Wonderful World Wide (www.) Cooking (.com) = Taina's Stuffed Eggplant, FTW!

The internets are a strange and glorious place. I've met many friends through my adventures at various sites; among them (and one of my favorites) is a lovely lady, Taina, who hails from Finland. We became acquainted through our shared love of Harry Potter, on a site that was for adults to discuss the ins and outs of that series. While there, we chatted frequently; often our conversations turned to food. This dish is my attempt to replicate a recipe that Taina posted about on Facebook when I talked about making pesto.

She described an eggplant dish that she makes...and it sounded so good, I thought I'd try to wing it and recreate it from her description. I've now made it twice...and altered it the second time based on her further comments. For lack of a recipe "name" I think I'll call it Taina's Stuffed Eggplant. I realize that this is taking major liberties, since I've neither seen nor tasted her version, but for her efforts in trying to school me (appropriate since she's a college professor) this post is dedicated to her. And as she told me in a message about the recipe, "Buon appetito!"

A photo of my second attempt:

The ingredients in the stuffing are basically the same each time, but I did alter the mixture assembly somewhat. I must admit to taking some liberties with her original description; I'll asterisk the items I added. Here's the recipe as I made it the second time around:

Stuffed Eggplant:
1 large eggplant, halved length-wise
1 medium onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, chopped fine*
4 ounces mushrooms, sliced*
2 Tbs olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

2 Roma tomatoes, diced
2 Tbs basil pesto

Added after further comments from Taina:
1/2 loaf French bread, hollowed
1 tin of anchovies, packed in oil
5 Tbs parmesan cheese
2 Tbs fresh parsley, chopped
2 Tbs butter, melted

Score the eggplant around the edges, being careful to not cut through the skin. Then, score length-wise and cross-wise:

Scoop out the "meat" of the eggplant, being careful to not rupture the skin. I did this with a spoon.

In a large skillet, sauté the eggplant, onion, garlic and mushrooms in the olive oil. Until just softened:

Add the tomatoes and the pesto to the skillet mixture:

Stir until incorporated and stuff the skillet mixture back into the hollowed skins of the eggplant:

In a food processor, add the bread, anchovies and their packing oil, parmesan and parsley. Process until crumbly:

Coat the top of the eggplant with this mixture and drizzle with melted butter:

Bake in a 350 degree oven until the mixture is bubbling and the topping is golden brown:

This is the first version I did, and while it was delicious, it is not nearly as appealing. Differences: There was no bread crumb top. The tomatoes were sliced and placed on top of the eggplant mixture and the pesto spread on that and baked. Micro-planed parmesan was added after it was baked:

I love cooking. I love sharing cooking ideas. I love the challenge of a new dish. This is the first time I've done a dish "blind", so to speak. I hope I've done it justice. If the remnants on Byron's plate are anything to go by, it was a hit!

Paula

Read More...

Red Wine Marinated Lamb Chops

Lamb. Lovely, luscious lamb. I haz lamb. Red wine marinated lamb chops (not with the traditional mint flavors) are paired with steamed brussel sprouts tossed with garlic butter. Thanks to The Market at Washington and High, my new home, we'll be enjoying lamb much more frequently. I hope you'll try it too.

I'm one of those very strange people who love, love, love lamb, but I really don't like mint, a traditional flavor profile for lamb. The combination of garlic and rosemary really hits the taste spot for me. I'll sometimes use the following marinade with a teaspoon of Dijon mustard in it too, but I didn't have any Dijon this night.

Red Wine Marinade:
2 cups dry red wine
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 sprig of rosemary, whole
1 bay leaf, whole
1/2 tsp. salt

Pour all ingredients in a zip-lock bag along with the lamb chops and marinade for 2 hours in the refrigerator. Turn and shake several times. Remove the zip-lock bag from the refrigerator and bring the chops to room temperature before cooking.

