Sicilian Caponata

Do you love eggplant?
Do you love sweet & sour? (I should say sweet & savory, this is not a Chinese restaurant).

If you answered "yes" to the above 2 questions, then you will love caponata.
This is probably my #1 favorite summer appetizer.

Caponata is a Sicilian eggplant relish that is delicious on everything.
Swiped on bread, over pasta, on fish, on an antipasti plate, or just eaten out of the bowl.

When I was young, I used to buy little cans of Progresso caponata and eat it out of the can (where did I come from?), and would always get a stomach ache because it was so oily, but so good.

A little goes a long way.

I made 2 big batches and brought it to a Passover seder and everyone loved it with matzoh!
Now that it's summer, I will be making this all the time.

This is time consuming, but oh so worth it. Make a double batch and put it out with crackers and watch it disappear.



Sicilian Eggplant Caponata:

you will need about 1/4-1/2 olive oil to saute all the vegetables.

2 eggplants (about 2 lbs.), cut into 1⁄2" cubes
1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
2 ribs celery, thinly sliced crosswise
3 tbsp. tomato paste diluted w/ some water
1 small can of chopped tomatoes (8 oz.)
1⁄4 cup red wine vinegar
3 tbsp. sugar
1/4 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup capers
10 pitted green olives, such as Cerignola, coarsely chopped (I used Manzanilla)
kosher salt & ground black pepper
2 tbsp. chopped basil
2 tbsp. pine nuts

Put eggplant into a colander set over a large bowl; toss with 1 tbsp. salt. Top with a plate weighted down with several large cans; let drain for 1 hour.



Heat 3 tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add one-third of the eggplant and cook until golden brown, 7–8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer eggplant to a bowl. Repeat with oil and remaining eggplant (you will have to keep adding oil, since the eggplant soaks it right up).

Add more oil to the skillet as needed and cook the onions and celery about 6 minutes, then add the tomato paste diluted with a little water. Cook another 2 minutes until tomato paste has evaporated. Season w/ salt & pepper.

Add the chopped tomatoes, the vinegar, raisins, olives, capers and sugar and simmer this mixture 15-20 minutes until it gets nice and thick and all the vegetables look jam like.

Add the cooked tomato mixture to the cooked eggplant in the bowl and toss w/ fresh basil leaves and pine nuts.



Serve warm or at room temperature. Feel free to add parsley, roasted red pepper or an anchovy to the skillet.

This is my basic recipe and it is always a winner!

You can make this 3 days in advance and keep in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before serving.



Enjoy!

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Miss Perfect's Hot Nicoise Salad

Don't you hate perfect people?

I consider Gwyneth Paltrow one of those "perfect people". Please tell me there is something wrong with her.

She is pretty; comes from a big Hollywood family & can act; speaks fluent Spanish; married a rock star; has perfect kids; eats organic; is a COUNTRY WESTERN SINGER!; and now has a freakin' cookbook!

Is there anything this girl can't do?
Lots of press on her new cookbook, though I haven't seen it yet. Waiting for the publisher to send me a copy.

Her recipe for a "Hot Nicoise Salad" in the April issue of Food & Wine, caught my eye. I love fresh tuna in the summer, and why not cook it along side that cute little ramekin of a baked egg. Love it.

I made this in a 12" cast iron skillet and the hubs and I shared it. We loved it.
I cooked it on the grill instead of in the oven and it was just beautiful.

Thank you Miss Perfect.

Gwynnie's Hot Nicoise Salad: (adapted from Food & Wine)

Serves 2-4

2 freshest tuna steaks
kosher salt & pepper
olive oil
handful of cherry tomatoes (I used red & yellow)
1 lb. green beans, trimmed and blanched for 1 minute
4 anchovies packed in oil, drained and chopped
handful of kalamata olives
1 red pepper, roasted and cut into thin slices
handful of fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 eggs



Place your blanched beans in a large ovenproof 12" skillet (I used cast iron).

