Nonnetta's tomatoes and kinda-Caprese salad

Almost every Saturday, I start the morning with breakfast and coffee at my grandmother's (Nonna, who has been promoted to Nonnetta as a great-grandma to my kiddos*)

* yes, that's kiddos, plural. Baby girl joined the family almost 8 weeks ago, and big brother is almost 3! Yikes!

In the summer, these breakfast visits are made even more awesome by forays to Nonnetta's garden to pick fresh produce. Tomatoes, zucchini, basil, cucumbers, green beans, sweet peas, peppers... An absolutely glorious bounty. 

Nonnetta and her great-granddaughter (and namesake!) 💗

Nonnetta is the reason I love the smell of tomato leaves. Mmm, childhood nostalgia!!  Her tomato garden is amazing. She was growing heirloom tomatoes since before it was cool, using seeds brought over from Italy over 60 years ago (...but maybe don't tell Customs and Immigration about that).  She has a truly remarkable green thumb... When we developed a fondness for the Kumato varietal from the grocery store, she took some seeds and grew her own! Brilliant. 

Thanks to my most recent pregnancy, I have a few pounds to shed. What better way than filling up on tasty veggies and fruit? Instead of having a bagel and cream cheese for lunch, I whipped up this tasty little Caprese-ish salad. Behold!

Kinda-Caprese Salad

Serves one

• 2 medium tomatoes, as fresh as humanly possible, seeded and diced

• ~4 basil leaves, chopped (or torn by hand if you're lazy like me)

• 1 Babybel Light wax-wrapped cheese, diced (use REAL mozzarella for authenticity, instead of stealing your son's  snacks... If you want...)

• Salt and pepper, to taste

• Balsamic glaze**

Toss the first four ingredients together in a bowl. Top with a drizzle of glaze. Devour promptly. 

** I like using balsamic glaze since it's so nice and thick. Not gonna lie, I picked up this bottle at Dollarama. #momlife #neversaidIwasgourmet. 

On to more adventures while cooking for a family of four!

-Honeybee

Spicy Thai Basil Eggplant

I frequently get a hankering for Thai food.  I've tried a fair few places in the city so far, and most have been quite good... but none have fully lived up to Basil Court back home.  So, in an effort to have the dishes I want, when I want them, I've been turning to making them myself.  You've seen my Pad Thai... that kicked the craving for awhile.  I was shocked to discover that I didn't take pictures of my matsaman curry efforts (maybe I was just too hungry to bother?), but here is my attempt at spicy Thai basil eggplant.

Mmm.  Eggplant.  I love the long, skinny Chinese variety... they're so pretty and tender!

A bit of a closer look.  See the lovely colour on those nice thin skins?

White onion, zucchini, red pepper, and basil standing at the ready.  The recipe didn't call for zucch, but I had one that was going round the bend, so I just tossed it in.

Mmm.  Look at that purple!

Pepper and onion, getting fried up.  Yes, I added the pepper.  I'm trying very hard to expand my palette with regards to the capsicum family.

Bringing it all together.  The sauce was nice and sweet and sticky... delish!!

On a bed of rice.  Funny, in this pic, some of the eggplant looks like chicken or pork pieces.  I assure you, it's all veg.

 Thai Spicy Eggplant

Adapted from "Simply Thai Cooking" by Wandee Young

Makes 3-4 servings.

• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 3 Asian eggplants, sliced into 2-inch wedges
• 1 zucchini, sliced into 2-inch wedges
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil (in addition to the above oil amount)
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 fresh hot chilies, finely chopped (sadly, I was out of chilies, so subbed 1 tsp chili flakes and 1 tsp Sriracha)
• 1 small white onion, roughly chopped
• 1/4 medium red pepper, cut into thin strips
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 20 whole leaves fresh basil (I only had Italian basil, not Thai, but meh)
• 1/2 tsp cornstarch dissolve in 1 Tbsp water
• 2 1/2 cups freshly steamed rice

1. Heat 1 cup oil in a wok on high heat, until it is about to smoke.  Add eggplant and zucchini and fry on all sides for 2 minutes until nicely browned, and flesh is soft and can easily be pierced.
2. Remove the eggplant from the oil with a slotted spoon and place in a colander set over a bowl to drain off the excess oil.  Discard the oil in the wok and wipe it clean.
3. Add 2 Tbsp oil to the wok and immediately add garlic and chilies and stir-fry for 30 seconds.  Add onion and red pepper strips and stir-fry until softened.
4. Add the fried eggplant back to the wok.  Add soy sauce, sugar, sriracha, and 1/2 cup water and fry until everything is bubbling happily.
5. Add 2/3 of the basil leaves and the cornstarch dissolved in the 1Tbsp of water.  Stir-fry until sauce has thickened somewhat.  Remove from heat.
6. Transfer to a serving dish and top with the rest of the basil leaves.  Serve immediately with the steamed rice.

Finished product!  Time to chow down!

This was a pretty tasty dish overall.  I remember feeling a tiny bit disappointed with it... but that could have been because I was coming down with something, if my internal calendar serves.  I'll have to try it again soon!  I'll also have to make Matsaman again, so you can see how happy it makes me.  So.  Happy.

Looking forward to trying more Thai recipes and restaurants,
-Honeybee

Recipe Exchange!

Cinnamon-y goodness ahead!

 To be completely honest, I usually despise forwarded email "games" and chain letters.  If I don't know who my true friends are just by my interaction with them, I sincerely doubt that asking them to send me back a picture of a kitten professing undying friendship will clarify the matter.  Having said that, there are a few that I enjoy (usually when attempting to procrastinate, as I am now).  One of them is the recipe exchange.

