Roasted Garlic and Kale Pesto

1 small head of garlic

1 T olive oil

Salt and pepper

I large bunch Lacinto kale, washed and dried, stems removed and chopped in large pieces

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup olive oil

2 T lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place a 12x12 piece foil on a baking sheet.  Pour 1 T olive oil into center of sheet and season with salt and pepper. Cut the stem end off the head of garlic and place cut side down in the olive oil.  Tent the foil around the head of garlic and seal all edges.  Bake for 35 minutes.  Remove from oven and open foil to cool.

Add all ingredients together in a food processor or blender.  Blend until desired consistency, adding more olive oil as needed.

Serve over your favorite pasta.

Roasted Beet Hummus

It's the end of football season, the only part of the season that I actually get into, except maybe the very start of the season.  Okay yes, I am a fair weather fan, so I hope by the time we get to playoffs there is at least a team or two on my short list of faves still in the running.

You see for me it's not so much about the football, the football just serves as the event.  For me, it's about the food.  I try to keep it in line, just a few choice items, so they need to be good.  I certainly will make some killer nachos and wings, but I also feel I need something in the offering that is, dare I say it, on the healthy side.  What!? I know.  Anyway, this cool looking hummus served with veggies and baked chips fills that need perfectly.  

Now go grab a beer and start cheering!        

Roasted Beet Hummus

1 medium  beet
1 head  garlic
15 ounces  garbanzo beans, canned -- rinsed and drained and peeled
2 tablespoons  tahini
2 tablespoons  fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup  olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400. Cut the end off the head of garlic, exposing the cloves, wrap in foil. Wrap the beat in foil, drizzled with a little olive oil, salt and about 1/2 teaspoon of water. Roast both for about 45 minutes.

Let the beet cool, then rub the skin off and roughly chop.  Put the beet in a food processor or blender, and pulse a few times. Open the garlic packet and squeeze it straight into the food processor.  Throw away the skins.

Add the peeled garbanzo beans, tahini, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste and some of the olive oil and pulse.  Drizzle in the rest of the olive oil and add more if needed for consistency. Taste and season to your preference.

Serve with carrots sticks, cucumber slices and pita chips.

Zucchini Rolls-Ups

I know it's been a while; four months since my last post! It's not that I haven't been cooking, because of course I have, and I even have a few new favorites up my sleeve, but getting it together enough to post it is a whole other story.  I have at least two posts in me for now, so I'll give you this one and then maybe another one in a few days. I'm doing this one first because, well it's zucchini season and we all need some fresh ideas to use them all up, and second because it's my new favorite. I've made this twice in the past two days!

I made it for the first time yesterday.  A friend of mine was generous enough to let me part-take in her CSA box while she was out of town.  In the box was a wonderful assortment of goodies including two nice big zucchini, I also had three nice big zucchini already in my refrigerator at home.  They are like rabbits, they multiply fast this time of year.  Anyway, we were having a little pool party/pot luck so I decided to share the abundant amount of zucchini by making this dish.

Basically, I wanted a lasagna roll up without the pasta.  At first I was going to make super thin slices of raw zucchini to make rolling easy, but then I began to worry about how much liquid the zucchini would put out as it baked.  I decided on thicker slices, baked in the oven to soften them for use. This was good plan, I like the flavor it gives the zucchini, plus there's more zucchini per roll. In the middle of it I thought, Wow! maybe this is better in theory than actually doing it, but they turned out great, so I'm glad I stuck with it.  I sliced the zucchini's by hand, but if you have a mandoline that will allow you to slice them the correct thickness, that would be the way to go.  In fact, I put my order in for one on Amazon today!

Zucchini Rolls-Ups

Serving Size  : 8

32 ounces  crushed tomatoes
4 cloves  garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons  olive oil
1 medium  onion
1/8 cup  red wine
salt and pepper
1/8 cup  fresh basil

4  Large zucchini squash

6  ounces  mozzarella cheese, cut into small pieces
15 ounces  ricotta cheese
3 ounces shredded parmesan cheese
1  large  egg

Prepare a basic tomato sauce. Saute onion in olive oil to soften, add the garlic and cook a minute longer.  Add the crushed tomatoes, red wine and fresh basil.  Simmer until ready to use.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Slice zucchini lengthwise into 1/8 thick strips.  Spray a few sheet pans with cooking spray and lay the slices out in a single layer. Spray with cooking spray and season with salt and pepper. Roast zucchini strips for 15-20 minutes, until soft enough to roll. Pull the pans out and let them cool.

Meanwhile, combine mozzarella, ricotta, Parmesan and egg.  Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a shallow casserole dish with cooking spray and ladle in enough sauce to barely coat the bottom.  Spread a generous tablespoon or so of the ricotta mixture on to each zucchini slice.  Roll each piece up and place it in the casserole dish.  Once all pieces are rolled up, drizzle more tomatoes sauce on top.

Cover and bake 20 minutes.  Remove the foil and then bake 10 minutes longer or until bubbly.

Old School Eggplant Parmesan

Many times when I make Eggplant Parmesan, I try to make a "healthier" version, one with less oil, no frying, more baking.  I will tell you that while those versions can be good and satisfy a craving for Eggplant Parmesan, they are nothing like the real deal old school version.  I made this version the other day, it was an occasion where shortcuts and substitutions were not to be taken, only the most authentic version would do.

I will now tell you that all those other versions are a fraud, there is nothing like this Eggplant Parmesan. Let your hair down once in awhile and go all the way.  This dish is worth it.

Old School Eggplant Parmesan

2 large Eggplants, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices
salt
4 large eggs, beaten
1 cup flour
olive oil
8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, grated
1 lb linguine

Basic Red Sauce

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup onion, finely diced

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

84 ounces crushed tomatoes

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 cup red wine

Prepare the basic red sauce. Heat the olive oil in large pan, add the onion and saute until soft.  Add the garlic and cook a minute longer.  Add the crushed tomatoes and the remaining ingredients. Simmer until ready to use.