Remove the chops from the marinade and discard (the marinade...not the chops! =D ). Chop fresh rosemary and sprinkle both sides of the lamb chops with the rosemary and salt and pepper. Place in a screaming hot skillet.



Cook on the first side until it's nicely caramelized. Turn and continue cooking on second side until rare to medium rare (Please don't overcook lamb), about 2 1/2 to 3 minutes on each side.



While the lamb was cooking, I steamed some brussel sprouts in a double boiler. In a separate pan, I melted butter and added a crushed clove of garlic, salt and pepper. Remove the crushed garlic before serving and toss the brussel sprouts in the butter.



That's all there is to some lip smackin' goodness. Can haz lamb!

Paula

Read More...

Pan Seared Sea Bass

This week I had a couple of OMG moments. The first one occurred when I finally found the time to check out a new local market. This store made me feel like I had died and gone to heaven! The market is set in this lovely old brick building that was renovated for its new use. This post is a result of this amazing new place, The Market at Washington and High.

I live (not literally, but it has seemed like it food wise) in the middle of nowhere. The availability of fresh sea food, fabulous meats, organic produce and other incredible products to cook with was limited. This new place is relatively close, about a 20 minute drive from my house. I can't believe that I finally have access to the wonders that are offered there without a 40 minute drive!

I wandered around like a kid in a candy store. They had cobia, so fresh that it had not a single odor. They had Chilean sea bass and wonderful Italian sausages and venison, lamb, elk, duck, fresh baked breads, organic produce (Chinese eggplant! I'm going to have to cook some of that), spices and dried mushrooms and peppers and incredible condiments. I'm in love.

The second OMG moment happened when I ate this meal. Pan seared sea bass with mushroom garlic parmesan grits and fresh spinach. Wow, was it ever tasty.

Mushroom Garlic Parmesan Grits:
4 Tbs butter
1 clove garlic, pressed or minced
1/8 tsp dry thyme leaves
1 Pint mushrooms (I used portobello)
1 cup quick grits
2 cups chicken stock
2/3 cup heavy cream
salt and black pepper to taste
4Tbs parmigiano reggiano cheese, finely grated

Directions:
In a sauce pan, melt 2 Tbs of the butter, add the garlic and thyme. Saute for about 3 minutes, add the mushrooms. Saute until golden. Stir in grits, add chicken stock, reduce heat and simmer until the grits thicken. Add the heavy cream, 2 Tbs butter, salt and pepper.

Transfer to baking dish and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake at 400 degrees until golden brown and bubbly (About 20 minutes). This is enough time to prepare the fish and spinach.

Pan Seared Sea Bass and Spinach:
Center Cut Fillets of Sea Bass
Salt and Pepper
2 Tbs canola oil
6 ounces of fresh spinach, washed
2 Tbs butter

Directions:
Season the sea bass on both sides with salt and pepper. Place a heavy skillet over medium heat, add the canola oil and bring it to a very slight smoke. Add the sea bass and cook for 7 minutes (Don't move it). Carefully turn the fish and cook the other side for the same time. The beautiful golden color and crispy skin is your reward. Remove the sea bass and hold in a warm location.

In the same skillet, add the spinach. To the wilted spinach add the butter and season with salt and pepper.

Layer the plate with a square of the grits, a small amount of the spinach on the grits and place the sea bass on an angle.

Heck. Just toss it on the plate. You won't be looking at how pretty it is, you'll be chowing down. This is some seriously good stuff.

Enjoy!

Paula

Read More...

Simply Spicy Side - Spicy Coleslaw

Simple side dishes are a great thing to have on hand and this super simple spicy slaw is so unexpectedly good that I made it 938843847 times since I first sampled the recipe.

It was a lovely summer evening at the home of some friends where I first got to taste this recipe. The occasion was a fish fry and guests had volunteered to bring a dish. The spicy coleslaw was added to the menu by our dear friend, Steve Head. I instantly fell in love with the cool/hot nature of the slaw. It's now my absolute favorite slaw recipe.

