The Perfect Roasted Eggplant

Now that I've moved beyond the world of carrots, I am happily accepting the EGGPLANT as my next project food.  Honestly, I did not start to like eggplant until last month.  I think an encounter in my childhood turned me off, but I fear it no more.

Just a bit about eggplant: according to my research, in earlier centuries the eggplant was believed to make people insane.  But onto more relevant news, the eggplant is also called the aubergine and melongene.  It is very low in calories and sodium, making it a great diet food.  It is often used to replace/replicate meat in dishes because it is so tender and juicy.  Much more detailed information about its history, varieties and nutritional values can be found here. 

This is a staple recipe, a total beginner's eggplant dish that is ready for improvisation.  Though it looks simple and takes less than 5 minutes prep time, it provides an amazingly soft, buttery side to any pasta meal.  After lemon, try it with basil, parsley, oregano or garlic cloves. 

I sprinkled salt and lemon pepper on mine, then drizzled lots of extra lemon juice on it right before serving.  Many recommend to let the eggplant "sweat" by salting it and letting it sit for 30 minutes to remove excess moisture and prevent bitterness, but I didn't do it and mine turned out yummy.  I'll try it next time and see the difference it makes.  But if you didn't read this ahead and you don't have that extra hour (30 to wait, 30 to cook) before everyone is hungry, I wouldn't "sweat" it :)

Harvesting Worm Casts

I wanted to show you how efficient worm composting can be.  After several months of feeding the worms with food scraps and watering twice a week (at no cost, literally), the worms have produced an amazing amount of black gold for the garden.

I've disassembled my worm bin for the picture.  The top container simply drops on top of the bottom container and it has an additional lid to cover the top.  This allows it to separate the worm castings for you, dropping it into the bottom container for an easy harvest.  What you're seeing in the picture is the top container (on the right) with dirt, worms and food scraps.  In the bottom container is the black gold.  I just mix that into some regular potting soil and it's incredibly good for the plants.  Last week, I moved my bell pepper plant into a bigger pot and added the worm poop-infused mixture.  The pepper fruit that was growing doubled in size very quickly.


If you don't want or don't have this bin, worm composting is still possible.  Harvesting just takes an extra step.  You can see in the top container that a large piece of old celery is dividing the bin into two.  One side has all the food scraps.  The other is pretty clear of food.  I have done this to urge the worms to evacuate the food-less side, which they will do over a 1-2 week period.  Then I will remove that dirt, mix it into the garden, and replace it with new fresh bedding.  The food scraps will then be moved to the fresh bedding and, over another 1-2 weeks, the worms will follow.  Remove that old dirt, replace it with new dirt, and replenish the scraps.  This is the other way to harvest.  I do both.

And last but not least... Carrots!

To end my Carrot Series, I want to leave you with a few simple ways to eat this super healthy, super orange, super crunchy treat.

1) As is, and raw.  Peeling is not totally necessary, if you give it a good scrub.  If you do peel it, save the peels for your next vegetable stock!  Great for an on-the-go hiking snack.
2) Shred it in a salad.  Adds color and sweetness.  I found carrots, roasted sesame seeds, mint leaves and balsamic vinegar make an amazing salad. 
3) Chop it up and toss it in with the rice in the rice cooker.  Add some whole cloves for more flavor (but remove before eating).
4) Carrots, it's no secret, go really well with celery, ranch dressing, and chicken wings.  Football, anyone?
5) Put very skinny julienne pieces in your sushi rolls.  Adds a great crunch and color.  I never leave it out. 
6) Drink it.  Combine carrot juice with apple juice.
7) Dip it.  If you have hummus or any other dip, choose raw carrots instead of chips for a healthier alternative.  It always satiates my late night movie cravings and is much healthier than popcorn. 
8) Baby food.  Your little precious will love this sweet treat.

Baked Cheesy Carrots Casserole

This was a nice dish to end my carrot series with.  Combining carrots with cheese, bacon and breadcrumbs-- what could be better? 

I made only one change: I used sharp cheddar cheese instead of swiss, because of its comparatively more intense flavor.  If I were to make this again I think I would add some caramelized onion or red pepper flakes between the cheese and bread crumbs.  It works very well as a side to a chicken dish or as a midnight snack, with all its warm gooey goodness and the perfect balance of dairy, carbs and salty bacon.  Enjoy!

Deep Fried Carrot Puffs

I've always found the amount of oil needed for deep frying so wasteful that when I do whip out all that oil, I'll toss in just about anything to make the best of the hassle.  I was making homemade tater tots when I came up with this recipe to use carrots, since I have so many in my fridge!  They actually turned out really delicious and easy to fry.

Sometimes onion rings and tater tots break apart in the oil, leaving little bits and pieces of batter that are annoying to scoop out before they burn to a crisp.  These Carrot Puffs didn't have that problem.  I also used both shredded and chopped carrots to test the difference.  I liked the chopped method (a little less than a 1/4 inch in size) a lot more; coated by the flour-and-egg mixture as it heats and fries, the carrot pieces actually steam inside.  The result is a nice not-too-crunchy sweet carrot wrapped in a crispy fried dough shell.  Yum.