Lay the eggplant slices on two layers of per towels.  Salt the slices and then cover with another two layers of paper towels.  Let sit for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over medium high heat in a large skillet.  Makes sure there is enough to cover the bottom of the whole pan.  Dip the slices of eggplant in the egg and then coat with the flour.  Fry the eggplant slices a few at a time, only fit as many in the pan as you can while maintaining a a single layer with a bit of space between each piece. It should only take few minutes on each side, just until  lightly browned. Drain on paper towels.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Spray a large casserole dish or two if needed with cooking spray.  Lay down one layer of eggplant slices.  Cover each slice with a a little bit of mozzarella, using about half.  Cover each slice with another slice of eggplant and then top each slice with the remaining mozzarella.  Bake for about 10 minutes.  Meanwhile cook the linguine.

Serve the eggplant with the linguine and top with the red sauce. Enjoy.

Udon Noodle Soup with Poached Eggs and Spinach

This is a post from my old blog.  I've been craving this super-easy, but totally delish dish for a several days.  I'm putting it on the menu this week and thought I should share it with you.

I have a thing for udon noodles.  Okay, really all noodles, but udon noodles are so thick and yummy looking I find them hard to resist.  This is why I end up buying the instant udon soup bowls from Costco.  Granted these are not the healthiest items in the world, but with a bit of doctoring you can seriously up the protein and veggie count.  The sodium is high, so just don't have it everyday, or do what I do, drink up every last bit of broth.

I came back from yoga today looking for a fast lunch.  I saw the udon in the pantry and that was it, I had to have it. There's nothing like a good bowl of udon with some poached eggs on top.  Okay crappy carbs and good protein, what could I add?  I looked in the refrigerator and saw the bag of fresh spinach. Bingo! The addition of spinach would allow this meal to pass my "needs to be at least sort of healthy" requirement.

Since first posting this I have found that Costco doesn't always carry these noodle bowls.  You can find them at World Market.  I also go to HMart and there are tons of different brands of fresh udon or udon like noodle packets with seasoning in the refrigerator aisle.  If all else fails, use some ramen, it is not as hearty as udon, but it will be just fine.

Udon Noodle Soup with Poached Eggs and Spinach

Ingredients per serving:

Instant udon soup bowl
2 eggs
handful of spinach leaves
1 teaspoon or so hoisin sauce
sriracha sauce
water
white vinegar

Put on a small saucepan of water with a splash of vinegar and heat to almost boiling.  Meanwhile bring more water to boil for the soup.  Place the spinach leaves in a bowl.

When the soup water is ready, start the soup prep according to the directions. At the same time, reduce the heat to medium low on the pot with the water and vinegar.  Drop the eggs into the pot and poach for 2-3 minutes.  When the soup is ready pour it over the spinach in the bowl, stir in the hoisin sauce, drop the eggs on top and add sriracha to taste. 

Israeli Couscous with Red Pepper and Spinach

This is a quick and flavorful side dish to go with pretty much anything.  I paired it with the Parchment Roasted Salmon and some steamed spinach the other night. A meal with restaurant quality attention to detail and flavor was on the table in less than 30 minutes.

I've had a hard time finding time for the blog lately, but I knew I wanted to post about this dish.  As usual it was a dish on the fly and I didn't want to forget the details.  I was too lazy to go type the ingredients so I decided to send myself an email using voice technology.  Easier said than done.  When I said "chopped spinach" the voice technology interpreted it as "shop with kids" and then it interpreted " vegetable broth" as "see my bra". Yes, this could have been a very strange post indeed.

Israeli Couscous with Red Pepper and Spinach

1/4 cup diced onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/2 large red bell pepper, chopped
1 1/4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup Israeli couscous
2 handfuls fresh spinach, roughly chopped
Kosher salt and pepper to taste

In a medium pan with a tight fitting lid, saute onions in olive oil over medium heat until soft.  Add the garlic and saute 30 seconds longer. Toss in the red bell pepper and then add the vegetable broth. Raise the heat and bring the broth to a boil.  Add the couscous and stir.  Add the spinach on top and cover.  Cook 8-10 minutes stirring once or twice to incorporate the spinach.  Add salt and pepper to taste. Set a side for a few minutes before serving.

Chocolate Custard Pie

Oh, how I love pie.  Maybe that's what I want to be when I grow up, a pie-maker!  Not really because I hate making pie crust.  I always cheat and buy the kind in the refrigerated section that you can unroll into your own pan.  I like the texture better than the frozen ones, plus since it's in my pan, it seems more homemade.  Sure I can spin it that way.

Anyway, a friend of mine posted a pick of some chopped up chocolate the night before Thanksgiving. It was the beginning of a chocolate pie that she was making.  Ever since then I couldn't stop thinking about making one myself, a nice homemade pie with real chocolate.  In my house when I was growing up, chocolate cream pie was made with Jello brand pudding mix.  Nothing wrong with that mind you, but I wanted something really decadent.  I searched the web and looked at tons of recipes and found the items that seemed to be constant, then I added more chocolate.

Chocolate Custard Pie

1 unbaked pie crust,( I use the type in the refrigerated section that you unroll into your own pan)
2 ounce squares unsweetened baking chocolate
1 ounce square Semisweet baking chocolate
3/4 cup + 1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/4 +1/8 teaspoon salt
3 eggs, divided
1 1/2 cups 2 % milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon butter

Preheat the oven to 350.

Chop the chocolate into small pieces to make it easier to melt.

Roll the pie dough into the pie pan and poke holes with a fork to let it vent.  Bake for about 20 minutes. Remove and set aside when cooked.

Meanwhile, mix chocolate, ¾ cup sugar, flour, ¼ t. salt, egg yolks and milk in a saucepan with a whisk. Cook over medium heat, constantly stirring until it simmers and thickens.  It should be nice and thick. Remove from the heat and whisk in vanilla and butter.