Squeeze the cherry tomatoes with your hands over the beans. Add the olives, anchovies, basil and roasted red pepper strips to the beans and toss w/ olive oil. Season w/ kosher salt & pepper.

Season the tuna steaks w/ kosher salt & pepper and place over the vegetables in the cast iron skillet. Drizzle with some more olive oil.

Spray 2 ramekins w/ PAM and crack one egg into each ramekin. Season w/ salt & pepper.
Nestle the ramekins in the skillet w/ the vegetables. If they won't fit, then cook them separately in the oven/grill.



Place the entire skillet in a 400F oven or grill w/ the lid closed for 12-15 minutes, until the tuna is medium rare and the egg is almost cooked thru, but the yolk is still a bit runny.



Serve immediately.

This was perfectly DELICIOUS. Loved.

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Giada's Easy Summer Orzo Salad

There are a lot of good orzo salad recipes out there in the blogosphere. And I have made many of them. Here is one just in time for your 4th of July BBQ.

I had this bookmarked since I saw Giada make it on her show months back. My mother in law recently had this at someone's home and said how much she enjoyed it, so I decided to make it and bring it to a backyard BBQ. It was easy, and I had everything in my garden (except for the chickpeas).

I think cooking it in the chicken broth made it better than cooking the orzo in water.
It was light and delicious and was great accompanying grilled foods.

Giada's Summer Orzo Salad: (adapted from Giada DeLaurentis)

4 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups orzo
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups red and yellow cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes, halved
3/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
About 3/4 cup Red Wine Vinaigrette, recipe follows
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Pour the broth into a heavy large saucepan. Cover the pan and bring the broth to a boil over high heat. Stir in the orzo. Cover partially and cook until the orzo is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring frequently, about 7 minutes.

Drain the orzo through a strainer. Transfer the orzo to a large wide bowl and toss until the orzo cools slightly. Set aside to cool completely.

Toss the orzo with the beans, tomatoes, onion, basil, mint, and enough vinaigrette to coat. Season the salad, to taste, with salt and pepper, and serve at room temperature.

Red Wine Vinaigrette:
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil



You can make this one day ahead and bring it to room temperature before serving.

Light and easy.

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Chopped Arugula Salad w/ Roasted Corn & Bacon

This salad was created out of desperation.

I literally had nothing in the house to go with grilled chicken breasts. I always have baby arugula, couldn't be without it, so that was a start.

Frozen corn and Oscar Meyer bacon to the rescue.



Salad:
1 bag of prewashed baby arugula
1 cup of frozen corn, defrosted
chopped green onions or sliced red onion (whatever you have on hand)
4 slices of bacon, cut into 1" pieces

Dressing:
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
salt & pepper
fresh basil leaves for garnish

In a seasoned cast iron skillet, cook the corn and bacon in some vegetable oil, about 7 minutes on high heat until the bacon is crisp and the corn is getting nice and charred. Put aside.

Chop the arugula into bite size pieces and when the corn and bacon is no longer hot, add to the salad with the onions.

Just before serving add the dressing (the olive oil, vinegar, salt & pepper).
Season with chopped fresh basil and serve immediately.



I served this on top of grilled chicken breasts and it was the bomb!

Enjoy.

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Martha's Strawberry Cake

"Strawberry Shortcake, Huckleberry Pie........V-I-C-T-O-R-Y". Now do a cartwheel and a split.

This cake was SO easy and SO delicious, made with local strawberries.



If you remember, I made this cake last summer, but used cherries & almonds. This time I stuck to Madame Stewart's original recipe, using gorgeous fresh strawberries, but liked Mary's addition of orange zest & almond extract.

The heck with strawberry shortcake, this cake was as good, if not better, and a helluva lot easier.



