ottolenghi soba noodles with eggplant and mango

Last year, I had the distinct pleasure of eating at Ottolenghi in the Islington neighborhood of northern London (see post): it was one of the best (perhaps the best?) meals of my life. Today, I had the distinct pleasure of opening up the front door at my mom's house to find an unexpected box from Amazon. Inside: Yotam Ottolenghi's latest cookbook, Plenty.

Plenty might be the most beautiful cookbook that there ever was. My first impression out of the box was visual: a delicious cover photo (eggplant with buttermilk sauce). Second impression: tactile. It's a book you want to pet, with its velvety matte finish. The cover is thick and a little springy (reminiscent of a learn-to-read children's book, in a good way), giving it a bit of heft without rendering it tome-like. And then there are the recipes. Oh, the recipes.

"Vibrant vegetable recipes" is the book's subtitle. This cookbook was written for me, it seems, with veggies playing starring roles in dishes like sweet potatoes with lemongrass, leek fritters, crusted pumpkin wedges with sour cream, broccoli and gorgonzola pie, caramelized fennel and goat cheese, and so many more incredible sounding combinations.

I had been thinking about some sort of cold soba noodle salad for dinner before the book arrived, so the first thing I did was to scan for soba recipes. There were two to choose from: soba noodles with wakame and soba noodles with eggplant and mango. I went with the latter.

The dish was as pleasing as the cookbook. Visually, it was a stunning combination of colors: sunny yellow mango with browned eggplant offset by the cilantro and basil greens with specks of red pepper and purple onion. The texture was appealing: silky, saucy noodles, crispy fried eggplant with a soft interior, toothsome mango. The flavor profile was of simple ingredients melding into complex: sweet mango, earthy eggplant, bright and tangy lime dressing, a bit of spice from the pepper and kick from the garlic and onion. The flavor is sure to be even better tomorrow after the components have a chance to further meld in the fridge overnight. It was a hit all around: Mickey and Mom agreed that this should be made again in the future. We're already looking forward to leftovers tomorrow.

Photo curtesy Mickey Nussbaumer.

Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango
Serves 6

1/2 c. rice vinegar
3 Tbsp. sugar (I substituted agave)
1/2 tsp. salt
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 fresh red chile, finely chopped
1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
grated zest and juice of 1 lime
1 c. sunflower oil
2 eggplants, cut into 3/4 inch dice
8 oz. soba noodles
1 large ripe mango, cut into 3/4 inch dice
1 2/3 c. basil leaves, chopped
2 1/2 c. cilantro leaves, chooped
1/2 red onion, very thinly sliced

Gently warm vinegar, sugar, and salt for up to 1 minute, just until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and add garlic, chile, and sesame oil. Allow to cool. Add lime zest and juice.

Heat sunflower oil in a large pan and shallow-fry the eggplant in three or four batches. Once golden brown remove to a colander, sprinkle liberally with salt and leave in sink to drain.

Cook noodles in plenty of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until tender but still al dente. Drain and rinse well under cold water. Shake off as much of the excess water as possible, then leave to dry on a dish towel.

In a mixing bowl, toss the noodles with the dressing, mango, eggplant, half the herbs and the onion. You can now leave this aside for 1 to 2 hours. When ready to serve, add the rest of the herbs and mix well, then pile on a plate or in a bowl.

Two years ago: stuffed patty-pan squash

caponata

While waiting for my plane to board in Seattle last weekend, I wandered into the airport bookstore. The latest edition of Saveur caught my eye. The cover story: Oh, Sicily! Given that I'm about to embark on a blissful 4-week trip to Italy, I couldn't help but pick up a copy for plane reading. To prepare my taste buds for the magic that is to come, today I tried one of the recipes: caponata (subtitle: sweet and sour eggplant).

Eggplant is squarely not in season currently in California. If I hadn't already been aware, the $7 price tag on the 4 unassuming Japanese eggplants I procured from the local grocer would have clued me in. I didn't care. The combination of ingredients in this recipe sounded too good to wait for. I had originally been planning on consuming the caponata with some chickpeas I have on hand. But one bite made clear the need to pair it with some sort of rustic bread.

So I strapped on my shoes for a walk in the drizzle to pick up a loaf. I'm glad that I did. Caponata on a thick slice of olive bread... mi piace (molto, molto). The dish is at once tangy, salty, and sweet. I'm enjoying another slice right now along with a big glass of red wine and a bottle of San Pellegrino. The whole house smells delicious.

