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.

Chocolate Coconut Bark

I know I've talked about coconut oil before, but I feel the need to do so again, and again. That's because this saturated fat used to get such a bad rap, I want to make sure the word is getting out.  I discovered coconut oil a few years ago to help me get off Pepcid and Prevacid.  I have awful acid and digestive issues that run in my family.  When I eat well, exercise and get a daily dosage of coconut oil these issues literally disappear.

What's more is that coconut oil being a medium chain fatty acid, gets used in your body much differently than other saturated fats.  It gets broken down in your system and instead of being stored as fat, it makes energy.  Something we can all use more of.  So what does this mean?  It means you are eating fat, but not getting fatter, in fact you are improving your metabolism and have a good shot of losing weight.  Yup that's what I said.  Google coconut oil and you'll see I am not making this stuff up!

So how much coconut oil should you have each day?  I think 1-2 tablespoons a day seems to do the trick. You can use it anywhere you use other oils, so you can start there.  Or you can swirl a teaspoon or so into your morning coffee or tea. Or you could make this awesome chocolate bark and get some extra antioxidants in at the same time.  This bark, like any other chocolate bark can take on all kinds of add ons.  This batch has pecans and dried cranberries, with a few mini marshmallows thrown in on part of it for my daughter.  It comes together fast and keeps well in the fridge.

Chocolate Coconut Bark

1/2 cup organic coconut oil
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup honey

add ons:
handful of dried cranberries
1/2 cup of chopped pecans
mini marshmallows

Line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper.

Over low heat in a small saucepan, heat the coconut oil until it melts.  Stir in the cocoa powder mixing well.  Once dissolved, add in the honey, cook and stir a few minutes longer then remove from heat.

Pour into the pan and top with your add ons.  Put the pan in the freezer for 30-60 minutes.  Remove from the freezer and break the bark into pieces.  Store in the refrigerator.

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. 

Baked BBQ Chicken Wings

Wings and football, they go hand in hand. But wings can be quite calorie laden.  I do two versions of baked wings to satisfy the craving for wings throughout the football season without tipping the scale too much.  This is my lazy version, it really couldn't get any easier.

I use parchment paper for this dish,  It helps with the cooking process as well as clean up.  Because believe me if you make these without the protection of the parchment paper, or if you don't have it, a sheet of foil, you will be sorry.

Baked BBQ Chicken Wings

Chicken wings, as many as you want, sectioned, tips removed
olive oil
salt and pepper
BBQ sauce of your choice ( I like Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ)
blue cheese or ranch dressing for dipping, if that's your thing

Prepare your wings then put them in a zip lock bag. Drizzle a bit of olive oil over them and season with salt and pepper.  Shake the bag to coat all the wings. I usually do this ahead of time and let them sit in the refrigerator until I am ready cook them.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Line an appropriate size pan or pans with parchment paper.  Make sure you leave room around each wing, or they wont get crispy enough. Start out with the wings skin side down.

Put the wings in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Open the oven (do not turn the wings) and brush the top side with BBQ sauce.  Cook for another 10 minutes.  Open the oven, turn the wings, and brush the top side with BBQ sauce.  Cook another 10 minutes and they are done!

Pepper Steak with Penne

I've been making versions of this pepper steak for years.  It originally came from the back of some package, to which I would give proper credit, but the recipe is long gone and I can't remember the product.  That's okay, I think it's been morphed into my own thing anyway.

This dish is super easy and has wonderful fresh flavors due to the green peppers and tomatoes being added in at the end. It does take a bit of time though, you need to simmer the beef for over an hour before you can finish off the dish.  This is very important, otherwise the flank steak will tough rather than tender, and your fabulous dish will only be mediocre.


Pepper Steak with Penne

1 1/2  lbs flank steak, cut into 1/8 inch strips
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup onions, sliced
3 cloves garlic, pressed
2 each beef bouillon cubes
2 cups water
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup  red wine
1 each  green pepper, sliced
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup water
3 tomatoes, sliced
12 ounces penne pasta
1/4 cup fresh parmesan cheese, grated

In a very large skillet, brown the steak in the olive oil, season with salt and pepper then add the onions, cook until slightly tender.  Add the garlic and saute about 3 seconds longer.  Add the water, bouillon cubes, Worcestershire sauce and red wine.  Bring to a slight boil then turn to low and cover.  Simmer on low for about 1 and 1/4 hours.

