Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

1 large spaghetti squash, halved
1 large eggplant, sliced crosswise
2 red peppers, seeded and quartered
1 zucchini, halved, sliced crosswise
6 mushrooms, sliced
12 oven roasted tomatoes (recipe included)
1 jar gluten free marinara sauce
½ cup skim mozzarella
2 TBSP parmesan


Preheat oven to 375. Place squash on a baking sheet, place eggplant on a separate one, finally, the remainder vegetables (except tomatoes) on another baking sheet.  They will have separate cooking times so make sure to check them.  Brush all the vegetables with olive oil and salt and pepper.  Place in oven to roast approximately 12-15 minutes, they will be a light brown color.  Remove and set aside.


Place 1/3 cup marinara sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 pan and begin layering vegetables starting with eggplant, then sauce, then zucchini and peppers, then sauce, then mushrooms, squash and roasted tomatoes.  Finish with sauce and sprinkle with cheeses.  Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes or until cheese is light brown and bubbly.

 Slow Roasted Tomatoes

A  few bunches of vine-ripened tomatoes
Olive oil
Salt

Preheat oven to 275.  Cut the tomatoes in half horizontally.  Place on a baking sheet and rub with a small amount of olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake with seed side up for 3 hours or until they look almost sun-dried.  They will keep for a week in an airtight container.  Mine never last a week!! I munch on them like they were chips!  So very sweet and yummy!!

Sesame Crusted Tuna

Some days, I just can’t handle.  I get frustrated trying to figure out meals.  Something that everyone will enjoy is beyond my reach, some days.  Being creative with different flavours is all but disappeared with a seven year old.  He used to be very adventurous as a toddler, he’d eat whatever was put in front of him.  Now he turns his nose up at anything that he can’t recognize.  Where does this attitude come from? I have always been in the kitchen experimenting with recipes.  Some turn out perfectly and some become giant flops! When I watch Chef at Home from the Food Network it amazes me that Chef Michael has his 4 year old son eating crazy things that I may not even touch...How does he do that?? Yet, I try, I try, I try!!

 

In school he has said that when he grows up he wants to be a NHL player (who doesn’t? I still do!!) chef or baker. Hmmmmm, not with that attitude kid!!  He’s so stubborn.  Even when I know he’ll love something and beg him for a short while to just- have- ONE -bite, he spits it out with a disgusted look….SO STUBBORN!!  Maybe, just maybe he gets it from me.  Seeing his mom not able to eat many things because of allergies.  I mean things that I want really, really badly that I start frothing at the mouth.  

 

Could it ALL BE MY FAULT?  Great, more guilt!! Have I ruined my child’s appetite for culinary excellence for the rest of his life? “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.”

 

Here’s what’s for dinner tonight….

 

Sesame Crusted Tuna

 

 

Make sure you get a nice, big piece of FRESH tuna!!

 

Fresh whole tuna should be displayed buried in ice, while fillets and steaks should be placed on top of the ice. 
Smell can help you to determine if the tuna is fresh.  If it has a truly strong fishy odor, return it.

 

 

 

1 tablespoon chopped green onions
2 tablespoons gf soy sauce

2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons honey
1 1/4 teaspoons prepared wasabi paste
1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
4 (6-ounce) tuna steaks (about 3/4 inch thick)
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 tablespoons black sesame seeds
Sliced green onions (optional)

DIPPING SAUCE Combine first 10 ingredients.

SEARED TUNA Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle tuna with salt. Combine sesame seeds in a shallow dish. Lightly coat Tuna in Soy sauce. Dredge tuna in sesame seeds. Add tuna to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Garnish with green onions, if desired. Serve with dipping sauce.

 

***Cross your fingers people!!