The dog days of summer

July 17, 2011

Danger is just exhausted from taking care of Mommy all by himself for the last 6 months! Hang in there little buddy, Daddy comes home tomorrow!

Here we are again in the July "dog days of summer," the days when it's so hot that you want to do nothing more than what the dogs do....lay around and try to stay cool.

I've been staying cool and busy with cooking up the final week's allotment from Rest Park Farm CSA, canning, and drying tomatoes! I have decided that canning and drying is more practical, since we will have to box everything up for our move to the District in the next couple of weeks. Frozen tomatoes and eggplant might not like 11 hours in a cooler!

While I have delicious fresh produce still on hand, I have been busy making new dishes. The two that have been stand-outs lately have been my grape tomato bruschetta and grilled eggplant frittata.

Bruschetta is just Italian toast. The really authentic stuff is grilled and then the cut edge of a raw garlic clove is rubbed all over the hot bread...the original garlic bread. My version is very hearty and I've made it a meal several times.

You may notice in the picture above that there is a toast that is not like the others. This was my "dessert" bruschetta...homemade fig preserves from my neighbor and black sage honey on toast, with grated Parmesan cheese on top. I broiled it until the cheese was melted and browned. It was really good, the sweet and salty really work well together!

Ingredients:

A hearty bread that you like, sliced: baguette, rye, multi-grain, etc.

Extra virgin olive oil

Fresh mozzarella and Parmesan cheese

2 cups of fresh grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

1 small garlic clove, minced

1/2 a green bell pepper, fine dice

1/2 of a medium Vidalia or red onion, fine dice

5-6 large fresh basil leaves, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

pinch of red pepper flake or cayenne pepper powder

Method:

Place a tablespoon of olive oil into a pan. Sautee your onion and bell pepper over medium-high heat until the onions are translucent. Add the halved tomatoes, garlic, salt and pepper, red pepper flake. Cook down the tomatoes and veggies until you can really smoosh those tomatoes with your spoon, and their juices go everywhere. At this stage, add the basil, and cook on medium for another 2-3 minutes. It should be starting to look like a chunky marinara sauce. If it's still to watery, reduce it down more until it is thick.

Toast your bread slices under a broiler or on a grill. Once toasted, add your chunky smooshed tomato mixture on top, and top with sliced mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese, if you have it on hand.

Place your loaded toasts directly under your broiler on high. Broil until the cheese is melted and slightly browned, 1-2 minutes.

Enjoy with a glass of wine! Simple, but delicious.

Now on to the second Italian inspired summer recipe of the day. The frittata! I think Julia Child once said that the preparation of Italian food is not really cooking....because it is so simple and easy! I like it! Here is the must-knows about the frittata:

- A frittata is really just a quiche without the crust. Don't tell the men!

- You can make it with whatever you have on hand, almost like a "leftover casserole."

- The main ingredient you MUST have are eggs. These bind all the other ingredients together like a glue.

- They are delicious hot or at room temperature.

- They are portable. Almost like a pizza slice....eat it in the car, at the table, or at the beach!

Grilled Eggplant Frittata

Ingredients:

1/2 large eggplant, grilled. I used the leftover eggplant that wouldn't fit into the eggplant parmesan pan.

6 large eggs

1/4 cup of half-and-half, whole milk, or skim milk....whatever you have on hand.

tablespoon of butter

tablespoon of olive oil

2 oz. fontina cheese, grated

2 oz. goat cheese, crumbled

handful of fresh parsley and basil, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 red potatoes, skin on, sliced very very thin

1/2 of a small red or vidalia onion, diced

handful of cherry or grape tomatoes, sliced in half.

salt and pepper to taste

Method: Pre-heat your oven to 400 F.

In a non-stick, oven safe pan, like a well seasoned cast iron skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil. Add your potatoes and onions, and cook until the potatoes are browned and soft. Add the salt and pepper to taste. While those are cooking, whisk the 6 eggs with the milk in a mixing bowl and set aside. When the potatoes and onions are done, add the herbs and garlic, and cook for 1-2 minutes. Lower your burner to low, and add in the egg mixture to your veggies. Let it set, don't stir. Add your fontina cheese directly on top of the egg mixture. Then, layer your eggplant on top of the fontina, and press it gently into the egg mixture. Add your tomatoes on top of that, and the goat cheese.

Cook on medium-low on the stovetop for 3-5 minutes. The mixture will bubble. After this time, transfer to your 400 F oven, and cook for 15-20 minutes, until the mixture is slightly "jiggly" in the middle.

Let the frittata "rest" for 5 minutes after you take it out of the oven before cutting into it. You can turn it out onto a serving tray, with the browned side up, or, serve out of the pan like I did. YUM! EASY!

Next time.....saying goodbye to Beaufort and the Lowcountry. :( The next chapter of the Lowcountry foodie will soon be coming to you from northern Virginia!