Italian Burrito

I know what you are thinking..."That is the worst name."  Italian Burrito.  It doesn't sound, exactly, fancy.  I spent some time (about 3 minutes) pondering the best name for this.  Then, I stopped spending time pondering the name and ended up with Italian Burrito.

The only reason that I am fretting is...this is one of my favorite things I have had in a while.  And the name definitely belittles how amazing this is.

Let me paint you a picture (©mametown).  This is a wrap filled with Israeli couscous (i.e. pasta), sautéed eggplant, garlicky kale, roasted bell peppers, topped with a little shredded mozzarella cheese, marinara sauce, and grated parmesan.  It you want a meal that is healthy but also not really, this is the meal for you.

Warning.  I made the marinara from tomatoes I grew and roasted the peppers from our CSA.  I have been shoveling so many raw tomatoes in my face over the course of the summer that I am now forced to cook them.  The eggplant and kale came in our CSA this week too.  So did the garlic.

Scot has a saying that I don't think I have shared yet on foodforscot.  If something is really good, he says it is a "knock out home run."  He says that but not as a joke.  He has said it long before he became a dad, but now all the pieces are starting to fit together.

Ok, well, he actually didn't call this dish a knock out, home run.  But that is because I ruined it.  I made this one night that Scot was working late.  I made it and ate it after baby bed time.  And THEN Scot came home and I made him one.  I always try to let Scot form his own opinion on a meal before giving him my opinion because he is a people pleaser and heavily influenced by my superb taste buds.  This time, though, I was scarfing it down when he walked in and I said something like, "OMG, this is the best thing ever."  In other words, knock out home run.

Italian Burrito
by foodforscot

1 eggplant (I used Rosa Bianca)
1 cup Israeli couscous
1 bunch kale (I used Tuscano kale), washed, de-stemmed, and torn into pieces
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 bell pepper, roasted, peeled, seeded, and sliced
1 cup marinara
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
¼ cup grated parmesan
olive oil
salt
pepper
4 whole wheat burrito tortillas

Prepare all the separate burrito fillings.

First, slice the eggplant and lay out in a single layer on a kitchen towel. Sprinkle each slice with salt and let sit for 15 minutes or longer. Turn each slice over and salt the other side. Let sit for 15 minutes or longer, on the new side. Once the eggplant slices have released some water, use another kitchen towel to pat dry and wipe excess salt off.

In the meantime, combine the couscous with 2 cups of water and a dash of salt in a small saucepan. Bring to boil, remove lid, and let simmer until all the water has evaporated and couscous is tender. Remove from heat and set aside.

Dice eggplant into cubes and sauté in olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Cook for about 10 minutes, tossing occasionally. Remove from heat and set aside.

In the same pan over medium high heat, add some olive oil and the kale. Sauté for a few minutes until the kale has slightly wilted. Add the garlic and cook, stirring often, until the kale reaches desired cooked down-ness.

Assemble the burrito. Warm the tortilla over a gas burner, in the microwave, or in the oven so that is pliable. Top with couscous, kale, eggplant, and roasted peppers. Sprinkle some mozzarella cheese, spoon on some marinara, and sprinkle with parmesan. Wrap it up burrito style.

(Servings: 4, Prep time: 45 hr., Cook time: 30 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  10/10
Scot (taste):  9/10
Effort: 3/5
Dishwashing Effort:  3/5

Summer Veggie Tacos

Our last two weeks of CSA (see below) have been beautiful.  So bountiful that we buy almost nothing from the grocery store.  Is this a problem?  No.  Is this amazing?  Yes.  Veggies all the time!!!

And a first....potatoes!  Potatoes are like a vegetarians guilty pleasure.  Potatoes warm my soul.  I have said that before when I have made potato soup, but it is so true.  I am sure that potatoes are one of the most like-able foods in the Universe.

