The Mad Scientist's Casual Chicken Cacciatore

The Mad Scientist was given a packet of chicken drumsticks that was going to be used for a medical training session but was surplus to requirements in the end, so began to think about creative ways to use them. Like a flash of lightning the idea of a quick and easy 'Chicken Cacciatore' was born! This simply involved combining the chicken drumsticks with a jar of Italian-flavoured pasta sauce and some halved (pitted) Kalamata olives.

Being somewhat health-conscious, the Mad Scientist removed the skin from the chicken prior to cooking.

The chicken was combined with the pasta sauce and the olives in a Pyrex baking dish and then baked at 180 degrees Celcius in a pre-heated fan-forced oven until it was bubbling and the chicken appeared to be cooked through (approximately one hour).

The finished product was served on a bed of mashed potatoes which had been 'spiced up' with a dash of pepper and chilli sauce, and received very favourable reviews!

The Mad Scientist's Moroccan Fish Lasagna

This is the final instalment in the story of the pureed Roasted Vegorama! This was combined with some Basa fish fillets, sheets of lasagna and Moroccan-flavoured chopped and diced tomatoes. A packet of crumbled Haloumi cheese was used for the topping. A deep silicon baking tray was utilised.

A layer of Vegorama was placed in the bottom of the dish and then a layer of lasagna sheets was placed on top.

The (defrosted) fish fillets were placed on top of the lasagna.

A layer of the Moroccan tomatoes was then spread over the fish.

Another layer of lasagna sheets was added, followed by another layer of the Vegorama.

A small packet of Haloumi cheese was crumbled and spread over the top of the final layer.

The lasagna was cooked in a 180 degree Celcius pre-heated fan-forced oven until it was bubbling and golden brown on top (approximately an hour in this case).

The finished product tasted brilliant, and the slight sweetness of the vegetable mix was ably complemented by the salty tangyness of the Haloumi cheese. No leftovers here!

The Mad Scientist's Vivacious Veggie Slice

As the Mad Scientist's Roasted Vegorama is infinitely versatile, this is another variation on the theme. Slabs of the Vegorama were bundled up in half a sheet of puff pastry which was pinched together and then scored and lightly brushed with milk. In this instance some cumin seeds were sprinkled on top (but a variety of other seeds could be used instead).

The slices were baked in a 180 degree Celcius pre-heated fan-forced oven until golden brown on the outside. They proved to be simply delicious!

The Mad Scientist's Smashing Samosas

The Mad Scientist was "on a bit of a roll" with baking, and used a quantity of the pureed Roasted Vegorama to make some delicious samosas. Store-bought sheets of puff pastry were used, and these were lightly brushed with milk prior to baking in a 180 degrees Celcius pre-heated fan-forced oven until golden brown.

As well as eating them on the spot, the cooked samosas can be packaged up in small quantities for lunches or to put them in the freezer for later consumption.

The Mad Scientist's Scintillating Sausaroni

This is an old favourite and oh so easy! All it requires is a few sausages (as per personal preference) cooked and sliced thinly, some pasta sauce (the Mad Scientist used some out of a bottle) and some cooked pasta (once again as per personal preference - plain or filled).

Mix the sausages together with the pasta sauce and then gently mix together with the pasta until evenly distributed. This has a lovely rich texture and flavour (the Mad Scientist also added a dash of pepper sauce as "some like it hot"!).

The Mad Scientist's Piquant Pies

This recipe firstly involves a quantity of the Mad Scientist's Roasted Vegorama which has been pureed and added together with a jar of antipasto and some green stuffed olives and pureed again. This provides a tangy 'sweet and sour' mixture. Some sheets of shortcrust pastry are also required, together with a couple of fish fillets. These were simply cooked in the microwave and then cut into small cubes. The pies were cooked in some small metal pie dishes. These were lubricated with some canola spray but this turned out to be unnecessary.

The lid of the pie was created by inverting the pie tin on the pastry sheet and cutting a circle around the widest part.

The vegetables were mixed together with the cubes of fish.

The pastry circles to line the tin were made by once again inverting the tin on the pastry and then cutting a circle about 1cm out from the rim. The pie mix was placed into each tin once lined.

The 'lids' were then placed on top of the mix and pinched down by hand to seal them.

The Mad Scientist was feeling creative so cut out some pastry leaves and 'nuts' to put on top of the pastry case. The pies were brushed with some milk (but egg yolk or another substance could be used as per personal preference).

The pies were baked in a 180 degree Celcius pre-heated fan-forced oven until golden brown on top.

The Mad Scientist was immensely proud of these little beauties and they not only looked good but tasted good too! The basic principles could be applied to any pie mix.

The Mad Scientist's Vegorama - Oven-Roasted Vegetables

Sometimes it can be a challenge to work out what to do with a whole lot of veggies that aren't going to last forever. In this instance, it was pumpkin, potatoes, carrots and a large onion. The additional ingredients used were a packet of Butter Chicken curry sauce, some shredded coconut, some Lite Milk and some apple/strawberry fruit puree.

Also required: food processor, some large baking trays and some warm water.

Hate crying over onions? Try the Mad Scientist's amazingly ingenious idea of quickly cutting up the onions and then placing them in a bowl of cold water until you are ready to use them. Instant "no more tears"!

Peel and chop the pumpkin, carrots and potatoes into pieces small enough to fit into the funnel of the food processor.

Next shred all the vegetables using the coarse grating attachment on the food processor. The Mad Scientist reminds you to observe normal safety measures and keep fingers away from the chute and turn the food processor off at the wall before opening it up and removing the shredded veggies.

Add approximately half a cup of shredded coconut to the curry sauce and then dilute it with one cup of the milk. Mix well.

Spread the grated onion out in the base of the trays.

Use approximately two cups of fruit puree. The Mad Scientist stores some in the freezer so it is available for use as required.

Mix the fruit puree together with the onion in the base of the baking trays.

Layer in the grated vegetables. First put in the potato and the pumpkin.

Follow up with the carrots.

Finish off with a final layer of potato and then add the curry sauce on top. Use a spatula to smooth this across the top of the mixture. Drizzle some warm water over the top so that the sauce begins to seep through the layers and provides some moisture to help the cooking process.

Bake in a 180 degree celsius oven (fan-forced) for around an hour or until you are convinced that the vegetables are sufficiently softened and a golden crust has formed on the top.

If you would like to serve the vegetables "two ways" then the desired quantity of roasted veggies (complete with the curried crust) can be pureed in the food processor.

Both the roasted or pureed vegetables can served fresh or frozen for later use.

This meal provides a healthy vegetarian alternative that is both spicy and a little bit sweet and very filling.