HI ARBOR
an e-newsletter for vegetarians
V.3 No.10
October 16, 2003

Hello, and welcome back to The Hi Arbor. I hope each of you will find 
something here you like. First a trip to Turkey, then an interesting history of 
okra plus two recipes. Next is a website where you can sign up for emailed 
recipes. If you have any suggestions, information or recipes, please send 
them to HiArborNews@aol.com. Many thanks. The next issue of this 
newsletter will go out on November 20, 2003, one week before Thanksgiving. 
Until then, take care.
Roxanne

Someone mentioned going to visit the country of Turkey. That gave me 
the idea of visiting Turkey through food related things. The following Turkish 
recipe comes from a web site called Recipe Source [see addresses below] 
and they seem to invite the use of their recipes. There was a place for me to 
click to get this recipe away from the ads and such for printing or saving.

http://www.recipesource.com/ethnic/africa/middle-east/turkish/guvec1.html

OR

http://www.recipesource.com/ethnic/
for the home page

* Exported from MasterCook *

GUVEC OR TURLU - VEGETABLE CASSEROLE 
6 servings

Recipe By : The Complete Middle Eastern Cookbook/Bobb1744
Preparation Time :0:00

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 large Eggplants
Salt
4 small Zucchini
3 small Sweet green peppers
250 grams Okra -- optional
250 grams Green beans
4 small ripe tomatoes -- peeled
1/2 cup Olive oil
3 small Onions -- sliced
2 Garlic cloves -- crushed
1/4 cup Chopped parsley
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup Water

Oven temperature: 180 C (350 F) Cooking time: 1-1/2 to 2 hours 
Remove stem from eggplant, wash well then peel off 1 cm (1/2 inch) strips 
of skin lengthwise at intervals giving a striped effect. Cut long eggplants in
1 cm (1/2 inch) slices; oval eggplant should be quartered lengthwise, then
cut into chunky pieces. Spread eggplant on a tray and sprinkle liberally
with salt. Leave for 30 minutes, then pat dry with paper towels.

Trim zucchini and cut into 4 cm (1-1/2 inch) pieces. Remove stem and 
seeds from peppers and quarter. Wash, trim and (if desired) de-fuzz okra. 
Soak in vinegar to remove slime. Drain.

String beans if necessary and slit in half (French cut). Slice tomatoes.

Heat half the oil in a frying pan and fry eggplant until lightly browned.
Remove to a plate - do not drain.

Add remaining oil to a pan, add sliced onions and fry gently until
transparent. Stir in garlic, cook 1 minute, then remove pan from heat.

Place a layer of eggplant in the base of a casserole dish. Top with some of
the zucchini, peppers and beans. Spread some onion mixture on top and 
cover with tomato slices. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and some of the parsley.
Repeat until all ingredients are used, reserving some tomato slices and
parsley.

Place prepared okra on top if used and cover with last of tomato.
Sprinkle with parsley, salt and pepper and add water and oil drained from
eggplant.

Cover casserole and cook in a moderate oven for 1 to 1-1/2 hours until
vegetables are tender. Serve from casserole as an accompaniment to roast 
or grilled meats or poultry. Often this is served as a light meal on its own;
bread and peynir (feta) cheese are then served with it.

Tess Mallos, "The Complete Middle East Cookbook"

The above "Turlu" recipe calls for okra, though it is optional, and an India 
Indian restaurant near where I live serves okra. This piqued my interest. I 
always thought of okra as something distinctive to the American South , but 
it's origins are on the other side of the Atlantic.

HISTORY OF OKRA

Here is the first paragraph of a history of okra. The rest can be found at 
the website below.


"0kra (Hibiscus esculentus) is also called "gumbo" in this country, 


although the latter term is more often applied to soups or other dishes which 
contain okra. Both of these names are of African origin. "Gumbo" is believed 
to be a corruption of a Portuguese corruption, quingombo, of the word 
quillobo, native name for the plant in the Congo and Angola area of Africa."

http://aggie- horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/publications/vegetabletravelers/okra.html

OKRA RECIPES:
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/veggies/okra1.html#12

These two recipes come from the University of Illinois extension 
service and many vegetables are featured at their website, not just 
okra,

OKRA AND CORN WITH TOMATOES 
6 servings

Serve this Carolina favorite over a bowl of long-grain rice with a piece of hot 
cornbread. The okra should be young, not longer than 2 inches. Vine ripen 
tomatoes and fresh bell peppers add to the richness of this dish. 

2 tablespoons each butter and canola oil 
1 large onion, thinly sliced into rounds 
2 bay leaves 
1/2 teaspoon each thyme, red pepper flakes and basil 
1 green bell pepper, seeded and finely diced 
3 large fresh ripe, tomatoes seeded and chopped 
4 ears corn, remove kernels, about 2 cups 
(may use frozen or canned whole kernel, drained) 
2 cups small okra pods, left whole or 1/4-inch-thick rounds 
1/2 cup water or [vegetagble broth] 
3/4 teaspoon salt 
1/4 teaspoon black pepper 
In a 10 inch iron skillet or heavy pan, heat olive oil and add onions, bay 
leaves, thyme, basil, and red pepper flakes. Sauté, and stir until onions are 
limp add bell pepper and continue cooking until onions are translucent. Add 
tomatoes, okra, water, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low, and simmer 
uncovered for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add corn and cook 5 minutes 
longer. Taste, adjust seasoning if needed. Serve hot.

OKRA AND GREEN BEANS 
6 servings

This dish tastes even better after refrigerating overnight. The flavors blend 
into a wonderful taste sensation. Serve it warm or cold. This dish can also be 
oven-baked. Instead of simmering, lightly cover with aluminum foil and bake 
for 30 minutes at 350°F.

3/4 pound fresh okra, uncut 
4 tablespoons olive oil 
Vinegar (optional) 
1 medium onion, diced 
3/4 pound fresh green beans 
2 large garlic cloves, crushed then chopped 
1 cup water plus 2 tablespoons salt and freshly ground pepper 
1 6-ounce can tomato paste 
Wash okra pods, trim stems, do not remove caps. If desired soak okra in 
vinegar for 30 minutes to remove some of the stickiness. Rinse well and drain. 
Wash beans and cut into 3 inch lengths. Combine water, tomato paste, olive 
oil, onion, garlic, salt and pepper in a sauce pan and mix well.

Heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comet to boil. Add okra and beans 
and additional water if necessary to almost cover vegetables.

Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer gently until vegetables are crisp-
tender, 20 to 30 minutes. 

WEBSITE:

A reader directed me to the website below. I've signed up for email 
recipes and food information. Will look for items I can pass along here.

http://kraftfoods.com/

X X X

The End