Opinions Wanted!

[tuff2000]

I have two questions:

1. Has anyone had the Orzo and Portobello Casserole from the CL Complete? How is it? I was thinking about making it tonight, but was curious to how well it turned out. Does the tomato juice come out strange? It seemed strange to me that the recipe called for this, I don't know why, but I would think about subbing diced tomatoes with their juices. Any opinions?

2. Has anyone had the Barbecued Eggplant and Lentils? I found it on the recipe finder. Is this good? what would you serve with it?

Thanks Everyone!
Tara

[misstapioca]

http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=37457&highlight=orzo+portabello+casserole

someone reviewed it right here.. I didn't find anything about the barbecued eggplant and lentils though

[tuff2000]

I made the Orzo and Portobello Casserole tonight, and was pleasantly surprised! It turned out great. I did decide to use diced garlic and basil tomatoes rather than the tomato juice, and also I used mozzarella cheese rather than provolone. This will definitley be made again in this house:)

[tuff2000]

I was thinking about adding the Barbecued Eggplant and Lentils to my menu this week. But I am stumped on what to serve on the side of it. If anyone has any ideas, I would love to hear them. Thanks. By the way, here is the recipe.

Barbecued Eggplant and Lentils
Published: Cooking Light- 01/01/97

INGREDIENTS
6 cups cubed eggplant
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 garlic cloves, minced
Cooking spray
2 cups chopped leek
2 cups diced carrot
2 cups no-salt-added tomato juice
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (28-ounce) can no-salt-added whole tomatoes, undrained and chopped
2 cups cooked lentils
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated Parmesan cheese


INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 375°F.

Combine first 7 ingredients in a large bowl; toss well to coat. Arrange eggplant mixture in a single layer on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375°F for 30 minutes.


Coat a nonstick skillet with cooking spray; place over medium-high heat until hot. Add leek and carrot; sauté 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Add tomato juice, vinegar, honey, salt, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Stir in lentils and eggplant mixture. Reduce heat; simmer 35 minutes or until thick.


Spoon 2 cups mixture into 4 individual gratin dishes coated with cooking spray. Combine breadcrumbs and cheese; sprinkle 1/4 cup breadcrumb mixture over each serving. Bake at 375°F for 10 minutes or until browned.

YIELD: Yield: 4 servings.

Note: Recipe can be prepared in a 3-quart casserole dish, if desired.

NUTRITIONAL INFO
calories: 403 carbohydrates: 63.5 g cholesterol: 11 fat: 9.3 g sodium: 688 mg protein: 20.9 g calcium: 364 mg iron: 6.8 mg fiber:

[valchemist]

I made the barbecued eggplant and lentils for dinner last night. well, I made a variation of it. It was very good.

I used about 3 cups cooked lentils (1 1/3 cups dried) and maybe about 8 cups eggplant. also, I doubled the marinade for the eggplant. oh, but instead of doubling the paprika, I used 1 tsp paprika and a heaping teaspoon of chili powder (I would recommend using the chili powder to spice this dish up). I used onions instead of leeks. This turned out very well. nice flavors. but there were a ton of steps. wasn't hard, just took a while. the last step of putting it into a casserole and topping it with breadcrumbs/cheese is NOT necessary. just serve it out of the skillet. would go well with rice, but we just had it plain.

[Terrytx]

I think that orzo cassarole sound interesting. I think I'll try it.