green[meat]egg[plant]s and [no ham]

Alright, I have to do the last of my catching up here. Sadly, I don't have much by way of pictures but I do have some colorful recipes. A few weeks ago now my parents came to Queens for dinner, seeing as I now finally inhabit an apartment that parents would willingly sit through a meal in. Dinner was delicious and simple. We started with a goat cheese and pears from this fabulous store followed by aged steaks topped with Sauce Vierge, roasted potatoes and greens with Accidental Dressing (refer to last week if you don't know what that is). The sauce, translated, means Virgin Sauce due to the fact that it's uncooked. It certainly does not lack pungency and with a good steak the sauce really brings out the meaty-goodness.
{funny side note into the workings of my brain: as I typed that I realized that I served Virgin Sauce with Naughty Cake for dessert, kinda funny, no?}

Then, a recent issue of this magazine so inspired me that I made two recipes from it in as many days. The first was the Eggplant Parmesan. Truth be told, I'm not a big eggplant fan but something about this recipe made me believe that it would be good. I like that fact the eggplant wasn't breaded and rather pan-friend in olive oil and layered lasagna-style and baked. While the outcome really was gooey and decadent and made it feel much more indulgent than it actually was... this dish is deceptively labor intensive (unless perhaps you have an industrial size saute pan). Eight EIGHT rounds of browning eggplant before it was actually done. But like I said, it was wonderful and kept really well in the fridge.

Lastly, I made the Green Masala. To think that only a couple years ago I hated cilantro and now I make a recipe because it calls for 2 cups of the stuff... I must be SO mature now. Well that and I had nearly ever ingredient on hand to make the dish, so it was a bit of a no brainer. I used cubed lamb instead of chicken. Oh, and hey, listen to what happened. Lamb Shoulder was $3.99 at the butcher and I asked for it off the bone and cube, suddenly it was $8.99 a pound. He didn't tell me this 'til all the hacking was said and done. But I've never heard of such a thing, have you? Anyway, back to the recipe. In all honesty, I thought it would pack a little more flavor than it did and I would have appreciated a bit of heat in the dish. Also, the sauce was a little bit thin so I threw in a can of red beans to add some heft and take up some of that curry. I haven't had leftovers yet, but I checked on them today (weird?) and the sauce has thickened in the fridge and I have a feeling that it would be better today.

Ok, that's it, I'm caught up. More recipes to come this week for sure. It is a certain gentleman's birthday Tuesday and a menu is currently in development.

Sauce Vierge
adapted from, Saveur #113
1/4 cup roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 tbsp. capers
12 large green olives, such as cerignola, pitted and roughly chopped
6 oil-packed (good quality!) anchovy filets, drained and finely chopped
4 cornichons, roughly chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 jalapeño, stemmed and finely chopped
1⁄2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbsp. dijon mustard
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 1/2 "-thick top sirloin steaks (about 2 lbs.)

1) On a cutting board, pile together the parsley, capers, olives, anchovies, cornichons, shallots, garlic, and jalapeño. With a large knife, finely chop and scrape the ingredients to combine.
2) Transfer the parsley mixture to a large bowl and stir in 6 tbsp. of the olive oil and the mustard with a fork to make a thick and chunky sauce. (Drizzle in more olive oil for a thinner consistency, if you like.) Season with salt and pepper. Set the sauce aside at room temperature to let rest for 30 minutes, to allow the flavors to mingle.
3) Cook the steaks to your liking. (I prefer mine with a good sear, medium rare on a cast iron skillet). Stir the sauce (it will begin to separate slightly as it sits) and spoon it over the steaks. Serve hot or at room temperature.
serves 4

Eggplant Parmesan
adapted from, Food & Wine, October 2008
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus about 2 cups for frying
1 onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, very finely chopped
Two 28-ounce cans whole, peeled Italian tomatoes, drained
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
8 small eggplants ( 1/2 pound each), cut lengthwise 1/2 inch thick [I needed about a dozen to get to the necessary 4 lbs]
3 tablespoons coarsely chopped basil
1 pound lightly salted fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced and torn into small pieces
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
3 tablespoons dry bread crumbs

1) In a large skillet, heat the 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and cook over moderate heat until tender, about 5 minutes. Using your hands, crush the whole tomatoes into the skillet. Bring to a simmer, add pepper flakes and cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is very thick, about 25 minutes. Transfer the tomato sauce to a food processor and puree until smooth. Season generously with salt and pepper.
2) Meanwhile, in a very large skillet, heat 1/4 inch of olive oil making sure to get the oil very hot. Season the eggplant slices with salt and pepper. Working in several batches, cook the eggplant over moderately high heat, turning once, until golden on both sides, about 8 minutes per batch; add more olive oil to the skillet between batches. Drain the eggplant slices on paper towels.
3) Preheat the oven to 400°. Spread 1 cup of the tomato sauce in a 9-by-13-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Arrange one-third of the fried eggplant slices in the baking dish and sprinkle all over with 1 tablespoon of the chopped basil. Top with one-third of the torn mozzarella and sprinkle with 1/3 cup of the grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. Repeat this layering twice. Sprinkle the bread crumbs all over the top of the eggplant Parmesan. Bake in the upper third of the oven for about 45 minutes, until the top of the eggplant Parmesan is golden and the tomato sauce is bubbling. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.
serves 6-8

Green Masala
adapted from, Food & Wine, October 2008
2 cups cilantro leaves
1 cup mint leaves
2 jalapeños, coarsely chopped, seeded
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 onion, finely chopped
8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (1 3/4 pounds), cut into 1-inch pieces or 1 1/2 lbs cubed lamb shoulder
1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk

1) In a blender, combine the cilantro, mint, jalapeño, garlic, lemon juice and water and puree until smooth.
2) In a large, deep skillet, heat the oil. Add the onion and cook over moderately high heat, stirring frequently, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken and turmeric and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden in spots, about 7 minutes. Add the cinnamon, cardamom and cloves and cook for 1 minute. Add the cilantro puree and coconut milk, season with salt and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat until the sauce is slightly reduced and the chicken is tender, about 15 minutes. (At this point I added a can of rinsed and drained red beans as the dish was seeming too liquidy). Serve with basmati rice.
serves 4