Vegetarian Holiday Feasts from Oa's Kitchen

Mila and Oa have experimented with many lovely feasts again this year in collaboration with the earth mother consciousness to provide loving entrees to be served at special occasions such as the Holiday Season. Oa's happiest moments are often slaving over a hot stove, and Mila definitely appreciates the outcome of such moments. Times are tough if they are both working hard and there is no one in the kitchen to prepare the food! Then such moments cause Mila and Oa to eat out at their favorite restaurants.

Cooking at home is missed when Mila and Oa are on the road for any length of time. This year they spent almost a month in Montana in March and again in August. This time they rented condos with lovely kitchens to prepare their own meals, and this made time away from home in the Islands much more joyous. Some of these recipes were experimented with in Montana as a result.

Please fee free to mix and match the below entrees with other entrees from other sections within Oa's Kitchen. We will continue to add to this section each year from Oa's continued experimentation in the kitchen. Happy eating!.

**Holiday Entrees**

The below entrees make a lovely addition to any holiday meal and will create a feeling of caring and sharing amongst all gathered . It is for this reason that these recipes were chosen by the Earth Mother. Feel free to mix and match these entrees with other choices from other recipes in Oa's Kitchen.
SQUASH MUSHROOM AND ZUCCHINI PHYLLO TORTE Serves 4-6 1 small Butternut Squash peeled and diced 1 zucchini diced 1 cup diced Mushrooms of choice (crimini, oyster or shitake) 3 cloves Roasted or fresh Garlic 6 ounces Cream Cheese 3/4 cup Sour Cream 1 Teaspoon Turmeric 1 Tbsp Poultry Seasoning (rosemary, thyme and sage) Salt and Lemon Pepper to taste Peanut or other nut oil for frying 6 pieces Phyllo Pastry 4 Tbsp Butter melted 12 x 8 x 4 glass pan This dish makes a lovely presentation with the phyllo dough wrapped all around the ingredients which are similar to a mushroom squash pot pie. Yum! Serve with a nice salad and side vegetable of choice and French bread plus wine, beer or apple cider for a complete meal.	Place a good amount of peanut oil in a heated frying pan. Add the garlic and allow to toast. Add the squash, zucchini, and mushrooms and sauté for 10 minutes. Add the cream cheese and sour cream, herbs, spices, salt and pepper. Stir until the cream cheese melts and allow to cool slightly. Butter or oil the bottom of a glass baking pan. Cut the Phyllo Dough to be double the size of the pan. Add one layer of phyllo Dough at a time and brush with melted butter. Add the squash mixture and fold the phyllo on top. Brush all remaining butter on the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes until dough turns brown. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before cutting and serving. This is a good dish to make ahead of time and then reheat for special occasions.
STUFFED PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS WITH GARLIC MASHED POTATOES AND ROASTED ASPARAGUS Serves 4 4 Large Portobello Mushrooms 1 Yellow Onion minced 8 large Red Potatoes 8 Cloves Roasted Garlic Salt and Pepper to taste 1/4 lb. melted butter 3/4 cup Whole Milk 1 cup Ponzu Sauce (or soy sauce plus 1 tbsp lemon juice) 8 Slices Dill Havarti Cheese 1 Bunch Asparagus Olive Oil Balsamic Vinegar This dish has been served in many fancy restaurants as the favored vegetarian offering. Oa improvised upon this dish in the above recipe. Serve with a nice soup and salad plus French bread or rolls and wine, beer or cider for a complete meal.	Place the portobello mushrooms face up on a roasting pan. In a heated frying pan, add some olive oil and the minced onion and sauté until translucent. Add the ponzu sauce and simmer until liquid is mostly absorbed. Top each mushroom with 1/4 of the onion and ponzu sauce. Roast the mushrooms for 20 minutes at 400 degrees and set aside. Place the washed and trimmed asparagus in a bread pan. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, adding salt and pepper to taste. Roast for 40 minutes at 400 degrees. Boil the potatoes and allow to cool to the touch. Mash with a potato masher or cut up and add to a food processor. Add the roasted garlic and melted butter, milk and salt and pepper to taste and hand mix or blend. If using a food processor, do not over process. Simply rotate the blade 4 to 5 times until mixed. Top each roasted portobello mushroom with a mound of mashed potatoes. Cover each with two slices havarti cheese. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees or until cheese melts. Serve with a few asparagus spears on top.
