Vegetable Egg in a Hole

Traditional Egg in the Hole is made by cutting a hole in the middle of some bread then cracking an egg inside the hole and then simply frying it all together. Do you remember the famous breakfast scene in Moonstruck between Olivia Dukakis and Cher? I once did a post on the famous “Moonstruck Eggs”.

Well this is the low carb veggie version. I love how acorn squash looks when you slice it into rings a perfect ready made hole for your egg! Don’t bother to peel it, just carefully slice the squash into rings, take out the seeds, toss in olive oil, salt and pepper and roast in an oven at 400F for about 20 minutes, you can do this all the day before.

egg in vegetableegg in vegetable When you’re ready to cook it drizzle some olive oil in the bottom of your pan, place the squash rings inside then gently crack your egg in the middle. Cook on low heat partially covered then snip fresh rosemary on top along with freshly grated parmesan cheese, it’s a perfect flavor combination with the squash and a beautiful presentation for a special breakfast, and it’s so easy to do! Don’t worry about the peel it slips right off.
Also you can be creative and add in some pretty spinach leaves to give it some color and added deliciousness, I think you will love this!

Another great vegetable that works well is peppers of all different colors, here I used red peppers which I sliced into rings then sauteed in olive oil until tender right in the pan it only takes a few minutes, then finish cooking the egg as I did above, this was garnished with a dry Tuscan style herb mix that I have.

Everything stays contained in it’s own neat little package, and again such great flavor combinations going on here, sweet red pepper, creamy egg, olive oil and herbs!

Here’s more of a free form method I do when I have leftover veggies, put them in a pan, make a hole in the center and crack an egg right in the middle,just be careful when you slide it on to your plate you might want to add some cheese to the veggies so they stay together or better yet use individual casserole dishes so everything is contained.
Acorn squash and red peppers are everywhere right now so pick some up and give this a try I think you’re going to love it!
Have a great weekend, and Buon Appetito!
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Eggplant Stacks

This is a quick meal you can put together providing you have some roasted eggplant slices tucked away in your fridge like I usually do, but if not it still won’t take you too long to get this meal together. Great for mid week or just a lazy weekend, serve with a salad and some crusty bread and you’re good to go.

I say quick because it’s basically just all about the layering of ingredients together. How could you ever tire of buttery eggplant, fresh oozing mozzarella, creamy pesto and a light and flavorful homemade sauce? I know I can’t!

I’m still able to find really good eggplant and I hope you can too so you could make this ASAP!


Here’s what you do:
Prepare the eggplant
by cutting the tip and ends off, then stand it up and with your knife peel the skin off in a zebra fashion, striping it as you go around, leaving some skin on and taking some off. Then slice your eggplant into 3/4 inch rounds. Toss with olive oil and bake in a 450F oven until golden and tender.

Ingredients:
Fresh mozzarella
Roasted eggplant slices
Basil pesto
Marinara sauce, homemade ( it takes no time at all to make your own!)
Basil leaves
Toasted breadcrumbs and grated romano or parmesan for garnish
1. Spread sauce in a baking dish, add one eggplant slice, spread sauce on top of it along with a piece of fresh mozzarella and a basil leaf, 2. Add another eggplant slice on top and spread with pesto, 3. Add final eggplant slice, more sauce and another piece of fresh mozzarella. 4.Top with more sauce, toasted breadcrumbs and grated cheese. Repeat for as many stacks you’ll be making. 5.Bake uncovered at 375F until heated through and cheese is melted.
Have a nice weekend and Buon Appetito!
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Baking with Fruits of the Season

When it comes to baking I usually go for the more “rustic style”, nothing long and complicated for me, quick breads, muffins, one bowl whatever. I get excited when I don’t have to pull out my hand held beaters. I don’t own a Kitchen Aid and probably never will although I do like those pasta attachments!

That’s why I love making this cake, Torta di Mele, which is an Italian apple cake. Just grab a big bowl and combine:

2 Cups of flour
4 Eggs
1 Cup of canola oil
1 Cup sugar
2 Teaspoons baking powder
3 Tablespoons Amaretto liqueur
6 apples cored, sliced and tossed in the juice of one lemon

Preheat oven to 325F. Combine all ingredients in bowl and stir until smooth. Pour batter into a buttered 9 or 10 inch spring form pan and place your apple slices all around gently pressing them in as pictured above, then bake for 60 to 70 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Cool and serve at room temperature.

I love Italian plums, when I see them I’m instantly reminded of my favorite aunt and uncle who grew them proudly on their property, they’re much smaller than the standard black and red plums that we normally see, their texture is a little firmer and they hold up great in baking. My friend Stacey calls this recipe, Plum Cake for Dummies, which is right up my easy baking alley!

Italian Plum Cake

For my recipe I used the Italian plums which I sliced in half and pitted, you can use as many as you want filling the whole top of the cake if you so desire. The key to this recipe is the easy batter which consists of;

1 1/2 Cups flour
2 tsp Baking powder
1/2 Teaspoon salt
3/4 cup of sugar
1 egg
1/4 Cup canola oil
1/2 Cup milk

Cinnamon sugar to sprinkle over plums,
1 Tablespoon of sugar combined with 1 teaspoon of cinnamon.

Directions:

Mix the wet with the dry ingredients, I used my hand held mixer, then pour the batter into a buttered 8 inch square pan.
Place your plum halves on top of the batter facing cut side up, I pressed one deep into the batter and then another one directly on top of that, so I used 2 halves per section right on top of each other pressing down a bit.

Sprinkle the plum halves with cinnamon sugar and dot the top of them with 2 tbsp of butter and bake at 375F for 40-45 minutes.
This cake was super moist and great with a hot cup of french roast coffee! This would be equally good using other stone fruits or even apples, why not!

And lastly, for a nice Sunday breakfast that you can prepare the night before and pop in the oven the morning of, Baked Cranberry Apple French Toast.

Wouldn’t you like to wake up to the smell of this baking in your oven? It’s easy, here’s how you do it.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup melted butter
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 or 3 tart apples, depending on size, peeled, cored and thinly slice
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 loaf of Italian or French bread, cut into 1-inch slices
3 large eggs
3/ 4 cups milk
1 tbsp. pure vanilla
Feel free to spike it with some rum or Amaretto for extra added flavor!

Directions:
Toss apples and cranberries with brown sugar and 1 tsp. cinnamon. In a buttered 8×8-
inch baking dish arrange bread cubes on top. Mix the eggs, milk, vanilla and remaining 2 tsp. cinnamon until well blended. Pour mixture over bread, soaking bread completely. Arrange apple and cranberry mixture all over then cover and refrigerate overnight. Next morning, bake covered with aluminum foil in a preheated 375F degree oven for 30-40 minutes. Uncover and bake 5 minutes more. Remove from oven and let it stand for 5 minutes.
Serve warm, garnish with slivered almonds and serve with maple syrup!
Buon Appetito!
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