Marinated Eggplants

So, maybe you're getting a little tired of baking with eggplant and heating up your kitchen: it is August, after all.  Well, do I have the recipe for you!  This marinated eggplant is one of my favorite summer meals.  Okay, you do have to the stove top for a little bit, but you can make a batch to last a week and it's definitely worth a little sweat.  I found this in Recipes from an Italian Summer, a wonderful cookbook for working with summer produce.

Ingredients:
- About 1 1/2 lb. eggplant, any variety large enough to slice
- 3/4 c. flavorful olive oil
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon capers, rinsed, and roughly chopped
- 10 mint leaves, chopped
- a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper

Directions:
- If the eggplant is thick-skinned, peel it.  Slice the eggplant into 1/4" rounds.
- Sprinkle the slices with salt and let them drain over a colander for 30 minutes.
- Rinse the eggplant slices and pat them dry.  Brush them lightly with olive oil: it's important to use a brush and a light hand here, (don't drizzle!), or they will just soak up the oil in some spots.
-  Heat a heavy skillet over high heat.
- Add the eggplant slices in a single layer, cooking them in batches.  Turn them once to lightly brown them on both sides.  They should lose a lot of their moisture and appear a bit shriveled.
- Whisk the remaining oil, (most of it), with the remaining ingredients.
- Create a layer of eggplant and add a few spoonfuls of the dressing, being sure to get some of the chunky bits.
- Repeat, stacking layers, until all of the eggplant and dressing is used.
- Cover and chill for at least 6 hours before use.

This eggplant is delicious served with some mozzarella or as part of a caprese salad.  It is sublime, if a tad oily, sandwiched between sourdough with some mozzarella and pressed into a panini.  I think it would be a great accompaniment to a tender chimichurri-marinated steak.  If, for some reason, you have extra marinade it makes great salad dressing, too.

Enjoy!

Cucumber Yogurt Salad (or Dip!)

I never thought I could have too many cucumbers, but with my vines doing so well this year I'm finding it hard to keep up with the cucumber (or two) a day that need picking and eating.  This simple little salad is a classic and fresh way to use them up.  I quite like it for breakfast, as my sweet tooth is not always an early riser.  To make it into a dip simply mince the cucumbers or send them through a food processor.

Ingredients:
- 2 cups chopped cucumber (half quarted, half chopped more finely)
- 1/2 c. minced red onion
- 1/2 c. chopped dill
- 3/4 c. greek yogurt (I used 0%)
- 1/4-1/2 tsp salt, to taste
- 1/4 tsp. paprika (optional)

Directions:
- Umm...  combine everything and stir.

If you like a thicker texture, don't let the cucumbers sit in the yogurt for more than 2-3 hours prior to serving.  For dip, I recommend squeezing out some of the excess water from the cucumbers.  It will taste good, regardless, but I found it to get a little soupy after a day in the fridge.

Enjoy!

A different take on potato salad

While I do have a special place in my heart for thick, goopey, white, traditional potato salad, sometimes I want it to be a little lighter and healthier.  This version manages to sneak in plenty of ultra-healthy kale and avoid the glop, while still being satisfying.  It's best to make this at least an hour before serving to give the flavors a chance to combine.

Ingredients:
- 6 red potatoes
- 3 stems kale
- 1/2 red onion
- 1/4 c. parsley
- 1 tbsp whole grain mustard
- 5 tbsp mayonaise
- `1 tbsp white wine vinegar or lemon juice
- A handful of chive flowers (optional)
- Salt, pepper, and paprika to taste

Directions:
- Bring water to boil.  Make sure it is plenty salty: this will flavor the potatoes more deeply than adding salt later on.
- Boil the potatoes with skins on  until fork tender.  Don't let them get mushy!
- When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, chop them into bite-sized chunks and put them in a bowl with plenty of room for tossing.
- Chop up and add 1/2 red onion.  Be sure to taste it: if it's bitter or especially strong, add less and chop it finer.
- Roughly chop and add 1/4 c. parsley.
- Crumble and add the chive flowers.
- Cut the spines out of the kale and split the leaves in half.  Stack up 2-3 pieces, roll them tightly, and chop the rolls.  This will give you little ribbons.  If you are making the potato salad ahead of time, hold off on adding the kale.  I wouldn't add it any more than 2 hours before you plan on eating it.
- Whisk together the mustard, mayonnaise, vinegar/lemon juice, and a dash of salt, pepper, and paprika.  Pour over the salad and toss until everything is evenly distributed.
- Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary.
- Cover and chill.

It's perfect with baby back ribs!

Enjoy!