But I have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the new potatoes from our share.  Red potatoes or yukon gold.  Picked young and small, they are such a treat!  They have not been provided as part of our share since they are not easy to come by.  But I have picked through the bulk potatoes for sale to get all the small ones on my own.  New potatoes or fully developed, they are still so good.

I have fond memories of digging for potatoes in the summer on the farm.  Gene would run some machinery through the potato plants to loosen up the dirt.  Then we would sit on the warm, dry ground and dig to find all the potatoes.  My knees would be stained with dirt.  My fingers nails were so dirty that only a couple hours swimming in the lake would make them clean again.  It was always fun to see how much each plant produced.  Sometime you would hit the jackpot.  And then there was always the chance that you would accidentally touch the soft, mushy, quartered seed potato.

When my potatoes arrived in my share, I was inspired to make some veggie tacos with potatoes!  The earthy potato was a great substitute for a meat or bean filling.  (Protein, Shmotein)

I have made a version of these veggie tacos twice with my Week 11 and 12 produce.  The taco above is a filling roasted potato, golden beets, and zucchini topped with a slaw.  

This version is a filling of potatoes, eggplants, and corn topped with a tomato pico and queso fresco.

I have included a recipe below that is general for any root veggie filling with a variety of options for toppings.  You could also do many other toppings that I did not list like:  sour cream, other cheeses, avocado, guacamole, other salsas, etc.  

Week 11:  Oat bread, herbs, eggs, assorted tomatoes, nectarines, plums, peaches (not part of CSA), sliced tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, sungold tomatoes, salad mix, golden beets, cabbage, new potatoes, cucumbers, hot peppers, green bell peppers, sweet yellow pepper, kale, collards, sweet corn

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Week 12:  apples, plums, eggs, yogurt, 20 lbs of tomatoes, maple oat bread (not part of CSA), escarole, kale, eggplant, wax beans, two heirloom tomatoes, cucumbers, yellow cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, sweet corn, green peppers, yellow peppers, 5 slicing tomatoes, thai eggplant.

WOW.  

Summer Veggie Tacos
by foodforscot

For filling:
2-3 cups diced summer root veggies (new potatoes, golden beets, carrots, turnips, etc.)
1-2 summer veggies (zucchini, eggplant (salt, let sit, and pat dry), green peppers, yellow summer squash, etc.) or ears of corn
1 tsp of paprika
1 tsp of cumin
½ tsp of chili powder
butter/olive oil
salt
pepper

For toppings (choose as many or as few as you’d like):
Tomato pico de gallo (recipe below)
Cabbage slaw (recipe below)
Queso fresco (or cotija)

For tacos:
12 corn tortillas
lime wedges

For filling: There are a few ways you can prepare the filling, depending on whether or not you want to turn on the oven. One option is toss the root veggies, spices, olive oil, salt, and pepper and spread out on a baking sheet. Bake at 425° for about 20 minutes. Then, add diced summer veggies to the baking sheet. Bake another 15-25 minutes or until the root veggies are tender and everything is golden. This method is easier, but hotter.

Option two is to only use the stove top and grill. For this method, you will want to blanch the root veggies. To do that, place them in a medium pot or sauce pan. Cover with water. Bring the pot to a boil and simmer until root veggies are tender. Drain and set aside. Using a cast iron fry pan, add some oil and butter over medium-high heat. Add potatoes and spices and brown (5-10 minutes, stir occasionally). All the summer veggies can be sliced, drizzled with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. Grill summer veggies over medium-high heat until softened and blackened (3-5 minutes per side). Corn can be blackened directly on the grill and then cut the kernels off the cob. Once root veggies are browned, add summer veggies and cook together for a few minutes before serving. This method is more work, a little less hot, and a little tastier.

For toppings: prepare your choice of toppings. Crumble cheeses.

For tacos: On the grill or directly over a gas burner, cook the corn tortillas until soft, pliable, and slightly charred. Top with filling, your choice of toppings and serve with a lime wedge.