Once the beef is tender, cook the pasta according to package instructions.

Add the green pepper to the beef and cook for 2 minutes.  Mean while mix the water and cornstarch together.  Add it to the beef mixture and stir until thickened.  Add the tomatoes and heat through.  Stir in the cooked pasta and top with grated Parmesan.

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.

Parchment Roasted Salmon

Sometimes the simplest cooking ideas are the best. That's how I feel about this Salmon recipe. Nothing about it is earth shattering, except how fabulous it tastes.  

The trick to this recipe is the parchment paper. Parchment paper is one of my new favorite things. It seems to have made my mediocre cookies into great cookies, so I wondered would it do the same for my salmon recipe?  I know could cook this dish without it, and it would be quite tasty and good.  I also know clean up would be a bit of a pain. But besides the clean up, what would the parchment do for me?  Cooking fish using parchment isn't a new concept, but mostly it seems that folks like to wrap fish inside the parchment and basically steam it.  This is not what I was looking for. I wanted something more crispy and brown, something with a roasted rustic taste.  I got it. 

Parchment Roasted Salmon

1 1/2 lbs salmon about an inch thick

Marinade:

1-2 tablespoons olive oil

Juice of one lemon

1 clove garlic pressed

3/4 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary

salt and pepper to taste

1 sheet of parchment paper

Combine the marinade ingredients.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Set wire rack in boiler pan and then lay the parchment paper on top.  Place the fish on the parchment paper.  Pour the marinade over the fish and let is set for 10-15 minutes.

Put the pan in the oven and roast for about 10 minutes, then turn the heat on broil and brown for about 5 minutes or until the fish is cooked to your liking.  

Seafood Stew

I have an oldie but goodie on my menu plan this week, and even though I posted it before on my old site, many of you have never seen it.  

This dish is a hearty favorite, it's one of those catch all dishes that you can throw anything into.  My version has evolved from a basic tomato base stew with fish in it, to a heartier, creamy version utilizing corn, potatoes and coconut milk. The beauty of this recipe is that you can make it mostly from items in your pantry or freezer, plus throw in a few items from the fridge that need to be used and you have a great meal.

Seafood Stew

Serving Size: 8

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion -- chopped

3 cloves garlic -- pressed

1 each jalapeno pepper -- minced

2 medium potatoes -- 1/2" cubes

1 ear corn

28 ounces crushed tomatoes

15 ounces chicken broth

1/4 cup red wine

1 cup water

2 tablespoons fresh parsley -- chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons basil

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

12 ounces cod

1 pound shrimp -- shells removed

10 ounces clams, canned -- undrained

13.5 ounces coconut milk

·         In large pot, sauté onions in oil until they begin to soften, add the garlic and jalapeno and sauté 1 to 2 minutes longer.

·         Cut the corn off the cob and add it to pot with the potatoes. Add the tomatoes thru the black pepper and simmer until the potatoes are almost tender.

·         Cut the fish into large pieces and add to the pot, cook until it begins to break apart.

·         Add shrimp and clams and cook 5-6 minutes.

·         Add coconut milk and cook until heated through.

·         Serve with salad and crusty bread.

As calculated By Mastercook. Per Serving: 376 Calories; 18g Fat (41.6% calories from fat); 33g Protein; 22g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 128mg Cholesterol; 864mg Sodium.  Exchanges: 1/2 Grain(Starch); 4 Lean Meat; 1 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 3 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

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.

Shrimp and Corn Chowder

Nothing beats a great chowder when it's cold outside.  So when I was working on this week's menu and came across this fabulous recipe, I knew it was going to make onto the plan.  Pair this chowder with some fresh baked bread and you've got some serious comfort food.  The combination of creamy corn and potato goodness with shrimp and bacon can not be beat! The best part is how quick it is.

