Recipe: Simple Eggplant Parmigiana

Image via Wikipedia

From Denny: How about a simple recipe of Eggplant Parmigiana? Light foods like this are great in this summer heat, easy and faster to digest than heavy meats.

Did you know that tomatoes are cooling for your liver? Why is that important? Cool your liver; cool your body! A win-win in this summer heat!

Same goes for foods like cucumbers and vinegars. A little (like about 1/2 teaspoon per large glass of water) white or red wine vinegar in your glass of water helps your liver handle the hot weather.

Eggplant Parmigiana

From: “Savannah Collection” by Martha Giddens Nesbit

Serves: 8

Ingredients:

2 small eggplants, peeled and sliced into 1/2-inch circles

Salt

2 cups cottage cheese

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 clove garlic, squeezed through a press (if using commercial spaghetti sauce)

1/2 cup olive oil, approximately

2 cups tomato sauce (recipe follows) OR commercial meatless spaghetti sauce

10 ozs. grated mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Salt sliced eggplant and allow it to drain for about 30 minutes. Rinse and pat dry with paper towels.

2. In small bowl combine cottage cheese, eggs, Parmesan cheese and parsley. I used commercial spaghetti sauce so I squeezed 1 clove of garlic through a garlic press into the cheese mixture for added flavor. Set aside.

3. In large, nonstick skillet, heat oil and fry eggplant until lightly browned on both sides. At first the eggplant will soak up the oil, but as it cooks, the oil will release. When browned, drain on paper towels.

4. Use a 9x13-inch shallow baking dish for making a one- layer casserole or an 8x8-inch dish for two layers. Begin by spreading the spaghetti sauce on the bottom of the dish, all of it for single layer casserole or half the remaining ingredients if you’re making two layers.

Layer cooked eggplant slices over sauce then spoon cottage cheese mixture over eggplant, spreading it out as evenly as you can. Top with grated mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers, beginning with tomato sauce if making a double layer and ending with mozzarella.

5. Bake in 400-degree oven for 30 minutes or until browned and bubbly. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Tomato Sauce

From: Recipe is from “Savannah Collection”

Makes: about 4 cups of sauce

Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, pressed or minced (I love a lot more!)

2 (16-oz.) cans Italian plum tomatoes

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried thyme

1 tsp. salt

1/2 cup cleaned and chopped parsley

Directions:

1. Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil. Add other ingredients.

2. Cover and cook, stirring often, for about 30 minutes. Use in eggplant dish, or freeze for later.

Recipe: Simple Eggplant Parmigiana

Image via Wikipedia

From Denny: How about a simple recipe of Eggplant Parmigiana? Light foods like this are great in this summer heat, easy and faster to digest than heavy meats.

Did you know that tomatoes are cooling for your liver? Why is that important? Cool your liver; cool your body! A win-win in this summer heat!

Same goes for foods like cucumbers and vinegars. A little (like about 1/2 teaspoon per large glass of water) white or red wine vinegar in your glass of water helps your liver handle the hot weather.

Eggplant Parmigiana

From: “Savannah Collection” by Martha Giddens Nesbit

Serves: 8

Ingredients:

2 small eggplants, peeled and sliced into 1/2-inch circles

Salt

2 cups cottage cheese

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 clove garlic, squeezed through a press (if using commercial spaghetti sauce)

1/2 cup olive oil, approximately

2 cups tomato sauce (recipe follows) OR commercial meatless spaghetti sauce

10 ozs. grated mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Salt sliced eggplant and allow it to drain for about 30 minutes. Rinse and pat dry with paper towels.

2. In small bowl combine cottage cheese, eggs, Parmesan cheese and parsley. I used commercial spaghetti sauce so I squeezed 1 clove of garlic through a garlic press into the cheese mixture for added flavor. Set aside.

3. In large, nonstick skillet, heat oil and fry eggplant until lightly browned on both sides. At first the eggplant will soak up the oil, but as it cooks, the oil will release. When browned, drain on paper towels.

4. Use a 9x13-inch shallow baking dish for making a one- layer casserole or an 8x8-inch dish for two layers. Begin by spreading the spaghetti sauce on the bottom of the dish, all of it for single layer casserole or half the remaining ingredients if you’re making two layers.

