Coming Back

I promise, today, that I will be back. I've been looking at this blog all semester, daunted by a 5th class I took on as an "overload." (Why didn't I think that if the UNIVERSITY calls it an OVERLOAD, that somehow I wouldn't feel OVERLOAD-ED?)



Anywho, I've got some new ideas "proofing" (yes, that's a self-aggrandizing metaphor), related to gardening (I've got a teeny one!) and recipes in line with seasonal items available at the farmer's market. In fact, I think I'm going to move quite closer to the food aspect of this blog, at least for awhile, and insert whatever "Teachable Moments" I can find--whether business, communication, or life-skills. I'm constantly discovering and wanting to share, and quite frankly I think that's the whole impetus for teaching, right? Just looking to convey what we know and love to those who care to listen...

Recipe Revision - Layered Eggplant, Zucchini, & Tomato Casserole

So I have to admit I've been saving this one for a "rainy day" though that's a bit of an oddity in Phoenix.

I found this recipe about a month ago in Food & Wine magazine for Layered Eggplant, Zucchini, & Tomato Casserole




The recipe immediately struck my eye, since I've completely changed my work schedule at the cafe for "Farmer's Market Therapy" (as I like to call it), and there's one guy there with the most AMAZING zucchini. I'm talking zucchini bigger than my forearms, some bigger than the hubby's forearms (and he's 6'5"!)! It is the sweetest, fleshy-est goodness and has become a quintessential summer favorite in the Donhauser household.

Needless to say, I buy it religiously and found this to be a great way to showcase the texture and flavor of a beautiful veggie.

The original recipe is good, though I think it's a great "base" for vegetable casseroles that can serve as a light, one-dish summer meal. When I made the original recipe, I found it to be a bit "wet" (unlike some of the other reviewers), probably because of the fabulous squash. I tend to find that store bought squash seem dried out, so I also try to keep what I do buy in the more-humid fruit drawer in my fridge. (Though now that I think about it, I'm probably caught in the age-old vegetable/fruit debate. Anyone? What's a squash, really? Ha.)

Since there's an easy link, I won't repeat the original recipe here, but I'll start with my revision.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing and brushing
1 large zucchini (1 pound), sliced lengthwise 1/4 inch thick
2 long, narrow eggplants (1 1/2 pounds), peeled and sliced lengthwise 1/3 inch thick
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 large shallot, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound plum tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch dice
8 ounces greek yogurt
1/4 cup chopped basil
1 cup panko breadcrumbs

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425°. Oil 2 large rimmed baking sheets. Put the zucchini slices on one sheet and the eggplant on the other. Brush the slices all over with oil and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the slices on each sheet in a slightly overlapping layer. Bake for 15 minutes, until tender.
2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add the shallot and garlic and cook over moderate heat until softened, 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook over high heat until slightly softened and bubbling, 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Oil a large, shallow baking dish (about 10 by 15 inches). Lay half of the eggplant in the dish and spread one-fourth of the tomatoes on top. Top with one-third of the greek yogurt (in spoonfuls). Sprinkle with one-fourth of the panko and basil. Layer all the zucchini on top, followed by another one-fourth of the tomato and one-third of the panko and basil. Layer with the remaining eggplant. Top with the remaining tomato, greek yogurt, and basil. Mix the remaining panko with the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil and sprinkle over the casserole. Bake in the upper third of the oven for 20 minutes, until bubbling and crisp. Let stand for 5 minutes, then serve hot or warm.

Ultimately, you can play around with this recipe in innumerable ways. The ingredients above also reflect more eggplant than the way I made the revised recipe originally, as it tends to release less water into the bottom of the casserole (and I love roasted eggplant, period). You could use other squashes, add some chilies for a kick, or even use just a single veggie if your garden is only singularly prolific.

Also, as an end note, the greek yogurt revision was, in all honesty, a last-minute substitution. I spaced on feta, coming home without such a necessary ingredient, and looked for anything remotely dairy and mediterranean lurking in my fridge. I lucked out as the greek yogurt ended up basting the diced tomatoes in a creamy-dreamy goodness that no feta could have ever imagined. I'd also recommend a ricotta substitute (maybe with a bit of nutmeg?), and perhaps also a parmesan-panko mix on top if you like the extra cheese (please!).

All in all, this is a fail-safe, (vegetarian, even) summer dish that reheats amazingly when it's 118 outside and you can't imagine cranking up the oven again!

Food, Inc., Lesson Plans, & Special Offers

I had the opportunity this weekend to see the new film Food, Inc.

While I have to say the "cast" involves many of my favorite "major players" in the local, non-industrialized food movement, I can't say the movie was much more than, well, preaching to the choir.



The movie brings up this issue, that the viewers of the film are people who are worried about our food supply. The viewers are NOT like the limited-income family shown in the film, who buy from the McDonald's Dollar Menu since you can get a burger for the price of a pear or two. I'm afraid of my food. That's why I try to frequent the Phoenix Farmer's Market, actually telling my restaurant employer I don't want to work Saturdays so I can visit the market. (Not surprisingly, they continue to buy, oh, 99% of their offerings from distant, commercial, and thus industrialized sources. This is not uncommon, even among restaurants of the highest quality and price point.

I don't want to watch a movie with questions. I want one with answers. About as close as it got was the final, word based call-to-action about "what you can do to support this movement." The rest was more shots of sad animals in slaughter houses, contrasted with Joel Salatin's happy little pigs in rural Virginia. I grew up near rural Virginia. I saw "free-range cows" that my uncle raised. Also not surprisingly, he farmed tobacco, too, but now these fancy cows are worth more than the former cash crop.

I was very interested in this movie, though, as a possible teaching tool. I've really considered trying to put together a freshman composition course about food. Not as in, "I want to teach you about food writing," but as in "I want to teach your about food, and I want you to write about what you learn." I think that this film could be an interesting entree into some of the "key players" I discuss. I also think it can give the graphic imagery that, were I to show on slides, would look like proselytizing. Something about the fact that it's a mass media movie makes it so much more believable. Geez. (Yeah. That's what I'm up against in comp class!)



Assignment Idea #1

Pick a processed food you love. It can be from the grocery store or fast food chain. Just make sure you didn't make it, and that it came to you ready to eat (i.e., no heating necessary). Find the list of ingredients on the packaging or at the chain's website. Make a numbered list of these ingredients, in order of appearance. For each ingredient give a brief 100 word description of what the ingredient is, what it does, where it comes from, and additional information that shocks or delights you. After creating this "annotated ingredients list," write a short introduction (1st paragraph) that describes the product as you FIRST saw it as just a consumer (literally, an eater) and a short conclusion (last paragraph) that describes the produce as you NOW see it, based on what it's ACTUALLY made of as an "informed consumer" (what the label is SUPPOSED to communicate to you, but probably didn't, since you had to look up most of the ingredients). You will need to do outside research for this assignment for any terminology/ingredient that is unfamiliar to you.

Try this with your favorite guilty pleasure and get back to me. Anyone who posts a response, I'll trade you a handmade baked good of your choosing, made with ingredients you can recognize, many of which will be locally produced.