recipes

eggplant parmesan

cheese:

a cup of fresh ricotta or homemade…

use 1 quart of milk, heat to 185` turn off heat then add 2-4 T of a mix of vinegar and lemon juice. stir gently until it coagulates. let sit for a few minutes then pour through a strainer. (save the whey for another use.) sprinkle the cheese with a little salt and mix in gently

sauce:

1 can or about 4-5 large-ish tomatoes chopped

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2-3 anchovies (optional)

hot pepper flakes to taste

olive oil

saute onion in olive oil until soft, add a couple of anchovies and smush them up, add hot pepper flakes, add garlic. cook for a few minutes more then add tomatoes and cook down for a while until nice and juicy.

eggplant:

2 med to large eggplants, peeled and sliced into ~3/8” rounds

olive oil

salt and pepper

brush eggplant with oil, sprinkle with s&p and either fry, grill or bake until softened

topping:

bread crumbs mixed with fresh grated parmesan or romano

1T butter

assembly:

start with a little sauce on the bottom of your oiled baking dish( 9"x9" or equivalent), add a layer of eggplant, then a sprinkling of ricotta then more sauce. i usually do two layers, ending with sauce. sprinkle with breadcrumb/parm mixture then dot top with butter. bake uncovered for about 25 min. at 375`

eggplant bacon

preheat oven to 375̊

peel and cut very thin slices of eggplant

brush with olive oil 

sprinkle with pimentón (smoked paprika, hot or sweet) and salt/pepper

place on a tray

bake until crispy and browned about 12 minutes (flip over halfway through)

Plant cardoons in a well-drained, fertile, sunny spot. They will need about a 3 x 3 foot area. They grow into a lovely silvery-leaved bush about 4’ tall. Beautiful as a striking ornamental, the best part is that you get to eat them too! About 3-4 weeks before you harvest, tie up the leaves so the stems blanch. You can even cover the whole plant with a burlap bag. To harvest, cut off the stalks way down at the base. You only need to cut a few stalks at a time, so one plant will give you several meals over several weeks. To prepare them, wash well and be sure to remove all the leafy parts and stringy fibers. Cardoons lie somewhere in between celery and artichokes with a texture like that of celery and flavor like artichokes, without all the fuss. In Italy they are eaten as a crudite with bagna cauda (a rich, warm anchovy and garlic sauce) or in soups and stews. The following is my adaptation of a Spanish recipe from “the food of spain & portugal” by elisabeth luard, 2004. 

Cardoons au gratin

3 cups cardoon stems sliced on the diagonal

juice of ½ a lemon

2 T olive oil

2 T whole wheat pastry flour (or all purpose)

¼ c white wine or sherry

1 c chicken, bean or vegetable broth

1 anchovy, chopped finely (optional)

½ c fresh cottage cheese or coarsely grated goat or sheep cheese

salt and pepper to taste

top with a mix of 1T each:

pimenton (roasted paprika powder)

chopped fresh parsley

minced garlic

bread crumbs sautéed in a little olive oil

Boil a pot of water and add a little salt and the lemon juice to it. While it comes to a boil, trim off all of the leafy parts of the cardoon stems as the leaves are very bitter. Peel off any big strings as you would with celery. The stalks are most tender toward their base so be sure to use that area. Slice into diagonal pieces about an inch long and boil in the lemon water for 20 min. Drain well and put into a small olive-oiled casserole or gratin dish.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a heavy sauce or frying pan and add the flour to it. Whisk together until it’s well mixed, about 2-3 min. Add the sherry and keep whisking until it just thickens. Add the broth little by little and keep whisking until it is nice and smooth and creamy. Add the optional fish and the cheese and stir until well mixed. Add the salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the sauce over the cardoons and sprinkle with the toppings. Toast under the broiler until bubbly. 

Enjoy hot or at room temp.

serves 4