8.25.2010

SUMMER VEGETABLE GALLETE


EAT LOCAL ~ EAT FRESH ~ EAT SEASONAL

The garden is full and overflowing. We have consistently picked 8-10 eggplants every week for the past few weeks. I've given some away, but have tried to use as many as possible. We have a few favorite eggplant recipes, but I sometimes get bored, or tired of the same old thing. This week my niece Cara, who loves to cook as much as I do, said she had made a dip or spread with roasted eggplant, garlic, and onion and said I should give it a try.




So, today, I used the last of my remaining eggplant to make this recipe. I peeled 6 eggplant, one large onion, and 6 cloves of garlic and placed them in a shallow roasting pan with some kosher salt, cracked pepper, oregano and a drizzle of olive oil. The oven was set at 425 and it took about half an hour until the vegetables were soft enough to pulse into a spread in the food processor. It was so delicious! It seems that no matter what vegetable you roast in the oven, it enhances the flavor and brings out the natural sweetness of the vegetable.



I had pie crusts in the fridge that needed to be used, so I lined a cookie sheet with parchment and placed one pi crust on the sheet and rolled it out a bit. Next, I placed a thick layer of the eggplant spread on the crust, leaving a 2 inch rim of crust. After the eggplant, I added fresh sliced tomatoes, kosher salt, ground pepper, oregano and once again that special touch of an olive oil drizzle. The outside crust was then folded in on itself all the way around and brushed with olive oil. It baked at 400 degrees until it was golden brown. I don't know how long it was, I just kept an eye on it.




To serve with the gallette, I made zucchini fritters. We are still knee deep in zucchini and creativity is necessary! We've been eating these squashes for weeks now. I wish there was some way to spread their harvest out over a month so that we didn't get tired of eating them! While I was frying the fritters, Richard was in the garden getting me some green tomatoes for tomorrow's dinner. I asked for some green tomatoes so we can have fried green tomatoes. We love them! What did he bring in with him??? You guessed it! ZUCCHINI!! I can't get ahead of them.



Tomorrow's dinner menu? Fried green tomatoes, brown rice, and zucchini with tomatoes, onions, garlic, spices, and chorizo.

Our favorite zucchini recipes?

zucchini bread
zucchini bars with cinnamon frosting
calavasa-a mexican dish served over rice
zucchini veg. chowder
zucchini fritters
zucchini cooked with lots of onions and tomatoes--simple but OH so good!
fried zucchini

5 comments:

  1. You're making my mouth water!

    Is there any easy way for you to can or dehydrate or freeze the squash?

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  2. I do freeze the zucchini, but, you have to know that it won't be the same as fresh. Frozen, it can be used to make really nice quiches, zucchini casseroles, or bread. There is so much water in zucchini that when it thaws it is very wet so you can't use it in the same way you would a fresh squash. I freeze it cubed, then use it for 2 recipes I have that we really like. One is a crustless quiche, the other is a zucchini casserole with a crunchy topping.
    Freezing it is VERY easy. You don't need to blanch it, just cube it and place in freezer bags. I will be glad to share recipes if you want to freeze some and try them. Maybe you would rather try them first, then decide if you want to freeze any!!

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  3. Lydia, I'm also wondering, after making the eggplant spread, if that wouldn't freeze well also. I know it would, I just don't know what it would be like when it thaws. I have some left and think I'll try it. If it thaws well, it would be nice to use on pizzas, bruchettas, or like this gallete recipe in the middle of winter!

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  4. Teresa this looks really good! Great job on the photo also, tomorrows dinner sounds great I love fried green tomatoes.I agree eat local eat fresh.

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  5. Oh my, the green tomatoes were so delicious. I'm trying to be very conscious of my eating and that was definitely not the best thing to eat but so yummy! I was a good girl all week so I decided to treat myself to them.

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