I cannot remember another year when our tomato crop has ever been more bountiful than it has been this summer… absolutely beautiful pickings of the healthiest and tastiest fruits each day, and we enjoyed them in so many different ways. My favorite way being sun warmed straight off the vine.
One of the ways in which they are most often requested at the convent is stuffed with a zucchini, onion, breadcrumbs and cheese mixture. I started making these years and years ago and they have never lost their appeal. They are beautiful to serve and a most flavorful addition to any meal. You must be sure to make some before the season comes to a close.
Cut tops off tomatoes, scoop out pulp, and drain upside down on paper towel or a rack.
Grate squash and onion. Mix in salt. Let sit ½ hour; squeeze out liquid and sauté in small amount of olive oil until soft. Set aside 4 teaspoons each of Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs. Add remaining cheese, bread crumbs and white pepper.
Cook squash mixture in frying pan until liquid is absorbed.
Fill tomatoes. Sprinkle tops with reserved Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10-15 minutes or until hot and golden brown on top. Do not overcook.
This is the time of year when Eggplants are bountiful.. at least in our garden. I find it funny that you either love eggplant or you hate it. During my time at Villa Via Sacra, one of the Brothers told me that he had his whole birthday menu ready for me… 2 months early! It included his favorite dish, Eggplant Parmigiana – I wasn’t surprised. This Brother, like me, has a real appreciation for good food, cooked well. Every time I made the dish, his eyes would practically well up with tears, he loved it that much. So, I figured EVERYONE would like my eggplant parmigiana and took great pride in making the dish. But, visas expired and we had a new rotation of Brothers from our community at the Villa. I thought I’d make them this special dish for their first night in Italy, and was expectant to hear the “oooo’s” and “aahh’s” emanating from them. One of the new Brothers walked into the kitchen and asked what was for dinner. I tightened my apron strings, smoothed out the wrinkles, stood a little taller and declared “My eggplant parmigiana!”
The brother blanched before me, his usual sunny disposition turned to stone, the room went quiet. He HATED Eggplant. I was devastated, my ego deflated; this was going to be a long three months…
Italians love the concept of involtini… something filled and rolled up. I love it too. The time it takes to make this recipe is minimal, and the presentation is delightful, especially if you take the time to wrap each eggplant with a chive before baking. I didn’t have the chives on hand when making this dish for the family, but I still thought the simplicity was beautiful and a different ‘take’ on “eggplant parmigiana”.
P.S. – this Brother became an eggplant lover and I learned more about the meaning of pride!
Preheat the oven to 400* F. Oil a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Place the eggplant slices on the pan and brush on both sides with 4 Tbsp. of the olive oil. Sprinkle on the oregano, salt, and pepper. Bake for 10 minutes, turning once. They will then be supple and slightly golden.
While the eggplant is in the oven, make a simple tomato sauce by whirring the tomatoes briefly in a food processor or break up with your hands. In a skillet, over low heat, sauté the onion for another minute in the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Stir in the tomatoes and cook the mixture briefly, just to blend flavors, about 2 minutes.
Remove the eggplant from the oven. Lower the oven temperature to 350*F.
On each eggplant piece, place a piece of prosciutto or ham, a whole basil leaf, a slice of cheese and a sprinkling of Parmigiano. Roll pieces from the small end forward, and secure the bundle with a toothpick or tie a chive around it.
Slather the bottom of a 9x13” baking dish with some of the tomato sauce, and arrange the involtini seam-side down. Over each bundle spread some more tomato sauce and a scattering of the Parmigiano. Warm well in the oven, about 15 min. Andiamo mangiare!
Recipe adapted from Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes
It is August in Tuscany, and that means the locals are out gathering Porcini! Our friends from the mountains heard that we might like to do this, and invited us to join them for an early morning “hunt.” I learned that porcini, which means “piggy,” is a reference to the stubby appearance of the mushrooms. The marvel of these fungi is the symbiotic relationships they have established with the trees and especially here with the Castagna (or Chestnut) Tree. The tree and the mushrooms actually exchange nutrients that enable each to flourish. Porcini thrive when hot dry weather is followed by a cooler rain, and this has been the case here in Italy this summer.