To make the meringue, start with a room temperature metal bowl, make sure there is nothing oily or greasy on your bowl or beaters.  Beat the egg whites with 1/8 t. salt until they get nice and white. Then add the sugar, beat until stiff peaks form.

Spread the chocolate custard into the baked pie shell, and then gently pour the meringue over top and spread to evenly cover the filling. Bake at 350, it until the meringue is lightly browned, about 10 minutes.

You can serve this warm, but I prefer to pop it in the refrigerator for a few hours then serve it.

Blueberry Banana Muffins

Breakfast muffins are funny things.  I mean really, isn't it just an excuse to eat cake for breakfast?  Yum, that sounds good!  Oh but wait, isn't breakfast our first chance to get some decent nutrients in our bodies to get us moving for the day?  Okay, well maybe we all have differing views of what breakfast should be.  I like the whole cake for breakfast idea, or least my taste buds do, but I know I'll crash and burn after eating one of those scrumptious Starbucks muffins. So I have a compromise, a muffin full of good stuff that still tastes like cake!

One of the great things about these muffins is how moist they are and part of that comes from the mashed bananas.  I love these muffins because when I see bananas past their prime on the counter, I know I have a plan to give them new life.

This recipe also contains a few other healthy items I love to make sure we are consuming such as coconut oil and blueberries. When blueberries are plentiful in the summer buy tons.  Rinse them off, let them dry and then freeze them in a freezer bag for the winter. You'll always have fresh tasting blueberries for this recipe.


Blueberry Banana Muffins

3 ripe bananas, mashed
¾ cup sugar
1 egg
¼ cup coconut oil
½ cup applesauce
2 cups white whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
3 tablespoons 2% milk
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar

Preheat oven to 300.

In large mixing bowl mix bananas, sugar, egg, oil and applesauce.  Add flour and baking soda, and mix until just blended.  Add the milk and vanilla and blend again, do not over mix.

Stir in blueberries.

Spray 12 muffin capacity muffin tin with Pam and fill tins with batter.  Sprinkle the top of each with brown sugar.

Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Cat Cake!

Today's post is a blast from the past.  This a straight copy from my previous blog that I wanted to share with Witchery followers. You may not have the need to make a cat shaped cake, but this post is more than that.  It shares a number of helpful cake baking and decorating tricks I learned that can applied to any cake.

This year my daughter wanted a kitty cat themed birthday party, so I decided that I would make a cat cake.  I feel that I am a pretty good cook, but only a mediocre baker.  Cakes are really not my strong point.  I decided I wanted my cake to look pretty good, so with only week to improve my cake building skills, I started my research.  My favorite bit of info came from a site called 5 min.  There were multiple videos from a master cake decorator.  So Gigi and I watched each video to pick up some important tips.  I also found a pattern for a cake cat made from two 8 inch rounds on the Betty Crocker site.

I decided a test cake using my new found knowledge would give me some practice.  I didn't want to make a cat because it would take some of the bang out the final cake.  I baked two 8 inch round cakes and quickly realized that these cakes were way too thin; they did not meet my vision of a nice thick cake.  That was fine I got to practice shaving off the uneven parts (which made it even thinner) and then put the layers together.  This cake ended up being a butterfly.

I bought two new 8 inch rounds that were much deeper than my other pans and decided to use two boxes of cake mix.  I know, all this trouble and I am making cake from the box!?  Well, I figured I had enough of a challenge on my plate without having to test cake recipes. 

The new rounds worked great although they did give me a bit a muffin top, so the top side needed to be shaved off.  Once I had my nice flat rounds, I used the pattern from Betty Crocker to cut out the tail, ears and head.  So far so good.

The next BIG thing I learned about cake decorating, is to do a crumb coat.  This is a thin layer of icing over the whole cake that seals in the crumbs.  This is the best tip ever.  Another tip I learned from some site, is to use Wilton Meringue Powder in your icing to help it harden just a bit.  I like this addition to the crumb coat icing, which was homemade, because it gave that crumb coat extra toughness.  I did have one small issue during this step.  The tip of one ear broke off.  I put some icing on it and "glued" it back on.

I put the cake in the refrigerator to set.  Once I felt it was firm, I mixed up some more Wilton Meringue Powder in some store bought chocolate frosting, and liberally frosted the whole thing.  This was going way better than I had expected.  I put it in the box and chilled it overnight.

 The next morning, I mixed up some pink icing.  Again store bought, but white.  I added some pink cake icing coloring and Wilton Meringue Powder.  I piped it on, put in some gum drops, added a bit of sugar glitter and I was finished! 

A lot of work went into the cake and I invested in some new tools, but I am glad I spent the time to study up and practice.  Now I no longer fear making a special cake.

Spicy Eggplant Tomato Sauce

This is going to a quick one, because school is back and session and somehow I find myself with even less time than I had before.  Maybe it's prepping for all the after school activities that happen to fall right during the time I would normally make dinner.  As was the case last night.

One the caveats of running short on time is that I am falling behind on using all my fabulous CSA veggies.  In fact, yesterday when I picked up my box I still had several things leftover from last week. I don't want anything to go to waste, so I looked at what I had.  Two of the items were jalapenos and a bag of fairytale eggplants, yummy stuff! I knew they had to be part of last night's dinner.

I threw together this quick and easy pasta sauce, and let it sit on the stove ready and waiting for us to return from soccer practice. It was perfect served over some nice mild cheese ravioli.

Spicy Eggplant Tomato Sauce
8 servings

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups eggplant, sliced
3 cloves garlic, pressed
2 each jalapeno peppers, sliced (discard the seeds from one, use the seeds from the other)
14 1/2 ounce can diced tomatoes
32 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup red wine
kosher salt
pepper

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat.  Add the onion and eggplant and saute until slightly tender.  Eggplant will soak up all the oil so once that happens, add a bit of water to keep the process going.