As a matter of fact, I have made double batches and eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I'm a bit of a freak.

Oh, did I say how simple it is to prepare?

Spicy Cole Slaw:
Ingredients:
1 16 ounce package coleslaw cabbage mixture
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbs pickled jalapeno, minced fine
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
2 Tbs green onions, diced
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
3 shakes hot sauce (I use Marie Sharp's)
2/3 cup Marzetti Slaw Dressing (I've made my own, but use the shortcut for ease)

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, toss with Slaw Dressing. Chill for 1 hour and serve.



Simple right? Can haz slaw.

Enjoy!

Paula

Read More...

Guacamole Amore

I love Guacamole.



It's so changeable. And so delicious. And...so easy.

I promised in my last post I would give you my guacamole recipe, so here it is! I make a real hodgepodge salady guacamole.

Guacamole
2 Avocados
1 Lime, juiced
3 Tablespoons Red Onion, diced
2 Roma Tomatoes, diced
1 Tablespoon Fresh Cilantro, chopped
1 Tablespoon Pickled Jalapeno, chopped fine
1 Shake Garlic Powder*
Salt and Pepper, to taste


*Normally I use a clove of fresh garlic, pressed, but I was out. ;)

Cut the avocado length wise, scoring it around the seed. Twist the fruit and pull apart. Take your knife and whack the seed, twist the knife and pull the seed out. If you are afraid of this knife method, you can scoop the seed out with a spoon.


Pull the peel off, starting with the small end.



Mash the peeled avocado with a potato masher.


I like kind of chunky guacamole, if you want it smoother, you can process the avocado in a food processor.



Dump in the other prepared ingredients.



Voila!


Don't dine, devour!

Paula


TIPS: To ripen avocados, place them in a plain brown paper bag and store at room temperature. It will take about two to five days until they're ready to eat. To hasten ripening, place an apple in the paper bag with them.

To store guacamole in the refrigerator, put plastic wrap down directly on the surface of the guacamole.

Read More...

Spinach and Portabella Pasta

Love Spinach? Love Portabella Mushrooms? Love Pasta?
'Nuff Said!

This recipe is so easy and so tasty and without meat, but you wouldn't know it! Spinach and Mushroom Pasta behind the cut...

This recipe can be found here. I happened to have fresh spinach, portabella mushrooms, fresh basil and thyme...and of course, a block of parmigiano reggiano. Score! The ingredients are pictured:


When cooking with portabella mushrooms, especially with a cream sauce, it is important to remove the gills because they will discolor the sauce. You do this by just taking a spoon and scooping them out. Here is one that is cleaned of the gills:


The mushrooms cleaned, the spinach and basil chopped, the onion chopped, the thyme and the garlic ready:


Put the olive oil, onion, garlic and thyme in a skillet over medium heat and saute for a few minutes:


Add the mushrooms and stir often until they brown and they begin to release their juices. At this point, I added a splash of vermouth:


Sprinkle in the flour and stir for a minute or so. This step is important since cooked flour loses that "floury" taste. Think of it as a roux in the middle of your vegetables.


Drizzle in the milk. All I had was Silk, Soy Organic...it was great! See how thick and lovely it got?


Add the spinach, basil, salt and pepper and stir just until the spinach and basil begin to wilt:


Toss with the pasta and top with cheese. I used parmigiano reggiano. Crusty loaf. Done.


This was SO good! Join me as I dine...

Paula

Read More...

The No Cream of Asparagus Soup

What is "No Cream of Asparagus Soup?" It is a creamy delight of asparagus soup that is minus cream!

Yes, another soup! Honestly...the soup season is almost over. So, one last (maybe) soup behind the cut. I found a recipe on VegCooking, but I altered it so much I am going to just give you my version.

