dawn
i have never seen these varieties of eggplant before.
and, they're small little cuties. their texture and taste is just like the normal, everyday variety sold in the grocery store.
this weekend i had them in nachos as part of the salsa. very yums. how about you, tracy? do you ever cook much with eggplant?
What I'm Cooking This Week-Nights at the Improv
Tracy
An update on the menu plan:
We've been having 100-plus temperatures here lately and although meatloaf is a family fave and we were all looking forward to it, a little improvization was definitely in order.
By 4:30 p.m. Monday, after feeling my hiney sizzle on the van seat after practically crawling to the parking lot gasping for air after work, I realized that the thought of turning on the oven made me gag. So I did. I gagged again on the phone with hubs a few minutes later, to demonstrate my dismay.
He was really looking forward to the meatloaf (I'm so, so fortunate that my hubs has simple wants) but he understood and even offered to eat just salad for dinner. After nearly careening into a utility pole at this bit of news, I gathered my senses and tried to think of a cool but satisfying alternative.
After doing a quick mental inventory of the fridge contents: Leftover whole-grain spaghetti noodles, shredded bagged cabbage, some bell peppers and 10,000 various bottles of condiments, I had a new plan.
This Asian noodle salad recipe was passed on to me by my former neighbor, Laurie Marshall. Laurie's version used salsa as one of the base components for the dressing, but that makes it a little thick for me. I've tweaked it over the years, and here's what I've come up with:
Crunchy Asian Noodle Salad
Cooked linguine noodles (any kind of long pasta will do; I used spaghetti, a little less than 1 lb.)
1 bag shredded cabbage (like you'd buy for coleslaw)
1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 seedless cucumber, sliced into half-moons
3-4 sprigs cilantro, chopped (I'd use more but H claims cilantro "repeats" on him)
1 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced (I had to use about a tablespoon of the jarred variety, chopped up)
About 1/4 cup chopped peanuts
For the dressing:
4 tbsp creamy peanut butter
About 5-6 tbsp Thai sweet chile sauce
3 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp sesame or vegetable oil
1/4 cup warm water
Splash of rice vinegar or lime juice, about 1-2 tsp
Place noodles and veggies in a large bowl. Put dressing ingredients in a seperate smaller micro-safe bowl or large glass measuring cup. Microwave dressing ingredients on high for about 20 seconds and whisk together. Pour over noodles and veggies and toss to coat. Garnish with chopped peanuts.
This is so pretty ,tasty and refreshing for dinner on a hot day when looking at the oven causes one to retch. Because , well, that's just not a good kitchen activity.
Oh, and about those adorable eggplants! I've never done much more than traditional eggplant parmesan, but come to think of it I haven't made that in ages and it's high time I did again. Hubs just informed me that's one of the dishes I used to make "back in the courtin' days" until I finally snagged him and then never made again. Heh. I also used to take peeled, cubed eggplant and saute it in olive oil with some fresh sliced mushrooms and a diced zucchini until soft, then poured in my favorite marinara sauce and served over pasta. That was one of our faves in the early married days, and it also could stand a revisit. Thanks for the trip down memory lane, D!
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