Ah, house guests. It seems we both have been invaded by this curious breed of human, though it sounds like y'all have had a great time. My parents and my little brother, as you heard, have been in town from Texas since Friday evening, and J and I have had a whirlwind couple of days filled with food, copious walking, and more food. I've just put my feet up to check my email for the first time in what seems like days, and I'm glad to have a new letter from you to read.
We have had a few meals out, though of course I always want to impress my parents and show them that not only am I a grownup (in some ways, anyway - at breakfast this morning, I managed to spill coffee and two separate bites of omelette on my white shirt, causing both my mother and J to shake their heads sadly at me), but that I can cook like one too.
My mother, like yours, is so experienced in the kitchen that it's intimidating to cook for her or around her, while my father's palate is both sensitive and not easily impressed. My brother, who is about to be 13, is just beginning to venture outside the safe realm of burgers and peanut butter sandwiches.
I wanted to make something consisting of ingredients I know they like, but also a little more unique than their usual at-home fare. This eggplant pizza was quick and simple enough to make and looked fancy enough that they were suitably impressed, though, much to my dismay, unsurprised that I knocked over a salt shaker and almost tripped and fell in the process of serving it.
Eggplant, Tomato, and Goat Cheese Pizza (adapted from Gourmet)
1 package Afghan flat bread (available at most Middle Eastern grocers), though naan or the equivalent would work too
6 oz. provolone cheese, sliced into matchstick looking things
2-4 oz. goat cheese, crumbled (basically about less than half a handful)
1 roma tomato, sliced into thin rounds
1 purple eggplant, sliced into 1/2 inch-thick rounds
1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
sea salt
olive oil
Heat oven to 325, then eason one side of eggplant rounds with a few grinds of sea salt.
Heat some (about 2 tbs.) olive oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat. When hot, place eggplant, salt side down, in pan. Salt the other side. Flip over when oil has soaked through eggplant, and the flesh has started to soften.
Place rounds on a baking sheet covered with foil (easy cleanup!), and cook in oven for 15-20 minutes. The eggplant should be fairly squishy when you take it out.
While the eggplant is cooking, mix garlic with roughly a tablespoon of olive oil. With a brush or knife, spread over top of the flat bread until garlic is evenly spread out.
Allow cooked eggplant to cool for about 10-15 minutes. Place rounds on top of flat bread until surface is evenly covered. Sprinkle with provolone cheese. Scatter the tomato rounds on top of cheese layer, then finish with a few sprinkles of goat cheese.
Bake in oven for 15 minutes. The crust should be crunchy but still soft.
Here's a picture (our blog's first one, yay!) of the end result, courtesy of my brother:
I like to eat my pizza drenched with as many red pepper flakes as possible, while I'm sure others prefer to keep their stomach linings intact.
Oh, I wanted to tell you - you helped me break my stir fry curse! I tried your recipe, and J loved it. The beef was tender, the asparagus crisp, and the sauce drinkable. We had no leftovers, quite the opposite from my aforementioned mushy asparagus debacle.
I hope you get a chance to rest and get back to your normal routine - I know I must be getting old, because I get downright crotchety when my routine (such as it is) is disrupted.
Sausage and sauerkraut sounds like the perfect winding down meal - what else have you got planned for the week?
Love,
Tia Fia
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