WHAT’S ON THE MENU WEDNESDAY and Grilled Eggplant, Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil Stacks

  Welcome to this week’s edition of What’s On the Menu Wednesday.  I’m glad you are here; I look forward to what you have to say.

It’s so dry in Arkansas that the Baptists are starting to baptize by sprinkling, the Methodists are using for the wine to turning wet-wipes, the Presbyterians are giving out rain checks, and the Catholics are praying for the wine to turn back into water!

(That’s not original with me, but it was just too good not to pass it along.)

It has been very hot June in Arkansas…and dry.   When it’s like this, I turn to my “cool” menus...lots of salads, grilled meats and veggies…are on my table these days

My tomatoes aren’t setting blooms very well due to the warm nights.  When it doesn’t get below 70 degrees at night, I don’t have a good tomato crop.  I found some heirloom tomatoes at Fresh Market and combined them with some fresh mozzarella and eggplants that I picked up at the Farmers’ Market in Bentonville and basil from my herbs to make these stacks.  For us, it became a meal.  It would also serve as a rather hearty salad served alongside a grilled meat or some pasta.

GRILLED EGGPLANT, TOMATO, MOZZARELLA AND BASIL STACKS

3 medium Italian eggplants
3 red, yellow, or combination large heirloom tomatoes
4 large balls of fresh buffalo mozzarella (1 pound)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
20 whole, large basil leaves
3 cups spicy tomato sauce

Slice eggplant, tomatoes and mozzarella into 1/2-inch rounds for a total of 12 slices of each.  Place eggplant on a rack for about 30 minutes and salt both sides to pull out some of the water.  Pat the eggplant dry and season with pepper.  Salt and pepper the tomatoes.

Brush the eggplant and tomatoes with olive oil.  Grill the eggplant and tomato on a hot grill 1-2 minutes per side.

To assemble, layer eggplant, tomato and several basil leaves, making sure each layer is visible from the side.  Top the stack with mozzarella.  Repeat the stacking, finishing with a basil leaf for garnish.  To serve, place a pool of your favorite spicy tomato sauce on each plate and top with vegetable stack.

Makes 6 servings.

Be sure to link up below and share a summertime favorite.

(We actually got a day-long rain today!  Hooray!)

WHAT’S ON THE MENU WEDNESDAY and Original Caesar Salad

Thanks so much for joining me for  What’s On the Menu Wednesday this week.  I really appreciate your hanging in there with me for the past several weeks.  It’s been so busy ending the school year and here at home as well.  I’m through with inservice workshops until next week, so I’m looking forward to a few days of rest and relaxation.

One of our all-time favorite salads is an original Caesar Salad.  It’s unlike so many that are called “Caesar Salad” in today’s restaurants.  It’s origination is somewhat disputed, but I’ll leave it to you to do a little investigation on your own.  One of the best resources is here at Food History.  It really doesn’t matter to me who invented it; I just will keep on making it and enjoying it. 

I first learned to make a Caesar Salad from my 1968 Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book.  I made it that way for several years before trying the addition of anchovies.  Thus began a new love affair.  (Just don’t tell the purists.)

Ingredients:
1/2 to 3/4 cup homemade croutons (see directions below)
Garlic olive oil (see directions below)
1 coddled egg (see directions below)*
1 to 2 teaspoons finely-chopped garlic (1 to 2 medium cloves with inner green germ removed)
1 - 2 anchovy fillets, mashed**
Pinch of kosher salt
2 tablespoons (1/2 lemon) freshly-squeezed lemon juice
3 drops Worcestershire sauce
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) shaved Parmesan cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano)
1 head Romaine lettuce, hearts and tender leaves only
Coarsely-ground black pepper

** Use only good-quality Spanish or Portuguese anchovies in your dressing. Anchovy paste may be substituted (approximately two inches squeezed from the tube will provide the equivalent taste of one anchovy fillet). More anchovy fillets may be added according to your personal taste.

Garlic Olive Oil: Prepare one to several days early.  (I keep this made up regularly.) Slice 6 cloves garlic lengthwise in quarters; let stand in 1 cup olive oil.  I put mine in a glass canning jar.

Homemade Croutons:

Preheat oven to 375 400-F.

Trim the crust (or not) from day-old peasant-style bread (Italian or French bread) and dice into 3/4-inch cubes.

Toss with enough garlic olive oil to coat, but not drench. Sprinkle lightly with salt and spread out on a baking sheet.

Bake approximately 10 to 15 minutes or until just golden brown. Halfway through the baking time, give the pan a shake to make


sure the croutons toast evenly. Remove from oven and completely cool croutons. Store in an airtight container.

Coddled Eggs:
Coddling causes the yolk to become slightly thickened and warm.
Basically, I use two methods.
Method 1: Place room-temperature eggs gently into boiling water.  Remove from heat; cover and let stand 1 to 1 1/2 minutes.  Immediately cool in cold water.