Summer Strawberry Cake (by way of Martha & One Perfect Bite)

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pie plate
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 pound strawberries, hulled and halved
2 tablespoons turbinado (raw) sugar (for the top)

In a medium sized bowl, mix the flour, baking powder & salt.

In a large bowl, cream your sugar together with the egg and the butter.

Gradually mix in your flour and add the milk, zest and extracts, mixing until a nice thick yellow batter turns out.

Pour your batter into a greased 9" pie plate. Arrange strawberries on top of batter, cut sides down and as close together as possible. Sprinkle raw sugar over the top.



Bake at 325F for 50-60 minutes until golden and firm to the touch.



Let cool and serve with whipped cream.



Loved.

This cake should only be made in June when strawberries are PERFECTLY beautiful!
(I have spoken).

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Roasted Tomato & Avocado Naan Bread Pizza

It's Friday. Time for antipasto, crostini and snacks on the patio.

I like to make pizzas with packaged Naan bread. They crisp up beautifully in the oven and you can top them with just about anything.

Tonight's combination is avocado and roasted cherry tomatoes. It may sound odd, but it's really delicious. You don't cook the avocado, but put it on the bread at the end. Make some roasted cherry tomato jam and open some wine.



Roasted cherry tomatoes: (can be made a day ahead)

basket of cherry tomatoes
olive oil
kosher salt
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

Line a baking sheet w/ foil and toss the cherry tomatoes w/ olive oil and kosher salt.
Roast in a 400F oven for about 20 minutes, until tomatoes are blistering.
While still warm, splash with a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and let cool.
When they are cool enough to handle, the skins will slip right off. Set aside.

For the pizzas you will need:
1 package of Naan Indian flatbreads (2 pcs. to a package)
1 avocado
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
roasted cherry tomatoes
kosher or sea salt
4 basil leaves, rolled and cut into chiffonade

Lay out the Naan bread on a baking sheet and sprinkle with some fresh mozzarella cheese. Toast in the oven for about 5-7 minutes (375F) until cheese is melted and bread is crisping up.

Slice the avocado and place thin slices over the melted cheese & season with sea salt. Plop some of your cherry tomato jam on top and garnish with basil chiffonade.



Cut into pieces and enjoy!

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Bikini Cuisini: Quinoa Salad

We have such a short summer season here in the Northeast. It seems like June, July & August go by so quickly and before you know it, it's the first day of school again.

We have a short window for grilling, fresh local produce and beach time.

My summer lunches consist of grilled vegetables and simple salads like this in the attempt to keep my girlish figure (the "girlish" sadly not relevant these days).

Quinoa Salad:

1 cup of quinoa, cooked and cooled
1 cup of cherry tomatoes, quartered
handful kalamata olives, chopped
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
6 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper

Mix all the ingredients into the cooked quinoa and season to taste.
This stays in the fridge for a few days and makes a delicious, low-fat, high protein lunch!



Enjoy!

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Poached Eggs on Toast

The incredible edible egg is back.

Why does my poached egg always fall apart in the water?

I think I have found the perfect way to poach an egg.

Pam poaches her eggs in custard cups, so you get a neat little perfectly round package.

A few years back I showed a trick to poaching eggs, by wrapping an egg in a little plastic wrap package and lowering it into the water, but I received many emails asking if it was safe to put Saran wrap in boiling water.



Good question.
I thought about it, and decided I didn't like that idea either.

Let's try it this way instead.

Spray a ramekin or custard cup with cooking spray.



Crack your egg in the ramekin and carefully lower it into a pot of boiling water w/ a tablespoon of vinegar added to the water. The vinegar helps to coagulate the egg white and keep the color nice and white.



Simmer the ramekin for about 4 minutes. If the egg tries to escape the ramekin, slowly coax it back it in with a spoon. Spoon the little round package out and plop it on a piece of buttered whole wheat toast. Season w/ salt & pepper.



Breakfast is served. A nice little round poached egg.

See, you can teach an old dog new tricks! Thanks Pam!

