Eggplant is a vegetable which I have fallen for hard the past few years. However I would treat it with much restraint, using it only for stock standard Eggplant recipes such as Baba Ghanoush. This was until a friend introduced me to the delicacy that is deep fried, crumbed eggplant. Done right, you get a wonderful crisp crumb, and a lovely creamy middle which is snacking bliss!
To make this joyous snack into a delicious meal, I combine layers of crumbed shallow fried eggplant with lots of mozzarella cheese, my home made sugo, bake it for half and hour and voila! - Eggplant Parmigiana.
It is so simple I hardly need to give you a recipe, but I will just so you can add it to your repertoire.
Parmigiana di Melanzane (Recipe by Rosa Matto from the book 'Italian Food Safari')
3 large eggplants
salt
plain flour
4 eggs, beaten
1-2 cups dry breadcrumbs (I add this step to the recipe as I like to crumb my eggplant. If you are avoiding too much wheat, you can omit the crumb).
Olive Oil
Sugo
80ml olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
750ml Passatta (or 2 tins Italian tomatoes)
salt and pepper
1/2 bunch basil leaves
250g bocconcini or fresh mozzarella, sliced
100g Parmesan, grated
Slice the eggplant no thicker than 1cm. Sprinkle the slices with salt. Stack in a colander and weigh down with a heavy object. Leave for 1 hour. This step is really important as you want to get as much moisture out of the eggplant. The salt will help draw out the moisture, along with any bitterness that the eggplant may have.
Pat the slices dry and lightly coat in seasoned flour. Dip into the beaten egg and then into your breadcrumbs. (If you are not using breadcrumbs, leave out this step and just dip in the egg). Shake off the excess and fry in hot oil until golden brown on each side. Drain well on paper towel.
To make the sugo, heat the oil and fry the onion and garlic until soft. Add tomato and bring to the boil. Cook until slightly reduced. Season to taste and add half of the basil.
Preheat oven to 180c. Smear the bottom of a baking dish with sugo and add a layer of eggplant. Dot with slices of bocconcini, a sprinkle of Parmesan and a few basil leaves. Keep layering until you have used up all the eggplant. Finish with a layer of sugo, and top with more cheese.
Bake for around 30 minutes, until the top is golden. When cooked, allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
This dish is delicious with zucchini sauteed in olive oil and thinly sliced garlic, or steamed vegetables or if you are being really good, a nice green salad. It is a great vegetarian alternative to meat lasagna. I have served this to die-hard carnivores and no one has ever asked 'Where's the beef?'
Until next time...
Kitty xx
My Tomato plants are sprouting and fruiting and right now are taller than me! I am having trouble reaching the stakes to tie them off as they are getting out of my reach! (Must be all the singing of 'Tintarella di Luna' and 'Mambo Italiano' that they get from me daily).
I have 7 different varieties of Heirloom growing, having added a few extra varieties (Tigerella, Green and Amish) to my collection, which are all doing rather well. My Siberian tomato plant unfortunately perished. (It was a very sad day). I am not sure what went wrong, but it yielded 2 small fruits which I am going to try and seed save for next season.
The plants I have growing look so green and lush and impressive. I have to hold myself back from the vegetable seedling section of the hardware store as I was becoming rather obsessive over the tomato varieties. I am out of patio space and pots!
Along with my tomato grove, I have also added Lebanese eggplant, Strawberries and Rhubarb to complete my little backyard Market Garden. Where possible I have selected Heirloom varieties, for their taste and the pure feeling of nostalgia they give me.
To see my beautiful plants looking so happy and strong has me really excited about cooking. I mean, who wouldn't want to cook with their own home grown produce?
Apple and Rhubarb pie anyone? (Stay tuned...)
I am also very pleased to report that I am growing my veggies without pesticides (my fish is enjoying the grasshopper diet) and I am fertilizing with an organic fertilizer. I can't wait to tell you how good they taste!
As you can see I am patiently waiting for the fruits of my love and labour to ripen.
Until next time...
Kitty xx
Lemon curd. It is one of lifes pleasures. Well, it's one of my pleasures. I can quite happily sit in front of the television with a spoon, and old movie and a jar of lemon curd. There has been many a jar of lemon curd that I have consumed on its own, without the slightest whiff of bread, tart shell or pavlova.
I love the sweetness and tartness. I love the smooth, creamy texture. I love how my eyes sometimes cross with the overwhelming lemon hit that makes my jaw spasm and my saliva glands go crazy.