Method 2: Bring a very fresh egg to room temperature by immersing it in warm water (otherwise it might crack when coddled).

Place the egg in a small bowl or mug and pour boiling water around the egg until it is covered. Let stand for exactly 1 minute. Immediately run cold water into the bowl until the egg can be easily handled; set aside.

Caesar Salad dressing:
Before you start, stick the salad plates and salad forks in the frig.
Mash  together the garlic, anchovy, and salt until blended. (Okay, so it’s not pretty…but it’s good!)

Whisk in the lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce.
Whisk in the coddled egg until the mixture is thick, approximately 1 minute (this enables the lemon juice to "cook" the eggs).
Slowly drizzle in the olive oil with one hand while vigorously whisking the mixture with the other.


Assembling:

Separate the Romaine leaves and discard the coarse outer leaves. Wash, drain, and pat with paper towels or spin dry the remaining leaves.

Note: Prepare ahead of time and refrigerate until ready to use. Tear or cut into bite-size pieces and set aside. (Purists would tell you that the leaves must remain whole.  I actually cut mine!  For shame.)

In a large wooden salad bowl, add 1/3 of the prepared Caesar Salad Dressing and toss with the croutons until well coated.
Add the Romaine lettuce pieces and the remaining dressing; toss until coated.


Serving:

   Divide the salad between chilled plates and sprinkle each salad with the shaved Parmesan cheese and coarsely-ground black pepper. Serve immediately with chilled forks.

  Makes 2 to 4 servings (depending on serving sizes)
  I added in some grilled shrimp last night and made the salad into a full meal.
ABSOLUTE YUM!
I know it looks complicated, but it’s not really and it is so good.  Let me know if you give it a try.  
Join me at the lake tomorrow!  I’m ready.

WHAT’S ON THE MENU WEDNESDAY and Slow Cooker Spinach Mushroom Lasagna

This post was originally scheduled for last week…or so I thought.  I apologize to those of you who came calling and found no entry or Mister Linky.  I thought I had set it to post automatically, t….apparently not.  Last week was incredibly busy and I did not check on  my blog for several days.  Anyway, I’m glad you are here this week.  Thanks for your patience.

I had been wanting to try out this recipe but since Hubby (only recently after almost 42 years of marriage) told me that he did not care for mushrooms, I knew I would have to try it out on/with someone else.  It became the main dish for a meal prepared for a friend after a brief hospital stay.  I think it’s a winner!

Slow Cooker Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna

Vegetable oil spray
8 curly-edged lasagna noodles (do not use no-boil) broken in half
salt and pepper
1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pound white mushrooms, trimmed and sliced thin
20 ounces frozen spinach, thawed, squeezed dry and chopped coarse
1 (15-ounce) jar alfredo sauce
1 3/4 cups ricotta cheese
1 1/3 cups freshly grated Parmesan
1/2 cup minced fresh basil
1 large egg
4 cups mozzarella

Line a slow cooker with an aluminum coil collar, then line with a foil sling* and coat with vegetable oil spray.  Bring 4 quarts of water to boil in a large pot.  Add broken lasagna noodles and 1 Tablespoon salt.  Cook the noodles, stirring often, until al dente.  Drain then rinse under cold water until cool.  Spread out in a single layer over clean kitchen towels and let dry.  Do not use paper towels.  They will stick to the noodles.

Heat oil in pot over medium-high heat until shimmering.  Add mushrooms, garlic and 1/4 teaspoon salt, cover and cook until mushrooms are softened, about 5 minutes.  Uncover and continue to cook until the mushrooms are dry and browned, 5 to 10 minutes longer.  Stir in spinach and alfredo sauce, scraping up any browned bits.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

In a bowl, mix ricotta, 1 cup Parmesan, basil, egg, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper together.  Spread 1/2 cup mushroom-spinach sauce into prepared slow cooker.

Arrange 4 lasagna noodle pieces in the slow cooker (they may overlap), then dollop 9 rounded tablespoons of ricotta mixture over noodles.  Sprinkle with 1 cup mozzarella, then spoon 1 cup more mushroom-spinach sauce over the top.  Repeat layering of noodles, ricotta mixture, mozzarella, and mushroom-spinach sauce twice more.

For the final layer, arrange remaining 4 noodles in slow cooker, then top with the remaining mushroom-spinach sauce and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan.  Cover and cook until lasagna is heated through, about 4 hours on LOW.

Let lasagna cook for 20 minutes.  Using the sling, transfer the lasagna to a serving platter and serve.

*To make the sling: line the slow cooker insert with a foil collar.  Next, fit two large sheets of heavy-duty aluminum foil into the slow cooker, perpendicular to one another, with the extra hanging over the edges of the cooker insert.