Once you see the eggplant softening, add the jalapenos and continue to saute for a minute or two then add the crushed garlic.  Saute a minute longer.

Add both cans of tomatoes, red wine and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for about 30 minutes then cover and let sit until ready to serve.

Serve over any type of pasta.


Nutritional Information from Mastercook:
Per Serving: 119 Calories; 7g Fat (52.3% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 12g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 159mg Sodium.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

One of the great things about summer is the bounty of fresh veggies.  One of the worst things about summer is also the bounty of fresh veggies.  I love fresh veggies and I love to cook, but sometimes I get stuck in a rut. Sometimes I am just too tired to think of something new. The problem is the veggies are still sitting there demanding to be used before they spoil.

Zucchini is one of those veggies that everyone seems to have in great abundance this time of year, and even though I am so sick of it now I know I would kill to find a decent one at the grocery store in the winter. My daughter has been pretty good at eating the zucchini that has come across her plate, but she's getting sick of it too. Thank goodness for Pinterest. I surf there when I am board.  The other day there was a fat free, gluten free chocolate zucchini bread.  It looked good, but the fat free, gluten free part didn't float my boat.  I do like calorie reduced, but I need some fat.  In fact I thought a good chocolate zucchini bread would make a great vehicle to get some more coconut oil into our diet.

Once I am inspired to make something new I search the Internet to see what others have done.  Once I see what I like, I either combine a few recipes or just modify one.  I know you're asking why don't I just follow one recipe? I don't know, I just want it my way.  The one I used had some whole wheat flour, which if you like keep it, but as much as they say we are supposed to eat it, I don't like it so, I went for regular flour. Maybe next time I'll try and use half white whole wheat flour. My daughter doesn't like nuts so those got nixed (although I would have preferred to keep them). I wanted more cocoa and some brown sugar, and of course coconut oil. The other thing was I wanted it packed full of zucchini, so I used a lot. In fact when I folded it in it looked like a little batter with a lot of shredded zucchini, and I wasn't sure it was going to work. No worries, it came out great.

I made the bread and when my daughter got home from school she was enchanted by the scent of baked chocolate in the air.  I could have neglected to tell her about the zucchini part, but I'm not that kind of mom, so I immediately told her what it was. Ugh, really? was the response. Anyway she gave it a try and had seconds.  She also had a piece after dinner for desert.  Good stuff.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread
adapted from Eating Well's Chocolate Zucchini Bread

2 loaves , 8 servings each

1/4 cup coconut oil

1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, roughly chopped

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup applesauce

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups zucchini – grated and packed

Preheat oven to 325°F. Spray two loaf pans with cooking spray.

Combine coconut oil and unsweetened chocolate in a microwave safe bowl.  Microwave for 15 seconds, stir, then repeat until the chocolate is melted.

In a large bowl combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a medium bowl combine eggs, sugar, applesauce, vanilla and melted chocolate and coconut oil mixture. Add to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Fold in zucchini. Spoon the batter into the prepared pans, smoothing the tops.

Bake the loaves 40-45 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Invert onto rack and cool completely.

Nutritional Analysis from Mastercook

Per Serving: 190 Calories; 6g Fat (26.3% calories from fat); 4g Protein; 32g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 40mg Cholesterol; 139mg Sodium.  

Roasted Eggplant with Mozzarella and Roasted Yellow Pepper

Once again I am happy to introduce guest blogger, Erica Wissolik, who is sharing a roasted eggplant recipe that looks super tasty and extremely easy! She’s got some great cookbook references, as well as some advice regarding gender identification in eggplants; all presented with her wonderfully entertainingly sense of style. Enjoy!

Love me some eggplant.  Ok, so it’s in that “inflammatory food” category.  But whatever….so are tomatoes and I’m not going to stop eating either of them.

I also love Yotam Ottelgenghi. I highly recommend ALL of his cookbooks to those of you who love to crawl in bed and read cookbooks… and cook as well.  I have a couple of them and I've worked my way through almost all of his recipes.  I've also eaten in his London restaurants and they are a MUST if you find yourself traipsing around Soho or the Portobello Road Flea Market, EAT!!  They are super child-friendly (he’s got one of his own), not expensive, and YUMMY!  The only other cookbook that I've worked that much is the Balthazar book, which is also just a great read in addition to having great recipes.  Yotam’s latest, Jerusalem, cracks me up because he talks about the Jews in his hometown who knew where to find the butchers that had the pork in the back room. You can find videos of him online and he does a regular column in the Guardian newspaper.

I found a recipe in one of the cookbooks called Plenty, but as is usual for me, I read, then closed the book. I bought the ingredients and came back a few days later to make it according to memory and taste. This is one of his recipes based on eggplants, peppers and cheese.

Roasted Eggplant with Mozzarella and Roasted Yellow Pepper

“Broast” (Who remembers Whitey’s in Arlington?) one large yellow pepper, cut in half and cleaned of the seeds, in a toaster oven, for about 10-20 minutes until the skin starts to blister and darken. (I live in a 14th street condo so I try to not use the large oven as much as possible.)  I think any color of pepper would work but the yellow pepper works nicely with the red tomatoes and purple of the eggplant. When the pepper is broasted, cut it into small fingernail-sized pieces and set aside.

Take a small package of cherry tomatoes.  Cut in half and put in sauce pan.

Add about 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar.

Cut a small handful of thyme (assuming you’re lucky to have space to be growing thyme). Otherwise, there’s always the grocery store.  Add the thyme stems to the sauce pan.

If you like your life spicy, add a chopped jalapeno, cayenne or other chile pepper.

Simmer the tomatoes, balsamic and thyme (and pepper) until it slightly thickens and the tomatoes soften.  This should take about 25 min on a low heat – about 2-4 on your stove knob.  You don’t want to totally cook the tomatoes into mush but you do want to reduce some of the liquid in the vinegar and the tomatoes.  The thyme stems will eventually lose some of their leaves and if you have the patience, you can pull out the stems.  Or you can simply keep them in until the end and your audience can pick them out.  I think it’s better to leave them in.

