Week 33 - What to do with an Eggplant

We bought an eggplant to do our grilled veggie sandwiches for a second time but never got around to making them and were quickly running out of evenings at home so I pondered the question, "what the heck do you do with an eggplant?"

And the answer came to me in a vision. Of course, the vision was on a computer screen displaying foodnetwork.com, but it was a vision nonetheless. This was easy and awesome hummus that was a big hit at Cozyfest '09. Even Jessi liked it an everybody knows she's nearly impossible to please. ;-)

WHITE BEAN AND ROASTED EGGPLANT HUMMUS

Source: www.foodnetwork.com

1 - 1 1/2 lb. eggplant, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces - Olive oil, for drizzling, plus 1/3 C. - Salt, for seasoning, plus 1/2 tsp. - Black pepper, for seasoning, plus 1/4 tsp. - 1 (15-oz) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed - 1/2 C. loosely packed fresh flat-leaf parsley - 3 T. fresh lemon juice (from about 1 lemon) - 1 clove garlic - 1 hothouse cucumber, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices

Place the eggplant on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Set aside to cool.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the cooled eggplant, beans, parsley, lemon juice, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Pulse until the mixture is coarsely chopped. With the machine running, gradually add 1/3 C. of olive oil until the mixture is creamy. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Serve with the cucumber slices.

Week 32 - Seeing the Value of a Box

We were invited to a barbecue last Friday and I offered to make a dessert. I decided on from-scratch brownies BUT planned on making them early just in case they flopped and I needed to use the emergency brownie box from the cupboard as a back-up.

Thankfully they turned out well and I didn't need the box, but I don't know if I'm convinced that the result was enough to offset the amount of time (and dishes) this method took compared to boxed stuff. I think you could get a similar result using a really good boxed brand (e.g. Ghirardelli) and just adding the mint filling.

I did cheat a little and used pre-made frosting since my last frosting experience was so disappointing and I didn't want to ruin a good thing with a "maybe it will be OK this time." Maybe next time.

GOURMET MINT BROWNIES

Source: Pillsbury Best Cookies Cookbook

Filling: 1 8-oz. package cream cheese, softened - 1/4 C. sugar 1 egg - 1 tsp. mint extract - 4 drops green food color

Brownies: 1 C. margarine or butter - 4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, cut into pieces - 2 C. sugar - 2 tsp. vanilla - 4 eggs - 1 C. all-purpose flour

1. Heat oven to 350. Grease and flour a 13x9-inch pan. In a small bowl, combine cream cheese and 1/4 cup sugar; beat until smooth. Add 1 egg, mint extract and food color; mix well. Set aside.

2. In large saucepan, melt 1 cup margarine and 4 ounces chocolate over very low heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; cool 15 minutes or until slightly cooled. Stir in 2 cups sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Add 4 eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in flour; mix well. Spread in greased and floured pan. Carefully spoon filling over brownie mixture. Lightly swirl filling into brownie mixture.

3. Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes or until set. Cool 1 hour or until completely cooled. Frost cooled brownies. Cut into bars. Store in refrigerator.

Week 31 - Easy Can be Darn Good

Oh my goodness. I made this recipe thinking it would be a quick and hopefully OK lasagna but it turned out to be a quick and FANTASTIC lasagna. I have 0 complaints about this recipe - even Brian thought it ranked pretty high on his list of all-time good lasagnas.

I would maybe add sausage next time just to try it, but it's totally delicious on its own and is an amazing, quick crowd-pleaser.

EASY CHEESE LASAGNA

Source: The Best 30-Minute Recipe

1 1/4 C. ricotta cheese - 3/4 C. grated parmesan cheese - 1/4 C. minced fresh basil - 2 large egg yolks - Salt and pepper - 3 C. jarred tomato sauce - 8 no-boil lasagna noodles - 2 C. shredded mozzarella cheese

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees.

2. Mix ricotta, 1/2 cup of parmesan, basil, egg yolks, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper together until well combined.

3. Spread 1/2 cup of tomato sauce over bottom of 8x8-inch baking dish. Place 2 noodles on top of sauce. Spread 1/4 cup ricotta mixture evenly over each noodle. Sprinkle 1/2 cup mozzarella over noodles, then top with 1/2 cup more sauce. Repeat this layering twice more. For final layer, lay remaining 2 noodles on top and cover completely with remaining 1 cup sauce.

4. Wrap dish tightly with plastic wrap and microwave on high power until noodles are soft and tender when poked using fork, 10-14 minutes.

