Cooking with Fresh Vegetables

The unseasonably warm weather we had this spring has given us a bounty of fresh vegetables to enjoy. I started off the fresh vegetable season with a roasted tomato soup with your favorite grilled cheese, we chose sun dried tomato bread with pesto Gouda. It was one of the cooler days so a comforting tomato soup and grilled cheese meal was perfect. Slow roasting the tomatoes brings out a delicious flavor and also gives the perfect consistency to the soup, finished off with a touch of cream makes it perfect for dunking your favorite grilled cheese into.
With all of these delicious vegetables I had to keep cooking! One of my favorite summer vegetables is eggplant, roasted, grilled, or fried it is always delicious. I sliced and breaded my eggplant and baked it instead of frying it to create a slightly healthier version of eggplant Parmesan, topped with fresh mozzarella and a sprig of fresh basil it is comforting and fresh perfect for a summer evening.

Roasted Tomato Bisque
10-12 large plum tomatoes
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 quart vegetable stock
4 cloves garlic
1 small onion
1 Tbsp. fresh thyme
1 Tbsp. fresh basil chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Cut tomatoes in half lengthwise and place on a well oiled baking sheet. Roast for 30 to 45 minutes or until tender and skin begins to peel back. Once cool remove skin from tomatoes.
2. In a dutch oven saute onions and garlic in olive oil until softened. Add roasted tomatoes and cook until well combined.
3. Add vegetable stock and herbs and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Puree soup with an immersion blender until smooth. Add cream and salt and pepper and stir until well combined.
4. Serve with your favorite grilled cheese sandwich.











Baked Eggplant Parmesan
1 large eggplant
2 eggs
2 cups flour
2 cups breadcrumbs
2 Tbsp. olive oil
Tomato Basil Sauce (home prepared or store bought)
8 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese (thinly sliced)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Fresh Basil sprigs (for garnish)

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Slice eggplant into about 1 in. thick slices. Bread the eggplant by following standard breading procedure of flour, egg, and then breadcrumb. Place breaded eggplant slices onto a slightly oiled baking sheet (you may need to use 2 sheets). Bake eggplant 10 minutes, flip slices over and continue cooking for another 10 minutes.
2. In a 9x13 baking spread about 1 cup of sauce on the bottom to coat. Layer eggplant on top in one layer, top with 1/3 Parmesan cheese and another layer of sauce. Continue with this layering until all eggplant is used and end with a layer of sauce. Top with fresh mozzarella cheese to cover the entire top.
3. Bake at 375F for 30 minutes or until the cheese is melted and browned and the sauce begins to bubble.
4. Serve with a fresh sprig of basil and your favorite wine!

An Easy Weeknight Meal

When you have a busy schedule like I do a quick and easy delicious meal is just the thing for a busy weeknight. Let's face it we all have our "go to" meals, the ones that we can throw together with just a few ingredients that we always have on hand. Those meals can get a little boring after a while though, so why not mix it up a little, with something just as quick and easy but also new and delicious!
I was trying to mix things up a little, so instead of the same old Spaghetti and tomato sauce, I decided to do capellini with shrimp in a white wine sauce! It turned out great, unfortunately there were no leftovers, so we will have to just make another batch!

 Cappellini with Shrimp
1/2 lb. peeled and deveined shrimp (you can leave the tails on if you choose)
1/4 cup olive oil (plus extra for drizzling)
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley
3/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 lb. cooked cappellini (al dante)
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Heat olive oil in a large saute pan. Saute garlic about 1 minute, then add shrimp and cook until pink in color.
2. Add wine and reduce until thickened, about 2-3 minutes.
3. Add parsley and cooked cappellini, season to taste.
4. Garnish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and enjoy!

A New Life For the Over Ripe Banana

We've all been there, you buy a bunch of bananas and of course at least a few of them just don't seem to make it, and really how many times can you make banana bread! Now don't get me wrong I love banana bread and have made numerous variations, I just wanted to try something new, something different. I started looking around to see what I had to be creative with and found coconut, macadamia nuts, and of course the over ripe banana; and so the Coconut Macadamia Banana Muffin was born! It's the perfect portable breakfast or snack, and the perfect way to use up those stubborn bananas if you're not in the mood for another loaf of banana bread.
As I started to gather all of my ingredients I realized that I had run out of sugar, which is a horrible thing when you bake as much as I do,  so I substituted honey in a pinch and I think that it worked just wonderfully. This is a great recipe to use substitutions for, if you want to use a different kind of nut, or perhaps add chocolate chips, or omit the coconut if you wish. Once you've found the perfect combination you have the perfect go to muffin!

Ingredients
1 1/4 cups flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup over ripe banana (mashed)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter (melted)
1/3 cup honey
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut (plus more for topping)
1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts (toasted)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
2. Whisk together in a large bowl; banana, butter, egg, vanilla, honey, and coconut until well combined.
3. In a separate small bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold in flour mixture to the banana mixture until just combined. Stir in macadamia nuts. 
4. Set 10 muffin cups with papers and fill about 3/4 full with batter. Top with a sprinkling of sweetened flaked coconut if desired.
5. Bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool completely and enjoy!