SUMMERTIME COOKING

We've been lucky here so far with not only a mild winter but also a very early and mild spring.  Although it was up in the 90's for Memorial Day weekend, this past week has been wonderful - low humidty, nightly lows in the 50's, and sunny days in the low 80's - heaven!  Although the tomatoes aren't in yet, the farmer's markets have zucchini and eggplant and enough other stuff to make it worth a stop.  The other day I bought 2 smallish eggplants - I knew as soon as I saw them what I would be making:  Giacomo's Unbaked Eggplant Parmesan. 

This dish is one that needs to be made in advance.  The eggplant needs to be sliced, salted and drained for at least an hour or so, the tomato sauce needs to simmer for several hours to reduce, and the eggplant gets fried before the dish is assembled, so I recommend making this dish the day before you plan to serve it. 

Here's what you need:  2-3 small eggplants, not teeny-tiny, but small enough to still be tender.  Slice the eggplants about 1/4" thick, place them in a colander over the sink and sprinkle with salt.  Placing a heavy bowl on top of the eggplants will help squeeze out the moisture.  After the eggplants have released their excess water rinse them quickly and place on paper towels to dry. 

While the eggplants are draining you can start your tomato sauce.  Finely chop one carrot, one rib of celery and one garlic clove then saute them in a large skillet with a little olive oil.  After a few minutes add the tomatoes.  Fresh tomatoes will work fine, but since they aren't ready I just used one large can of San Marzano tomatoes, whole.  Break up the tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon, throw in some torn fresh basil leaves and let this simmer on the back of the stove until it's thick - really thick - I think mine simmered nearly 5 hours!

Fry the eggplant slices quickly in hot oil, just browing them, then drain on paper towels.  Shave some Parmesan with a potato peeler and tear up quite a few basil leaves.  Once the tomato sauce is ready just layer the eggplant on a plate - I used a dinner plate and placed the eggplant in the center, not covering the whole plate.  Cover the eggplant with a good dollop of tomato sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan and basil.  Repeat the process until you've used all your ingredients, then cover and refrigerate.  I usually roll up a paper towel and put it around the bottom of the plate to soak up any excess moisture that remains, and trust me, there's still plenty!

When you're ready to serve just add a few more fresh basil leaves on top and enjoy!  This is such a good summer dish - cool and refreshing, flavorful and healthy! 

UNBAKED EGGPLANT PARMESAN

Last Sunday we were invited to Giacomo and Belinda’s house for lunch. Good company and good food are a winning combination! Between our visit to the states and their visit to Australia, it’s been a while since we’ve had more than a few minutes together, so lunch would be the perfect opportunity to catch up.

We were both amazed to see how much progress has been made on their construction project. Belinda and Giacomo are building a tower on their property to house two apartments they’ll rent out for vacationers. It’s been fun to watch the tower rise from the ground, and we look forward to seeing how it all turns out.

I was a little surprised when Giacomo brought a platter to the table and announced “Eggplant parmigiano!” The reason for my surprise was that the dish was not hot….and had obviously never been in the oven! Is this Sicilian style, I asked? Giacomo said yes, eggplant parmigiano is often served cold, and of course can also baked in the oven.

It only took one bite for me to know that this dish was a winner! I asked Giacomo how it was prepared, and as expected, it was quite simple. The only part of the recipe I have trouble with is the preparation of the eggplant. Giacomo told me to slice the eggplant, salt it, weigh it down, and let it sit overnight. I’ve NEVER done this, and I’m just wondering…am I missing something? I understand that this step was/is used to draw the excess moisture out of the eggplant, but honestly….is this step really necessary? Do experienced chefs still salt their eggplant?

Here’s the recipe as told to me by Giacomo:

Slice the eggplant, salt it, weight it down and let it sit overnight.

Make a tomato sauce using fresh or canned tomatoes. First sauté finely chopped celery, onion and garlic in some olive oil. Add the tomatoes and shredded fresh basil and simmer all until the mixture has reduced to a thick sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Fry the eggplant slices. Giacomo uses half olive oil and half sunflower oil.

On a serving platter, layer the eggplant slices, tomato sauce, lots of fresh basil and generous amounts of SHAVED parmesan cheese. Top with a few whole basil leaves for garnish. To serve, slice thru the eggplant and serve in wedges.

Honestly, I was so surprised at how delicious this dish was! It’s a winner any time of the year, but will definitely be on my table a lot this coming summer! And I’ll just take this opportunity to point out how just a few ingredients, combined simply, add up to a wonderful taste explosion!