First Night of Channukah Dinner in Pictures: String Bean and Soft Lettuce Salad, then Panade-Stuffed Vegetables… All from Teena’s Pride CSA
December 12th, 2009 § Leave a Comment
First things first!
White onion and shallots caramelize in a pan that is deglazed with red white.
Slice a large eggplant length-wise and scoop out the center. Save the flesh, seeds and all, in a bowl. Also hollow out a large sunburst squash, discarding the seeds this time, but saving the flesh from the wall. Leave about 1/2 inch thickness with both vegetables.
Soak crusty multigrain bread in cream until absorbed.
Blend the veggie centers with the onion mixture in a food processor. Add a few chunks of Parmigiano Reggiano, to blend in there, too.
Roughly chop fresh, juicy ripe tomatoes and add to a bowl with the torn, cream-soaked bread and processed onion and vegetable mixture. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and a bunch of turns of fresh cracked pepper.
Tear some fresh basil and add that, too.
Stir to evenly incorporate all ingredients.
Fill up the hollowed-out veggies with the mixture, grate some more Parmigiano Reggiano on top, cut some fresh garlic chives, and drizzle with a little extra virgin good olive oil. Roast in a 375 degree oven for 30 minutes. Take a peek after 20 minutes and if they are browning too quickly, cover with tin foil for the remaining 10 minutes.
Make a yummy salad while the stuffed veggies are roasting. This one is very pretty with red and green -- like Christmas on a plate! I used leftover pomegranate dressing from the Thanksgiving post -- it gets better while it ages! The pomegranates are still juicy and sweet. I just blanched some green and white string beans, and tossed them with some delicate lettuce and the dressing. Deeeelish.
Voila! Eat these beauties hot from the oven! The harmony of textures is the best part: crunchy, toasted pieces of bread and crisp parm in the crust combine beautifully with the soft onion and juicy vegetable walls.
A little slice of heaven!
A New Look for the New Year, Plus Lasting Impressions of Art Miami
December 8th, 2009 § 1 Comment
Visual Vortex - Turell Pink; HC Berg; Galerie Forsblom; Helsinki, Finland
Sometimes I think I’m the mayor of crazy town over here. I’m sure you’d agree that these days, things fly at you fast. Most of us juggle multiple jobs, not to mention on- and offline methods of socializing. It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement, the whirlwind of it all. Damn you, Twitter!
Between tweets and twits and bleeps, I had the good fortune of looking at my blog last night and realizing that in many ways it no longer represents what it has become since I launched it. So I’ve made some changes. Superficially, you’ll probably first notice the new WordPress theme. Content-wise, I’ve eliminated irrelevant sidebar widgets and pages, and revised what escaped the axe. I’ve added new RSS feeds that I visit often for foodie-friendly news and musings. And thanks to fellow food blogger Mango & Lime for attempting to walk me through installing a footer plug-in for my copyright notice… Didn’t quite get that to happen, but I have a side bar alternative to show for the effort!
That brings me to the second half of this post… Now, I know in Miami we’re all Art Basel’d out, but I really enjoyed some of the work on display at this year’s Art Miami show in Midtown and wanted to share a few favorite pieces that have stuck in my mind. One would think it’s a satellite sprung from the main attraction, but no! 2009 marked its 20th anniversary. 2-0. No wonder it was such a strong showing, albeit to this untrained eye. I have artist information for all the pieces if you are interested.
Enjoy the slide show (a format I used often in my early posts,) and best wishes for a happy, healthy, and slower New Year!