TORTA DI RISOTTO Serves 4-6 1 long Eggplant thinly sliced lengthwise 3 cloves roasted or fresh Garlic 16 ounce can crushed organic tomatoes 1 bunch Basil torn 1 cup Arborio Risotto Rice 4 ounces Mozzarella Cheese cut into 1/4 inch cubes 4 ounces Fontina cheese cut into 1/4 inch cubes 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 1/4 cup breadcrumbs salt and pepper to taste olive oil and balsamic vinegar Brown Sugar Fresh Arugala This dish makes a lovely loaf like presentation that is pretty to serve with a few pieces of arugala or side salad of choice. Serve with soup and bread along with wine, beer or cider for a complete meal.	Brush the sides of the eggplant with olive oil and place in an oven proof dish. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 40 minutes at 400 degrees until tender. In a heated saucepan, add a good amount of olive oil and sauté the garlic until fragrant. Add the tomatoes, a tablespoon each of brown sugar and balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 10 minutes and stir in the torn basil. (Note do not add more than the required amount of tomatoes as the torta will not be firm enough otherwise to form a loaf.) Place the rice in a pan of boiling water and simmer for 10 minutes until partially cooked. Drain and add the rice to the tomato sauce and mix well. Stir in the cheeses. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of bread crumbs in the bottom of a oiled 9 x 5 x 3 loaf pan. Spoon half of the rice mixture to the pan. Top the rice with the roasted eggplant and then add the remaining rice to the top. Sprinkle the top with the remaining bread crumbs. Bake at 425 degrees for 30-40 minutes until golden and bubbling around the edges. Let stand for 10 minutes. Run a long sharp knife around the edges and turn upside down upon a platter or serving tray. Slice into 4-6 pieces and serve.
MUSHROOM MOUSSAKA Serves 4-6 1 Large Eggplant sliced into 1/2 inch slices 1 large yellow Potato cue into 1/2 inch slices 4 tbsp melted Butter 1 white Onion finely diced 2 cloves Garlic chopped 1 lb. Mushrooms of choice sliced 13 ounce can organic chopped Tomatoes 1/2 tsp. Sugar 2 cups Whole Milk 1 Egg beaten 1/3 cup unbleached Flour 4 ounces grated Parmesan Cheese Olive oil Each visit to Greece, one of the taverna owners would cook Mila and Oa vegetarian Moussaka. It is just this year that Oa finally experimented with a recipe that he liked. Serve with some hummus and Tzatziki dip, a Greek salad and pita bread along with wine, beer, ouzo or cider for a complete meal.	Preheat an oven to 425 degrees. Place the sliced eggplant and potatoes on an oiled backing pan and sprinkle with salt an pepper. Roast for 20 minutes. Melt 1/2 the butter in a large frying pan. Add the onion and stir for 4 minutes until soft. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 2-3 minutes until soft. Add the tomatoes and sugar, salt and pepper to taste, and reduce the temperature, simmering for 8 minutes or until slightly reduced. Melt the remaining butter in another sauce pan over low heat. Ad the flour and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat and gradually stir in the milk. Return to the heat stirring constantly until it boils and thickens. Reduce and simmer for 2 more minutes. Remove from the heat, and when the bubbles subside, stir in the egg and parmesan cheese. Oil a 48 ounce ovenproof dish. Spoon 1/3 of the mushroom mixture into the dish. Cover with 1/3 of the roasted potatoes. Add another two layer of mushrooms followed by the potatoes and then top with the eggplant. Cover the entire dish with the béchamel (milk) sauce. Bake for 30-35 minutes until slightly brown on top. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.
