Recipes / Food - Drink

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by beppe

Roberto! I recognize the trick!
To get over this point i grill the darn things!
A friend of mine is trying to avoid starch in the diet. I am experimenting with sliced eggplants to see if a dried slice can be used instead of bread to make snacks or little sandwiches. I will let you know.

There is a recipe in the Eat to Live book, eggplant "rolls" or something. I never could get the rolls to stay as rolls. So I basically modified it to just layer the eggplant in a baking pan with tomato sauce, sliced onions, pepers and tomatos, lots of garlic and some peper for flavor... then bake it for an hour or so.

I also think using some diced eggplant in my vegetarian chili would make a nice "meat texture" like filling instead of it being mostly beans. I have yet to try it though. Perhaps I'll add some eggplant to the shopping list and give it a go.

BOb

[beppe]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

There is a recipe in the Eat to Live book, eggplant "rolls" or something. I never could get the rolls to stay as rolls.

Thanks, I'll look into it.
That is what I know. I advised my friend who dried slices of eggplant in the oven but without de-bittering them, so that everything was thrown away.
I then found these fancy eggplants that do not need the treatment. I will peel them, slice them and dry them to cardboard consistency with a gadget that I have. Will see. I'll let you know.
BTW, I lost a lot and feel quite happy, although I would like to loose a little more. Apparently one of my inner selves does not like so many changes (among which no smoke, no drink & other things that I have added to my routine that might or might not be relevant), so that it looks like he dos not want to continue. But I am holding and that particular inner self will have to adapt or else ... I'll make him an offer he cannot refuse.
Unless he is a girl. Whow. I would not know what to do, in that case. With them, I just give in. What else? May be SoS or SuperSnake can help me there. Or one of the tea guru's.

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

There is a recipe in the Eat to Live book, eggplant "rolls" or something. I never could get the rolls to stay as rolls. So I basically modified it to just layer the eggplant in a baking pan with tomato sauce, sliced onions, pepers and tomatos, lots of garlic and some peper for flavor... then bake it for an hour or so.

I also think using some diced eggplant in my vegetarian chili would make a nice "meat texture" like filling instead of it being mostly beans. I have yet to try it though. Perhaps I'll add some eggplant to the shopping list and give it a go.

BOb

This sounds a lot like a dish my mom used to make. I like eggplant, or I did when she fixed it, but I've never tried making it myself.

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by beppe

About Eggplant Parmigiana. In the course of time I developed a version of it that is both tasty and as lean as possible without loosing flavor.
I de-bitter the eggplants: cut them in 1 inch slices, salt them, organize them in layers in a bowl under a weight (a flat dish with something heavy in it). Let them stand on the counter for a few hours. I rinse them and wipe them dry with a towel. There is a variety of eggplants without seeds, that does not need the de-salting but just peeling. It is of lighter color. As I buy vegs from a local art dealer doubling as pusher, when I want them I just ask him those.

I grill the slices on a grill iron over the stove. And put them aside. I might freeze them for future use. You can find frozen grilled eggplants in stores in Italy.

When I prepare the parmigiana, I use a bottle of passata of good quality, cooking mozzarella cut in 1 inch slices and as much grated Parmesan as I will need (about 3 table spoons for each portion, at least. The more i use the tastier it comes out).

I make again layers. A spoonful of passata on the bottom of the pan, slices of eggplant, passata, parmesan, mozzarella, and so on depending on how much stuff I have and how big is the pan. On the top I put double parmesan. Oven at 185°C till nicely colored. It couyld be 30 minutes or so. When I do them I usually prepare 3 or 4 aluminum foil pans, cook them and freeze them for future use.

If I use frozen grilled eggplants, I use them as they are.

is passata a tomato or bolognese type sauce? I won't touch any of the pre-prepared ones here in the US as they are full of either corn syrup or sugar. I've never figured out why people like so much sweet flavors in their food?

Originally Posted by pilotbob

There is a recipe in the Eat to Live book, eggplant "rolls" or something. I never could get the rolls to stay as rolls. So I basically modified it to just layer the eggplant in a baking pan with tomato sauce, sliced onions, pepers and tomatos, lots of garlic and some peper for flavor... then bake it for an hour or so.

I also think using some diced eggplant in my vegetarian chili would make a nice "meat texture" like filling instead of it being mostly beans. I have yet to try it though. Perhaps I'll add some eggplant to the shopping list and give it a go.

BOb

bulgur or wheat berries both make dandy meat substitutes in chili type dishes

[Latinandgreek]

Originally Posted by Wait_For_It

Nutella Hot Chocolate
Makes 1 cup

1 cup of milk
1 tablespoon of Nutella (or adjust to taste)
1 tablespoon of instant coffee (or adjust to taste)

Combine all in a saucepan on stove over med. heat. Stir until everything is mixed together and heated through.

This is really great especially if you love Nutella!

I love Nutella, sounds great!

[beppe]

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

is passata a tomato or bolognese type sauce? I won't touch any of the pre-prepared ones here in the US as they are full of either corn syrup or sugar. I've never figured out why people like so much sweet flavors in their food?

Passata is just tomatoes without skin and seeds, just cooked a little to be concentrated and/or sterilized. Nothing added. Actually, it is what you get if you blend a can of pelati.
In Italy the issue is now to get passata made with Italian tomatoes (that really the meaning of good quality).

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

is passata a tomato or bolognese type sauce?

