Vegetarian Dinner Guest

V

vicki-in-tucson

Well-known member
Hi all,

So glad to see the lively conversation.

I am having a dinner party at the end of February, and one of my dinner guests is vegetarian. I would like to make coq au vin for the main dish, and I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions/recipes for a vegetarian dish that would complement the coq au vin. (The guest in question said to cook whatever I wanted and he'll find something to eat, but that seems ungracious!) Perhaps some sort of vegetable dish?

Any thoughts?

Thanks much,

Amanda/Illinois

 
How about a great pasta dish? There are lots on this site. One of my favorites is

PASTA WITH ROASTED VEGETABLES AND GARLIC BROTH.
Edited to add: I wasn't considering this as a side dish to have with the Coq au Vin, but rather as a main dish for your vegetarian guest.
A simpler pasta dish, however, would go with the Coq Au Vin, although I prefer rice with it.

 
sounds great.!

my husband has weighed in and says I should just cook dishes everyone can eat. I agree, so will probably cook pasta or cheese enchiladas or something like that.

 
Forgot to tell you where to find the recipe. It's posted here in the Favorite Recipes folder ....

and it's from Bon Appetit at www.epicurious.com

 
I'm a recovering vegetarian and used to say things like "don't worry, I'll find something to eat."

And it was never a problem. I would not have felt like my hostess was ungracious for serving meat, because there was usually a vegetarian side dish or two, or at least bread and salad. Besides, I could always fill up on dessert!

 
REC: Eggplant au Gratin which almost can make me forget about meat

Eggplant au Gratin
from German cookbook lent by Pat Byerle

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs eggplant, peeled and sliced to 1/4"
salt
about 1/2 c. flour for dredging
3 tbs butter
2 tbs olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbs flour for sauce
1/2 c cream
1/4 c Gruyere cheese, coarsely grated
pinch ground nutmeg
1/4 c. grated romano or parmesan cheese
2 tbs breadcrumbs
butter

PREPARATION:

Spread eggplant slices in layers, lightly salting each layer. Let sit for 30 minutes to remove bitter taste. Rinse and gently squeeze dry.

Dredge eggplant slices in flour and saute in hot butter and oil mix until flesh is wrinkled. Repeat for other side. Watch heat - don't scorch. Chop coarsely and reserve.

Saute garlic over low heat. Add flour and stir with wire whisk for about 5 minutes. Slowly add cream while continuing to whisk until sauce is smooth and thickened. Watch heat. Add cheese and nutmeg and continue to whisk until cheese has melted.

Add eggplant. Turn into 2 greased 1/2-size loaf pans. Sprinkle with romano and bread crumbs. Dot with butter.
Bake at 475 F until top has browned.


This is adapted from a German cookbook borrowed from a friend who has moved. Sorry i can't credit the author. It's listed as Überbackene Aubergine (the unreadable character for some of you is a U umlaut).

When i served this for 120, i deep fried the eggplant cause sauteing would've taken a week. (nobody complained.)

 
This sounds fab...

Unfortunately, hubby dislikes eggplant with a purple passion. I'll cook it some night when he's out of the house. smileys/wink.gif

 
Really? That makes me feel better...

I always feel like I'm being incredibly rude when I serve a meat dish with a vegetarian in the house...I guess because the few vegetarians I know follow it for moral reasons. But I definitely want to make sure they have something good to eat!

Amanda/Illinois

 
RVB I'm making this soon, eggplant is on the shoppin list. Question...

I hate having to brown batches of eggplant. Have you ever made it by oven roasting the slices?

Thanks again for a fantastic recipe.

Muse

 
How about risotto?

If you have a pressure cooker it can be done in about 10 minutes.
Or if you want to make it ahead, the way restaurants do it is to cook it to the point of your last extra additions. Spread on a cookie sheet and refrigerate. When ready to serve, put in pan and finish.

 
that should work fine. as i recall, the original recipe...

had you remove the "meat" except for a thin shell and making the dish in the original skin.

 
We have vegetarian friends, and I realized this...

I thought back over the side dishes I had prepared to accomadate them, and many are loaded with cheese and are heavy dishes. I decided to make a pilaf with nuts and whole grains, roasted vegetables, or corn pudding instead. They were pleased because they had given up red meat to avoid the fat, and the cheese was too fatty for them.
I guess if I was making coq au vin for them, I'd serve a hearty vegetable side dish like Charlie's Colorful Vegetable Casserole or a corn pudding.


Colorful Vegetable Casserole

Recipe By :Epicurious
Serving Size : 6 Preparation Time :1:00


3 cups cauliflower flowerets
3 cups sliced carrots
3 cups broccoli florets
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
3 tablespoons prepared
horseradish -- (2-3 Tbls)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/3 cup dry bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter -- melted
1/8 teaspoon paprika

Place cauliflower and carrots in a large
saucepan; add a small amount of water.
Cover and cook for 3 minutes. Add broccoli;
cook 4-6 minutes longer or until all the
vegetables are crisp-tender. Drain.
Combine mayonnaise, onion, horseradish, salt
and pepper; add vegetables and mix well.
Pour into a greased 2-qt. baking dish.
Combine bread crubms, butter and paprika;
sprinkle over vegetables. Bake, uncovered,
at 350 degreees for 25-30 minutes or until
heated through.
charlie

 
Fun article!

Loved the "inky Beaujolais" image, and the description of making coq au vin using leftover wine from the customer's glasses! Can you imagine an American restaurant doing that?

Thanks for the link; I plan to send the article to my mother (who taught me how to cook coq au vin).

Amanda/Illinois

 
Oh yummy!!! and to make it even better, I have all the ingrediants here in the house!!!

I bought the eggplant to make a parm. but seeing this changed my mind!
thanks
rvb

 
The mature vegetarians that I know, even if their dietary restrictions are morally determined,

recognize that others do not have the same perspective on this issue.

I'm sure they appreciate your sensitivity. You sound like a really gracious hostess. But if your guest is telling you not to worry about it, then he probably really means he doesn't want to cause you extra stress trying to accommodate him!

 
Quite often I serve a vegetarian meal thinking out the dishes as if we were all vegies and then.

doing the meat as an after thought. In otherwords just the reverse of doing the veg. dish as a sort of after thought (nevermind that, like you, I've agonised over what the veg. dish should be).
My vegetarian friends think this is a great thing I do as, in fact, it is kind of what they do when entertaining us.
So I'll start with a salad, have a heavier main dish perhaps with cheese (this eggplant one of rvb's sounds excellent)and a lighter side or two, and tack on the meat.....and Bob's you Uncle...
good pud to round off the emal and excellent wine throught out.

 
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