Fall Bounty

[Posted by Ruth]

The late summer/early fall boxes have been brimming with great stuff.  Eggplants, leeks, ripe tomatoes, the sweetest corn of the year so far and more.  I wanted to put a meal together that let me dive right into the box this week.  The eggplant, leeks and tomatoes definitely seemed to belong together and I'd been reading a lot about oven frying eggplant slices, so I decided on a deconstructed version of Eggplant Parmesan.

Deconstructed Eggplant Parmesan
serves 4
1 recipe Oven Fried Eggplant, see below
1 recipe Tomato/Leek sauce, see below, or your favorite sauce - it should be quite thick
8 oz smoked mozzarella or fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced


Heat oven to 375.  Leave the eggplant slices in the pan (see below), spoon sauce on top, enough to cover,  top with sliced cheese and bake until cheese is bubbly; about 5-10 minutes, depending on how warm everything already is when you put it in the oven.

First to the oven fried eggplant.  Is it just as good as pan fried eggplant?  Of course not.  Don't be an idiot.  Fried is crisper and better.  But, unless you're working hard at gaining weight, why not find a good alternative?  I was intrigued by the recipes that incorporated mayonnaise and wanted to try that.  I didn't think it was worth the bother to coat both sides and flip over half way through cooking and decided to also add some cheese to the mix.  We all liked it that way so, for me, this one is definitely a keeper.

Oven Fried Eggplant

2 medium/large eggplants, peeled and sliced into 1/2" discs
Salt and pepper
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1/3 to 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
2 T olive oil, plus more for greasing pans

Preheat oven to 375 and grease 2 heavy jelly roll pans.  Toss the sliced eggplant with a little salt and pepper and set aside.  Blend the mayonnaise, bread crumbs, cheese and olive oil.  Season with a bit more salt and pepper to taste.  Spread the mayonnaise mixture on one side of  each eggplant disc.  Spread enough to cover fully but not too thickly.  Place uncoated side down on greased pans and bake at 375 for 35 to 45 minutes, rotating the pans once or twice to ensure even browning.  When topping is nicely browned and eggplant is cooked through remove from oven and let sit a while before trying to handle if you are using these in a different recipe.

For our version, I made a fresh tomato leek sauce and we topped it offt with smoked mozzarella.  The verdict on the smoked mozzarella was split.  Half of us preferred the flavor and the other half would have preferred the less dry fresh mozzarella. 

Tomato/Leek Sauce
This was a good way to use the herbs our CSA provided us to plant earlier in the season

4 or 5 Large ripe tomatoes, cored and diced
2 large leeks, white part only, halved and sliced thinly
2 T olive oil
2 sprigs rosemary
6 sprigs oregano
1 small bunch fresh basil
5 sprigs thyme
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 T honey
Salt and Pepper to taste


In a heavy pan, heat the olive oil and add the leeks.  Cook over medium heat, stirring often until they soften.  Add the diced tomatoes and the rest of the ingredients.  Bring to a steady simmer and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally until thickened.  To use to top the eggplant discs, cook until most of the liquid is evaporated and the sauce is quite thick.

Week 17 - Oeuf Cocotte

I've found a pretty elegant and simple way to use up just about any leftover vegetable.  In his terrific book, "More Fast Food My Way", Jacques Pepin has a recipe for Oeuf Cocotte.  His calls for a base of creamed mushrooms, but you can use just about anything.  In our case, I used some of the leftover 'panic ratatouille' that I tend to make on Wednesday nights when I realize that I need to use up the rest of the vegetables before the next onslaught arrives on Thursday.  It's a simple combination of cooked vegetables (or meats, chicken or whatever combination you like) and a bit of cheese, topped with an egg and poached in a water bath on the stove top.  I had the day off today and this made a lovely late breadfast.

Oeuf Cocotte (Adapted from More Fast Food My Way by Jacques Pepin)
Per single serving:

Approx 1/2 cup of leftover ratatouille, cooked greens or mixture of cooked leftover vegetables and sausage, bacon, etc.
1 T half and half or light cream
2 T grated cheese (I used Gruyere)
1 egg
1 very small pat of butter
salt and pepper to taste

Have a saucepan with a cover deep enough to hold the ramekins and have the cover fit.  Fill with enough hot water to come about 1/2 way up the ramekins.

For each individual serving fill a 1 cup ramekin or custard cup about half full of your already cooked vegetable mixture.  If your mixture is a little on the dry side sprinkle the tablespoon of half and half or cream on top.  Top with the grated cheese.  Carefully crack the egg and place over the top of cheese.  Sprinkle a small amount of salt and pepper over the top of the egg (just enough the season the egg) and top with the pat of butter.  Place the ramekin in the pot of water and bring to a gentle boil.  Cover the pot (not the individual ramekins) and simmer on low heat for 5-8 minutes, just until the white of the egg is set and the yolk is still quite runny.  Serve immediately with bread or toast points to soak up the yolk.

This weeks farmshare is a great mix of late summer/early fall vegetables.  We're probably getting to the last of the corn but these ears were still tender and sweet.  The beets and turnips have already been roasted and will find there way into salads, etc. during the week.

Week 11 - Halfway Point

[Posted by Ruth]
I've become someone who looks forward to coming home on a Thursday and photographing the vegetables.  

It's not all that weird.  They really are beautiful.  O.K., maybe it's a little weird.

This week's box contained:
6 ears sweet corn
2 large eggplant
1 bunch dandelion greens
5 lbs tomatoes
2 sweet Italian peppers
1 pint yellow grape tomatoes 
2 summer squash 
1 zucchini
2 lbs potatoes
4 small eggplant
3 cucumbers
1 bunch beets
2 onions
1 head garlic
1 bunch kale
and the Wave Hill bread share

Since there was so much eggplant and tomatoes and those beautiful peppers this week, I decided to make ratatouille.  I like Jacques Pepin's method in his book "More Fast Food My Way" of just putting everything into one pot and simmering.  Much simpler and quicker for a weeknight meal.  I remember reading somewhere else to add lemon juice and some honey after cooking.  This made a huge difference.  The lemon juice brightened the flavors and the honey added depth rather than obvious sweetness.  Whatever ratatouille recipe you use, I really recommend trying the addition of some lemon and honey at the end.

Ratatouille with a twist
Approx 1 lb eggplant (use the thinner, Japanese type if possible) cut into 3/4" chunks, skin left on
2 small/medium zucchini, cut into 3/4" chunks
4-5 large tomatoes - roughly chopped
2 Long sweet Italian peppers, seeded and coarsely chopped
2 medium onions, coarsely chopped
1 small head garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 tsp salt or more to taste
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1/3 cup olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
2 T honey


Put all ingredients except the lemon juice and honey in a large, non reactive saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture begins to bubble.  Lower heat, cover and cook for approx 30 minutes.  If there is more liquid than you want at this point, remove cover, raise heat and cook some of the liquid off.  Watch carefully and stir regularly at this point to avoid sticking/burning on the bottom of the pot.  Remove from heat and adjust the salt/pepper to your taste.  Stir in the lemon juice and honey.  Serve warm or, more ideally, at room temperature.