In a bowl, combine 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1 tbs. sugar and 1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional, but I love the extra color and kick).  Add two beaten eggs, chopped jalapenos and 3 cups of chopped carrots.  It took me about 5 small carrots, washed but not peeled (don't care too much for that).  I used one jalapeno chili pepper but next time I make this, I'll use 2 or 3 chili peppers.  They weren't as spicy as I thought they would be, but rather a great balance to the sweetness of the carrots and saltiness of the deep fried batter.  If you're not up to deep fry but want to try this, try doing it with butter.  Again, yum.

Composting. With Worms!

The more I think of it, the more there is absolutely no reason not to do some sort of composting.  Whatever your excuse is, there's a way around it.  Fleas?  There's a solution.  Smelly?  There's a solution.  Cheap?  There's a solution.  The fact is, much of those bags of trash you're producing can go where it's really needed-- back into nature and not some filthy landfill.  Vermicomposting, composting with worms, is my favorite method.  You can also make a compost pile, but they're a bit harder to maintain with lots of rules and attention needed.  I'll admit we've had one for a year now and it hasn't produced anything I'd feel comfortable putting back into the garden, even though it has decomposed a lot. 

Our saving grace is a vermicompost bin in the patio, packed with worms and moist dirt, that we feed every week.  We got the bin from a friend and the red worms from Santa Monica College, where they have a garden and give worms away to resourceful gardeners.  While my boyfriend is giddy at the idea of having "wormies" as pets, I am more crazy about the idea that we don't have to buy anything to keep this operation alive and yet we get so much in return.  The worms turn your food scraps and trash into pure money in the form of their poop (casts).  Their casts are full of valuable nutrients that can make such a difference to your garden.  Our worm casts aren't harvested very often but I use the liquid it generates about every two weeks.  Water it down and you've got some very healthy material. 

In addition to vegetable and fruit scraps, you can give them avocado skins (they'll eat them till the thinnest little shell is left), dried and crushed eggshells (to avoid disease), coffee grounds, tea bags (without the staple) and old bread.  Avoid plastic, metal and foil.  There are also some considerations to adding citrus, onion and garlic so we use it sparingly.  They say you can sparsely add meats, fish and dairy but that's a little too much for me so I avoid it.

And it doesn't stop with your food.  Add newspaper or any unwanted mail (just make sure it's not glossy or colored), cardboard cartons, shredded computer paper and dead fall leaves.  Also, if you don't have a vermicomposting container or don't want one, there is another method.  A friend was telling me yesterday that he'll just freeze all of his scraps, dig a hole in the garden and bury them for the worms to come and feast.  This sounds like a bit of effort and I don't have too much garden space, but the option is there for you. 

Our bin is due for another worm cast harvesting and renewed bed so that will be an upcoming post, with pictures and all.  There is so much information and advice out there for vermicomposting and it's a very interesting read, so I hope I've whetted your curiosity!

Stocking Up your Pantry, Cabinets, and Fridge

I always have on hand certain essential ingredients at home.  There are just some things you need more often than others.  Garlic, for example, is used in so many recipes, it's silly not to have it on hand.  I'll generally stock up on things that don't expire quickly too, such as raisins and nuts, just in case they come in handy.  Here's a list of what I keep stocked up: 

Vegetables: garlic, onion and ginger root. 

Seasonings: salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, cayenne, onion powder, chili powder, parsley flakes, cumin, paprika, minced dried onion, curry powder, ground ginger, tarragon leaves, fennel seeds, homemade taco seasoning, bay leaves and turmeric powder

Dessert stuffs: cinnamon, vanilla extract, nuts, chocolate chips and ground cloves

Liquids: olive oil, vinegars (I have red wine, apple cider, balsamic and rice vinegar), honey, bbq sauce, soy sauce, mustard (we really like Trader Joe's Aioli Garlic Mustard Sauce) and liquid smoke.

Fresh Herbs: Basil, mint, parsley, rosemary, thyme and sage.  My goal for this year is to plant (and keep alive) more herbs. 

In each category above I've tried to list them in the order of use, the first being the most used.  I understand it's not desirable to go out and buy a crapload of seasonings if you don't see an immediate use for them, so this ordering should help you decide what you'll need more than others.  My seasonings are not comprehensive to what's out there, so sometimes I'll skip some things in the recipe or replace it with other stuff.  I do that until I feel I've skipped it enough and just need to buy it :) 

We also have several lemon trees in our neighborhood, available when we need them.  I always try to have some salad stuffs, cheese, eggs, butter and Earth Balance vegan shortening on hand too.  Make sure you're stocked with sugar, brown sugar and flour too.  It's frustrating to find out halfway through a recipe that you've run out of something so simple.  I also keep whole cloves, but they're more for making flavorful tea and rice than for cooking.