(Servings: 4, Prep time: 30 min., Cook time: 30 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Tomato Pico de Gallo

1 pint of cherry tomatoes, quartered
¼ of a red onion, finely chopped
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
juice of 1 lime
salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Cabbage Slaw

½ head of cabbage, finely shredded
1 green pepper, seeded and finely sliced
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
1 green hot pepper, seeded and finely minced
juice of 1 lime
1-2 tsp of white wine vinegar
1-2 tsp of olive oil
salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Taste and adjust seasoning. This tastes better if it is made several hours in advance (or up to a few days).

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste) : 7/10

Scot (taste):  7/10

Effort:  2/5

Dishwashing Effort:  2/5
 

Warm Grilled Eggplant Salad

Week 10 - Herbs (basil, chives), peaches, white plums, assorted cherry tomatoes, yellow tomato,  (none of that is part of our CSA), 4 tomatoes!, red potatoes, salad greens, Rosa Bianca eggplant, Asian eggplant, green peppers, hot peppers, yellow squash, zucchini, cucumbers, dandelion greens, corn, Swiss chard.

I lost my week 9 photo.  But it was good stuff.  Similar to week 10.  We are there.  The peak of summer produce.  The pinnacle of all that is good.  We are FEASTING!!!

Can you believe this?  Four of these babies came with our CSA.  I bought the rest.  I did an ok job controlling myself.  We had another 5 or 6 from our garden that we ate this week.  Plus several handfuls of cherry tomatoes to supplement.  I thought I might save some of our tomatoes for winter in some form, but I am not at a point yet where I feel overwhelmed by tomatoes.  I feel happy about tomatoes.  I want more!  

This salad was so delicious.  It is very simple.  Some grilled veggies, tossed with some salad greens and a lemon, herb vinaigrette.  I wanted to pair it with something with a bright flavor, acidic flavor, but I also thought something cheesy would be good.  I made some stuffed tomatoes.  Mine where just stuffed with goat cheese, a little panko bread crumbs, parm, basil, and chives.  I cut a very small hole in the top of each tomato (and then ate the hole), then stuffed the cheese filling in.  I baked for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees.  Might be better to just throw them on the grill to avoid the oven.  It has been cold and rainy here so it wasn't a big deal for us.  

We are equally obsessed with eggplant as we are with tomatoes.  Our eggplants in our garden are doing well.  We will probably have at least ten.  We have been getting three or so in our CSA each week.  So good.  These Rosa Bianca globe shaped eggplants are amazing.  Maybe I will make some Baba Ganoush to freeze for Birk once he is ready to explore non-milk calories.  I very much appreciate the milk-only diet.  Meal prep is pretty easy.  Wish we could ride out that phase a little longer.  

Warm Grilled Eggplant Salad
by foodforscot

1 eggplant (I used Rosa Bianca)
1 summer squash
1 green pepper
1 big bag of salad greens
quarter of a medium red onion, thinly sliced
1 handful of basil, rolled and thinly sliced
10 chives, minced
½ tsp of Dijon mustard
1 lemon, juice
1 tsp of red wine vinegar
olive oil
salt
pepper

Slice the eggplant to make 1/4th of an inch thick rounds. Place in a colander (or lay out on a kitchen towel) and sprinkle generously with salt. Mix (or turn) to evenly coat the eggplant with the salt. Let sit for at least 30 minute (up to an hour or so) to release the water out of the eggplant.

Prepare the dressing: In a medium bowl, combine basil, chives, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, red wine vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. While whisking, slowly add in olive oil. Add more salt, pepper, and oil, to taste. Set aside.

Preheat grill to medium high.

Slice the summer squash and quarter (and core and seed) the green pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Once eggplant is done, pat dry with a kitchen towel. Season with pepper. Drizzle olive oil over everything.

Right before grilling, turn off the flame, brush the grill with olive oil. Turn the flame back on. Grill eggplant, squash, and green peppers until soft with nice grill marks. Remove from grill and chop into bite sized pieces.