This sounded like fantastic fun to me, and came from one of my coworkers.  ALMOST everyone I sent this to, however, declined to participate.  Most excused themselves on the grounds that they don't use recipes.  My dad sent my coworker his recipe for Kraft Dinner (at least she got a laugh!).  Only a few people gave it a go, but I still got a few yummy new ideas.  One, coming via my dear friend Andrea's mom, was for quick cinnamon buns.  Having spent quite a bit of time on some failure-to-rise sticky buns a few months ago, I appreciated this recipe using more of a baking-soda-leavened biscuit dough base:

Jiffy Cinnamon Rolls

From Barb Hoath (not sure of her original source)

Makes 12 buns 

• 2 cups flour
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 4 tsp baking powder
• Dash salt
• 1/4 cup cold butter
• 1 cup milk

For Filling:

• 1/3 cup softened butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3 tsp cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF.
2. "Crumble" butter into the dry ingredients (easier to accomplish with a pastry blender; I had to stick to the two knives technique.  You could try freezing and grating the butter, too)
3. Add milk and mix all ingredients with a fork. 
4. Roll out on a floured counter to a rectangle shape about 12" long by 8" width.
5. Mix softened butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon for filling. Spread this mixture over the dough.
6. Roll up dough from the 12" side and pinch 'seams'. Cut the rolled dough into 12 individual pieces. Place each piece in a greased muffin tin.  Bake at 400ºF for 20 minutes.
7. Optional: glaze with 2 tbsp icing sugar mixed with 1 tbsp milk (I opted out of this; they're great on their own!)

Pre-oven... the dough was a bit sticky, but the end result was worth it!

Somewhat surprisingly, I actually received a number of other recipes.  I have yet to try these, so there are no pictures, but I'm happy to share them with you:

Cream Cheese Brownies

Sent by Sheri Moore, originally from 'Cookies and Brownies' by Alice Medrich

Makes about 16 - 2 inch squares.

Brownie Layer:

• 1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 4 ounces (115 grams) unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/4 cups (250 grams) granulated white sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup (65 grams) all purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 

Cream Cheese Layer:

• 8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/3 cup (65 grams) granulated white sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 large egg

1. Preheat oven to 325ºF (160ºC) and place the rack in the center of the oven. Have ready a 9 x 9 inch (23 x 23 cm) square baking pan that has been lined with aluminum foil across the bottom and up two opposite sides of the pan.
2. In a stainless steel (heatproof) bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the butter and chocolate. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar and vanilla extract. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well (with a wooden spoon) after each addition. 
3. Stir in the flour and salt and beat, with a wooden spoon, until the batter is smooth and glossy and comes away from the sides of the pan (about one minute). 
4. Remove 1/2 cup of the brownie batter and set it aside. Place the remainder of the brownie batter evenly onto the bottom of the prepared pan.
5. Then, in the bowl of your food processor (or with a hand mixer), process the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar, vanilla, and egg and process just until creamy and smooth. 
6. Spread the cream cheese filling evenly over the brownie layer. Spoon small dollops of the reserved brownie batter evenly on top of the cream cheese filling. Then with a table knife or wooden skewer, swirl the two batters without fully mixing them.
7. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes or until the brownies start to pull away from the sides of the pan and the edges of the brownies are just beginning to brown. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. 
8. Refrigerate the brownies until they are firm enough to cut into squares (at least two hours). Once chilled, remove the brownies from the pan by lifting with the ends of the foil and transfer to a cutting board. With a sharp knife, cut into 16 squares. It is a good idea to have a damp cloth nearby to wipe your knife between cuts. 
9. These brownies can be stored in the refrigerator for several days.

Apple or Rhubarb Cake

From Grandma Mary of the Morris Family

Makes about 9 pieces, judging by how I cut a 9"x9" cake

• ½  cup butter
• 1½ cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• Pinch salt
• 1 cup sour milk or buttermilk (add a tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to a cup of milk if you don't have buttermilk)
• 2 cups diced rhubarb or apples (blueberries also work well!)

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
2. Mix as you would any cake; wet ingredients first, then mix in dry ingredients.  
3. Fold in apples or rhubarb and place in buttered 9X9 pan.  
4. Mix ⅓ cup sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon.  Sprinkle on top of cake before baking at 350ºF for 25-30 minutes. 

Roasted Pepper and Goat Cheese Baguette

From the McCormacks (not sure of original source, but I really want to try this!!)

Makes 1 loaf

• 1 loaf of French bread
• Goat cheese or Feta (enough to spread over the insides of the loaf on both sides)
• 1 red pepper
• 1 yellow pepper
• Fresh basil leaves ( 1 package should be good)
• Olive oil

1. Split bread lengthwise into two long halves.
2. Cover both sides with cheese and lay basil leaves on top of cheese
3. Thinly slice peppers and cook the in a skillet with olive oil until tender
4. Spread sliced peppers inside the loaf
5. Close loaf and compress; wrap tightly in foil if taking to a party
6. Slice 1 inch pieces with bread knife and serve!

Ed. note: This sounds delicious; when I make it, though, it'll probably be comprised of actual charred roasted peppers, mixed with sautéed onions and garlic in olive oil.  I would also probably pop the foil wrapped loaf in a 350ºF oven for about 20 min. to heat through before slicing.  But that's just me!

So despite my distaste for email "games", I think I really benefited from this one.  It was a bit strange to be getting emails from people I'd never met before, but I think that just lends more evidence to my belief that food is a universal unifier.

Hoping to share another community food event with you before the weekend is out,
-Honeybee