While the tomatoes are doing their thing, take one large, lovely eggplant and slice it into rounds, about ½ inch thick.  Did you know that eggplants supposedly come in male and female versions?  I haven’t researched this but I’m told that if you want less seeds, look for eggplants that have a slight protrusion on the bottom and avoid the ones that have an indentation.  Maybe someone was pulling my leg but it seems to work.

Use your hands to smear olive oil all over the eggplant rounds.  And yes, use your hands because olive oil is good for your skin.

My little brother gave me a George Foreman Grill (http://www.georgeforemancooking.com/) for Christmas one year and while I don’t eat a lot of grilled meat, it does come in handy in situations like this. It’s actually awesome for grilling veggies and fish.  If you have a griddle pan that has ridges use that.  Grill the eggplant rounds. The goal is to partially cook the eggplant while putting some nice grill marks on each round of eggplant.  This takes about 1-2 min for each piece. I could fit and grill 2 pieces at a time.

When the eggplant is all roasted, lay it in a long pan, the kind you might make brownies in.
Add a bit of salt and lots of black crushed pepper to the tops of the eggplant rounds. As always, these two ingredients are added “to taste.”

Plop some globs of fresh mozzarella cheese on each round.  If you like cheese, use lots.  I used 2-3 quarter sized blobs for each round of eggplant.

Pour the tomato balsamic sauce over the rounds.

Sprinkle the chopped roasted yellow pepper over the whole thing and put into a 350 degree for 25 minutes.

I served with whole wheat pasta but a very handsome man said, “This would make a great sandwich on semolina bread too!”

Erica is a former Pittsburgher and go-go dancer, currently living and working in DC as a lobbyist for science and technology issues.  "I cook because I like to know where my food comes from, how it was raised and grown, and because I enjoy inventing my own recipes." 

Egg Battered Grilled Cheese and Tomato Sandwich

It's finally tomato season and I have a nice bowl full of them on my counter.  These are fresh local grown tomatoes, nothing like what they sell in the grocery store. I used to grow my own, but I hate the heat and the bugs and it seems like each year right when the harvest comes in, I am away on vacation.  So this year I decided to plant herbs and rely on my CSA and local farmers market for this summer time delicacy.

When it comes to good fresh tomatoes, the key is to play up the fresh flavor. Certainly, just sliced with a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper is great.  Add some fresh mozzarella and basil and that's even better. I also like to chop a few and toss them in with some pasta; you can add butter or olive oil, salt and pepper and grated parmesan and there's your meal. But one of my favorites is a grilled cheese and tomato sandwich.

This isn't just any old grilled cheese sandwich, this sandie is dipped in egg and grilled in a bit of olive oil flavored with garlic. Yum.

Egg Battered Grilled Cheese and Tomato Sandwich

olive oil
1 clove garlic, sliced in half
2 slices bread
mayo
hoagie pepper spread
3 slices Havarti or other favorite cheese
1 nice sized tomato, thinly sliced
2-3 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 egg, beaten with a splash of milk

Drizzle a small amount of olive oil in a non-stick pan over med-low heat.  At the garlic, sliced sides down.

Meanwhile put together the sandwich. Spread one slice of bread with the may and hot peppers.  Lay down one slice of cheese then half of the tomato slices, sprinkle with half the basil.  Cover with another slice of cheese and repeat the process, ending with the third slice of cheese.  Remove the garlic slices and rub the outside of the bread with the cooked side of the garlic.

Turn the heat up to medium high. Dip the sandwich into the beaten egg and then brown on each side until cheese is melted and the outside is golden. Enjoy. Then make another one.

Refrigerated Pickled Veggies

Now that summer is in full swing there is an abundance of fabulous fresh veggies.  So many in fact, it can be hard to eat them all before they go bad.  We got some luscious little white and green pickling cucumbers in the last few CSA boxes, so I decided pickling them along with a few other veggies could be a good way to preserve them a bit longer.  

Now I know absolutely nothing about canning and it seems a bit intimidating, so I did a bit of research and found tons of recipes for refrigerator pickles.  A much easier process, that will will keep your veggies for up to 2 months. That's the ticket!  

One thing that many of the research recipes had in common was an incredible amount of sugar.  It's something I always try to cut back on in recipes, so my recipes uses much less than others, working on the savory side side rather than the sweet side.

You can put these in pretty picking jars, but since I don't own anything like that I just used a nice airtight container. Also these are just the veggies I had on hand, use whatever you have.  Most veggies can be used raw, but harder veggies like beets and carrots will need to be cooked a bit first to soften them so they will absorb the flavor better. This recipe includes jalapeno peppers which gives the mix a nice kick, if you don't want it spicy, just leave them out.

Refrigerated Pickled Veggies

1/2 teaspoon olive oil

kosher salt and pepper

6 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole

2 cups cider vinegar

2 1/4 cups water

1/4 cup sugar

1/8 cup kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/2 teaspoon celery seeds

few sprigs fresh dill

1 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 sweet onion, sliced

1 summer squash, sliced

6-8 pickling cucumbers, sliced

2 jalapenos, sliced

4 beets, roasted then peeled and sliced

Wash and scrub the beets, removing the tops and tails.  Place them on a piece of foil large enough to create a tent for baking.  Drizzle a bit of olive oil on top then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Tent the foil, sealing the edges well and roast the beets in a in 375 degree oven for 50 minutes. Remove them from the oven and open the foil allowing the beets to cool. Once the beets are cool, peel and slice them. 

In the meantime in a large sauce pan add the vinegar, water, kosher salt, sugar and garlic cloves to the pan. Heat over medium heat stirring to dissolve the sugar and salt.