The ingredients:


No Cream of Asparagus Soup:

• 2 lbs fresh asparagus, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 medium onion, chopped
  
• 1/2 cup celery, chopped
• 1 Tbs olive oil
  
• 1 large potato, peeled, thinly sliced
• 3 tsp fresh thyme
• 32 ounce box vegetable stock
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup soy milk
  

In a stock pot, heat the olive oil and add the asparagus, onion and celery and saute until slightly soft:

Peel and thinly slice the potato. Also, you can see some asparagus peelings there, I peeled the thicker parts of the stems because it was huge asparagus. The big woody stems are stringy and tough unless you peel them:


Add the potato slices and the thyme and vegetable stock to the pot and simmer with the lid on for about 30 minutes. The addition of the potato adds starch that will help make this soup creamy.


It will end up looking like this:



Use your immersion blender to puree the soup, or do so in batches in a regular blender. Add the soy milk and salt and pepper. It has this consistency:


Crusty bread and a bowl for the soup (I garnished mine with several asparagus heads that I steamed in a tad of water in the microwave for 15 seconds) and you are ready.


Can you tell I adore soups? Yes? Good...I hope you do too! Join me as I dine...

Paula

Read More...

The Easter Feast Post, 2008

Happy Easter everyone! For those of you who don't celebrate Easter, I hope you will enjoy it this post also. It was posted in real time, originally, as I was preparing each dish.

I should have time stamped this post. The reason it shows Saturday is that is when I started with the flower arrangement. I began cooking at about 8:30 am on Sunday and finished food preparations around 6:50 pm. (I noticed the clock on the beam next to the side board.) Everything, from eating to clean up was done by 8:30 pm...so, about 12 hours.

The Easter table emerged. I folded napkin swans, but Byron dubbed them the Easter turkeys! He's a crazy man.:





The first order of business, the holiday cocktail. This makes the cooking fun, don'tcha know!

The Holiday Cocktails:
Byron prefers mimosa's (champagne and orange juice) but I am having a poinsettia (champagne and cranberry juice). Each of them is made special by the addition of a "flavor enhancer," for the mimosa add a splash of Cointreau (orange liqueur) and for the poinsettia add a splash of Chambord (raspberry liqueur):


A toast to Easter!

Now on to the cooking.

The first dish is a family favorite, tomato aspic. I will say, it's an acquired taste. It's a savory jelled dish; I love it. Think of it as a congealed bloody mary!

Tomato Aspic

• 4 cups tomato juice
• 6 packages of Unflavored Gelatin
• 2/3 water
• 1 Tbs Worchestershire
  
• 2 tsp salt
• 5 Tbs vinegar
• 2 1/2 cups green pepper, diced
  
• 2 1/2 cups celery, diced
• 1 cup onion, diced
  

Dissolve gelatin in water.

Heat all of the ingredients, with the exception of the gelatin and water, in a large sauce pan until almost to a boil. Remove from heat and add the gelatin. Stir until all the gelatin is dissolved.



Pour into a mold that has been sprayed with oil (or just a bowl if you prefer) and refrigerate until set.


Next, what is a Southern feast without deviled eggs, you ask? It isn't a Southern feast, that's what.

Deviled Eggs

• 6 Hard-cooked eggs (I always make spares...details later*)
• 1/4 cup mayonaise
• 1 tsp yellow mustard
• 1 tsp vinegar
• Paprika or parsley sprigs (optional)

There are tricks to easily peeled hard-cooked eggs. The first is to buy the eggs a week or so ahead of time. If you forget to do so, as I did, just add about 1/4 cup of white vinegar to the water in which you boil the eggs. I only had one that gave me fits this time.


Deviled Egg Ingredients:


Cut the eggs in half, length wise and remove the yolks. With a fork, mash the yolks and then add the other ingredients and stir:


You can just spoon this mixture into the egg halves, but I always pipe mine:



Garnish with either a sprinkle of paprika or a sprig of parsley. *The extra ones I have on the deviled egg tray are for the person who likes to steal a few before it's time to serve them. (Looking at you, Byron!)