In a large bowl, toss together salad greens, red onions, grilled veggies, and lemon/herb dressing. Salad is best served warm and immediately.

(Servings: 3, Prep time: 30 min., Cook time: 30 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  8/10
Scot (taste):  8/10
Effort:  2/5
Dishwashing Effort:  2/5

Eggplant and Tomato Grilled Pizza

One of my favorite preparations of the most popular summer veggies (including:  cucumbers, zucchini, and eggplant) is to remove some of the moisture by salting them.  Salt seems to be a fear for many people.  It is one of the many unfortunate consequences of our wacky food system.  Salt is not only essential to give pretty much any ingredient flavor, but it is an amazing tool.

First, salt is fine.  Since many people are used to processed foods, convenience foods, and fast foods...salt has become this evil thing to avoid.  If you grew up eating packaged foods, you definitely didn't need to add salt to anything you were cooking.  When I would microwave my Hungry Man, I never pulled out the salt shaker to perfect the seasoning.  As a result, when cooking real food, I have talked to countless people who either skip the salt completely, or they feel very uncomfortable adding salt to their food.  Or they cringe watching me or someone else season a dish with salt.  The consequence of this fear of salt?  People think they hate "fill in the blank" ingredient.  Common culprits:  mushrooms, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, kale, beans, beets, squash, eggplant, and probably most veggies.

Now, there are lots of reasons people might not like a certain ingredient.  Most likely it is because the time they tried it, it was cooked poorly.  And it is very likely it wasn't seasoned properly.  Other options:  it wasn't in season, wasn't ripe, was mass produced and had no flavor, etc.  There is a small chance your palette isn't ready for that flavor yet.  Like why we don't feed babies bitter dark greens as their very first solid food.  It is hard to know exactly the reason why you might not like a particular ingredient, which is why you should always give ingredients a second chance (what I mean by that is..a 20th chance).

With the majority of veggies, whole grains, beans...you know all the healthy stuff...you need to season them.  With some salt. If I were to answer the question, is salt good for me?  My answer would be "yes!"  Aside from all the fancy nutritional explanations of why we need salt...sodium blah blah, electrolytes ya ok.  My reasoning is: it makes healthy food taste good.  Take a bitter vegetable of your choice:  kale, swiss chard, broccoli, brussels sprouts, whatever.  Roast it with and without salt.  Which one are you most likely going to go through the trouble of preparing and eating again?  The salted one!  More info on salt here.  The CDC, FDA, WHO all have articles on SODIUM.  Don't read those.  They assume you eat Hohos and McDonalds everyday.

Sorry.  I have watched two documentaries in the past two days on food.  One made me cry.  Like happy cry, but still.  Ok, I will tell you what made me cry:  "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead".  Phil stole my heart.

Back to this pizza.  What a perfect summer meal.  I made Pioneer Women's Tomato and Eggplant Pizza a few years ago.  That was my first time putting eggplant on pizza.  This recipe is very similar, but adapted for the middle of the summer.  A few summers ago I also posted on how to grill pizza.

I have made this twice in the past two weeks.  It is my favorite thing right now.  The toppings pair really well with the grilled, charred-ness of the pizza.

Eggplant and Tomato Grilled Pizza
by foodforscot

1 Japanese eggplant
1 bunch of kale, washed, stemmed and roughly chopped
half a pint of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 whole wheat pizza dough (room temp, mine is from a Brooklyn pizza restaurant)
fresh mozzarella (1 ball), thinly sliced
parmesan cheese, grated
olive oil
salt
pepper

Slice the eggplant to make 1/8th of an inch thick rounds. Place in a colander and sprinkle generously with salt. Mix to evenly coat the eggplant with the salt. Let sit for at least 30 minute (up to an hour or so) in the sink to release the water out of the eggplant.