Put the crushed red pepper, celery seeds, fresh dill, mustard seeds, black peppercorns in the bottom of an airtight container, or divide them among your containers if using more than one.  Pull the garlic out of the vinegar mixture and them to the container. Then pack the veggies into the container(s) really tight. Make sure the vinegar mixture is at a boil then pour it over the veggies, leaving just a bit of room at the top. Tap the container on the counter a few times to remove all the air bubbles and then seal.  Let the container sit on your counter until completely cool and then refrigerate.  You can eat these the next day, but the longer the sit (for up to 2 months), the better they will taste.

Bitter Melon with Egg

Today I am happy to introduce my first guest blogger, Erica Wissolik, a long time friend of mine who shares the love of cooking. She's cooking up bitter melon, something I have seen in the market, but have yet to try.  After reading this, it's going on my shopping list!

I am positive that every cook loves to discover new ingredients.  It’s one thing to discover new ways to cook familiar ingredients – but the lovely surprise that comes from being introduced to a whole new ingredient that you end up craving, is better than chocolate.

Last year, a new friend/ colleague from Thailand visited DC.  She had been on the road for awhile and was missing her kitchen.  So I begged her to come over to my place and cook.  We hit the Dupont Farmer’s market in the morning, and drove out to H&A Supermarket in Langley Park, MD in the afternoon.  OMG.  Food exists that I never imagined!  Tiny eggplants, spices, etc… and this thing…the bitter melon.  It’s also called: African Cucumber,Balsam Pear, Balsam-Apple,  Bitter Apple, and Bitter Cucumber. On the interesting side, I just googled it and webmd.com says this about the melon:

“Bitter melon is used for various stomach and intestinal disorders including gastrointestinal (GI) upset, ulcers, colitis, constipation, and intestinal worms. It is also used for diabetes, kidney stones, fever, a skin condition called psoriasis, and liver disease; to start menstruation; and as supportive treatment for people with HIV/AIDS. Bitter melon contains a chemical that acts like insulin to help reduce blood sugar levels.”

Some people love it so much they created the National Bitter Melon Council. http://bittermelon.org/  These guys say that, “Humans, unlike other mammals, are the only creatures to have developed a palate (or taste) for bitterness. Bitterness defines our humanity!”

Human attributes aside, the bitter taste is not for everyone and you definitely need a palate that likes bitter as well, as if not more than, sweet. I will eat a whole lemon over a chocolate chip cookie! So when my Thai friend whipped up this egg and bitter melon yumminess, I was hooked.  While I was in Bangkok this past March, I begged again for her to cook for me and make specifically, this dish.  It’s easy and I am told it can be altered to add ground meats, chiles, and other yummy items as you wish.

So here you go…

Bitter Melon with Egg
All measurements are to taste.  If you like salt use more!

3 medium sized bitter melons – about 7-8 inches long, 3-4 inches around.

Cut the melons in half long ways and clean out the seeds with a spoon. This is much easier than it sounds.  Rinse the melons and slice thinly.

In a large pan, preferably one with high sides, put 3-5 tablespoons of oil. I used safflower that I had mixed with spicy harissa.  If you’re not a spicy soul, leave out the chiles and use a simple oil – not olive because it can be too flavorful.

Heat the oil on low, adding 2 large, minced garlic cloves.

Brown the garlic a bit, about 5 min. *if* you’re really on low – about 2-3 on your stove knob.

Toss in the sliced bitter melon with about ½ tsp salt.

Turn heat up a bit, going to maybe 5 or 6 on your knob. Cook the bitter melon in the garlic oil for about 10-12 minutes, stirring and tossing every 2 min. or so.  The melon still start to get a bit translucent in parts and soften up.

Crack open 3 small or 2 large eggs and dump them on top of the melon.

Immediately toss and stir fry, mixing well.  Cook for another few minutes until the eggs are well cooked and become just small bits among the melon.

Serve with rice as a side dish to an awesome Thai curry, or eat on its own.  You’ll be happy either way.

Erica is a former Pittsburgher and go-go dancer, currently living and working in DC as a lobbyist for science and technology issues.  "I cook because I like to know where my food comes from, how it was raised and grown, and because I enjoy inventing my own recipes." 

Kale and Mushroom Lasagna Roll-ups

When you support your local farmers though a CSA program you get veggies that you don't normally buy.  I think this a good thing, it gets me thinking outside of the box.  But sometimes those veggies are not a big hit with the family.  The first time we got kale, it flopped.  Steamed and sauteed with some olive oil and salt and pepper, it was too strong for everyone including me. Well anyone who gets a CSA box knows you're going to get some kale, in fact you are going to get a lot of it.  That means creativity needs to come into play.

I have found that kale goes over best in my house when it's pulverized to bits, such as in a winter pesto.  Another way is in these yummy lasagna roll-ups.  I found this recipe on Pinterest (of course) and it has become a regular in the rotation. As usual I adapted the recipe to fit my family's tastes and my cooking style.


Kale and Mushroom Lasagna Roll-ups
Adapted from Skinny Taste.com (Mushroom Kale Lasagna Rolls)

Sauce:
6 cloves garlic crushed
2 T olive oil
Several fresh basil leaves thinly sliced
2 -28 cans crushed tomatoes
¼ cup red wine
salt and pepper
2 T. Honey

15 lasagna noodles

Filling:
5 cups kale, thoroughly rinsed, stems removed, roughly chopped
8 oz mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 tsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
15 oz part skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 egg
Kosher salt and black pepper
6 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, shredded

Start with the sauce.  Heat oil in sauté pan over medium heat and add garlic, stir for a minute or two.  Add the remaining sauce ingredients and allow it to simmer

Cook the lasagna noodles according following the instructions on the package.

In a food processor, pulse kale a few times until chopped.

In large skillet, sauté the garlic in oil for about 1 minute.  Add the kale, salt and pepper and sauté 5 minutes more minutes. Then add the mushrooms, cooking and additional 5 minutes or so. Season to taste with salt and pepper

Place the kale in a medium bowl and add the mushrooms mixture, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, egg, salt and pepper. Stir to combine

Preheat oven to 350° and ladle about 1 cup sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 12 baking dish.

