I have been trying to clean up my diet a bit and was so excited to make this! Our oven back in Nova Scotia has been broken for… hmm over a month? I’ve been living with a friend and now have access to an oven!! This dish is all about delicious vegetables, with a bit of seasoning and a bit of vegan cheese on top… Didn’t want to overload the meal with cheese, so I kept that to a minimum. The vegetables are tasty enough without overpowering them with cheese. Don’t get me wrong, I love Daiya vegan cheese, but a load of veggies is healthier than a load of cheese. 😊 Even if you eat a bunch of this, you will feel satisfied but not loaded down. A perfect side or main dish. It was even super tasty the next day, even though it didn’t look as pretty when I took it out of the dish.
I really want to make this again and I just made it yesterday! That’s how good it is…yum yum.
Get out a cutting board and a medium/large bowl. Chop the zucchini, summer squash, tomatoes, potatoes and mushrooms into circular “coins” (refer to the photo above) and add them into the bowl (the bowl is just used to keep them all in one place for the time being).
Next, dice up the onion into small pieces and mince the garlic cloves and the hot pepper (if you choose to add one…I like it a bit spicy).
Heat 1 tbs of Olive Oil in a non-stick pan or skillet on medium heat and add in the onion, garlic and hot pepper. Saute for 4-5 minutes, occasionally stirring. You want the onion to start to turn translucent.
Get out a pyrex dish or other baking dish and coat with either a non-stick spray, olive oil or vegan butter. You don’t have to coat it too much, just a thin layer. Spread the onion/garlic/hot peppers in an even layer onto the bottom of the dish. Next, roughly chopped up the spinach and add it in an even layer on top of the onion layer.
Preheat the oven to 400F. Now, start to add in the sliced vegetables you chopped earlier by placing them vertically in the dish in rows. It doesn’t matter what order you put them in, but alternating the different colours looks quite nice. 😊 Once you’ve done that, sprinkle ground black pepper, sea salt and dried thyme all over the top of the vegetables, to your taste.
Cover dish with foil and bake for half an hour. Carefully remove from the oven, remove the foil and sprinkle the shredded cheese on top. Place back in the oven (no foil this time) and bake for another 20-25 minutes. The cheese should be melted and the veggies should be tender but not overly soggy or mushy. (The onion and spinach will be a bit mushy though 😊 )
Now you’re ready to serve! Because this is so visually pleasing, it would be great as a dish to serve for guests or to bring to a party… or just keep it for yourself. 😊
Yum!