While already ecstatic for the trip, if tasting these lovely flavors is so magical in my own kitchen, I can't even fathom how amazing the flavors will be when consumed in Italia. So, with that, cole's kitch is going to be closed for a bit. But don't fret: I plan to return with much inspiration.

If your travels have taught you any treasures in Italy that I simply must see (or eat!), please leave me a comment. My itinerary at this point includes Bologna, Sicily (Taormina), the Amalfi Coast, and Rome, plus an unplanned week of adventure that is yet to be determined.

No trips to Italy in your near future? Here's how you can bring a bit of Sicily to you:

Caponata

Serves 6

a lot of olive oil*

2 lbs. eggplant, cut into 1" cubes

1 large yellow onion, chopped

1 rib celery, roughly chopped

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 Tbsp. tomato paste, thinned with 1/4 c. water

1 can crushed tomatoes

6 oz. green olives, pitted and roughly chopped

1/2 c. white wine vinegar

1/2 c. golden raisins

1/4 c. salt-packed capers, rinsed and drained

3 Tbsp. sugar**

2 Tbps. finely chopped unsweetened chocolate

1/2 c. finely shredded basil***

2 Tbsp. pine nuts****

*The recipe calls for 3 cups of olive oil. While frying the eggplant does take quite a bit, I think I ended up using about 1 cup in total.

**I substituted agave nectar for sugar.

***I forgot to pick up basil; the dish was still amazing without it.

****I toasted the pine nuts.

Heat oil in a 12" skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add eggplant and fry, tossing occasionally, until browned, 3-4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer eggplant to a large bowl; set aside.

Pour off all but 1/4 c. oil and reserve for another use. Return skillet to heat, add onions and celery, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, until beginning to brown, 10 minutes.

Reduce heat to medium. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, until caramelized and almost evaporated, 1-2 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes and continue cooking for 10 minutes.

Stir in olives, vinegar, raisins, capers, sugar, and chocolate. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 15 minutes.

Transfer to bowl with eggplant, along with basil and pine nuts. Mix together. Season with salt and pepper. Let cool to room temperature before serving.

I recommend serving over crusty bread.

eggplant curry

I think I may have mentioned that I spent my morning run on Sunday planning the evening's meal in my head. This is where I landed.

It started with eggplant (specifically, the 3/4 of the eggplant that remained upon my return from Seattle - the missing quarter had been incorporated into a pasta dish - props to JR for being "adventurous" in his cooking!). I knew I wanted to go in a "something with rice" direction. When I started thinking through the produce in my kitchen (onions, tomatoes, mushrooms), curry seemed like the unifying force that would pull it all together. I also threw in some garbanzo beans for good measure. The result was a flavor-packed, healthy dish that came together relatively quickly and will provide sustenance for a couple of days. Here's what I did:

Eggplant Curry

Serves 4

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbsp. fresh ginger, minced

2 Tbsp. curry powder

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 yellow onion, sliced into thin strips

1 small eggplant (or 3/4 of medium eggplant!), chopped into 1/2" cubes

1 c. small mushrooms, halved

1 tomato, chopped

1 16-oz. can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

1 c. coconut milk

1/4 c. cilantro, chopped

2-3 c. prepared rice

Mix garlic, ginger, curry powder, salt and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Cook the onion and eggplant until they begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and garlic mixture. Stir and cook 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Add tomato, garbanzo beans, and coconut milk. Stir well. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Serve over rice topped with cilantro.

quinoa salad with greek yogurt dressing

Happy 4th of July!

I am looking forward to participating in the requisite independence day activity: the BBQ. Having lived in Texas, we are well-equipped with a Texas-sized BBQ, which means the day's festivities (friends + food + drinks) will take place at our house. This is our first 4th of July in our new home and I'm excited to find out whether we'll be able to see any of the peninsula's fireworks shows tonight from our front porch that overlooks the bay.

The weather is whole-heartedly cooperating: I awoke to bright sunshine and 70 degrees at 8am this morning, and it's looking like we could hit 90 degrees this afternoon. Perfect BBQ weather.

