A huge thank you to Jessica Festa over at Epicure & Culture for the feature!

Epicure & Culture is an online magazine exploring the cultural side of travel via food, drink and the local people. ​In this article, I share my tips on finding the best steak and ale pie within Scotland, a history of the dish and my own at-home recipe. Click here to read the full article.

All of the newly flavored hummus products hitting the market have captured my attention. Pickled beet, carrot with apricot, edamame, and in this case white bean with roasted red pepper. If you think about it, their consistency closely resembles a pesto. So it only makes sense to use these products as a sauce. Weeknight meal prep just got easier!

Use any brand that you like. Currently, I enjoy Eat Well Embrace Life by Lantana (not an affiliate or sponsor of this blog). These hummus products are great on their own, but when making a sauce, I like to doctor them just a bit with spices, salt and pepper. Particularly if pasta water is needed to thin it out, which should be done sparingly to preserve flavor. The resulting texture is rich and creamy, very much like an Alfredo sauce but without the dairy. 

Other vegetables that work well in this dish include mushrooms, spinach, grape tomatoes or a primavera mixture of julienned carrots, onion and zucchini. 

If you're wondering what to serve alongside, try a garden salad and a glass of your favorite white wine. Here's to fine vegan eating!

Ingredients:
2 cups dry gluten free or regular penne pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup fresh or frozen broccoli florets, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup white bean hummus
1/8 teaspoon chili powder
salt and crushed black pepper to taste

Directions:
Cook the penne according to package directions. Strain the pasta, reserving one ladle-full of pasta water.

In a sauté pan, heat the oil and broccoli over medium-high until cooked through. Add the garlic, allowing to cook for another minute. Remove from heat and stir in the hummus, chili powder, salt and pepper. Toss the pasta with the sauce to coat. If the sauce is too thick, add a little of the reserved pasta water to thin it out. 

Yield: 2-4 servings

While everyone else is all about chocolate bunnies and Easter eggs, this weekend I'm thinking about the vegetable situation. Mainly, what to do for a side dish when the family gets together. 

My lightened up approach to potato au gratin subs in eggplant, zucchini, pesto and lots of cheese! This is one of those dishes that anyone can make. All you have to do is slice, layer and bake. Easy! 

Included in the recipe is a homemade pesto, but store-bought is fine too. If you're serving a traditional lamb, a mint pesto will work well. In this case, I went the basil route because we typically have ham or a roast for Easter.

I love breaking out my beat-up, eggshell blue, French inspired pan. This particular pan has never been anywhere near France, but it looks like I could have purchased it there. So, if you have an old pan or baking dish that you love, show it off. And let someone else cook the potatoes. This is much easier!

Step 1: Spread the pesto mixture evenly over the bottom of the baking dish.

Step 2: Place the eggplant slices over the pesto, starting with the largest slices first.

Step 3: Sprinkle a third of the lemony cheese mixture over the eggplant. 

Step 4: Layer the sliced zucchini over the cheese.

Step 5: Sprinkle the remaining cheese onto the zucchini.

Step 6: Spoon the pesto into any gaps between the layered zucchini.

Ingredients:

Pesto:
1 bunch fresh basil, stems removed 
2 cloves garlic
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:
To make the pesto, puree all ingredients in a high speed blender or food processor. Store in an airtight container until ready to use.

Au Gratin:
1 cup pesto, homemade or store-bought
1 large eggplant, peeled and sliced
Kosher salt
zest of 1 lemon
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
freshly ground black pepper
2 zucchini, sliced

Directions:
Place the eggplant on a plate and sprinkle generously with salt. Allow to sit for 30 minutes, then rinse with cold water.

Pre-heat the oven to 400ºF.  Evenly spread a quarter of the pesto into a baking dish. Place the eggplant slices over the pesto layer. In a bowl, toss together the lemon zest, cheese and pepper. Sprinkle a third of the cheese mixture over the eggplant. Layer with the zucchini slices. Cover with the remaining lemon, cheese and pepper. Spoon the remaining pesto along any open spaces between the zucchini slices. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until bubbling and golden. Turn the broiler on high and cook for 1 minute to finish it off. 

Yield: 12-18 servings