Broiled Eggplant, Sausage and Brown Rice

Mark accuses me of not eating (and therefore cooking) enough vegetables. So I bought an eggplant the other day and discovered broiled eggplant. I also made brown rice and then we grilled some sausage -- bratwurst and chicken-poblano sausage. It was amazing. I've never cooked eggplant like this, and it was great and super easy. Here's the meal:

Broiled Eggplant

Slice an eggplant into 1/2 inch slices. Brush olive oil onto a pan, place the slices on the pan, brush with olive oil. Put in the broiler for about 10-12 minutes until cooked.

Rice

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil. Add pine nuts (or another kind) and fresh herbs (I used thyme and mint). Stir in cooked brown rice and tomatoes.

Introducing myself

Hi all!

I mentioned to Kristin how much I like this blog because it is so inspirational and full of helpful hints.

I have to confess that I have not been cooking as of late, but I hope to change that soon as my kitchen gets set up and we are all officially unpacked.

I just wanted to say hi and thanks for letting me be apart of this blog.

Happy cooking!

Moussaka

I wish I had taken a picture of this dish - it was beautiful, and the perfect thing when we discovered eggplant and tomatoes and onions in the garden - and some ground beef in the freezer. Its from a cookbook put out by the Mennonite Central Committee called "Extending the Table" and its a fun one to find some international recipes, that aren't too flamboyant. We made a couple of modifications that I'll note (when you have white wine, use it!). It might look like a lot of ingredients or prep time, but it really isn't. And the result is worth it!!


Iraqi Baked Dinner -- Moussaka

1 medium eggplant, cut in 1/2 inch slices
3 medium potatoes, cut in 12-1/2 inch slices (we used sweet potatoes, cause that's what we had)
1 lb ground beef
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 t pepper
1/4 t allspice
3 medium tomatoes, cut in 12 thick slices
2 onions cut in 12 thin slices
15-0z can tomato puree or sauce (we smashed up our own tomatoes from the garden)
1 cup water (we used half water and half white wine)
3/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper

Cut the eggplant slices in half, sprinkle with salt, and set aside on a cookie sheet.
Cook the potato slices in a saucepan of water for 6 minutes, then drain.
Meanwhile, Mix the beef, garlic, salt, pepper and allspice, and shape into 12 2-inch patties.
Rinse the eggplant.
In a deep 3-4 quart casserole dish, arrange eggplant, potatoes, tomatoes, meat patties, and onions alternately in rows, standing on end.
Mix the tomato puree, water, salt and pepper and pour over the casserole. Bake at 350 for 1 hour until cooked through.

Yummy GF Bread

I thought "yummy GF bread" was an oxymoron until now. I found the best gluten free breakfast bread ever! It's Cinnamon Raisin bread by Glutino. It tastes like the "real" cinnamon raisin bread that I used to eat almost every morning before I went gluten free. It's good toasted with butter. I don't even have to add other stuff on top to make it taste better. It's not too dry or crumbly and just tastes good. This is very exciting in the life of a gluten free eater! I found it with the frozen breads at Whole Foods in case anyone wants to try it.

Migas Breakfast Tacos

Note: I am mostly an experimental cook, and therefore have never consulted a recipe for Migas. If this offends your Mexican cooking sensibilities, forgive me...But I had to get month-old feta off the top of this blog. This also means I 'wing it' on amounts-I just see what looks about right in the pan (I made 2 lrg tacos). Since this was to be tacos, I omitted the tortilla strips usually included in Migas.

chopped onion (I used about 3/4 of a small spring onion)
chopped garlic (about 1/2 a clove)
small amount chopped jalapeño (about 1/4 of a med-lrg pepper)

Saute onion, garlic, and jalapeño in a bit of butter until onion is transparent. Sauteing the jalapeño will help preserve the flavor and tone down the spiciness (but this will depend on the heat of the pepper you have, too). If you like a lot of spice, consider adding more and at the end. If you don't like spice at all, you might want to use a green or red bell pepper instead.

tomato (about 1/4 of 1 lrg)
eggs, beaten (2)
cilantro (couple of small sprigs, chopped)
tortillas (warmed)

Once the onion is transparent, add tomato and cook briefly-no more than about a minute. Then add the egg. Once the egg is about half-scrambled, add the cilantro and continue cooking. Remove from heat and into warmed tortillas. I garnished with a bit of cheese and avocado.

Yummiest Cheese Ever!

You may see this cheese, Pure Luck Farm's Feta , in the deli area of the grocery store and think "Geez! $6.00 for feta? Get real! I'll just spend $2.49 for the HEB brand." But you would be very, very mistaken. This goat feta, made just west of Austin in Dripping Springs, is the yummiest cheese you will ever have and, added bonus!, it is so strong and so fresh that it is one of the few foods where you actually do eat less of it because it's so good!

Me and this cheese go way back. I put this creamy, tart feta on things you would not normally put cheese on but for some reason is totally awesome:

• Apples- I spread a bit of feta on apples and its like a more savory version of apples and peanut butter
• Eggs- the tiniest bit sprinkled on top of cinchy scrambled eggs add a lot of flavor
• Toast or bagels- Pure Luck feta is way yummier than cream cheese even
• An avocado, tomato and feta sandwich with lots of greens is totally easy and very yummy
• In tomato or pesto based pasta sauces, of course
• Zucchini- tossed in with steamed or sauteed zucchini you can't go wrong. Paired with slow cooked summer squash sauteed in butter, this feta is divine
• In every casserole known to man. I just substitute about 1/3 of the feta for the amount of cheddar or other cheese they call for. It always tastes great though. What the feta lacks in volume it makes up in flavor.
  

In short this feta really packs a punch, you are supporting a local dairy at the same time and enjoying a really well made cheese!

Enchiladas

Another thing to make with beans! And leftover chicken. They were so amazing. This wasn't from an actual recipe, but sort of adapted from how I was taught to make chicken tomatillo enchiladas a while back. So, there is not really quantities, and this is what we used. But you can use whatever sounds good to you. And they turned out decently healthy for mexican food.

Corn tortillas
green salsa
cheese, grated (cheddar)
Filling:
leftover/cooked chicken, chopped (about one+ chicken breast)
beans (4 cups black beans)
three tomatillos, boiled until soft, chopped
green onion, sliced
lime juice, from one lime

Put a little bit of salsa on the bottom of a casserole dish. Put filling in tortilla, roll, and place rolled side down in dish. Fill dish with rolled, filled tortillas. Pour salsa over. Spread cheese on top. Bake at 350 for about 20-30 minutes.

**A sauce can be made from fresh tomatillos -- get a bunch and take the husks off. Place in a pot, cover with water and boil until soft. Put in blender. But salsa from a jar is faster, and seasoned.