Eggplant, Artichoke and Prosciutto Parmesan

I love cooking from the garden and tonight's meal centered on today's harvest - tomatoes, eggplant and basil. The inspiration came from a recipe for Eggplant Parmesan that used eggplant minus the breading. I added frozen artichokes and prosciutto to create a more balanced flavor.

The counter was full of ripe tomatoes that needed to be cooked and preserved for later. I roasted the tomatoes as described in an earlier post and used some of them for the sauce. The Japanese eggplants were peeled, sliced and salted before frying in hot olive oil to a golden brown. The preparation was simple and easy and packs a lot of flavor in one dish.
Eggplant, Artichoke and Prosciutto Parmesan

2 Japanese eggplants, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
Olive oil
3 cups roasted tomato sauce
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 cup white wine
1 tablespoon fresh basil, thinly sliced
1 - 9 ounce package frozen artichokes
1 ounce prosciutto, thinly sliced
4 ounces fresh mozzarella
1 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan Reggiano

Salt the eggplants and allow to sit for 30 minutes. Rinse, drain, and pat dry with paper towels. Heat olive oil in a large skillet to 375 degrees F. Add eggplant and fry until golden brown. Drain in a paper towel.

In the same skillet, remove all but 3 tablespoons of the olive oil and saute the minced garlic until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Add the white wine and cook rapidly for 5 minutes. Add the basil and remove from the heat.

Cook the frozen artichokes in the microwave on high for 5 minutes.

In a baking dish, add 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce to coat the bottom of the pan. Add a layer of the eggplant and artichokes. Separate the proscuitto into thin strips and layer on top of the artichokes. Top with mozzarell and more tomato sauce. Repeat the layers one more time. Top with Parmesan and bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving. Yield: 4 servings

Grilled Artichokes

Houston's Restaurant is one of our favorite dining places in Atlanta. I often use Houston's as a bribe to entice Kenny into a shopping trip to Lenox. I thought we had tried everything on the menu until our last visit. While sitting at the bar waiting on friends, enjoying one of their delicious Salty Dogs made with fresh squeezed grapefruit juice, the bartender told us about his favorite appetizer, Grilled Artichokes. Grilled Artichokes? How had we missed them? It seems that are a special menu item, only available when artichokes are in season. And yes, they were on the day's menu and on our table.

Wow, were they good. But how did they create this tasty treat? After questioning our waitress and a search of the Internet, we now have a pretty good duplication of the recipe. Artichokes can be a pricey item, but 2 artichokes - $2.50 each - were a generous serving for 6-8. These tasty thistles barely made it off the grill before being devoured. I served them with basil mayonnaise for dipping, but to be honest, they needed nothing to enhance the flavor. Grilled artichokes will be a regular addition to our menu.

Grilled Artichokes

2 artichokes
2 lemons
1/2 cup extra virgin 0live oil
4 clove garlic, finely chopped
Salt
Pepper

Fill a large bowl with cold water and squeeze the juice of 1/2 a lemon into the water. Wash the artichokes and break off the tough outer leaves. Trim the remaining tips and cut in half. Toss into the lemon water, making sure they are submerged in water.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and season with salt. Add the artichokes and cook for 15 minutes. The artichokes should be tender. Remove the chokes (the fuzzy stuff in the middle of the artichoke) and drain thoroughly. Chill for 1 hour.

Combine the juice from one lemon, olive oil and garlic.

Preheat the grill and oil the grill rack. Baste the artichokes with the oil mixture on both side and place on the hot grill. Grill on both sides about 5 minutes or until brown. Serve hot with basil mayonnaise or a lemon aioli. Serves 6 - 8.