Today, I decided to make my own lemon curd. I don't know why I have never tried making it before because it is really easy. I think I have been too wary of the custard principle - over cook and you get scrambled eggs; undercook, you get that unpleasant 'eggy' taste. I had no need to fear. Lemon curd is simple. It takes only an hour (if that) to make and this recipe gives you two nice little jars. (Plus a little to snack on for 'Quality Control').
Lemon Curd (Recipe from Taste.com.au)
2 large whole eggs, plus 2 egg yolks
165g white sugar
80g unsalted butter
Zest and juice from 2 lemons (I used small lemons)
In a saucepan, over low heat, whisk eggs and sugar until smooth. Add butter, zest and lemon juice and whisk continually until the curd thickens. (This takes about 15 minutes).
Don't be tempted to play around with the heat, just keep it low and slow and most of all, be patient. Be sure to keep whisking or else the mixture will catch at the bottom of the pan and will end up lumpy. When thick, pour into sterilized jars and seal.
Makes about 500g
A word about jars
When looking for jars, I buy mine from thrift shops. I try to get ones that have lids with the button that 'pops' when the seal is broken. That way when you are preserving and re-seal the jars, you know you have a proper seal when the jars cool and the button indents. (I always get excited when this happens!)
I also like to make my jars pretty, because preserving is such a lost art, it is nice to give them a little love.
Until next time...
Kitty xx
I love old kitchenware. I get deep pleasure wandering around Op Shops and Junk Stores and finding pieces to fill my kitchen with. Vintage things are so full of history and were really made to last. I enjoy digging around and finding old collectible pieces, imagining where they came from, and what stories they could tell.
I was in a bit of a stinky mood today, so I decided the tonic would be to take myself Op shopping. I was feeling lucky and I always like to follow my instincts.
It was a busy Thursday. There were people everywhere. I giggled to myself as I watched a lady in the car park attempting to stuff a large wooden toy trunk into the boot of her car without success. I was thinking out aloud, 'Should have thought that one out a little better lady' and then thought that if it were me, I would have done whatever I could to get that trunk home, come hell or high water.
When Op shopping, my usual modus operandi is to go to the clothing section first, but today I went straight to Bric-a-brac. I am glad I did because it was there I found this wonderful old Nelly Ware cake canister.
Isn't it delicious! OK, maybe I am a little over zealous, but for $5 I knew I absolutely had to have it. I mean, being a self-styled baker, how could I not get excited?
As I continued browsing, a lady rushed up to me saying 'WHERE DID YOU FIND THAT? ARE THERE MORE? I COLLECT RETRO! I MUST HAVE IT!' to which I felt like replying 'You can prise it off my cold, dead fingers lady' (I told you I was in a stinky mood!). Instead I smiled sweetly and said 'Bric-a-brac, I guess today is my lucky day!' and I merrily skipped away. (Well, in my head that's what I did).
I went to the cashier to pay and then she was all over me like a rash, wanting to know if I knew what it was, how valuable Nelly Ware is these days, how hard it is to come by, and that her Nanna had one just the same that she wished she had kept and was disappointed that she didn't. At this point I couldn't wait to get out of the store!
I am so happy I bought it, it really made my day and dissolved my crummy mood! I am certain it will be quite at home with all of the other retro and eclectic pieces in my kitchen that all have their own stories to tell.
Until next time...
Kitty xx
My Italiano juices were flowing with gusto last weekend. I bought 4 Heirloom tomato plants from the nursery and planted them in a big pot out in my herb garden. I am so excited - I am going to grow my own Heirloom tomatoes!
I have 4 different varieties and It is such a novelty seeing them in the pot all staked out and looking so lovely. I did a little research online, gave them a dose of liquid seaweed fertiliser, some mulch and I have been talking and singing to them in Italian. I don't know why I feel that tomatoes need to be talked to in Italian, but I guess my bambini will grow up with culture! (There was nothing about talking to my plants in the research by the way, it is my own little experiment).
I have always loved the thrill of a big city. There is just nothing like the buzz you get from the feeling of being within the Metropolis, especially when you have lived most of your life away from the hustle and bustle.
In my 20's it was always my dream to go to New York City. I just got back from my sixth visit - I am enamoured by the place. I feel I need to keep the dream alive and think about other places I would like to visit, such as Paris.
