Saturday, July 30, 2011

Eggplant Parm Tutorial



She may not look Italian but Christy is about to marry into a large family of passionate Italians and she has learned to cook the perfect sauce and eggplant Parmesan from the best...Doug's Grandmother, affectionately called "Sweetie"! On a rainy Sunday afternoon, I asked her to teach me the secret. If you are interested and happen to love eggplant, here is the eggplant parm tutorial......








Prepping the eggplant appears to be the most important part...first she peeled the eggplant with a carrot peeler and thinly sliced the eggplant. She layered the slices, sprinkling each layer with sea salt and several sheets of paper towels. When the layers were all stacked, she added the weight of a Pyrex dish to help press out the moisture in the eggplant. I never realized how much water is in an eggplant.






Next, she started the sauce - two kinds! Both started with the same ingredients - olive oil, onion, celery, garlic. In another pot was the meat sauce - she uses the prepackaged "meatloaf" combination of pork, veal, and beef.... sometimes sausage too if Doug request it! Here is the difference, Christy added a handful of grated Parmesan to the meat as it was cooking and it melted into the mix. When we took our cooking class in Lucca, we were taught to add chicken bullion to the sauce at the end..different region of Italy! Only Tuttorosso crushed tomatoes will do (which they all buy by the case at the wholesale store). I happened to have a splash of red wine, fresh basil, oregano, and thyme from my flower pot garden and then we let the sauces simmer. *Here's a Sweetie tip: if you use fresh tomatoes in your sauce add grated carrot or sugar to help break down the acid in the tomato.






Moving on....this is the messy part! Wipe off the excess salt and pat dry the eggplant slices. Each slice is individually dipped in flour, beaten eggs, and seasoned breadcrumbs - Christy uses whole wheat of course! - and placed in a frying pan of hot olive oil. She only cooked 4 at a time to keep the temperature of the oil hot but they browned very quickly and we had to continue to add more oil to the pan. Place the slices of eggplant on MORE paper towels to drain.


Now assemble, layering the sauce (without meat), fried eggplant slices, thick chunks of mozzarella cheese, a sprinkle of grated Parmesan cheese, and fresh chopped basil leaves. Sweetie also adds slices of hard boiled eggs to the layers...but since this is Christy's lesson - no eggs! Now clean up the kitchen (yikes!) while the eggplant Parmesan cooks until bubbly in a 350 degree oven.













Served with pasta and a little of the meat sauce on top it is "to die for"! And Doug reminds me - even better the next day!
Thanks Christy, and Sweetie, for the tutorial.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Mysterious hydrangeas



Although Master Tucker does not care what color the hydrangeas are, or in this case Queen Anne's Lace, - I do! I love blue!
We have several new bushes this year which are covered in blooms ranging from pink to purple. Having grown up in the South in a family of gardeners, Rick knew all about adding lime to the soil to change the PH level of the soil so I gave it a try......













Maybe I'll just plant daisies next year!


Thursday, July 21, 2011

Explore Cape Cod


Chatham is one of the Cape towns very close to where "the wedding" will take place in September.....
certainly worth exploring!





The town of Chatham still boasts a quaint and walkable Main Street which is home to numerous family-owned and operated shops, restaurants, and local art galleries. During the summer, concerts are held in a gazebo on Main Street, and not far from the shops is where the Chatham Anglers baseball team plays. After shopping and lunch at the local pub, a drive along Ocean Drive reveals the true beauty of Chatham. Can you believe this walkway of blue hydrangeas? Imagine the view from the ocean front windows of Riptide!


Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Invitations - Check!

I know, I have taken a little holiday from Holledayz but now one more thing has been checked off the "Wedding List". The invitations have been mailed and I am going to enjoy the sunset. A nice reward!


Tuesday, July 5, 2011

On the Spit



Forced family fun on the fourth of July!
Wishing you a bright summer day and a happy Independence Day!