Working with about 3 noodles at time lay the noodles flat on cutting board or other surface. Spread out 1/3 cup of the filling across each noodle. Roll each noodle up and place in the pan, allowing a bit of space between each roll up. Continue this process until all the noodles are used.  Cover the roll ups with the desired amount of sauce, saving a bit for serving. Cover the pan with foil and bake for about 35 minutes.  Remove the foil and sprinkle the mozzarella on top. Return the pan to oven bake another 5 minutes.  Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

Pappardelle with Corn and Tomatoes

I am sure that I have shared my family's desire to change the balance of meat and veggies in our diet.  Turning the tables to make sure we eat a lot less meat and a lot more veggies. Last week I made the meal in the picture above and it was a big hit, claiming a spot in the rotation. I found this recipe on the Food Network, and made some small changes to fit our tastes.  The star of this dish is not the pasta, but the corn.  This is the time of year for this dish, fresh local corn is everywhere. In the winter we may have to try frozen corn (on the cob), but I am sure it won't be the same.

I find that if I allow it, many of my vegetarian selections rely on a hearty amount of pasta.  I love pasta, but this is not what I want to fill up on instead of meat. The whole point of less meat is more veggies, so this meal cuts back the quantity pasta in the original recipe.  Instead of making this a one dish meal, I used wonderful fresh veggies from our CSA box to fill our plates. The fresh spinach was steamed and dressed with a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper, while the English peas were also steamed and dressed with a small amount of butter an salt. Just because you are serving a vegetarian main dish doesn't mean you should skip good sides!

Pappardelle with Corn and Tomatoes
(Adapted from Food Network's Pappardelle With Corn)

3 ears corn, shucked
5 tablespoons butter
3 vine ripe tomatoes, cut into cubes (use fresh local summer tomatoes when available)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small purple onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup white wine
9 ounces pappardelle pasta
1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, chopped
kosher salt
black pepper

Cook the corn in boiling salted water for about 4 minutes.  Remove the corn the corn to cool and reserve the water, keeping it at a low boil.

Over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in large skillet. Once melted, add the tomatoes, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 pepper, cook for 3-4 minutes.  Add the onion, cook for another minute and then add the garlic and cook for another minute.  Add the wine and and reduce for 5 minutes.

Once the corn is cool, cut the kernels off the cob.  Cook the pasta as the package directs in the same water used to cook the corn. Remove about 1 cup of the water and reserve before draining the pasta.

Add the corn and broth to the skillet and allow to simmer for 1 minute.  Add the pasta, parmesan 1/2 teaspoon salt and the remaining butter to the skillet.  Stir and add the reserved cooking water to help combine the ingredients. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with the parsley.

Zucchini Pancakes with Yogurt Sauce

Today’s recipe is one that I found on Pinterest a few months back,  Zucchini Fritters with Tzatziki. I love this recipe because it's a wonderful marriage between latkes and zucchini, plus the yogurt sauce although not what I think of as a tzatziki sauce since there are no cucumbers in it, is really nice.

I have to confess I got quite obsessed with these for a while, tweaking the recipe to fit my tastes and in the end to be baked instead of fried. The fried ones are still a bit better, but it's because they have more oil and and of course the butter.  The baked ones are a fine trade off though and at this point I am only making the baked ones.  The key is using the parchment paper, it helps crisp the bottom and also keeps them from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

A very important point made by alexandra, who originally penned this recipe, is that getting all the moisture out of the veggies is key.  I use a clean kitchen towel to squeeze out every bit that I can.  I have also noticed that sometimes after making the batter there is some liquid in the bottom the bowl.  To deal with this I will move the batter to one side and put in a few paper towels to soak up the liquid before moving on.

If you have extra yogurt sauce use it on chicken, veggies or whatever.  It's too good to let it go to waste.

Zucchini Pancakes with Yogurt Sauce
(Adapted from alexandra's kitchen's Zucchini Fritters with Tzatziki)

2 zucchinis, grated
1 potato, grated
kosher salt
2 tablespoons flour
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon garlic chives, chopped
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 cup onion, diced
1 tablespoon butter (only if frying)
1 teaspoon olive oil

Yogurt Sauce:
1 cup Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon red onion, minced
1 tablespoon mint, chopped
kosher salt (to taste)
pepper (to taste)
1 tablespoon lemon juice

It is important to get as much liquid out of the veggies as possible. Use a colander to drain the grated potato and zucchini.  Sprinkle the veggies with kosher salt and let sit for 30-40 minutes.

While the veggies are draining, mix the yogurt sauce ingredients and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Spread the potato and zucchini onto a clean kitchen towel.  Roll it up and squeeze to get as much moisture out as possible. Carefully dump the veggies out of the towel and into a large bowl. Sprinkle in the flour and toss to coat, then add the egg, herbs, lemon juice, onion and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well.

Version 1 – Pan fry method
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Melt the butter and olive oil in the pan.  Add a about ¼ cup dollop of the veggie mix and gently flatten it to about 1/2 inch thick. Cook 3-5 minutes per side until browned.

Version 2 – Baked method
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Line a pan with parchment paper and spread a bit of olive oil on the paper.  Use about 1/4 cup of the batter to form each pancake. Place zucchini pancakes on the oiled paper.  Spray tops with cooking spray. Bake for 15 minutes, then turn the pancakes over and bake another 10 minutes or until crispy.

Serve with yogurt sauce.

Vegetable Cannelloni with Spinach Tomato Sauce

Here's another homemade pasta recipe for you.  I know I can't help myself, the difference between store bought pasta and homemade pasta is like the difference between a winter grocery store tomato and a summer homegrown one. But I tell you what, this recipe is good even with store bough pasta, so if you can't deal with the thought of rolling your own, you can still give this recipe a try.