Layer cooked eggplant slices over sauce then spoon cottage cheese mixture over eggplant, spreading it out as evenly as you can. Top with grated mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers, beginning with tomato sauce if making a double layer and ending with mozzarella.

5. Bake in 400-degree oven for 30 minutes or until browned and bubbly. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Tomato Sauce

From: Recipe is from “Savannah Collection”

Makes: about 4 cups of sauce

Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, pressed or minced (I love a lot more!)

2 (16-oz.) cans Italian plum tomatoes

1 tsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried thyme

1 tsp. salt

1/2 cup cleaned and chopped parsley

Directions:

1. Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil. Add other ingredients.

2. Cover and cook, stirring often, for about 30 minutes. Use in eggplant dish, or freeze for later.

Recipe: Okra and Tomatoes

Another version of Okra and Tomatoes yummy marriage using whole pods unsliced Image via Wikipedia

From Denny: OK, this is so Southern and well-loved in Louisiana too! I love okra and tomatoes when done right. I use dark brown sugar and Worchestershire sauce and balsamic vinegar in addition to the usual garlic, fresh parsley or coriander, a little ground cloves for sweetness, a little smokey chili pepper from New Mexico, and clarified butter or canola oil that reflect my international travel and living abroad.

This is from the Southern Recipe Restoration Project over at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution where they are preserving Southern food heritage. I applaud their project! What could be better than making sure the next generation gets to enjoy satisfying soul food? :)

This is a version of Okra and Tomatoes from an Italian-American who grew up in Florida. This dish has many variations throughout the South just like Gumbo.

Okra was brought to Louisiana centuries ago by African slaves bringing the seeds from home, planting and cultivating the plants. Over time the African crop grew in popularity and is popular today. Make sure you DO NOT cut the okra into slices until just before you are ready to start cooking them as okra has a, well, slimy quality to it when improperly cooked (like in boiling). The key is to keep it dry by cooking fast as soon as its cut. I'll use canned diced tomatoes when the fresh are not available.

I'll make a meal of this dish with just a piece of buttered sourdough or ciabatti toast on the side!

Feel free to contact the newspaper to contribute your recipe to the Southern Food Restoration Project!

From: Southern Recipe Restoration Project
Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"The contributor: Patricia Thomas, a journalism professor at the University of Georgia since 2005 and a native of the small Central Florida town of Dunnellon.

The story: Patricia Thomas’ grandmother, Olivia Toffaletti Shuman, combined her Central Florida upbringing with her Italian heritage with delicious results. She showed Thomas' mother, Leatrice Shuman Haffner, how to make this dish. Her mother, in turn, wrote it down for Thomas.

Recipe tester and chef Virginia Willis loved its Italian undertones, noting that it’s very important not to cut the okra until the last minute to prevent it from becoming too slimy."

Hands on time: 25 minutes
Total time: 45 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 medium onion, diced

1 pound fresh okra, washed

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup water

2 cloves fresh garlic, chopped

2 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 tablespoons freshly chopped basil


Instructions:

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet with a tight-fitting cover. Add onion and cook over medium heat until translucent. While onion cooks, remove caps and cut okra crosswise into 1-inch pieces.

Add okra to pan all at once, shake pan or stir gently to mix with onion, and immediately add vinegar and 1/4 cup water. Cover and immediately reduce heat. (The goal is to steam the okra gently until just tender, 15 to 20 minutes.)

When okra is tender, push to one side of the pan and increase heat to medium-high. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and the garlic, stirring gently until fragrant.

Add tomatoes, salt, sugar, black pepper, pepper flakes and basil. Heat for less than 1 minute, just long enough to heat the tomatoes through, then gently fold together with the okra. Taste and adjust for seasoning with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Notes: Share your own heirloom recipe

You, too, can share an old family recipe and honor a loved one: Go to ajc.com/food, and under Recipe Restoration Project click on Submit Yours and fill out the form. Or e-mail it to savingsouthernfood@ajc.com. Or mail it to Southern Recipe Restoration Project, c/o Food Editor Jamila Robinson, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 72 Marietta St. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30303.

Nutrition:

Per serving: 162 calories (percent of calories from fat, 44), 3 grams protein, 21 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber, 8 grams fat (1 gram saturated), no cholesterol, 641 milligrams sodium.