Extended Shelf Life for: Eggplant, Lemon, and Nut mix
Plentiful eggplants from one diving trip led me to seek out some new and potentially exciting recipes which feature the purple, spongy vegetable that is always delicious fried and extremely delicious when mixed with the ingredients for this pasta dish which can be found in Rachel Ray’s Big Orange Cookbook. I rarely love meals to the point of closing my eyes and allowing an ‘mmm’ to escape my lips followed by proclamations that ‘this is delicious’ and ‘can you believe how amazing this is?’ and ‘wow, I really like this.’ I tend to take a more critical and humble approach the food that comes from my kitchen, but not on the night of this delicious pasta dish.
Ingredients:1 lb. Whole Wheat Penne
1/4 cup Olive Oil
4 Garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1 (15 oz) can Chickpeas
1 med. Eggplant, peeled and chopped
2 tsps. Ground Cumin
2 tsps. Ground Coriander
Black Pepper
1 cup Broth
1/4 cup Tahini paste
Juice of 1 Lemon
1/2 cup fresh Parsley
1/4 cup pine nuts or soy nuts mixed with sunflower seeds
Directions:Bring large pot of water to boil and prepare the pasta according to package directions. Be prepared to save 1 ladle-full of pasta water before draining pasta.
While boiling water, heat the olive oil in a deep skillet or wok. Add garlic and red papper, cook for 1-2 minutes, then add the chickpeas and eggplant and stir to cover with the garlicky oil. Season this mix with cumin, coriander, salt and pepper, then stir in stock (or the liquid from the chickpeas). Cover and cook for 10 minutes until the eggpland is tender. Stir in the tahini paste and lemon juice and transfer to blender or food processor. Process the chickpea and eggplant mixture until almost smooth then transfer back into skillet.
Drain pasta, reserve one ladle of liquid. Add pasta water to chickpea sauce, then add the pasta and toss with the sauce. Top with parsley and pine nuts and ENJOY!
Ingredients:
Ingredients:
This is another dish that well, seems silly to break down into ingredients and directions. For goodness sakes, we made it while at the cabin for Spring Break, which mostly entails trial and error anyway. So, to begin, dice up some potatoes and begin frying them in 1-2 Tbsp. of oil, cast iron skillet works wonders if you have one. Once potatoes are mostly done, add diced peppers, onions, garlic, salt and pepper, etc. Cook until it exudes perfection and tastiness. Fry up an egg, serve on top and let the yolk take over.
On the 12th of March we hosted a CouchSurfing potluck and CouchSurfers - added bonus! They came from a community that specialized in nut butters and rope sandals. They shared some peanut butter with us as their potluck contribution. I was simply inspired. So, with travel sandwich digesting and the fires burning, I whipped up some good ole Ants on a Log: celery, peanut butter and raisins - scrumptious!
A fond culinary memory from Spain is that of the Bocadillo - sandwich perfection. Often when preparing to travel I wish I were packing my Senora's delicious omelet on a baguette and tuna con tomates on a baguette. Every time I was about to board a bus (or go watch a bullfight) I would have my bocadillos in hand. So, as our dear house-mates began describing the sandwhich they would take on their Spring Break road trip - it become abundantly clear that with some of the key ingredients sitting on our shelf, in our fridge and in the freezer - I knew we too needed have our own travel sandwich to enjoy.