In the meantime, prep the pizza toppings. In a skillet, sauté the kale in some olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. You can do all of this on the grill or inside on the stove. Next, lay the eggplant out on a kitchen towel. Pat dry (a lot of the salt should come off too). In a hot pan with olive oil or on the grill, sauté/grill each piece of eggplant until golden brown on each side. Do not season. Remove from pan and set aside. In the same skillet over medium high heat, add some olive oil and sauté the halved cherry tomatoes until soften and slightly charred. Remove from pan and set aside.

Preheat the grill to medium high heat. Divide the dough in half. You will want to make two small pizzas, instead of one large one. It is much easier to deal with small pizzas when grilling. I like to roll the dough out on parchment paper. Once the dough is rolled out, I pre cook it on the grill before topping it. Place the dough on the grill with the parchment paper still attached to the top. Then, peel the parchment paper off. Cook for a few minutes until dough is not raw. Flip and cook the other side a few minutes. Remove from the grill, place on a plate or cutting board. Turn heat down to medium low.

Top the pizzas (everything is divided evenly among the two pizzas). First, layer on the sliced mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with minced garlic. Top with kale, eggplant, and tomatoes. Sprinkle with grated parmesan. Place back on the grill and cook for 5-10 more minutes until cheese is melty and crust is crispy. Watch the bottom of the crust, you don’t want to burn it!!!

(Servings: 3-4, Prep time: 1 hr., Cook time: 30 min., Difficulty: Intermediate)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  10/10
Scot (taste):  9/10
Effort:  3/5
Dishwashing Effort:  2/5

Grilled Eggplant Subs with Mozzarella and Tomato Jam

Ya had me at tomato jam.  

Joanne posted this recipe not too long ago.  And although I love everything about this concept for a sandwich, it is the tomato jam that gets me every time.  It is like the Red Onion Marmalade, but with some fire-roasted tomatoes added in.  

I think of this sandwich as being sort of like an Eggplant Parmesan sandwich.  In the sense that it has the eggplant, tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese.  However, the eggplant is grilled.  The tomatoes have tang from the balsamic vinegar and sweetness from the caramelized onions and brown sugar.  And the mozzarella is smoked (smells like ham).  Also, there is no parmesan and some peppery, bitter arugula thrown in there.  

Rach. Ray has some signature ingredients she uses over and over.  Like Bobby Flay and manchego cheese.  Like Paula Deen and butter.  Like Giada and Parmesan.  Like ME and goat cheese!  Well, RRs is smoked mozzarella.  Until I moved to the East Coast, I have never been able to find the stuff.  As I am strolling through the grocery store, local smoked mozzarella just jumps out at me.  It is fresh mozzarella...smoked.  It seriously smells like smoked meat.  

Lastly, I did salt my eggplant and let it sit in a colander to release all its liquid.  Probably not necessary for a quick grill like this.  But you know...just for the record.  I also didn't make 1/2 cup of infused oil, I just made a couple of tablespoons.  

Grilled Eggplant Subs with Mozzarella and Tomato Jam

by Rachael Ray with modification

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

2 cloves garlic

1 sprig rosemary

1 small red onion, chopped

One can fire-roasted diced tomatoes (15 ounces)

1 tablespoon brown sugar

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 eggplants, cut into slices

Salt and pepper

1 cup packed baby arugula

1/2 cup basil leaves, torn

Juice of 1/2 lemon

4 sesame-crusted sub rolls

One 1/2-1-pound ball smoked mozzarella, sliced into 8 rounds

Pre-heat a grill pan to medium-high or a broiler to high. In a small saucepan, heat the EVOO over medium heat. Add the garlic and rosemary and let steep for 3 minutes.

In a large skillet, combine 1 tablespoon of the infused EVOO and the red onion over medium heat and cook until softened, 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes, brown sugar and vinegar, lower the heat and cook until thickened, 10 minutes.

Brush half the eggplant with the infused EVOO and season with salt and pepper. Grill or broil, flipping once, until tender, 2-3 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining eggplant.

Dress the arugula and basil with the lemon juice and remaining infused EVOO; season with salt and pepper.