It's short for 'passata di pomodoro' or as we say, tomato puree. The European type is usually pure with no added sugar. I buy bottles of the Italian passata more cheaply than the Japanese tomato puree and it tastes a heck of a lot better too! Same with the canned diced tomatoes. 89 yen for a can of DiVella Pomodori de Cubetti compared with 139 yen for a can of locally made Kagome.

Stitchawl

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

It's short for 'passata di pomodoro' or as we say, tomato puree. The European type is usually pure with no added sugar. I buy bottles of the Italian passata more cheaply than the Japanese tomato puree and it tastes a heck of a lot better too! Same with the canned diced tomatoes. 89 yen for a can of DiVella Pomodori de Cubetti compared with 139 yen for a can of locally made Kagome.

Stitchawl

oh, ok, simple enough, those are readily available here

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by kindlekitten

oh, ok, simple enough, those are readily available here

We tried a taste test with about five different brands. Remarkable how different (and better tasting) the European ones were!


Stitchawl

[kindlekitten]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

We tried a taste test with about five different brands. Remarkable how different (and better tasting) the European ones were!


Stitchawl

I had an incredibly awesome soup at a restaurant a couple of weeks ago for which I asked the recipe. I made it at home and made a few alterations (because I can't help but fiddle), and could not get the tomatoes that were specified. it didn't taste quite right, so I'll make it again and stick to the recipe as I have since found the correct tomatoes. I'll make it again here in another week or so ago and post the recipe. it seriously made my socks go up and down!

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

It's short for 'passata di pomodoro' or as we say, tomato puree.

Sounds like what they would call tomato paste here.

BOb

[beppe]

Let me help. This is wikipedia.
The definitions of tomato purée vary between regions. In the USA, tomato purée is a processed food product, usually consisting of only tomatoes, but can also be found in pre-seasoned form. It differs from tomato sauce or tomato paste in consistency and content; tomato puree generally lacks the additives common to a complete tomato sauce, and does not have the thicknesss of paste.
To prepare tomato purée, ripe tomatoes are washed and the leaves and stem are removed. Some processors remove the skin of the tomato as well. This is then mashed or mechanically chopped to the desired consistency.
Tomato purée can be used in soups, stews, sauces, or any other dish where the tomato flavor is desired, but not the texture. It is often deprecated by professional chefs, who find it to have an overly cooked flavor compared to other forms of canned tomatoes. This is sometimes a non-issue, as in long-cooked dishes, but in quick sauces such as a marinara sauce it is undesirable.
Tomato purée is sometimes referred to by its Italian name, passata di pomodoro, when it has been "passed" through a sieve to remove seeds and lumps. In this form, it is generally sold in bottles or aseptic packaging, and is most common in Europe.
In the United Kingdom, 'tomato purée' usually refers to what in America is known as concentrated tomato paste. In the UK passata refers to sieved uncooked tomatoes.

This is the Italian wikipedia (googled and arranged by your truly)

Concentrato: obtained at different levels of concentration of tomato juice (solid content ranging between 12% and 36%)
Pelati: Tomatoes of long type to which the skin is removed and is usually added tomato juice half concentrated
Passata: it is tomato juice partially concentrated with a solids content between 7% and 12%
Polpa: it is made from tomatoes that are peeled and diced, through a process called "live", as the freshly picked tomatoes are processed.

Personally, I recognize the Italian wikipedia. None of the above are sauces, but ingredients for cooking. After some elaboration, they can become sauces. Like I take an onion, I chop it and cook it to transparency in oil, I add a can of pelati, let it simmer till it looses most of the liquid and I have an excellent tomato sauce, as such.
Or I am in hurry. I take a spoon full of concentrato, add 3 to 5 parts of water, microwave it, and I have a basic tomato something to add to whatever I have to add to. If I use it to season some pasta, they fire me as cook and I have to start all over by cleaning the rest rooms.
Like beautiful J**** (beautiful is not enough for this gorgeous Quebequaise that broke more than one heart in this part of the world) who came to visit for a couple of days and stayed for six months, and how nice it was to eat in 3 at the table instead of just the 2 of us that after 10 years we had started to know each other a bit too much, and one day she made herself a pasta and seasoned it with ketchup right out of the bottle and when I looked at her with wide eyes, and gaping mouth, she just smiled and everything was perfectly ok. Ah, the tomatoes. Who cares, beauty wins them all.

[Stitchawl]

beppe, that comment about using ketchup on pasta earns you karma!! LOL!

With all this talk of tomato, last night I felt the need for pasta with a nice tomato sauce with meatballs. I used the last of the basil from the veranda, (so that's gone now, but the thyme, oregano, and rosemary will winter over nicely,) and the rest of the required herbs, onion, garlic, a couple of bay leaves, etc., etc. I browned some sausage flavored meat balls in the same oil I used to soften the onions, and added them to the pot with three cans of 'polpa di pomadoro.' A hour later we sat down to a nice dinner complete with garlic bread and a glass (or two) of Chianti!

Stitchawl

[beppe]

Neat!

Pasta and meatballs is a great comfort

Thank you btw

[Stitchawl]

I took some boneless chicken legs and coated them (both sides) with a thick paste made of the following;

Thai Red curry
chopped Coriander
chopped lemon grass
chopped hot red peppers
crushed garlic
crushed ginger
lime juice
Thai sweet chili sauce

I folded them in half and skewered them, then left them to marinate in the fridge for several hours. Then I baked them for about 45 minutes on a rack so the heat would reach all sides and crisp up the skin.

Goooood stuff... Happy mouths!

Served up with rice and cold Chang beer.


Stitchawl