Roasted Tomatoes

It has been a long, productive day in the kitchen. Our 72 tomato plants are flourishing and now is the time to save them to enjoy during the winter months. In the past, the process for freezing tomatoes has been to dip them in boiling water, remove the skins, chop and freeze. This year I am trying something new. It all started with the selection of tomato plants. This year we planted Roma tomatoes in hopes of having a meaty tomato to use in sauces and soup. Inspired by this month's Gourmet magazine, I tried roasting the tomatoes with olive oil and garlic. After roasting the tomatoes, I used a food mill to remove the skins and crush the tomatoes which resulted in a very thick sauce with lots of texture and great flavor. The best part was the ease of preparation and cleanup. Today the garden yielded a harvest of Romas, Juliettes and Sun Gold tomatoes. The Juliettes look like a smaller Roma and have a great flavor. I cut the the Romas and Juliettes in half, drizzled with olive oil and added 6 cloves of garlic to the mixture. After roasting for 1-1/2 hours in a 425 degree F. oven, and run through the food mill, I had a thick rich sauce, suitable for soup for a rich sauce for pasta.Now for the Sun Gold tomatoes. These tiny, marble-size tomatoes are full of flavor. They were roasted for 1 hour along with the Romas and Juliettes. After being food milled, the sauce was thick and a beautiful gold color with a very sweet flavor. I don't think these will make it to the freezer, but will be added to pasta with some basil for dinner tomorrow night!

Cream-Style Corn

There is nothing better than fresh, cream-style corn! Mama Head's was the best. I vividly remember the day she called the grandkids in to shuck and silk 12 dozen ears. We all sat under the shade of the oak tree in her side yard and complete our assigned task. I never shuck corn without fondly remembering that day.

This year, Payton planted his first corn. His backyard garden is beautiful and the corn has proved to be prolific and delicious. With 6 dozen ears, I devised a plan to make the task as efficient as possible. With the Gator parked in the shade, I began by cutting the top off the corn to make the shucking easier. While sitting in the chair, I shucked the corn, putting the corn in a laundry basket and leaving all the shucks in the Gator to be dumped into the compost pile.


The next task was to remove the silks. A vegetable brush works great and the cleaned corn was placed in a second laundry basket.

With a very sharp knife, I cut the corn of the cob, about 1/2 way down. You could do this inside, but I highly recommend you stay outside to cut down on the clean-up.

Once the kernels are removed, scrape the cob to get all the sweet goodness!

I tossed the clean cobs into the Gator, giving a few to our dogs, Libby and Lucy as a treat.

Once all the corn is cut and scraped, it is time to blanche it for the freezer. My mom and grandmother always did this in a large iron skillet, stirring constantly to keep the corn from sticking to the bottom of the skillet. This is where I have learned to use the microwave to speed up the process. I cook the corn in batches in a glass bowl, for 4 minutes, and then remove stir and add water as needed. Return to the microwave for another 4 minutes. Stir and add more water if needed. Now, how much water do I add? That depends entirely on the corn and the amount of starch it contains. You want the mixture to be thick, but not dry. Cool the corn, pack into freezer container, label with the date, and freeze. Be sure and save enough for your supper!

For supper, I cooked the corn in the microwave for about 7 minutes, stirring and adding water as needed and seasoned with salt, pepper, and bacon drippings. Or if you have some fatback on hand, fry it up and use the drippings for seasoning. Serve the corn with fresh sliced tomatoes, crowder peas, cornbread and a slice of onion for a delicious southern meal!

Back to Blogging!

I can't believe that it has been two months since my last post! During this time, we have been busy in the garden. Kenny, the Tomato King, has been nurturing his 72 tomato plants. Our plans were to plant more tomatoes this year, but we never dreamed we would more than double our normal crop. We had 34 tomatoes planted when Marshall called to say he had 50 heirloom varieties for us. After sharing some with our family and friends, we carefully planted the rest, and then went to work creating wire baskets and staking the plants. By mid June, we were harvesting our first tomatoes.

What started out as a wet spring, has turned into a very dry summer. Thanks to our well, we are able to water the garden and all the tomatoes have grown and flourished. Our heirloom varieties have been a welcome addition to the garden. One of our favorites is the Cherokee Purple. These tomatoes are beautiful, large and delicious.