This is a mid-guilt recipe, I use a combination of half and half and 2% percent milk.  You can up the creaminess and calorie count by using some heavy cream, or you can go the opposite way and use skim milk and puree more of the veggies to get the right consistency.  Make it work for you.  If you don't do the dairy, I am sure coconut milk would make a great substitute.

Shrimp and Corn Chowder

2 slices bacon cut into slivers
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic mince
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
Pinch of saffron
Few pinches of cayenne pepper and cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
3 teaspoons flour
8 oz clam juice
1 cup half and half
2 cups 2 % milk
1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and chopped into ½ inch pieces
1 bag frozen corn
1 can creamed corn
1 pound cooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 teaspoon chopped fresh chives or parsley

Fry bacon in heavy large Dutch oven.  Remove bacon to drain and reserve for serving. Add onions and bell pepper and seasonings to saute.  Add the garlic and saute a minute longer. Add the flour and cook another 2 minutes.  Add the potatoes, clam juice, half and half and milk bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. If the chowder seems a little thin use an immersion blender to break down some of potatoes, but make sure to leave a good amount chunky. Add shrimp, creamed corn and corn and cook until the potatoes are tender and the shrimp and corn are heated through. Stir in bacon and chives or parsley.

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.

Pasta, Sausage and Spinach with Butternut Sauce

Well, the stay at home mom gig is over. I've gone back to work. In general it's a good thing; I've missed the other identity that you have in the workplace, instead of being a 24-7 mom.  Although, I have to admit the 24-7 mom thing is a wonderful luxury to experience. Anyway, this why you haven't heard much from me lately and I am sure the postings will continue to be few and far between. But I love writing this blog, plus when combined with the power Pinterest, it's a great way for me to record and save my favorite recipes, so I plan to keep it hobbling along.  My guess is it will get more focused on meals for busy moms.

This recipe isn't necessarily a quick get it on the table in twenty minutes kind of thing, but it's not far from it. So I think it will qualify, plus it's got good veggies for the kids. In fact, it passed the kid test with my picky eater, who would not touch a chunk of butternut squash if her life depended upon it.

So I had this butternut squash sitting around; it came in my CSA box a week or so back and I was feeling unenthused. What do you do with a butternut squash?  I have to admit I am not very creative with it.  I usually peel it, cut in cubes, drizzle on some olive, season with salt and pepper and roast it.  Boring. I was wasting some of the little precious free time I have surfing on Pinterest, and a pin of SkinnyTaste.com's Pasta with Butternut Sauce, Spicy Sausage and Baby Spinach caught my eye. I put it on the menu for upcoming week.

This is really a review of the recipe, because except for a few very minor changes that fit my taste, I did nothing to change this recipe.  It's really simple, fairly quick and quite tasty. I will be making it or a version of it again.

Pasta, Sausage and Spinach with Butternut Sauce
(Adapted from SkinnyTaste.com's Pasta with Butternut Sauce, Spicy Sausage and Baby Spinach)

1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into cubes

6 ounce package of hot Italian sausage links

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 lb orecchietti pasta

2 shallots, minced

4 cloves garlic, minced

¼ teaspoon ground sage

2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped

2 tablespoons shredded parmesan cheese

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Cook the butternut squash until soft in a large pot of salted, boiling water. Using a slotted spoon, remove the squash and put it in a blender, let it cool a bit, then puree it.

Reheat the squash water to boiling and cook the pasta until done. Before draining the pasta reserve a cup or more of the water for the sauce.

While the pasta is cooking, heat a deep non stick skillet over medium high heat, open the sausage links and crumble the pieces into the pan.  Cook until the sausage is done. Then remove it from the pan. In the same pan on medium low, heat the olive oil and saute the shallots until soft. Add the garlic and cook a minute longer.  Add the squash puree, sage, 1 cup of the reserved water, the cooked sausage and spinach.  Stir to combine the ingredients. Add the pasta and parmesan cheese, stir again, adding more reserved water if needed.  Season with salt and pepper.

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.