Our menu for the day (some of which I'll post over the coming week) includes: watermelon, grapes and figs, chips and crudites with homemade salsa, guac, and bean dip, quinoa salad with greek yogurt dressing, rootbeer baked beans, teriyaki kabobs, burgers, and chocolate crackle cookies from Grandma Francis' cookbook. I'm making a pitcher of mohitos to supplement our beer and wine selection. My mouth is watering just thinking about it all!

Though most of it still needs to be prepared...

One dish that is already done is the quinoa salad, which I made last night. This was a case where no recipe came into play and it all started out with a single inspiring ingredient: eggplant (somewhat ironically, as the eggplant ended up playing a relatively minor role in the resulting dish). I had some leftover from a salad I'd made earlier in the week and was pondering what to do with it. I was initially thinking about something in the garbanzo bean/quinoa/curry direction, but the weather was far too warm yesterday to want to consume anything hot. So I went in the cold-salad-quinoa direction instead, with a Greek twist.

JR and I ate the quinoa salad for dinner last night, but this is definitely going to be one of those dishes that is better on the second day, giving the flavors an opportunity to meld. The mix of bright colors means varied vitamin content - a beautiful and healthy dish! Here's what I did:

Quinoa Salad with Greek Yogurt Dressing

Serves 6-8

Salad:

1 c. quinoa

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 c. eggplant, cubed

1 15-oz. can garbanzo beans, rinsed & drained

2 cucumbers, chopped*

2 tomatoes, chopped

1 bell pepper, seeded & chopped

15 kalamata olives, quartered

2 c. baby spinach

1 Tbsp. mint, chopped

3 oz. feta, crumbled, plus more to top

*If the skin is bitter, peel the cucumber.

Greek yogurt dressing:

3 Tbsp. greek yogurt

1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

1 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 Tbsp. mint leaves, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

salt & white pepper to taste

Cook the quinoa according to directions. Set aside and let cool.

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add eggplant and cook until tender and beginning to brown, about 8 minutes. Allow to cool.

Make yogurt dressing by whisking together ingredients in a small bowl.

In a large bowl, combine garbanzo beans, cucumber, tomatoes, pepper, olives, spinach, mint, feta, and cooled quinoa and eggplant. Add dressing and stir well to combine. Cover and chill in fridge at least one hour (ideally overnight). Serve in individual bowls, topped with additional feta.

In other exciting news, my tomato plant in the garden has it's first red tomato! I discovered it yesterday. This means we'll soon be overrun with fresh tomatoes, which I'm very much looking forward to.

Happy holiday! Stay tuned for postings on our other BBQ dishes in the coming week.

One year ago: gluten-free sugar cookies

eggplant pizza

Pizza and a movie with Marika: a great Friday evening.

Here's what we ate:

Eggplant Pizza

olive oil

1 small eggplant, sliced into 1/4" rounds

prepared pizza dough (I typically use this one)

2 c. of your favorite tomato sauce

1 small red onion, chopped

4 oz. mozzarella, grated

a couple pinches of red pepper flakes

Heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add eggplant (as many rounds as will comfortably fit) in a single layer. Cook 3-4 minutes. Drizzle with additional olive oil. Flip and cook on other side 3-4 minutes, until eggplant is tender. Set aside and repeat with additional eggplant if needed.

On the prepared pizza dough, spread tomato sauce. Sprinkle with chopped red onions. Place the eggplant rounds over the sauce and onions in a single layer. Cover with cheese. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes.

Cook according to pizza dough directions.

YUM!

eggplant curry

This past weekend, JR and I rented a house in a tiny town called Monte Rio along the Russian River. Our friends Todd and Rachael joined us. The weekend was filled with great conversation and food to match - artisan cheeses, meats, breads and wines. Our lazy mornings were spent enjoying walks, coffee and eggs, and dogs playing on the deck overlooking the river. It was a terrific weekend.

Back to the real world.

In the real world, I'm fighting off a cold (that for the moment I seem to be keeping at bay). And I'm freezing. It's that time of year when I start feeling I need to have a pot of something cooking on the stovetop. I'll admit that the leap from there to eggplant is not an obvious one. But I'm going to try to make it work.

Let me back up one more time. A couple of weeks ago, we were having dinner with Todd and Rachael (as coincidence would have it) in Palo Alto at a Thai restaurant (when it was still warm enough to eat outside...sorry, I digress). We didn't order it at the time, but there was an eggplant curry on the menu that caught my eye. Since then, it's been in the back of my head. Cross that with the fact that eggplant season is nearly over in California (which means I need to pack them in before they disappear from the farmers' market) and with my desire to have something cooking on the stovetop, and viola! - eggplant curry.