Garlic, Onion, Rosemary Mashed Potatoes

• 3 large baking potatoes
• 1 medium onion
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 1 box vegetable stock
• 1 sprig of rosemary
• 4 Tbs salt
  
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 4 ounces butter
• 4 ounces cream cheese
  

Peel and dice the potatoes, onions and garlic and place in a large sauce pan with the vegetable stock, rosemary sprig and salt. Boil until the potatoes are soft, approximately 40 minutes. I use vegetable stock to cook the potatoes in because they add to the rich taste of the final product. Additionally, I am making a rotisserie leg of lamb, so I will use that stock for a gravy later.


Drain the potatoes in a colander into another pan. Remember, the stock is being used later for a gravy. Notice that rich, golden color they took on from cooking in the vegetable stock.


Add butter, cream cheese and pepper to the pan the potatoes cooked in. Put the drained potatoes back in the same pan and roughly mash. Cover and hold for later.


This next dish I have been making for over 20 years. It may well be one of the reasons Byron married me, since it is just like his mom used to make. It is a must have on any of our holiday menus. While the original recipe came from Southern Elegance, the Junior League Cookbook from Gaston County, North Carolina, in 1987, I am giving you my portions.

Oyster Casserole:

• 6-8 oz containers of fresh oysters
• 3 sleeves of saltine crackers, crumbled coarsely
  
• 12 ounces butter, melted
• salt
• pepper
• nutmeg
  
• parsley, chopped
• 1/4 cup oyster liquor
  
• 1/4 cup milk
  

In a plastic bag, crumble the crackers and add the melted butter. This starts the first layer of the casserole:

Pour the oysters into a bowl, chop the parsley and get your salt, pepper and nutmeg ready.


Layer the oysters onto the layer of crackers, sprinkle with salt, pepper, nutmeg and parsley:


You will have two layers of oysters ending with cracker crumbs. Pour the oyster liquor (the reserve oyster juice) and milk over the layers. At this point, this casserole will hold. Bake it in a 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes when you are ready to serve it.



Have I mentioned that Byron is nuts? He was snacking on smoked mussels and crackers. This is his way of telling me he's getting hungry and ready for me to start the lamb:


Rotisserie Lamb with Garlic, Rosemary, Mustard Glaze:

Make the glaze with:

• Dijon Mustard
• Rosemary, fresh, chopped
• 5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  
• pepper
• salt
• dry white wine
  

Salt and Pepper the lamb; put some slits in the roast, stick some extra garlic cloves into the slits. I line the rotisserie with foil for easy clean up, cause rotisseries are a pain in the tush to clean.


Turn on the rotisserie and baste the lamb with the mustard glaze. Notice I have inserted a meat thermometer, this will ensure a nice rare lamb roast.


After just a few minutes, you can see the browning and caramelizing of the fat and the glaze. Brush on more mustard glaze every 15 minutes or so.


A mid-way through glazing:


Almost done:


Sherried Peas with Mushrooms:

• 1 package frozen peas, thawed
• 3 Tbs butter
• 1 cup dry sherry
• 1 tsp dry marjoram
• 1/2 package of sliced mushrooms
  

Melt the butter in a skillet and add the sherry, marjoram and mushrooms. Saute until the mushrooms are softened:


Add the peas at the last minute to heat through.


For the gravy...it just winged it...so let me tell you what I did. First I took the vegetable stock that the potatoes cooked in. To that, I added about a cup of port wine and heated it. Then, I took about 4 Tbs of flour and added about a cup of the hot stock/port and whisked it.


I added that to the pan with the rest of the liquid and whisked. When it came to a boil it was thickened and lovely.

Added the water and the wine to the table:

Set it all out on the side board. [Note: I love that portrait of the pups and me. That was an anniversary gift to Byron from me many years ago; it was painted by our friend, Bob Cloyd]:


A close up:


Nom, nom! It was so wonderful! Thank you for sharing Easter with me and joining me as I cooked and dined...

Paula

Read More...