Proud Italian Cook

Grill Up Some Eggplant This Weekend

May 28, 2010 by Marie 23 Comments

When I have a cookout or when I’m invited to one, I like to make salads and side dishes that are free from any mayonnaise base, that way I don’t have to worry about them sitting out and spoiling. Here’s 2 recipes you might want to consider while you’re grilling out this weekend. You still have time to run out and get some eggplants!

Both are great served at room temperature.

I love this grill pan I’ve had it for years, and it still works like a charm, it’s like a wok and your able to toss and evenly brown your veggies very easy on your grill. I drizzled my eggplant with olive oil, salt and pepper before I put them in my hot grill pan.

This simple salad is made with chunks of eggplant, pitted green olives, fresh parsley, capers and lemon peel, all tossed together in a fresh lemon and olive oil dressing. It actually tastes better as it sits out!

This is my new favorite eggplant salad, I’ve already made it twice. Chunks of grilled eggplant tossed with diced tomatoes, toasted baguette bread cubes, fresh torn basil and defrosted frozen corn all drizzled with a good olive oil. If your lucky enough to find frozen roasted or grilled corn, use that, it adds a nice smokey flavor, but it’s not necessary. Great at room temperature, the juice of the tomatoes, olive oil and basil flavor the chunks of crunchy bread cubes. So good!

Enjoy your holiday weekend and day off of work!

Buon Appetito!

23 Comments Filed Under: Side Dishes, Vegetables Tagged: cookout sides, grilled eggplant salads

Berry Good Desserts

May 24, 2010 by Marie 28 Comments

Here’s a few desserts that I enjoy making once the weather starts warming up. Nothing complicated here just simple and easy, quick to put together so you can enjoy the great weather.

This is equally as good with sliced strawberries so use whatever berries you like, just remember once it’s assembled it should be eaten right away.

Easy to put together with just a few store bought ingredients. I wanted to lighten mine up a bit so instead of using heavy whipped cream ( which would be amazing) I used Greek yogurt. Even the no fat version is so thick and creamy, I just love the stuff!

Take a store bought pie crust, roll it out, and with a 3 inch cookie cutter make as many rounds as you can. Place them on a baking sheet, prick them with a fork, and bake about 8-10 minutes at 400 degrees, times may vary, you just need them to be golden brown. This step could be done ahead of time and kept in the freezer until ready to use.

Next take your yogurt (or whipped cream) and fold in a dollop of good quality lemon curd, that’s really all there is to it, now just layer your stacks with the berries and lemon “cream”. Garnish with lemon zest and nuts if you like. How easy is that?

Light and refreshing, this little treat is made in minutes by warming up some orange marmalade, tossing in your berries, placing them in a pretty glass topped off with a dollup of yogurt and some toasted slivered almonds. You’ll love the combination of flavors!

BLUEBERRY TART, I’ve made this several times. I got this recipe 2 years ago from my friend Pat’s blog who got it right out of Women’s Day magazine. Pat also made this substituting the blueberries with strawberries, which I’ve yet to try, but soon will.

Don’t you think this would be a perfect ending to your Memorial Day barbecue?

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup plus 2 Tbl. flour

2/3 cup plus 2 Tbl. granulated sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, cut up

1 Tbl. white vinegar

5 cups blueberries

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp almond extract

Powdered sugar

1. Heat oven to 375°F. Spray a 9-in. square or round tart pan with a removable bottom with nonstick spray.
2. Pulse 1 cup flour, 2 Tbl. sugar and the salt in food processor until blended. Add butter; pulse until coarse crumbs form. Sprinkle with vinegar; pulse until blended. Turn out dough and bring together with fingers.
3. Press dough into bottom of tart pan. Top with 3 cups berries. Mix remaining 2 Tbl. flour, 2/3 cup sugar and cinnamon in medium bowl. Evenly sprinkle over berries; drizzle with almond extract.
4. Bake tart 50 to 60 minutes until bubbly. Remove from oven and top with remaining 2 cups blueberries. Let cool in pan on wire rack. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature.
From Woman’s Day July 8, 2008

Note: I’m not plugging store bought pie crusts, but if you’re in a hurry or you don’t feel like making your own, it’s a great substitution and a nice convenience every now and then, and guess what, it still tastes every bit of delicious!

Buon Appetito!

28 Comments Filed Under: Desserts, Fruit Tagged: berry desserts, blueberry tart

Wine Infused "Beer Can" Chicken

May 17, 2010 by Marie 40 Comments

Plopping a whole chicken on top of an open can of beer and then roasting it on a grill might sound odd but once you try it you’ll be hooked!

Beer can chicken is something I’ve been making for years, and with very little effort it always seems to come out perfect. Usually I’ll make a dry rub of several different spices like cumin, paprika, garlic, cayenne, dry mustard and brown sugar and rub that all over my bird.

But this time I wanted to try something different and use wine instead of beer, and replace the dry spice rub I with a fresh herb mixture consisting of lemon peel, garlic, red pepper flakes, thyme, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper and a drizzling of olive oil which made a nice thick paste. I rubbed the paste all over my rinsed and patted dry chicken, making sure to get it underneath the skin as much as possible, then I let it sit for a good 30 minutes.

In the meantime I opened up a bottle of wine that was room temperature, rinsed out some empty tin cans and then proceeded to pour the wine into the cans, making sure to leave a little room at the top. I used an inexpensive chardonnay which had some citrus notes, a good choice for the chicken.

You can find beer can chicken holders in many different stores and on line. There’s double and single holders, some are very fancy and some very basic, they all work well. You really don’t even need to use a holder because the chicken usually balances perfectly just right on the can, but a holder makes it easier for you to pick up and move the chicken.

Lower your chicken over the can until the can is inside the body cavity, this will insure that all the wine will infuse throughout the bird, then to make sure that the steam doesn’t escape just place a sliced onion wedge on top where the neck cavity hole is.

Having a gas grill makes it easy to regulate the heat, make sure your cooking temperature stays between 350 and 375 degrees. Depending on the size of your chicken times may vary, mine took 1 1/2 hours to reach the internal temperature of 180.
Never place the chicken on direct heat, I have 3 burners I shut the middle one off and that is where I place my chicken, the other 2 burners are on.
For charcoal grills read manufacturers suggestions for indirect heating.

Make sure you let your chicken rest for 10 to 15 minutes before cutting into it.
The result from using wine instead of beer was fantastic, the herbs infused the chicken with so much flavor, the wine made the meat so tender and moist and the skin was super crunchy, a win win situation!

For one of my sides I made Ricotta Stuffed Tomatoes. Plum tomatoes stuffed with grated cheese and basil, it went excellent with the chicken.

I got this recipe from my friend Stacey’s blog, I’ve been making them over and over, they’re that good!

I also made some Italian Potato Salad. Green beans, tomatoes, olives, red onion and potatoes all dressed with olive oil, oregano, salt, pepper and red wine vinegar.
A nice alternative to a mayo based potato salad.

I have to give a shout out to my hubby who always keeps our yard looking so good with all the flowers he plants. Next week the forecast is finally looking warm, the tomatoes and other veggies are ready to go into the ground. Stay tuned for updates!