A few of us from the Villa set out at dawn to make the long, windy drive up to Renaio. Ten families live in this village that is set in the picturesque mountains above Barga. “Usually you can hunt for hours and maybe get one or two,” our friends warned us, but we didn’t let that deter us! After a few silent prayers to the patron saint of porcini hunting, we started roaming the mountains with great zeal and a sprightly Jack Russell Terrier at our heels. In between a brief run-in with a patch of stinging nettles and a tumble down the mountainside, we discovered we had found a basketful between us!
You never want to eat porcini before getting them checked by a master, so we rushed off to a lovely lady who has lived in the mountains all her life, and can separate the “buono” from the “non buono.” In true Italian style, Deana invited us to stay for “pranzo” (accompanied, of course, by a robust bottle of vino da casa). She smiled as I asked her questions in my faltering Italian and watched her prepare the porcini for lunch. I felt truly humbled. Friends are made easily here, conversation is boisterous and engaging, and food is not only for the body, but to nourish the soul.
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Deana’s Farina di mais Crusted Porcini
SERVINGS
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Ingredients
1Porcini(or Portabello) – stem removed, and both stem and cap sliced thinly
½ to 1cupcornmealFinely Ground (or Farina di mais, a grana fine)
Pour the olive oil into a shallow fry pan, about ½” in depth and slowly heat.
Once the oil “crackles” when a splash of water hits it, it is ready – at this point, lower the heat to medium and add the full clove of garlic to season the oil.
Pour about a ½ cup of corn meal onto a plate.
Gently wash the mushroom and dry with paper towel.
Remove the stem from the mushroom and thinly slice, then thinly slice the cap as well (about ¼” thick slices).
Lay each piece in the cornmeal, coating both sides, and then into the hot oil.
Fry until golden and then flip over and fry on the other side.
Remove the mushroom from the oil with tongs, suspending it above the fry pan for a couple seconds to rid the mushroom of extra oil.
Put on a plate and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Andiamo Mangiare!
Notes:
These make a wonderful side to a meal, or can be used as an appetizer.
We’ve been cooking up lots of strawberry jam for Christmas gifts with this summer’s bountiful crop of berries from our garden. One of our sisters has been dying to make a strawberry tart with it and today she did.
I loved the looks of it when it came out of the oven. I loved the taste of it even more, as did some of the other kitchen sisters who sampled it. The unusual flavor of fresh lemon zested crust was a taste treat in itself even without the filling.
“Leave it right here”, I said “I’ll be back in a minute to take a picture. This has to be a blog!” Locating the camera as quickly as possible I returned to take this photo…..
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Italian Strawberry Crostata
The pastry for this simple jam tart is made with olive oil and flavored with vanilla, lemon rind and a little alcohol, which makes it tender. It is an easy, smooth dough to handle and does not go hard when stored in the fridge.
Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt on a clean surface. Lightly beat together eggs, oil, vanilla, alcohol and rind. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the egg mixture.
Using your hands, work the flour in gradually to form a dough. Work dough lightly until it comes together into a smooth ball.
Divide dough into 3 pieces. Roll out all pieces to about 1/2 inch thickness. Press 2 of them into the base of 9-10 inch sallow baking pans. Spread each generously with jam.
Cut remaining piece of dough into very thin long strips. Form a ring around edge of dough and make a criss-cross pattern on top of the tarts. Cut tiny diamonds of leftover dough and place into the center of each criss-cross.
Bake for 30 minutes, until lightly golden.
Notes:
P.S. — We added a few fresh berries on top of the jam the second time we tried it, and felt it added yet another dimension of wonderful flavor.
One of our cooking sisters has made it her “mission” to incorporate healthy foods into the convent diet and get people to eat things they would not naturally choose-by making them into tasty, attractive dishes. She certainly succeeded yesterday, so much so that I never got to taste her crispy black bean cakes because I was late to lunch and there was not a one left to even sample.
However, all the Sisters who had them insisted they were fabulous and that they must be written up as a blog…..so here is the recipe…..Let me know what you think.
I wanted to come up with an interesting Easter salad. Something fresh and springy, yellow like sunshine and light green. Suddenly the idea came….an Easter egg salad!
A flavorful deviled egg nested in Boston Bibb lettuce with some tender spring asparagus and avocado, sprinkled with finely chopped chives and crumbled egg yolk…..that’s the look. Then, showered with a Fresh Lemon vinaigrette dressing …that’s the taste. I took a chance and gave it a try…It was a success!