On each roll bottom, layer eggplant slices, a handful of greens and 2 smoked mozzarella rounds. Grill or broil to melt the cheese. Slather the roll tops with the tomato jam and set in place.

(Servings: 4, Prep time: 45 min., Cook time: 10 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  8/10

Scot (taste):  8/10

Effort:  3/5

Dishwashing Effort:  3/5

Ratatouille

Ratatouille is a funny thing.  First, yes, I love that movie too.  It is cute and probably inspired lots of young kiddies to be chefs when thet grow up.  

Next, ratatouille is ALWAYS whipped up on cooking competitions and shows.  I have always wondered what the big deal was.  After reading recipes and listening to people talk about ratatouille, it left me thinking "cooked vegetables with no particular flavoring...that sounds...boring."  Why are Top Chefs making it?  Why are Iron Chefs making it?  Why does it even exist, let alone have a fancy French name? 

Well, I was consumed with these thoughts and doubts all the way up until the end of making this Ratatouille.  I kept tasting it and not being that impressed.  I am also bothered by annoying, OCD recipe instructions that don't seem to have an rationale behind them.  I feel like Julia is a bit of a jokester.  She wrote this cook book to see how many Americans she could get to follow her painfully long and drown out recipes.  I wouldn't be surprised if I was reading her recipe and it said, "take the chicken out the fridge for 3 minutes.  Now put it back in.  Turn of the power in the house.  Do three push ups.  Ok, now you are ready to cook the bird."

I don't mean to be disrespectful.  Because Julia is my girl.  I have always loved her.  But her recipes make me want to jump out the window.  

Anyways, back to my ratatouille.  Aside from cleaning the pot, the skillet, the dutch oven, the strainer, the colander, the million utensils..., I actually really liked the final product.  

Let me tell you what ratatouille really is.  It is a bunch of late summer vegetables that are stewed in fresh tomato meat.  Julia's recipe has you fry each piece of vegetable on its own to get a nice brown outside (probably a good idea, but roasting it would have been easier).  She also does this funky layering in a "casserole" (it stays on the stove, Wikipedia, you are wrong).  The layering is crazy talk.  Especially since it actually says to taste and season after the layering happens.  Once you re-season...you would have to mix it up.  And I had to add lots and lots of salt to all these veggies.  

What I am trying to say is:  use this recipe as a general guide.  Or use Anne's, she seems to have simplified it a bit.  Ratatouille is a beautiful dish.  You know how good veggies taste in your favorite vegetable stew or soup?  That is the same general idea.  Except, in ratatouille, they are not nearly as soft.  We ate this with some fish.  Traditionally it is often served with some beef or pork.  I just wanted something quicker.  Veggies go with anything.  

Ratatouille

from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child

1 pound eggplant

1 pound zucchini

1 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons olive oil, more if needed

1/2 pound (about 1 1/2 cups) thinly sliced yellow onions

2 (about 1 cup) sliced green bell peppers

2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil, if necessary

2 cloves mashed garlic

1 pound firm, ripe, red tomatoes, peeled, seeded & juiced (makes 1 1/2 cups pulp)

3 tablespoons minced parsley

Salt and pepper

Peel the eggplant and cut into lengthwise slices 3/8 inch thick, about 3 inches long and 1 inch wide. Scrub the zucchini, slice off the two ends and cut the zucchini into slices about the same size as the eggplant slices. Place the vegetables in a bowl and toss with the salt. Let stand for 30 minutes. Drain. Dry each slice in a towel.

One layer at a time, sauté the eggplant and then the zucchini in hot olive oil in the skillet for about a minute on each side to brown very lightly. Remove to a side dish.

In the same skillet, cook the onions and peppers slowly in olive oil for about 10 minutes, or until tender but not browned. Stir in the garlic and season to taste. Slice the tomato pulp into 3/8-inch strips. Lay them over the onions and peppers. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the skillet and cook over low heat for 5 minutes, or until tomatoes have begun to render their juice. Uncover, baste the tomatoes with the juices, raise heat and boil for several minutes, until juice has almost entirely evaporated.