I've never made eggplant curry before, so I did what I do in situations like this - I started looking up recipes in my cookbooks and online. Nothing that I found was quite what I was looking for. So I started picking and choosing from different recipes. What resulted is a mixture of ingredients and a preparation that I'm pretty sure have only been combined in exactly this way in cole's kitch.

Eggplant Curry

Serves 4

1 large eggplant, cut into 1" cubes

1 medium yellow onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 Tbsp. fresh ginger root, peeled & minced

3 Tbsp. curry powder

1 tsp. turmeric

1/8 tsp. Joe's special spice (a mix of hot red peppers)

1/8 tsp. red chili flakes

14.5 oz. canned diced tomatoes (including juice)

8 oz. vegetable broth

14 oz. unsweetened coconut milk (not lite)

naan or rice

1/4 c. cilantro, chopped

Heat olive oil in a large pot (I used my Le Creuset soup pot). Add onions and garlic; saute until soft. Add ginger and spices. Stir to incorporate spices and cook for 2 minutes. Add eggplant. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil (don't worry if the liquid doesn't completely cover the eggplant - everything will reduce as it cooks). Reduce heat and simmer, uncover for 30 minutes, stirring regularly.

Serve in large bowls over naan or rice, topped with cilantro.

polenta stacks

My first memory of polenta is when I was in high school, working as a hostess at a Northwest-Lebanese fusion restaurant on Bainbridge Island in Washington State. One of my favorite entrees at the restaurant was a polenta dish that included rounds of polenta stacked high with various vegetables (I know for certain that portobello mushrooms were one layer and tomato was another, but don't recall exactly what else was included - that was around the same time that the only food I cooked for myself were frozen burritos, in other words, before I was really paying much real attention to food).

Polenta is one of those grains that I often forget about. When I remember about it, I usually make something with it. I was reminded of its existence earlier this week when scanning my pantry in search of an evening meal. I decided to try to recreate the dish from my past, but with the vegetables I had on hand (sadly, no portobello, but eggplant turned out to be a great substitute). Here's what I did:

Polenta Stacks

Serves 2

2/3 c. polenta 

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 small globe eggplant, sliced into 1/2" rounds

2 heirloom tomatoes, sliced

4 oz. mozzarella, sliced

fresh basil leaves

olive oil

balsamic vinegar

salt & pepper

Heat 2 cups water in a large pot on high until boiling. Slowly add polenta and oregano. Reduce heat, stirring constantly, for 20-30 minutes, until thickened. Spoon evenly into the first 6 spaces of an oiled muffin pan (or into an 8x8" square pan - if you go this route, cut the polenta into 6 squares after it has set). Set aside and allow to set.

Cook eggplant in an oiled skillet over medium heat until tender.

Oil the bottom of a baking dish. Assemble your stacks: polenta, mozzarella, basil, eggplant, and tomato. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil under high heat for 5-10 minutes, until cheese has melted and tomatoes are sizzling. Top with additional basil, if desired. 

eggplant ricotta salad

Marika came over earlier this week to watch the Bachelorette (our weekly guilty pleasure). I had been planning on making an eggplant salad that I'd read about in the latest issue of Cooking Light. But the weather was so nice when I got home from work, I decided to squeeze in a run before starting the salad. By the time I got back, I was running out of time. The salad from the recipe was kind of involved (I needed to roast a pepper, puree things in the food processor, etc.). 

Too involved, I decided. So instead, I started pulling things out of the fridge that I thought would be tasty with eggplant. Outside of cooking the eggplant, this salad came together in less than 5 minutes. It was healthy and tasty and I will definitely make it again.

Eggplant Ricotta Salad

Serves 2

1 small eggplant, diced

olive oil

balsamic vinegar

2 c. baby spinach

1 large heirloom tomato, chopped

1/2 c. ricotta cheese

Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add eggplant. Stir and cook, adding more olive oil as desired during the cooking process (I added probably 4 Tbsp. throughout the cooking time). Stir occasionally and continue to cook until the eggplant is tender and begins to brown (15-20 minutes).

