Pasta with Eggplant, Caramelized Onion, and Tomato

While in Greece this summer, I learned to love a few “new” foods, including olives, octopus, and eggplant. These are all things that I had tried before and not had much of an opinion of – in fact, a few weeks before we left I silently judged a stranger at the grocery store for loading up on eggplant (I know, I am really friendly).

Greek inspiration

The game-changer for me was a delicious dish of eggplant, red pepper, and potatoes baked in a tomato sauce. The vegetables were tender and had all absorbed the flavor of the sauce and seasonings – I was smitten.

This pasta is a take on the baked vegetable dish that I enjoyed so much while abroad. Eggplant and tomato sauce, I have discovered, is a winning combination and perfect for this time of year when you want a cozy (yet healthy) meal.

Roasted Tomato Soup

The calendar is telling me that Fall has officially arrived, though (as usual) the Paso Robles weather begs to differ – it’s been in the 80’s and 90’s! Despite the heat, I needed to use up some tomatoes (I’ve picked about 6 pounds from our plants in the past couple weeks) and decided to combine two of my favorite things: roasted tomatoes and soup.

I served this with an awesome grilled cheese made with Bravo Sage Cheddar – it was a classy take on the grilled cheese that surprised me with its mild sage flavor (I was worried the sage would be overwhelming, but it was just right).

Grilled Crostini with Fresh Chèvre, Tomatoes, and Basil

I hear that Labor Day is unofficially the end of summer. Technically, we still have 16 more days until Fall, so let’s stay positive here. I don’t think anyone has told my tomato plants a thing about this because they are turning out beautiful, ripe tomatoes like crazy! (I’m not complaining, I’m thrilled!). If you’re lucky like me, you are probably trying to find a way to use up all your end-of-summer tomatoes.

These crostini has been one of my favorite picnic recipes this summer. They are easy and pretty quick, but still tasty enough to seem like a treat, especially if you are using home grown or farmer’s market tomatoes. The smokey grill flavor makes the crostini extra-special, so I would recommend grilling if you can – but I did include the how-to for preparing the crostini in the oven.

Now go enjoy the last of the summer produce and weather!

Stuffed Heirloom with Fresh Mozzarella

I love the New York Times. When I was a student at Drew, it was delivered to the dorms (for free!) on weekdays. My favorite Sociology professor used to bring in copies of pertinent articles all the time (his kids read the Opinion section every day…which I am still in awe of). These days, Tim and I have a Sunday subscription, and of course I follow a few of the departments on Twitter.

It may not come as a surprise that my favorite links usually come from @nytimesdining and its unofficial counterpart, @nytimesfood. The Times’s Mark Bittman recently did a wonderful feature on Heirloom tomatoes for the Magazine, and the interactive page with the recipes has been up in my Chrome tabs since. This was the first recipe I made from the selection, and I am eyeing that Salsa Borracha for my next one (salsa with tequila in it? yes please).

This stuffed, baked heirloom has an incredible amount of flavor – I was pleasantly surprised. It bakes up beautifully golden and the heat deepens the flavor and color of the heirloom. Definitely give this a try before summer is over!

Roasted Tomato and Anchovy Oreganata Pasta

Having an herb garden is the most amazing thing. Tim and I did some serious gardening this spring – we have a regular garden with tomatoes, squash, green beans, jalapenos, and potatoes.  We also have this amazing planter that runs along the garage (about 15 feet); it has perfect soil and perfect shading, and it has become my herb and flower garden. We have green onions, two types of basil, parsley, thyme, chives, sage, and even cilantro (which I despise). Every night when I’m making dinner, I get such a thrill out of walking to the back yard to snip what I need.

I’ve been visiting the garden often lately because I’ve been making a lot of Gwyneth Paltrow’s recipes. She was on the cover of Bon Appétit a couple months ago, and I made two of the recipes – the Halibut with Mango Avocado Salsa (Thanks, Karen!), and this one, and they were both so great that I bought her new cookbook, My Father’s Daughter. What I like about her style is that it’s to the point, simple, and natural. She talks about her kids a lot, which I like, and includes a significant number of vegetarian recipes for a non-vegetarian cookbook…at the same time, my very carnivorous boyfriend found plenty of options, too. I’m sure I’ll be posting more from her!

