My First Love

Who was your first love?

Most people can answer that question readily. Some have married their first love; some are married to him/her still.

I recently saw an ad for a reality tv show about getting back your first love. (Which pretty much sums up the state of our country and culture, I guess. Non-reality.)

My first love was eggplant. My second was my Mother's lasagna.

My husband came much, much later.

Eggplant. What's not to love? So plump, so firm, such a gorgeous deep, rich purple color.

It's majestic!

I will eat eggplant in any way, shape, or form, but my favorite and most loved is (natch) the most fattening: fried in slices.

This doesn't work out well for me at all.

My second fave is what Ma (my Grandmother) used to make: stuffed eggplant.

There are no recipes for the old time dishes we make, so bear with me.

She cut an eggplant in half, lengthwise.

She scooped out the 'meat', leaving the skin- like you would a squash.

She'd throw that which I affectionately refer to as 'the guts', cubed, into a pan with a little sauteed garlic and oil, and cook it until it was soft. This is not a dish for al dente eggplant.

halfway there!

Now you're cooking with gas! (My other Grandmother's line. Cracked me up.)

Finished. Rather mushy looking, isn't it?

Eggplant reeeeally likes oil, and soaks it up fast. Keep adding water, and keep the pan covered once the oil is absorbed. Don't let it scorch. Season with salt and pepper when done. Then add fresh parsley.

Now: the world of possibility opens up.

I have, at this point, eaten it from the pan with a spoon.

But, that's me.

I have thrown it over pasta, with some ricotta. Oh, yes. It's good.

I've mixed it into risotto, with tons of fresh parsley. And once with truffle oil, but only because somebody gave it to me.

I've added it as a layer to lasagna. It negates some of the calories. Yes, it does.

Ma would take that pan, though, and let it cool. Then she'd add 2 eggs, a handful of grated Romano, and a handful of breadcrumbs, and mix it all together.

Then she'd take that and fill the two halves of the eggplant skin, and bake it until it was nice and brown.

Now.

She cooked it in the skin, because the skin is good for you.

There's vitamins and such in that skin, she'd say, when I wrinkled my nose up at it.

And she wouldn't let me up from the table until that skin was gone.

Don't tell Ma, but I don't eat the skin anymore. In fact, I don't even use it- I peel the eggplant, throw the skin in the compost bin, and cook the 'stuffing' in a greased baking dish.

And my kids LOVE it!

But you should try it in the skin. It is good for you, though it is bitter.

If you gag, or your kids look like they might be plotting your premature death, peel the skin next time. (BTW, the skin does not flavor the cooked 'stuffing' after baking.)

I buy a luscious eggplant or two every time I leave the island.

Today I cooked it, as usual, into my favorite 'stuffing', but only put half the mixture into the baking dish.

Then I took a pound of ricotta, mixed it with an egg, salt, pepper,parsley, grated cheese, and 2cups of shredded mozzarella. (Recognize the filling for lasagna?)

I spread that over the eggplant layer.

I topped it with the rest of the eggplant.

I topped that with some gravy (tomato sauce) and a handful of shredded mozzarella.

It was completely calorie-free and healthy.

NOT.

But I'm pretty sure it can bring about World Peace.

Stowaways

I heard some squabbling outside my window.

Thinking it was the kids, I stepped outside, to see what mischief they'd gotten into.

There's always mischief.

Well, Hello, Ladies.

You're cute, and it's really funny that you're here...but if there had been anything planted in there...you'd be dinner.

This is why, when we are asked to chicken-sit, egg production comes to a screeching halt.

We often have visitors.

I'm pretty sure it's the cooking smells coming from my kitchen.

This guy made it all the way into my mudroom before I realized he was there.

I thought it was a kid.

I was having a whole conversation with him, when he grunted.

Luckily for me, I don't have bladder-control issues.

I am developing the habit of chasing my visitors off with a wooden spoon, which doesn't bode well for my two-legged neighbors!

Do Fish Have Balls?

Fish balls.

It's what's for dinner!

I don't know who came up with these babies, but we've had them since I was a kid, and I've never met anyone who didn't like them.

I stumbled into this recipe the other day. I knew immediately that I could not live without them, and raided the freezer to see what lurks in its depths for fish.

I found haddock. SCORE!

By the time it defrosted, I had a mutiny on my hands.

We haven't had these for a while, and it seems my crew was all about Fish Balls With Gravy (Tomato sauce).

Period.

No amount of threatening bribery would sway them.

So gravy (sauce) it was.

Fish Balls look exactly like meatballs. Sub ground fish for ground meat.

What's not to love?

My Margarita Machine (aka blender) came with this how-did-I-ever-live-without-it food processor attachment.

Cut your fish into chunks, and grind.

I used haddock this time. I've used cod and hake, and once a wolf fish (man, are they ugly!)

I tried salmon once. They never made it to the gravy. They were better suited as fish cakes, with different ingredients. White-fleshed fish works here. Darker, stronger fish wants to be the star of the show.

Everything looks disgusting ground up. Except chocolate.

Mix the ground fish with your favorite meatball ingredients. We do eggs, fresh parsley, grated cheese (the only time you'll see fish and cheese in the same dish in my house!), and a handful of breadcrumbs.

This was 2lbs of fish, 3 eggs, a handful of parsley, and about 1/3c of grated cheese.

Add small amounts of breadcrumbs; as with meatballs, too much makes them tough. I mix this with my hands, to judge. When it sticks together well, it's enough. I used close to 1 cup of breadcrumbs.

I seasoned these with pepper only. The reason? That grated cheese is pretty salty (I use fresh Romano). I find that I am better off adding it at the end when the balls are cooked, when I can taste them.

Form into these lovely perfect balls. Your hands were already dirty anyway.

I could have eaten that whole tray.

Well, maybe not in one sitting. Maybe, though.

Hmmm. Yes, probably.

Darn it, I really wanted to try that recipe! It is, after all, what inspired the craving to begin with. (Next time.)

But the mutiny will continue into school vacation week. I don't have the stamina to listen to whining for that amount of time.

And so into the gravy they went.

You add these to whatever tomato sauce recipe you prefer. I go from scratch, but only because I know no other way.

I had a lot going on, and actually baked these at 10pm. the gravy (sauce) I'd already made on the stove top, so I threw the whole mess into the crockpot and let it cook all night.

And I drooled onto my pillow all night.

I can't tell you how good it smelled.

I heard my son get up three times, and had to yell at him to NOT TOUCH THE CROCKPOT-IT"S HOT!

I would have had ten less fish balls in the morning if I hadn't heard him.

He ate five over the course of the day, including three for dinner.

This dish is really about the gravy (sauce). White-fleshed fish is mild to begin with, and once cooked in the gravy imparts just a hint of fish flavor. (Not to be confused with 'fishy'.) The texture of the fish balls mimics meatballs.

One of our favorite dishes, this is a nice break from the ubiquitous Friday Night Fish fry during lent, or baked Fish Sticks.

p.s. The Big Guy said Fish Do Not Have Balls.

So now you know.