I hate to sound like a broken record but I will be talking about eggplant for awhile. I made Eggplant Caponata this week which is chunky eggplant tomato chutney often served on crispy bread; although it was also very good on scrambled eggs. I shared it with numerous friends and neighbors with mixed reviews. I have found its best to sweat the bitterness out of eggplant with salt for several hours before baking, sautéing or grilling. Later this summer, I’m going to shred it in a salsa recipe which is one way I think it can be easily preserved.
For some unknown reason Paul bought several containers of ricotta cheese awhile back. After researching both sweet and savory recipe options, I decided to try a fresh strawberry/blueberry ricotta cheesecake. The consistency was more like bread pudding than a traditional cheesecake but was still delicious with only a fraction of the fat calories. Ricotta is something I would like to use more often but I need to do more recipe research. Sometime during the week, Paul whipped up some tasty oatmeal raisin cookies using the recipe on the top of the oatmeal canister. My sister, Sandy, is visiting from LA so a steady supply of peanut cakes and bars have been making their way into the house as well. Yikes!
We received a return supper invite this past week and enjoyed delicious pork ribs at a friend’s pastoral prairie farm north of Ortonville. We had some friends over for a light Antipasti (appetizer) supper this week which included chilled shrimp, various cheeses, veggies and dip along with my eggplant caponata on crispy toasts. Their peach cobbler and ice cream contribution was a lovely way to top off this meal on the porch overlooking the lake nearing sunset. Another interesting concoction Paul served this week was his version of Hash which included brats, potatoes, carrots and onions all sliced and sautéed in a cast iron skillet until brown and crispy. It was accompanied by roasted cherry tomatoes and a rhubarb peach chutney I made several years ago. This homespun meal was topped off with his homemade Dreamsickle Sorbet and tasty Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.
I harvested most of a big basil plant today that Paul quickly transformed into a lovely pesto sauce we often serve on pasta or with grilled meats and/or veggies. Most of it made its way into the freezer in numerous small containers which will be doled out to those interested. Last week I talked about our adventures with homemade pizza and this week Paul topped one with store bought frozen meatballs that along with some sautéed mushrooms and onions was delicious. A friend brought over some homemade spinach cream soup that she thought was a little too bland so I added an Indian spice mix and topped with mascarpone cheese and a few drops of olive oil and fresh lime made for a luscious lunch along with our first sweet corn of the season. Last night we finished off my first walleye catch along with eggplant ratatouille and more sweet corn. If you haven’t tried it, microwaving sweet corn is a quick fast way to get the job done.
Paul has discovered the area seasonal markets so has started bringing home large ripe slicing tomatoes that he eats for lunch with ham and mustard on his homemade bread. This must mean we are approaching canning season but we plan to practice some restraint this year. Having said that, I received an abundance of cucumbers today so I am planning to make bread and butter pickles in the morning and I did see a tomato chutney recipe I want to try. I guess it’s time to locate and dust off the canning equipment.