Place a third of the tomato mixture in the bottom of the casserole and sprinkle over it 1 tablespoon of the parsley. Arrange half of the eggplant and zucchini on top, then half the remaining tomatoes and parsley. Put in the rest of the eggplant and zucchini and finish with the remaining tomatoes and parsley.

Cover the casserole and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Uncover, tip casserole and baste with the rendered juices. Correct seasoning, if necessary. Raise heat slightly and cook uncovered for about 15 minutes more, basting several times, until juices have evaporated leaving a spoonful or two of flavored olive oil. Be careful of your heat; do not let the vegetables scorch in the bottom of the casserole. Set aside uncovered. Reheat slowly at serving time or serve cold.

(Servings: 4-8, Prep time: forever, Cook time: forever, Difficulty: Intermediate)

Printable Version

foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  8/10

Scot (taste):  8/10

Effort:  3/5

Dishwashing Effort:  4/5

PW's Eggplant and Tomato Pizza

Ohhhhhhh, Pioneer Woman. So, this is PW's favorite pizza. When I saw this, it sounded crazy enough, to be my potential favorite pizza. /I am just a wanna-be-Pioneer Woman.

Seriously...good stuff. Seriously. Not that you could expect anything less from P-dubs.

And I agree, this pizza crust got better. The first time we had it was one day after I made it (the strombolis). Now it has been three days. And I like it more. It is a thin crusty. Crispy.

I must confess that I did not trust the recipe when I read it. She does not use a pizza stone in this recipe. She has you stretch the dough out on a baking sheet. I wasn't going to do it. I thought I was too good to not use a pizza stone. But, about a minute before I needed to turn on the oven, I took the pizza stone out of the oven and put it away. That there shows you that I trust PW. And, it was excellent. And makes me feel good that I can mass produce homemade pizza on baking sheets one day.

This pizza is kind of like an eggplant parmesan pizza. I mean, I didn't realize until I tasted it. But it has all the same elements and flavors. But it works. It really works. I mean, it is really, really good.

We had this salad with the pizza. It is a simple salad with romaine lettuce, corn, garbanzo beans, red onion and parmesan chunks with a light dressing of olive oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper. We have had this before, and I remember really loving it. This time, I was less impressed. I think it is because last time I used fresh corn and picked a better garbanzo bean brand. I am picky about canned foods. Whoops. Here it is.

PW’s Eggplant and Tomato Pizza

by Pioneer Woman

FOR THE CRUST (MAKES TWO CRUSTS):

1 teaspoon Active Dry Or Instant Yeast

4 cups All-purpose Flour

1 teaspoon Kosher Salt

⅓ cups Extra Virgin Olive Oil

FOR THE PIZZA:

1 whole Large Eggplant (or Two Medium Eggplants)

Kosher Salt, For Sprinkling

1 pint Grape Tomatoes

2 cloves Garlic, Minced

8 ounces, weight Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, Sliced Very Thin

1/2 cups Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese

Extra Virgin Olive Oil For Drizzling

Freshly Ground Black Pepper

TO MAKE THE CRUST:

Sprinkle yeast over 1 1/2 cups warm (not lukewarm) water. In a mixer, combine flour and salt. With the mixer running on low speed (with paddle attachment), drizzle in olive oil until combined with flour. Next, pour in yeast/water mixture and mix until just combined.

Coat a separate mixing bowl with a light drizzle of olive oil, and form the dough into a ball. Toss to coat dough in olive oil, then cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and store in the fridge until you need it. ***It’s best to make the dough at least 24 hours in advance, and 3 or 4 days is even better.

TO MAKE THE PIZZA:

Preheat oven broiler.

Slice the eggplant thinly. Sprinkle both sides with kosher salt and place into a strainer in the sink. Allow to sit for 20 to 30 minutes. Rinse eggplant lightly in cold water, then pat the slices dry between layers of paper towels.