Mix spinach with about 2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar and 2 Tbsp. olive oil. Divide onto plates. Top with tomatoes and eggplant. Spoon ricotta over the top. Enjoy!

roasted vegetable polenta

Yes, I'm still posting about dinner from last weekend. A little story for you: I *almost* had a very embarrassing moment. I had originally been planning to make butternut squash mac & cheese as the entree. All of the ingredients were on my shopping list and I was on my way out the door to the grocery store when JR came home from a run and I paused to tell him my plans for the evening's meal. "Didn't we have that last time Dave & Ashley were over?" was his response. Oh no! A quick text to and from Ashley confirmed that yes, that was the case. And while I'm certain they wouldn't have pointed out the repeat entree and would have said nice things in the same manner they did the first time they ate it at our house, serving the same thing twice (when there are so many options out there!) was simply not an option! On to plan B...

I've had polenta before. And roasted vegetables. But this was the first time I had combined the two, and the results were good. Healthy, tasty, and filling without being heavy. This entree is loosely based on a recipe in Vegetarian Food for Friends. I mixed it up by adding some different things to polenta and determining my own mix of roasted vegetables.

This was a good choice for entertaining - I did most of the prep work ahead of time (made the polenta, cut the vegetables), then roasted the veggies while we were eating apps and salads. Here's how it goes:

Roasted Vegetable Polenta

Serves 6

Polenta:

5 Tbsp. unsalted butter

1 Tbsp. olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

4 c. vegetable stock

1 c. polenta

2 handfuls of spinach, thinly sliced

about 10 leaves of fresh basil, thinly sliced

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and olive oil and allow the garlic to begin to cook. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Pour in polenta in a steady stream while stirring constantly. Add spinach and basil. Cook, continuing to stir, for the amount of time indicated on the polenta package (different brands can differ in cooking time - the type I used suggested cooking for 30 minutes). You'll need to stir pretty constantly throughout this time. The polenta will get increasingly creamy as you cook it. When you've reached the suggested time, pour the polenta into a 14x9 inch baking pan and allow to set (about 2 hours).

Roasted Vegetables:

2 Japanese eggplants, sliced and then halved

1 zucchini, sliced into rounds

1 red pepper, seeded and sliced into strips

1 yellow pepper, seeded and sliced into strips

2 small red onions, quartered

5 sprigs fresh thyme

5 sprigs fresh rosemary

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes

olive oil

sea salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix vegetables (except for tomatoes) together in a large bowl with about 3 Tbsp. olive oil, spices, and sea salt. Spread veggies evenly in a large baking dish and roast in oven 30 minutes, stirring a couple of times.

Remove baking dish from oven. Stir vegetables. Add tomatoes and return to oven for about 20 minutes, until veggies are roasted. Note: you'll want to do the next step to add to the oven during the last 10 or so minutes of roasting time.

To assemble:

6 oz. mozzarella, sliced

balsamic vinegar

Invert the pan with the polenta in it onto a cutting board. Cut polenta into 6 squares. Put squares in a single layer on a baking sheet. Top each with a slice of mozzarella. Add pan to oven with roasting vegetables for about 10 minutes, until cheese is melted and polenta is heated through.

Remove the polenta and veggies from the oven. Put a slice of mozarella'd polenta on each plate and top with roasted vegetables. Add a splash of balsamic vinegar to each serving.

Enjoy!

eggplant marinara

No, eggplant is not currently in season in California. But I'm out of veggies from last week's CSA box and a walk past the shiny purple plants at the grocery store (plus the fact that it's been months since I've had one) was more than I could pass up today. Pair it with some marinara and cheese for a super tasty (and easy to make) main dish. Here's what I did:

Eggplant Marinara

olive oil

1 medium eggplant, sliced about 1/2 inch thick

2 c. marinara sauce

8 oz. mozzarella, grated

1/4 c. parmesan, grated

Pan fry eggplant in olive oil over medium heat until tender, 2-3 minutes per side. Depending on the size of the pan (and the eggplant), you'll probably have to do this in a couple of batches.

Cover the bottom of a baking dish with marinara sauce (I'll post a recipe soon - for tonight's weeknight version, I used pre-made). Layer eggplant, sauce, and mozzarella, finishing with the remaining mozzarella and parmesan.

Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes. Broil for 2 minutes or until the top begins to brown.

Tonight, I paired the eggplant with a spinach salad. It probably should have been enough for 3-4 servings, but it tasted so good that we ate every bit of it! Hopefully that will hold us over a few months until we can get some fresh eggplant from the local farmers market!