All 39 tomato plants in my garden are doing well. My care of them as seedlings must be paying off because now, despite my current neglect, they are producing a bumper crop of tomatoes. Pictured is one day's harvest. In my search for ways to use up tomatoes, I found Anne Tedeschi's recipe for Basic Blender Italian Tomato Sauce, and every day or so I make it. I modify it a bit by adding grated zucchini to the sauce because I'm trying to use up the zucchini in my garden also. Then I freeze the sauce in plastic bags for winter-time use.
But I've been enjoying the sauce right out of the pot too. It's great over pasta. And the other day I tried Dela Ends of Scotch Hill Farm's recipe for Easy Eggplant Cheese Casserole. Click on "Continue reading..." for the recipe.
Both of these farm recipes were published in From Asparagus To Zucchini: A guide to cooking farm-fresh seasonal produce. This cookbook is a compilation of favorite recipes by Madison, Wisconsin farmers participating in the Madison Area Community Supported Agriculture Coalition.
Here's the recipe for Easy Eggplant Cheese Casserole. It is easy; it is good, and it uses up at least 2 cups of tomato sauce! And another good thing about this recipe? - If you didn't have time to make the tomato sauce, you can use the fresh tomatoes just picked from the vine!
- olive oil
- 2 small eggplants (about 1 pound total) sliced into 1/3-inch-thick rounds
- salt and pepper
- 1 onion, sliced into rounds
- 1 red or green pepper, cut into strips
- 2 cups tomato sauce or chopped fresh tomatoes
- 3-4 Tablespoons chopped fresh basil
- 1 cup grated mozzarella and/or Parmesan cheese
Heat 2 Tablespoons oil in nonstick skillet; add eggplant and cook (in batches if necessary) on both sides until barely tender. Lay eggplant in a baking dish and season well with salt and pepper. Saute onions and pepper strips until barely tender in a bit more oil. (Alternatively, you may brush vegetables with oil and grill them.) Layer onions and peppers over eggplant. Season with salt and pepper. Cover with tomato sauce (or tomatoes) and basil. Top with cheese. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes. This can easily be increased to feed a crowd. Summer squash can be substituted or used with eggplant. Serve with a big salad, fresh bread, and goat cheese. Makes 4 servings.
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