In addition to the tomatoes, the garden includes a wide variety of peppers, Japanese eggplant, La France green beans, cucumbers, squash, beets, Swiss chard, herbs and zinnias.

So, will it be two months before my next post? No way! I have too much to share and can't wait to get in the kitchen and cook!

Upside Down Blueberry Cake for Taste and Create

For this month's Taste and Create, my partner is Bellini of More Than Burnt Toast. Nicole of For the Love of Food created this blog event and it is a wonderful way to connect bloggers and a fun event for my family and friends, since they are my official tasters. Bellini is from Canada and has a wonderful blog. I loved her weekly feature highlighting Canadian chefs. Even though Bellini lives in a condo in Canada, I feel a real connection with her when it comes to food. I will be a regular visitor to her blog to find out what she is cooking and give it a try in my southern kitchen.

It was extremely hard to decide on the recipe I would recreate. As is often the case, it all came down to what I had on hand and what was happening on the home front. Tonight we are going to Peg's for a BBQ and I am taking dessert. Bellini's Upside-Down Blueberry Cake was the perfect match. Our freezer is home to many packs of blueberries from last year's harvest, the main ingredient of this delicious cake. Another thing I loved about the recipe was the ease of making it. But next time, I will be sure and bake it on a cookie sheet, to catch the overflow of blueberry juice.

Thanks, Bellini, for another create Taste and Create!

Upside-Down Blueberry Cake

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 cup packed light brown sugar

2 -1/2 cup fresh blueberries (I used frozen)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened,

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1- 1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

2- 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice or orange juice

1/3 cup low-fat milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon grated lemon zest

Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine 2 tablespoons of the butter and the brown sugar in a small bowl, then spread the mixture evenly in the bottom of a lightly greased 9 inch round cake pan. Spread the berries over the mixture and set aside. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Reserve. In a separate bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 cup butter, the sugar, and the eggs, and beat until creamy smooth. Add the reserved dry ingredients, lemon or orange juice, milk, vanilla, and lemon or orange zest, and beat until well blended. Pour the batter over the berries and bake until the top is golden and a skewer tests clean when inserted in the center, 50 to 55 minutes. Remove from the oven, run a knife around the insideof the pan and invert the cake onto the plate, fruit side up. Cool slightly before serving warm.Makes 1 (9-inch cake). Serves 8 to 12.

Note: I would place the cake pan on a baking sheet, just in case the blueberries bubble over.

Quail Hollow Critters

The pond has come to life with 3 new families - 2 families of Canada geese and one of mallards. All are thriving and growing, thanks in part to Kenny's daily feeding. Our afternoons are often spent on the back porch, watching the action at the pond. Life is grand at Quail Hollow, for humans and animals!

Whole Leaf Caesar Salad

For our recent "Cooking with Michael" night, I used a couple of the recipes from the It's All Here episode and prepared Spaghetti all'Amartriciana and Whole Leaf Caesar Salad. Now the theme of the show was using pantry items and I had everything needed for the salad. Our garden provided the romaine lettuce. I had leftover Ciabatta, the Kneadlessly Simple way, and the rest of the ingredients in the pantry or frig.

Now I have tried a number of Caesar dressing recipes and this rates with the best. One of the unique things about this version of the salad is using whole leaves of lettuce and finger-size croutons. The idea is to eat the salad with your fingers, and I must admit, it works that way. Kenny loved the idea and the salad. One good thing about the recipe is it makes enough dressing to use later.

Whole Leaf Caesar Salad

adapted from Michael Chiarello

1 egg yolk

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

3 or 4 anchovy filets, minced

1 tablespoon finely minced garlic

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Worchestershire sauce

1 cup olive oil

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Romaine lettuce leaves

Parmesan croutons

Freshly grated Parmesan

In a large wooden salad bowl, add the egg yolk, anchovies, garlic, vinegar, lemon juice and a dash of Worchestershire. Stir with a fork, crushing the garlic and anchovies. Slowly whisk in the olive oil to create a thick emulsion. To serve, toss the lettuce and croutons in just enough dressing to coat. Store the remaining dressing in the frig for use later. Yield: 4 servings.