Tomato Risotto

I have to tell you: I’ve fallen in love with risotto. It’s versatile and able to incorporate whatever produce I have on hand. It is an elegant dish but just takes a little time and a lot of wooden spoon action. It’s a great way to showcase spring ingredients while still feeling cozy on cool evenings…and while I don’t need an excuse to stand at the stove sipping white wine, this certainly is a romantic way to do it.

Pesto Trapenese

Spring is officially here, and being on the Central Coast, that means it is almost summer! All the signs are here: the garden is taking off, sundresses and sandals have made their way back into the daily rotation, and I’ve been craving soft serve every evening.

Although this is certainly more a late-summer meal and would have been infinitely better had the tomatoes been from our own garden instead of the grocery store, it was still just fine as it didn’t involve standing over a hot stove and was quick and fresh and just what we were craving on one of our first long summer nights of the year.

Heirloom Tomato and Burrata Panzanella

Due to the bizarre weather we are having this year, I don’t feel too guilty posting this recipe so late in the season. While some tomato crops are well past their prime, some are just starting to come to fruition – WEIRD! If you’re one of the lucky ones who still has tomatoes on the vines, you need to introduce them to burrata before it’s too late!

If you haven’t had burrata before, please run to your nearest cheese shop and grab a tub. Burrata is a fresh mozzarella ball filled with mozzarella “rags” (pieces) and cream. It can be made with cow or buffalo milk, and it is creamy, silky, and buttery. It has a short shelf life and needs to be used within a couple days of being made. It is fabulous with crackers, crusty bread, tomatoes, basil, peaches, olive oil, or a combination of all of these…or just by itself (shh…I won’t tell!).

Penne alla Vodka

As the retail world has been reminding us since Christmas, Valentine’s Day is on the way! This makes some people cringe, but I get all kinds of excited butterflies. Valentine’s Day is all about love — and not just romantic love! If you love your friends, your family, your pets, whoever, this is just another reason to let them know!

In my early teens, Valentine’s Day was spent trying to cheer up all my miserable friends in the hallways at school. Most of the THS girls spent the whole day moaning about what a stupid holiday it was, but I liked to bring chocolate and Hello Kitty Valentines and do my best to make someone (anyone?) smile.

As I got older, Valentine’s Day still meant consoling the grumps of the world…but it also meant dates! A few awkward, one fabulous surprise, two snowed in, one girls night at a garlic-themed restaurant, and on one, I even had mono! Dates can be fun, too…which brings me to this recipe. We do happen to be in a recession, and staying in and cooking can be way more romantic than a fancy dinner out.

Cooking for someone you love – this includes friends and families, folks! – is one of the biggest gestures of love there is. I love love. I love spoiling people. I like pink, too, so V-day works out well for me. Penne alla Vodka is pink! Perfect!

Puff-Pastry Tomato Tarts

Wow.  School season has begun again.  Oh, did you think that since I just spent three-and-a-half years getting my Bachelors at the most expensive school in New Jersey that I was going to take a break from education for a while?  Not so much…

Truthfully, I just can’t stay away.  I really love school.  I am taking two night classes (Children’s Literature, and Child Health, Safety, and Nutrition), which means I spend six evening hours a week in a classroom.  Which means that I am still working on the balance between website and school and work and having a social life and playing with Dolan.  Which means that I have to plan my schedule carefully to make sure I have time for cooking and posting…but so far, so good!  I promise I won’t leave you hanging!

I also promise that you are going to be learning a lot about children’s books.  Stay tuned – and get excited!

This is a great recipe to showcase your end-of-summer tomatoes.  The original recipe said to make six-inch rounds, but I wanted more of a side/appetizer portion…six onches of puff pastry gets pretty heavy.  I served it as a side alongside salmon and my family really enjoyed it.