, when the wind chill was 33 degrees!  I thought my ears were gonna fall off.  I know what you're thinking....but hey, this is New Orleans!

Went to the market yesterday, on the way to rehearsal. Got some good stuff: broccoli, mustard greens, red mustard greens, lettuce, hydroponic tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, strawberries, various oranges, white turnips, a huge cabbage, and key limes.

I've been meaning to make the Pumpkin Pancakes from Isa Chandra's Vegan Brunch for a while now.  So that's just what I did this morning!  The only difference was that I left out the oil (had to add in a bit of water instead), and used whole wheat flour.  They were amazing!!  I froze a couple of huge pancakes to have later on.

Tonight I thought I'd make something with tomatoes, since I had so many. I also needed to clean out my fridge a bit!  And I came up with a Tomato Casserole:

Tanya's Tomato Casserole:

Topping:


2 medium red-skinned potatoes, boiled
1 medium/large sweet potato (I used a white sweet potato), boiled
~1/4 to 1/2 cup almond milk, unsweetened (or any other non-dairy milk)
salt, pepper, garlic powder, tomato powder (happened to have some from Barry Farm)


Filling:


1 cup (packed) boiled mustard greens (you can sub. spinach or kale)
2 large fresh tomatoes
~1 cup fresh broccoli florets 
optional: 2 tbsp Daiya Italian Shredded "Cheese"


Sauce:


1/2 yellow onion, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
4-8 cherry tomatoes, cut in quarters (or you can use diced canned tomatoes)
~1 cup crushed tomatoes (I use the kind that are pureed and have herbs in them)
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 leek, washed, sliced and halved
salt, pepper, creole seasoning, red pepper flakes
splash of white wine


Mash up all the topping ingredients and set aside.  To make the sauce, put 1/4 cup water in a saute pan and add onions and celery.  Cook until soft.  Add the leek and cherry tomatoes and cook another few minutes. Add the splash of white wine (shhhhh, don't tell my husband I used his wine!)  Add the brown rice and crushed tomatoes and mix well.  You may need to keep adding water from time to time, to keep it from sticking and to add more quantity to the sauce.  Add the spices and let cook for a few minutes.  Preheat oven to 350.  Spread half the sauce into a 9x13 pan (sprayed with oil).  Slice up one tomato into 6 slices.  Layer them evenly on top of the sauce.  Put half the broccoli and half the greens on top of the tomatoes.  Spread the rest of the sauce on top.  Layer the other half of the tomatoes, broccoli, and greens on top.  Sprinkle with the Daiya cheese if using.  Spread the potato topping over the top.  Bake covered for 15 minutes.  Take cover off, and bake for another 15 minutes.  Bake longer, if you want the topping more browned.  



Now remember, this was a "what's in my fridge" casserole.  You're welcome to use whatever YOU happen to have in the fridge!

Hope you all had a Happy New Year celebration!
Eat smart,
T.