Slice grape tomatoes in half lengthwise and toss into a bowl with minced garlic. Slice mozzarella very thinly.

Cut eggplant slices into fourths, and toss with olive oil. Arrange on a baking sheet and place 8 inches under the broiler. Broil for 3 minutes, then toss around and broil another 3 minutes. Remove pan from oven and add tomato/garlic mixture. Broil for 2 to 3 minutes, then remove and set aside. (May do this 1 hour in advance.)

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Drizzle olive oil on a large baking sheet and use fingers to coat thoroughly. Remove HALF the pizza dough from the bowl. Stretch pizza dough into a large rectangle, pressing with fingers to finish forming. Dough will be very thin.

Lightly drizzle a little olive oil on the dough and use fingers to spread. Lay mozzarella slices over the surface of the dough. Spread vegetables all over the surface of the cheese. Top with Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly. Remove from pan and slice with a pizza cutter. Serve immediately!

(Servings: 6, Prep time: 30 min., Cook time: 25 min., Difficulty: Easy)

Printable Version

Eggplant and Fried Green Tomato Parmesan with Spaghetti and Italian Chopped Salad

Fried Green Tomatoes was one of my favorite movies growing up. I have made fried green tomatoes many times in the past summers. Green tomatoes are not easy to find in the grocery store in the winter. They did have some tiny ones with the heirloom tomatoes, though, so we bought some to try it parmesan style. I like a good eggplant parmesan, but HATE it when the eggplant is all squishy, wet and slimy. The trick is to salt the eggplant to release a lot of the liquid. It is awesome!

This recipe is combination of Closet Cooking's recipe and Annie's Eats' recipe. I really liked the idea of the cornmeal breading, which is what Closet Cooking did. And I really, really liked it.

We also made the tomato sauce from last night again. This time we doubled it and used San Marzano tomatoes. Amazing.

Fried Green Tomato and Eggplant Parmesan

from Closet Cooking and Annie’s Eats, modified by Shanon

1 medium eggplant (sliced into 1/4 inch thick circles)

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

2 green tomatoes (sliced 1/4 inch thick)

salt and pepper to taste

~1/2 cup flour

~2 egg (beaten)

1/2 cup corn meal

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup light cooking oil

~4 cups marinara sauce (see recipe for tomato sauce with butter and onion, double recipe)

1 cup mozzarella cheese (grated)

1/4 cup parmigiano-reggiano (grated)

1. To prepare the eggplant, toss the eggplant slices with the kosher salt in a large bowl until combined. Transfer the salted eggplant to a colander and set the colander over the now empty bowl. Let stand until the eggplant releases at least 1 tablespoon liquid, 30-45 minutes. Spread the eggplant slices on a triple thickness of paper towels (or layers of clean kitchen towels); cover with another triple thickness of paper towels. Press firmly on each slice to remove as much liquid as possible. Wipe off any excess salt.

2. Season the tomato slices with salt and pepper.

3. Dredge the tomato and eggplant slices in the flour, then dip them in the egg and finally dredge them in the corn meal and flour mixture.

4. Fry the tomato and eggplant slices in the light oil until golden brown on both sides, about 1-3 minutes per side.

5. Place the fried green tomato and eggplant slices on the bottom of a baking pan.

6. Spread the marinara sauce on top of the fried green tomato and eggplant slices.

7. Spread the cheese on top of the marinara sauce.

8. Bake in a preheated 350F oven until the cheese is golden brown, about 20-30 minutes.

Printable Version

We had this over spaghetti with a chopped Italian salad. In it were the same veggies from last night: romaine lettuce, cucumbers, green and red peppers, red onion, carrots and celery. Plus, I added black olives and shredded mozzarella cheese. It was dress with olive oil, red wine vinegar and salt and pepper.

Also, found San Marzano tomatoes at Whole Foods! These tomatoes are always recommended in recipes that call for whole tomatoes. They are amazing. It is going to be hard to go back to anything else.