I almost cringe when I say I want to go to Paris because I know for the most part, it is such a cliché. Only, it just never lost its style. I mean, Bogie told Ingrid Bergman, "We'll always have Paris" in Casablanca. For a line to be so famous in a movie, that has to mean something!
I recently read a book 'Lunch in Paris' by Elizabeth Bard (2010 Harper Collins). It is a sweet memoir of an American girl and a French guy. They love to cook, to eat, then voila! - they fall in love. What makes this book so delicious is that not only is it a story about their love, it is also a culinary journey of their relationship, with each chapter ending with recipes.
How wonderful is it, to not only find your soul mate, but for them to love food as much as you do... And for it to all happen in Paris... *Swoon*
All this buzz about Paris has sparked an interest in Julia Child. I am not all that interested in the Julie/Julia phenomenon, but I admit, it was the catalyst. The real Julia was so honest and endearing. You can't help but feel at ease and at home with her advice on how to cook. I am still to make her famous 'Boeuf Bourguignon', but winter will be here soon enough...
My French Revolution is also thanks to David Lebovitz and his blog 'Living the sweet life in Paris'. He is giving me hunger pangs to travel to this suddenly exotic and must-see locale. David's blog has also introduced me to the recipes of Dorie Greenspan, who's French Apple Tea Cake must be tasted to be believed...
I imagine riding around the city by bicycle, to stop for an impromptu picnic of cheese and Champagne near the Eiffel Tower and looking (as well as sounding) ridiculously foreign. Mostly I am just salivating over all the fabulous things I plan to eat, after shopping at all the Patisseries, Boulangeries and Charcuteries...
I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship... Would you like pommes frites with that?
Until next time... (au revoir)
Kitty xx
It should come as no surprise how much I love to eat. I love eating almost more than I love cooking. However my whole 'never trust a skinny chef' philosophy is making my jeans fit a little tighter than I prefer.
Now I am not a thin girl. Having said that, I am not a big girl either, perhaps a little more rounded and Botticelli than some. I like to think that the extra pounds I carry are the hallmarks of me being a good cook who obviously enjoys what she eats. I remember an old work colleague had not seen me for a few years who said 'You look like you have been feeding up in the top paddock' and added 'I s'pose the happy cow makes the most milk'... to which I immediately thought he was making reference to the size of my boobs. I am still scratching my head about that comment.
Anyway, over the past few weeks I have been trying to detox and be good to my body. I haven't been killing myself with lemon juice and salt water, or on a radical crash diet. I have been drinking more water, eating more fruit, more grains and upping my fibre intake. So far I have been feeling a great deal lighter and heaven forbid - healthier!
My pangs and yearnings for certain rich and fried foods have also subsided considerably. I find I want to eat less and I am reaching for fruit and water rather than chocolate and coffee. I don't know how long this fad will last. I haven't gone to the extreme and started exercising as yet as I figured I would see how I looked and felt after a month of healthy eating to see if I could marry this up with some physical activity. We'll see.
Pumpkin Risoni with Fetta (recipe inspired by Donna Hay Magazine Dec Jan 2011)
500g pumpkin, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
100g fetta, crumbled
1/2 cup risoni
1 tsp fennel seed
1 tsp chili flakes
50g sun dried tomatoes (or semi dried)
1 can chick peas, drained and rinsed (if you don't rinse them they give you gas - trust me!)
1 big handful Italian parsley, roughly chopped
1 handful mint leaves, roughly chopped
1/4 cup raw cashews
1 tbs pine nuts
scant amount of garlic, grated
Olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste
Toss pumpkin, fennel seeds, chilli flakes with a lug of olive oil. Spread out onto a sheet pan (lined with baking paper for easy clean up) and bake in a moderate oven until fork tender (about 20 mins).
Cook risoni as per directions and drain well. Dry roast your cashews and pine nuts. In a large bowl, grate about a half a clove of garlic. Toss in your cooked pumpkin, along with the risoni, tomatoes, chick peas, mint and garlic and toss well to combine. (The residual heat in the pasta and pumpkin will steam the garlic, taking away the raw taste). Add your toasted cashews, pine nuts and fetta cheese. Check seasoning and give a final toss to combine. Add a little extra olive oil if the mix seems a little dry.
You can't help but feel smug and good about yourself after eating this. I have served this to carnivores and they have not missed the meat. However I do believe it would make a nice accompaniment to a big juicy sirloin...
Until next time...
Kitty xx