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First Day of Summer! Grilled Eggplant Parmigiana

It's official. It's summer. The longest day of the year. Grilling season officially opens today.

I have found a way to save you fat & calories; not to heat up the kitchen during the hot summer; and to save your stove from evil messy frying.

You can thank me later.

I LOVE eggplant parm but hate frying eggplant. It is a nasty chore. Eggplant is a sponge and loves oil. My stove is a greasy mess after I am done and I have gone thru a bottle of olive oil.

I made this over the weekend and it was the BEST! I even cooked the entire casserole on my grill! No heating up the kitchen and no breading or frying.

This was delicious and will be the only way I will ever make eggplant parm again.

Try it, your life will be changed forever (well, let's not go that far).



Stacey's Grilled Eggplant Parmesan:

(I used an 8" x 10" oval gratin dish. If you are cooking this on the grill, don't use a glass pan, use metal or porcelain).

3 medium sized Italian eggplants, NOT peeled, cut into 1/2" slices
olive oil
12 large fresh basil leaves
3-4 fresh mozzarella balls packed in water (bocconcini)
1 cup of tomato sauce (I used good quality jar sauce)
1/4 cup of FRESH breadcrumbs (made from Italian rustic ciabatta)
1/2 cup of Pecorino or Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
kosher salt & pepper

Slice the eggplant and brush each slice with olive oil and season with kosher salt.
Let sit about 30 minutes before grilling, so the oil absorbs and the salt gets rid of some of the moisture.

On a medium heat oiled grill, grill the eggplant slices until they get nice grill marks on each side, about 3 minutes on each side. Remove to a platter.
You can grill the eggplant slices the day before assembling the gratin.



In a casserole dish (no Pyrex glass, or it will break on the grill), spread some olive oil on the bottom. Lay some eggplant slices, overlapping and covering the bottom of the dish.

Spoon some tomato sauce to cover the eggplant and put slices of fresh mozzarella over the sauce. Then cover the layer of mozzarella w/ fresh basil leaves.



Repeat with another layer of eggplant, sauce, cheese and basil leaves.

Finish with a 3rd layer of grilled eggplant slices and spoon the breadcrumbs and cheese mixture over the top of the casserole.



Season w/ salt & pepper and drizzle with olive oil.
Now you are ready to bake in the oven or bake on the grill!

Place your casserole dish on a sturdy heavy baking sheet or aluminum pan that can stand the heat of the grill.



I kept my grill at 375-400F degrees, or medium low heat (my grill has an outside thermometer, which is helpful), by keeping only 2 of the 3 burners on.

Place the tray on the grill and keep the lid closed. Your grill will act like an oven. It's a closed box of heat isn't it?

Sit on the patio and have some drinks while your kitchen stays nice and cool and your eggplant parm cooks in about 20-30 minutes. It will brown on the top and get nice and bubbly.

You can also bake this in the oven, of course. 375F for about 20-30 minutes.

Let rest a few minutes and slice and serve with fresh basil.



Delicious!

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A Great Salad: Fig & Goat Cheese

Need I say more? Doesn't the title speak for itself?

If you are new to this blog, welcome.
I'm Stacey, and I LOVE FIGS.

Don't ask how, but I found some fresh, ripe, bursting, beautiful figs. Unheard of in June, since figs are not ready in our area till late August, early September (must be from California).

I made a simple salad of a few sliced figs on some baby arugula with a goat cheese crouton.

The dressing is a tsp of Dijon mustard mixed w/ 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar and a few tablespoons of good olive oil, sea salt and pepper. I use an old French mustard jar to mix my dressing and keep adding to it.



For the croutons:

Slice a baguette, and put some nice herbed chevre on each slice of bread and put under the broiler for a minute to cook the cheese (you can do this in a toaster oven too).

Plate the salad and drizzle the dressing over everything, even the crouton.

This is so good.



I've eaten this salad 3 days in a row!
Yum.

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