Food In Many Forms

My recipes need to be turned in next week, so I was in a scramble to find a good vegetable side dish after making some very lackluster spinach cakes. I needed more bright color, which initially made me think of spinach, but eggplant also has a beautiful color . The big issue with eggplant that I always hear is that it soaks up oil very quickly, so I reduced the olive oil from 5 tablespoons to 1 tablespoon, and it turned out great! I served it with toasted French bread and spread the eggplant mixture on top like a crostini - delicious! Ingredients 1 tablespoons olive oil 1 1 1/2-pound eggplant, unpeeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 1 medium onion, cubed 4 large garlic cloves, chopped 1 14 1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings in juice 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil Directions Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add eggplant, onion, and garlic cloves. sauté until eggplant is soft and brown, about 15 minutes. Add d...

Once I did the nutritional analysis of my original appetizer for my themed meal - a prosciutto and goat cheese salad - I knew I had to change it. It had more fat then I care to admit. So I went in the exact opposite direction and found a recipe that is amazing with minimal oil and no cheese at all. Just think how good it would be with a sprinkle of Parmesan! It was still tasty after a few days in the fridge so I had it for lunch a few days in a row. Thanks Giada! Ingredients: 8 ounces green beans, cut into 1 to 2-inch pieces (about 2 cups) 1 head Romaine lettuce, torn 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed 1/2 cup pitted black olives 1/2 red onion, cut into slivers 1 lemon, juiced 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 ounce shaved Parmesan (about 1/2 cup) Directions: Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the green beans and stir. Cook for about 2 minutes, or until beans are slightly tende...

These beans had great reviews and were promoted as great cold-weather comfort food , but although they were good, they were not AMAZING, and I am going to have to make them again before I completely decide to make these for my theme meal. First of all, they took 2 1/2 hours to cook, which may or may not have been because I kept steaming off the bean broth. Second, maybe I just don't understand how to cook dried beans, but "boiling the beans until 3/4 done " doesn't mean anything to me. I ended up just boiling them for an hour and fifteen minutes and transferring them to the other pot because I don't want them to "go soft on me", but I'm not sure why since they are going to get soft when they stew in the tomato mixture. Anyways, bitterness and confusion aside , I'm going to give the recipe another chance, and maybe with this experience under my belt (and a little google research), I can do better . Fagiuoli all'Uccelletto Prep Time: 30 minutes...