WHITE PIE LASAGNA WITH ROASTED EGGPLANT Serves 6-8 1 large Eggplant sliced Balsamic Vinegar Olive Oil 1 package organic Lasagna Noodles (self cooking) 15 ounces whole milk Ricotta Cheese 6 sun dried tomatoes finely diced 1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese 1 egg 1 Leek diced 2 cloves garlic chopped 4 Oyster Mushrooms diced 2 Stalks Fennel diced (white part only) 1/4 cup red wine 1/2 cup sour cream 1/2 cup half and half 8 ounces Cream Cheese 2 tbsp Capers 1/2 cup white wine 4 ounces grated Mozzarella cheese Salt and Pepper to taste This recipe was improvised from a white lasagna that Mila created long ago in her own cooking experiments. Serve with a nice Italian salad and soup along with French bread and red wine or cider for a complete meal.	Brush the eggplant with a little olive oil and place upon a roasting pan. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and drizzle with balsamic vinegar. Roast for 30 minutes at 400 degrees until tender. In a frying pan, heat some olive oil adding the garlic and simmering until fragrant. Add the diced leek and fennel and simmer for a few minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Add the red wine to deglaze. Then add the sour cream, half and half, cream cheese and capers. Stir until melted. In a mixing bowl, blend the ricotta cheese with the diced sun dried tomatoes and parmesan cheese. Mix well adding the egg and salt and pepper to taste. In a large oiled lasagna pan, add a layer of dry noodles to the bottom. Top with 1/3 the mushroom mixture. Then top with the roasted eggplant and cover with 1/3 of the ricotta mixture. Add another two layers each of dry noodles followed by mushrooms and ricotta cheese mixture. Add another layer of noodles and cover with grated mozzarella cheese. Drizzle the 1/2 cup wine over the entire lasagna. Bake covered with foil for 50 minutes until tender. Uncover and bake for another 10 minutes until cheese turns slightly brown. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.
CHESTNUT PHYLLO TORTE WITH TOMATO GINGER COULIS Serves 6-8 4 cups Spinach leaves 2 yellow Onions chopped 2 cups chopped Mushrooms 1 1b. cooked, peeled Chestnuts chopped (can substitute Walnuts) 3 Garlic cloves chopped 4 tbsp Marmalade 5 sheets Filo pastry 4 tablespoons Butter melted 2 teaspoons coriander 2 teaspoons cinnamon salt and pepper to taste 9 inch round ovenproof dish TOMATO GINGER SAUCE 1/2 cup olive oil 4 garlic cloves 2 inches fresh ginger peeled and chopped 2 lb. canned chopped tomatoes 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar 3/4 cup Madeira win or dry sherry Salt and cayenne pepper This recipe is quite fulfilling due to the chestnuts, which have an attribute similar to beans that creates a feeling of grounding unto the earth mother. Enjoy with a nice soup and salad, French bread and wine or cider for a complete meal.	Steam the spinach in a separate pan until wilted and set aside. Heat the olive oil to a large frying pan. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Add the onions, mushrooms, coriander, cinnamon, salt and pepper and cook until soft. Add the chestnuts (or walnuts) and cook for a few minutes before adding the spinach and marmalade. Take one sheet of phyllo dough at a time and place inside a round oiled pan and brush with butter. Layer each phyllo sheet to the right and brush with butter. Spoon in the mixture and fold the phyllo over the top. Top with remaining butter. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes. To prepare the coulis, heat the olive oil in a saucepan adding the garlic and ginger, and sauté until fragrant. Add the tomatoes, vinegar, sugar and Madeira and simmer gently for 20-30 minutes, stirring frequently. Add salt and cayenne pepper to taste. You can pour the coulis through a sieve for a smoother texture. Serve each piece of Torte with some coulis drizzled over the top.