5. Remove plastic wrap and sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup parmesan and remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella over top. Bake until cheese is melted and lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Let lasagna stand for several minutes before serving.

Week 30 - Stickin With the Grill

Since it was too blazing hot last week to even think about turning on the oven, we stuck with the grill theme and again Brian and I really made this one together.

I was genuinely surprised at how tasty and simple these were. "Delightful" is not a word I always associate with foods that you form into a log before cooking, but these were great. They would be a really new and different surprise if you were having a small barbecue party with friends, but probably wouldn't be much as leftovers.

We also threw on some of Kevin's grilled red potatoes a la Johnny's and they came out really well, too, so this was quite the impressive meal for our friend Joey who just happened to be passing through town. He's so lucky.

PERSIAN CHICKEN SKEWERS

Source: The Sunset Grill

1 lb. ground chicken - 6 T. fine dried bread crumbs - 1 egg yolk - 2 T. minced onion - 1/2 tsp. ground dried turmeric - About 1/4 tsp. salt

1. In a bowl, mix the chicken, bread crumbs, egg yolk, onion, turmeric and salt. Cover and chill at least 30 minutes or up to 1 day.

2. Divide the chicken mixture into 4 equal portions. Dipping your hands frequently in water to keep the mixture from sticking, pat each portion around a flat metal skewer to form a log 1 inch thick and about 7 inches long. Set aside.

3. Prepare a grill for cooking over high heat. one skewer at a time, lay the chicken on the grill rack and rotate quickly to firm up the surface of the meat. Rotate the skewers every 2 to 3 minutes until the meat is lightly browned and firm at the skewer, about 10 minutes total.

4. Cut or push the meat off the skewers. Season to taste with salt and serve immediately.

Week 29 - I Want My Baby Back...

More on more these recipes are becoming mine AND Brian's which is making this project even more fun. On this one I did all of the prep work and he worked the grill like a pro. Neither of us have ever cooked ribs before so it was a neat undertaking.

The marinade had a lot of ingredients (many of which we didn't have) so this cost about $40 for the whole meal, but maybe I'm the only one without hoisin sauce and Asian chili-garlic sauce in my pantry. The funnest ingredient to find was lemongrass - who would've guessed that it's kept between the bananas and the grapefruit. And it's an amazing ingredient, too, because the flavor came through SO strong in the marinade even though there was only 1 stalk in there (we halved this one).

In the end these were very filling and had a flavor that was a nice change from all the traditional barbecue sauces I'm used to on ribs and such. Kind of a fun and festive twist on such a classic grill food.

FIJIAN-STYLE BARBECUED RIBS

Source: The Sunset Grill

6 lbs. baby back ribs - 3 T. sesame seeds - Salt - 2 T. chopped fresh cilantro

South Pacific Marinade: 2 stalks fresh lemon grass - 1 can coconut milk - 1/2 C. coarsely chopped fresh cilantro - 1/2 C. firmly packed brown sugar - 1/3 C. soy sauce - 1/4 C. coarsely chopped shallots - 2 T. chopped garlic - 2 T. chopped fresh ginger - 2 T. toasted sesame oil - 2 T. hoisin sauce - 2 T. Asian chili-garlic sauce

1. Make the marinade. Pull of and discard the tough outer layers from the stalks of lemon grass. Trim and discard the stem ends and coarse tops. Cut the tender stalks into chunks. In a food processor or blender, combine the lemon grass and the remaining marinade ingredients. Puree until smooth and set aside.

2. Rinse the ribs and pat dry. Trim and discard any excess fat. Put the ribs and marinade in a large roasting pan and mix to coat. Cover and chill at least 2 hours or up to 1 day, turning the ribs occasionally.

3. Prepare a grill for cooking over indirect heat. First, oil the grill rack. If using a gas grill, turn all burners to high and close the lid. When the temperature inside reaches 350 to 400, lift the lid, turn off one of the burners and lower the burner(s) to medium-high. Place a drip pan under the turned-off burner - this is the indirect heat area.

4. Set the oiled grill rack in place. Lift the ribs from the pan and reserve the marinade. Lay the meat on the grill over the drip pan and cover the barbecue. Turn the ribs as needed until well browned on each side, about 40 minutes total.

5. Meanwhile, toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until golden brown and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool. Bring the reserved marinade to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, for about 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pour into a bowl.

6. Transfer the ribs to a platter. Sprinkle with the cilantro and sesame seeds and serve with the sauce alongside.