This recipe came up after my veggie ravioli recipe, mainly because I had leftover filling (I have halved the recipe here for you, so no need to worry about excess filling.) Such good veggies should not go to waste.  The sauce for this dish is quick and if the spinach part is too much for you (or you don't have any in the house) it's great without it also.  Make it work for you.

Vegetable Cannelloni with Spinach Tomato Sauce

Sauce:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup onion, diced
4-5 handfuls spinach leaves
4 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 cup red wine

28 ounces canned crushed tomatoes

1 teaspoon kosher slat
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 sugar

Filling:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 small red onion, diced
1 portabello mushrooms, diced
1/2 large zucchini, diced
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2-3 handfuls spinach, chopped fine
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, shredded
1/2 cup mozzarella, shredded
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
12 ounces ricotta cheese
1 egg, beaten

Pasta:
3/4 cups flour
3/4 cups semolina flour
3 eggs
1/2 tablespoon Kosher salt
olive oil
water

1/4 cup parmesan, grated ( for topping)

Filling:
Start with the filling, rub a little olive oil on the outside of the pepper and roast it in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes. Chop fine.

In a saute pan heat the olive oil over medium high heat and cook onion until soft. Add the mushrooms and cook for about 4-5 minutes, add the bell pepper, zucchini, garlic and spinach and cook 4-5 minutes longer.  Remove from heat and let cool. Stir in the Parmesan, mozzarella, salt, pepper, ricotta and egg. Refrigerate until needed.

Pasta Sheets:
To make the pasta, put the two types of flour and the salt in the bowl of a food processor with the chopping blade. Mix, adding one egg at a time until both eggs are incorporated.  Add about 1/2 teaspoon of each of olive oil and water, continuing to mix until a dough ball forms, adding a bit more olive oil and water as necessary, the ball should be pliable but not wet. If the dough is too wet add a little flour.

Divide the ball into 2 smaller balls and cover with a damp paper towel to keep dough from drying out.  Working with one ball at a time and using a pasta roller such as the Atlas Marcato set on "0", send the dough through the machine a dozen or so times until the dough has a silky texture  Store the sheet on a piece of parchment paper while you work on the other balls.  Once you have turned the two balls into two thick sheets of pasta, let the sheets rest about 10 minutes, covered with parchment paper.

After the past has rested, cut each sheet in half and working one piece at a time send them through the pasta roller set at "2" and then "5". Once the sheet is rolled through a "5" cut it into three sections lengthwise and hang each piece on the drying rack.  Do this all the sheets, you will have 12 pieces on the drying rack.  Let dry for 20-30 minutes.

Sauce:
In a food processor with chopper blade, pulse the spinach until finely minced. In a saute pan over medium high heat, saute the onion in oil until soft.  Add the spinach and garlic and saute 2-3 minutes.  Add the red wine and cook 1 minute then add the tomatoes, salt, pepper and sugar.  Simmer on low for about 15 minutes.

Assemble:
Cook the pieces in boiling water for 3-4 minutes. Drain and and refill the pan with cool water to help keep the pieces separate.  Work one piece at a time put 2-3 tablespoons of filling on the sheet and roll it up, set in a pan prepared with a bit of sauce in the bottom.  Repeat with the remain 11 pieces   Cover with the rest of the spinach sauce and bake covered at 375 degrees for 25 minutes or until bubbly.  Remove the cover and top with parmesan cheese and bake 2-3 minutes more or until the cheese melts. Let set for 15 minutes before serving.

Grilled Marinated Veggies

Now that the warm weather is moving in, we all start thinking about grilling.  I know I am guilty of arranging my grilling plans around what type of meat or meats that I am going to cook, but don't neglect the veggies.  Grilled veggies carry that wonderful fresh from the grill flavor just as good or better than the meat.

Any veggie can be grilled, but one of my favorite bases for a mixed veggie grill is potatoes.  I usually use baby potatoes and I always parboil them first. That way they can finish off with the rest of the veggies. If you put them in raw, the other veggies will cook up while you try to get the potatoes to the proper tender state.  I have a nice mix listed below, but pick veggies you like, also a good, but simple marinade is a good way to go for a super flavorful grilled veggie mix.

I like to start with olive oil, a favorite vinegar and then go out to the garden and pick a few fresh herbs.  The veggies pictured here use the herbs in large chunks, which is quite good, but my new favorite thing to do is use my immersion blender to pulse the herbs into small bits that carry their delicate flavor onto each piece. Blend or not blend, it's up to you.

Another great grilled veggie dish is Thug Kitchen's Grilled Romaine with Avocado Lime Dressing.  So super simple, and a really great addition to a grilled meal.  Yesterday, we grilled veggies, chicken thighs marinated in the same mixture as the veggies, and Thug Kitchen's romaine. We served it up all on a large platter and I am now sorry I did not take a picture for this blog.  You'll have to take my word for it, it was a fabulously complete meal with some meat, but lots of veggies.  My favorite balance.

Grilled Marinated Veggies

Marinade
1 part balsamic vinegar
1 part water
3 parts olive oil
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
a few sprigs each rosemary, marjoram and lemon thyme, or whatever you have

Veggies
baby red potatoes, parboiled and then cut in quarters or halves
1/2 red onion, quartered
grape or cherry tomatoes, halved if cherry
zucchini or yellow squash, cut in large chunks
baby bella  or white mushrooms, whole or halved

Par boil the potatoes whole until fork tender, rinse with cold water to halt cooking process and cool the potatoes. Cut into into preferred size chunks.

Combine the ingredients for the marinade, blend with the immersion blender, or not.

Once the potatoes are cool combine the veggies, potatoes and marinade in a large bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes or more.

These veggies should take 7-10 minutes to cook over medium high heat on your grill, so time it properly with the other items you are cooking.  When ready, spray a grill pan with cooking spray and spoon the veggies into the pan with a slotted spoon. Discard the remaining marinade. Cook stirring every few minutes allowing a bit of a char to happen, be careful not to overcook.  Don't decimate your veggies, just get them lightly cooked.