CSA Box Recipes: Week Sixteen

Posted by Cara Lynn Dohnansky on September 6, 2011 · 1 Comment 

This week in the box: tomatoes, cucumber, eggplant, summer squash, kale, chard, melon, beets, cilantro, dill and sorrel.

Grilled Eggplant Parmesan

1 1/3 c. shredded four cheese mix

1/3 c. plus 2 tbsp. thinly sliced basil

1 medium eggplant, cut lengthwise into 1/2″ thick slices

1/4 c. garlic flavored olive oil

2 tbsp. Italian style bread crumbs

8 oz. plum tomatoes, thinly sliced

2 tbsp. freshly grated parmesan

Stir cheese mix, bread crumbs and 1/3 cup basil in medium bowl to blend. Prepare barbecue (medium heat). Sprinkle eggplant and tomatoes with salt and pepper. Brush one side of eggplant slices with some oil. Grill, oiled side down, until bottom side is tender and grill marks appear, about 3 minutes. Brush second side of eggplant; turn over and top grilled side with tomatoes, then cheese mixture. Sprinkle with parmesan. Drizzle with remaining oil. Cover and grill until tomatoes are tender and cheese melts, about 7 minutes. Transfer eggplant slices to plates. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons basil and serve.

This has to be the worst eggplant parmesan recipe, ever. There is a reason that eggplant parmesan is a traditional dish that has been prepared the same way since the beginning of time. Sure this recipe tastes good, as any dish prepared with such exceptional ingredients would, but the presentation leaves something to be desired. So unsightly and gooey that I can’t bring myself to place the photo next to the recipe. In conclusion, don’t fix something that isn’t broken.

Beet, Cucumber and Sweet Onion Salad with Dijon-Honey Mustard

6 medium beets, trimmed

1/2 sweet onion, halved and sliced

4 tsp. apple cider vinegar

1/3 c. corn oil

1 lrg. cucumber, cut into 1/4″ thick rounds

4 tsp. honey

1 1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Farenheit. Wrap each beet in foil, enclosed separately. Place on rack in oven and bake until beets are tender when pierced with fork, about 1 hour 30 minutes. Cool in foil. Peel beets, then cut each into 6 slices. Arrange beets, slightly overlapping, on half of large platter. Arrange cucumber slices on other half. Scatter onion in center (Can be made 4 hours ahead; chill). Whisk honey, vinegar and mustard in a small bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in oil. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle over vegetables.

I wasn’t too sure about this concoction when I first set out to prepare it, but after putting it all together and tossing it in the dressing I felt better about it. After all, it’s very hard to mess up a salad.

Filed under Recipes · Tagged with Beet, cucumber, eggplant, salad, tomato