Parmesan Croutons

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 cloves garlic, chopped

8 slices ciabatta bread

6 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute Add the bread and stir to coat. Toss the bread occasionally until both sides are golden brown.

Spaghetti all'Amatriciana

It was another "Cooking with Michael" day at Quail Hollow. Michael Chiarello is one of my favorite Food Network stars. He creates a menu on each show and uses ingredients easily found in a regular grocery store. In It's All Here, Michael creates a wonderful meal with pantry items. I decide to check out the recipes and prepare his Spaghetti all'Amatriciana and Whole Leaf Caesar Salad for our dinner. Now I'm sure my pantry is quite different from Michael's, but surprisingly, I had most of the ingredients. The tomato puree was in the freezer from last year's harvest and the parsley and basil were from our garden. I did buy the pancetta and put it in the freezer to harden so it could be easily sliced. There was even a box of bucatini from a trip to the Dekalb Farmer's Market.

This menu was a success. Kenny's comment was "Wow!" which translates to "you can make this again." I will definitely do this again, but next time I am going to use fresh pasta so it will soak up the goodness of the sauce.

Spaghetti all'Amatriciana
adapted from Michael Chiarello

1/3 pound pancetta, partially frozen
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 1/2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
3/4 cup tomato puree
3/4 pound bucatini
Freshly grated Parmesan

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil over high heat.

Cut the pancetta into thin slices across the grain. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pancetta and cook for about minutes, but not crisp. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the red pepper, parsley, basil and vinegar and cook until the vinegar evaporates. Add the tomato puree and a ladle of pasta water. Simmer briefly to blend.

Add the pasta to the boiling water while preparing the sauce and cook about 8 minutes or until al dente. Add the pasta to the sauce and stir to coat. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan. Yield; 4 servings.

Skirt Steak Tacos with Guacamole and Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

It has been a while since I have written on my blog, but that doesn't mean I haven't been cooking. Spring is a very busy time at Quail Hollow. The frequent rains have created a challenge when it comes to gardening. This is the time we are tilling the garden and getting it ready to plant, but the persistent rains have not made this an easy task. I know I should welcome the rain after a couple of years of drought, and I do, just not when I need to be in the garden!

There is very little in the garden for harvest at this time, so I have turned to the grocery store for my inspiration. As Kenny and I wandered through Publix we noticed skirt steak on sale, just in time for Cinco de Mayo. A search on the Internet resulted in a number of recipes that sounded good, and for our meal I used several and this was the result.

Skirt Steak Tacos with Guacamole and Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

1 onion, cut into wedges
1 pound tomatillos, halved
2 serrano peppers
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 pound skirt steak
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon achiote molido (ground annatto)
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon coriander
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
4 flour tortillas
Fresh salsa, your favorite brand from the grocery store

Place the onion, tomatillos, serrano peppers and garlic on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and broil in the oven for 5-8 minutes until slightly charred, stirring once. Moisten the skirt steak with 1 tablespoon lime juice and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Let stand for 10 minutes. Combine the dry spices. Pat the steak dry and rub the dry spices on the steak.

Place half of the cooked onions in a bowl and toss with 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar.

Remove the charred skin from the serrano peppers, cut in half and remove seeds. Place tomatillos, serrano peppers, remaining onions, 3 cloves of garlic (reserved 1 clove for the guacamole), 1 teaspoon lime juice and cilantro in a food processor and chop finely. Chill the salsa.

Grill steak on an oiled rack until medium rare. Remove the steak and let it sit for 5 minutes. Cut diagonally into thin slices.

While the steak sits, grill the tortillas until puffed and lightly browned, about 1 minute on each side.

Serve steak, onions, tomatillo salsa and guacamole wrapped in the tortillas. Yield: 2 servings.

Guacamole

1 avocado
1 garlic clove, roasted and minced
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

Cut the avocado in half, remove the seed and chop. Combine the remaining ingredients.