My Husband Proof Eggplant Parmesan

Well, the title is pretty straight forward. I love eggplant parmesan! I didn't like eggplants before but starting liking them last year and now, I always have some in the fridge. The only problem: David doesn't. So, in order to pass through the batch I had and didn't want to waste, I decided to put a twist on the recipe: small pieces, meat and mixed with pasta :)

The eggplant parmesan (Melanzane alla parmigiana) is a traditional italian dished made with tomato sauce, eggplant (usually fried with batter but I roast it to make it less greasy), mozzarella and, obviously, parmesan cheese. Basically, it's a veggie lasagna noodle-free.

So, here is my version:

Meat & Eggplant Pasta Parmesan

Ingredients:

2 eggplants
500grs pasta (I used penne)
500grs ground beef
1 or 2 green onions
1 can of tomato sauce
mozzarella cheese
parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
garlic powder
parsley
oregano
oil


In a large pot, add some water and salt and bring to a boil.

Dice the eggplant and onion.

In a large pan, heat some oil. When ready, add the eggplant and onion.

Sweat for a few minutes until tender.

Add the meat.

Cook until the meat is browned. Add the tomato sauce.

At this point, add the pasta to the water and cook. Drain it and keep it aside. If it is finished before the sauce, add a bit of oil to prevent it from sticking together.

Add the seasonings (garlic powder, parsley, oregano and any others). Cook for about 15 minutes.

Add the sauce to the pasta.

Mix well.

Pour the pasta into an oven dish.

Add the mozzarella and parmesan cheese.

Broil at hight until crispy.

Yum Yum Yummy! David did sort of complain about the tiny pieces of eggplant but he ate the whole thing :) Mission accomplished!

Enjoy :)

After more than a month, time to catch up!

Life has been pretty hectic lately. Let's just say that managing full time job, full time MBA and full time wife can be quite challenging. I also went on a lovely vacation week with 2 of my really good friends to Vienna, Budapest, Bratislava and Prague in December (post to come later) and then holidays came rolling in with the parties, suppers, dinners, cooking, going over... You all know the drift!

Well, I'm back! Since David went to visit his grandma for her birthday, I decided to take advantage of my before last day without class to: update my blog!

I have these recipes saved up from a few months ago (insert shame look here). 2012 resolution: Do not get backtracked on recipes (or not for long at least). Many things will be happening in 2012 that will change the course of our lives and I want at least a few things to remain :).

David also surprised me with our little new baby brother for Santo (for those late in the news, Santo was killed on our holiday to La Manga last September as he was hit by a car on a pedestrian walk next to David): Alas. More to come on him as he grows up and learns to cohabit with us :) A little ball of fur wonder and energy!

So here goes another seafood meal. I used a few elements that I had never cooked with before: Knives, very similar to clams but long and necoras, small crabs. Just couldn't resist the great prices at the market :)

Navajas (Knives)

Ingredients:

1kg navajas
2 garlic cloves
parsley
lemon juice
oil

In a large bowl, rinse and let rest the navajas in cold water (to remove the extra sand).

Drain.

In a small bowl, mix the garlic, oil, lemon juice and parsley together.

In a pan, heat a bit of oil. When ready, add the navajas. They will open fairly quickly with the heat. As they cook, add some of the mixture.

Remove from the pan when all have opened. If you have some extra mixture, add it to the dish as well as the pan juices.

Serve hot


Arroz con necoras y gambas (Small crab and shrimp rice)

Ingredients:

1kg necoras
200grs shrimps
2 green peppers
1 leek
2 garlic cloves
2 cups round rice
oil
5 cups broth
2 bay leaves
2 tbsps paprika
salt and pepper
parsley
oil

First, let's prepare the necoras. Look at those!

In a large pot, heat some water. When boiling, add salt and bay leaves. Add the necoras.

Cook for about 10 minutes.

Remove from the water.

In the meantime, dice the pepper, leek and garlic.

Using a large pan or paellera, heat some oil.

When ready, add the veggies.

Sweat for a few minutes.

Add the shrimps and paprika.

Add the broth (I used the necoras water miam!) and rice.

When boiling, add the necoras. I sliced mine in halves so it would be easier to plate since I had so many!

Cook until the broth is almost absorbed fully. Remove from heat and cover with paper for 5 minutes.

All ready to eat and awesome presentation.

And the other side of the plate where we can actually see some rice ;)

Buen provecho!