Slow-Roasted Grape Tomato Spread

I tried this recipe for the first time towards the end of the summer, and it quickly became my favorite way to use up the grape tomatoes from my CSA boxes! The spread tasted DELICIOUS with some goat cheese and pasta! I’m so happy that I have more of this in the freezer now to last me through the winter. If you’re into trying new things, whether it be canning or making homemade almond butter or granola, you should check out Marisa McClellan’s blog over at Food In Jars. It’s one of my favorites. I have both of her cookbooks and they are amazing!

from Preserving by the Pint

Serves: makes about 1 cup, which is probably enough for about 4 servings of pasta

Time: about 40 minutes total

Ingredients:

• 1 pint grape tomatoes (which is about 12 oz, this is approximate)
• 5 garlic cloves
• 3/4 tsp dried thyme
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp fine sea salt, or whichever salt you prefer
• black pepper

Directions:

1) Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Spread the clean tomatoes onto a rimmed cookie sheet or baking dish.

2) Add the garlic cloves randomly on the dish, spread throughout the tomatoes. Sprinkle the thyme, salt, and pepper, then drizzle the olive oil over all.

3) Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the tomatoes are soft and shriveled. Take the dish out of the oven and let it cool. Then put the contents of the dish into your food processor. Pulse it until the tomatoes have become a chunky puree. You can make it chunkier or smoother to your liking.

4) To store this spread, put it in an airtight container and top it with a thin layer of olive oil. Then you can keep it in the fridge for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to a year.

5) To serve, try tossing some with pasta and goat (or your favorite) cheese, or add it to omelets. I’m sure there are many other uses for this…I’m picturing it with some chicken…but personally I thought it was fabulous with pasta!

Eggplant Pizzas

When I got the eggplant from my CSA recently, I was kind of at a loss about what to do with it. I have the great Eggplant Rollatini recipe, which I love, but I didn’t have the other ingredients I needed and I didn’t have the time or the inclination to get them. With school starting I’ve switched into quick-and-easy mode, at least during the week!! So I did a quick Google search and I came upon the idea of making mini-eggplant pizzas! They are SO quick, easy, and delish!!

Mini Eggplant Pizzas

Time: about 10 minutes prep, 20 minutes cooking

Serves: about 4 appetizer portions, depending on the size of your eggplant

Ingredients:

• 1 medium or small eggplant
• shredded mozzarella cheese (the amount is up to you, but I probably used about 3/4 cup shredded)
• tomato sauce (again, the amount will vary depending on your eggplant. Maybe 1/2-3/4 cup total)
• olive oil spray
• Italian seasoning

Directions:

1. Spray a cookie sheet with olive oil spray. Preheat the oven to 375. I tried a few in my toaster oven and some in my regular oven, and they worked well in both types. Slice your eggplant into rounds. You don’t want them to be TOO thin, because then they will be floppy and impossible to pick up. Just use a knife and slice them about 1/2 inches thick.

2. Place the eggplant slices in one layer on the cookie sheet. Bake the eggplant for about 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway.

3. Take a small spoonful of tomato sauce and spread it on each eggplant round. Sprinkle a little Italian seasoning on each.

4. Sprinkle a little (or a lot!) of shredded mozzarella on each slice.

5. Put the cookie sheet back into the oven and cook for about 6-8 more minutes, until the cheese has melted.

Enjoy!!!

 

Eggplant Rollatini

Yesterday I got home after a great vacation at Edisto Beach in South Carolina. It was so nice to be at the beach for a week! We got to enjoy lots of great seafood and Southern specialties. I got a couple little cookbooks so I’m excited to try out some new recipes soon.

Growing up, I was never a fan of eggplant. Then one day I tried eggplant rollatini and realized how great it can be! This recipe is originally by Gina at Skinnytaste. I made this before vacation with my CSA eggplant. It tastes great and also freezes well! Depending on the size of your eggplants, you may get a few more or fewer pieces. One time I made this, I had some filling left over. I froze it and then the next time I had an eggplant, I defrosted it and made a batch of rollatini. It worked so well that next time I may just double the filling ingredients and freeze half for later!

Served alongside some fried veggies!

Serves: about 5 (2 pieces each)

Time: about 30 minutes prep time, 60 minutes bake time

Ingredients:

• 1 large eggplant, cut longways into around 10 1/4-inch strips (If your eggplant is on the smaller side, get 2!)
• salt & pepper
• 1 1/2 cups marinara sauce
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup part skim ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese
• 8 oz frozen spinach, heated and then squeezed well (I use paper towels to help get out as much liquid as possible)
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1) To slice the eggplant: Cut the ends off the eggplant and then slice into 1/4 in. strips. This is probably easiest to do using a mandoline, but you can use a knife too.

2) Put the eggplant slices onto a couple of baking sheets. Sprinkle with salt. Let them sit for about 10-15 minutes and then soak up the moisture with paper towels.

3) Sprinkle the eggplant with a little more salt and some pepper, and bake at 400 degrees for about 8 minutes. You want the eggplant to be softened so you’ll be able to roll them, but you don’t want them totally cooked yet.

4) In a bowl, mix the egg, ricotta and Parmesan, spinach, garlic, plus 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper.

5) Get ready to make the rollatini! Spread 1/4 cup marinara in your baking dish. Dry off your eggplant slices again. For each slice of eggplant, take 2 tbsp filling and spread out all along the slice. Then roll them up, starting at the narrowest side of the slice. Lay each slice seam side down in the dish. Repeat for all your eggplant. If you have a few smaller slices, go ahead and put some filling on those too!

6) Spread the rest of the marinara all over the rollatini. Sprinkle with the mozzarella. Cover with foil or a lid, if your dish has one.

7) Bake at 400 degrees for 60 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!