The Only Way to Eat Brussels Sprouts

I'll admit it: I was one of those kids who didn't like brussels sprouts. I ate them begrudgingly, whining all the way. As an adult, my loathing wasn't as strong, but I still never picked them up at the grocery store. Until, that is, I found fresh brussels sprouts in the produce section instead of those dreaded frozen packages. They just looked so cute, I couldn't resist. And I've never looked back.

I love brussels sprouts now. At the farmers market last summer I grabbed wholes stalks of them (a sight to see!) every week. However, in addition to buying them fresh, preparation is key. Here is my favorite way to eat them, which happens to be very easy to prepare.

• Preheat your oven to about 425.
• Clean the sprouts, removing the outer leaves and trimming the stems if necessary.
• Toss them in a bowl with some olive oil and kosher salt until they are all coated.
• Place them in a roasting pan lined with foil for easy cleanup.
• Roast in the oven until they begin to brown and the outer leaves start curling up. Give the pan a toss now and then to roll them around.
• Transfer to a serving bowl and squeeze fresh lemon over the the sprouts.

That's all! A simple, delicious side dish that will compliment many meals. Be sure to buy a stalk or two the next time you're at a farmers' market, if for no other reason than to elicit some giggles from passersby as you carry them around.

Enjoy!

Eggplant and Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Fall calls for hot things. Things that are stuffed are even better. Things that are hot, stuffed, and easy are the best.

Ingredients:

- 1-2 green bell peppers

- 1 medium eggplant (Italian variety)

- 1 minced shallot or 1/4 minced onion

- 1/2 cup vegetable (or chicken) broth

- 1/4 cup pine nuts

- 1/2 cup quinoa

- 1 tbsp lemon juice

- a handful of roughly chopped parsley

- salt and pepper

The completed filling before being stuffed.

Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 350.
- Dice the eggplant into 1/2 inch pieces and combine with the shallots in a large frying pan that's been lightly drizzled with olive oil.
- Sautee for five minutes over medium heat, then add 1/4 cup vegetable broth and simmer, covered, until the eggplant is soft.
- Clear and area in the pan and add the pinenuts, allowing them to toast.
- Add quinoa and remaining vegetable broth, stirring everything together. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about five minutes.
- Add parsley, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Cut pepper(s) in half and remove seeds and pulp. Sprinkle a little salt on the inside walls.
- Spoon the filling into each pepper half, being sure to stuff it all the way in.
- *I didn't have any goat cheese on hand, but this would be delicious with some plain, fresh goat cheese pocketed in the middle and/or crumbled on top.
- Bake in the oven for about half an hour.

This is enough to fill 2-4 pepper halves, depending on their size and how full you want them. If you don't use all if it at once, save it for another meal. The stuffing would also be good as a side with chicken or salmon, or as a cold salad.

Enjoy!

- Rori

The Magical Fruit

The finished beans and their emptied shells.

A magical fruit, indeed! (And for more than *that* reason!) Last week at the farmers' market I picked up some fresh shelling beans. I've never cooked fresh beans before and, in fact, had never really noticed them. They can be hard to find, but fresh shelling beans are often available at local markets in late summer and autumn. Out of season, or if you're unable to find them, you can use dried varieties from the grocery store or find all kinds of interesting heirloom varieties from Rancho Gordo (among other sources).

Beans can be so much more than the generic dried pintos available en masse everywhere. They can have distinct flavors and textures and can make some very interesting dishes. The ones I picked up are a variety of cranberry beans. They have bright magenta and white marbled shells. The beans themselves are cream colored with cranberry-colored swirls and roughly the length of a penny.

Shelled beans in the pot ready to cook.

As their name implies, shelling beans need to be shelled. The exteriors are too tough and stringy to eat. When buying them, the appearance of the shells isn't important. They can be pretty beat up and wrinkly shells can even mean the beans are more mature and larger. Depending on their age, the beans can be tender or quite firm. Test one out to see how long you'll need to cook them.
After shelling them, I covered my beans with an inch of water in a small sauce pan. As they were on the firmer side, I simmered them for about a half an hour. They should be creamy inside when they are done; if they are still a little crumbly, they need to cook longer. Interestingly, their crimson swirls fade to the point of nearly vanishing as they cook, leaving them a light beige color.

This time around I went with simplicity and tossed them with half a tablespoon of butter, a teaspoon of lemon juice, some torn up parsley, salt, and pepper. It made a delicious warm lunch on a cool autumn day without being heavy. These beans would also be excellent as a side dish, mixed in a salad, or as an alternative to pasta or other grains. So pick up some beans and give them a try-- and I won't judge you if you sing the song.
Enjoy!

- Rori