A LOCAL FARM VISIT

Near us at Weston Road and Major Mackenzie is the Mini Farm or the Vaughan Food Terminal. Barb bought her friend at work some Kale plants from this farm in the Spring. We went back today to check it out- at Barb's insistence. I could have stayed on the couch watching golf!

Lots of bushel baskets with onions, peppers, hot peppers, eggplants, potatoes and containers of squash.

Looking around it was typical of so many small farm markets this time of year.

Maybe there are some of the onions we saw a couple of weeks ago in Holland Marsh?

Barb bought a few squash, corn and some apples.

Here are Barb's squash purchases. She wanted a variety for our upcoming Thanksgiving dinner in two weeks. Barb usually likes to make 2-5 different kinds depending on who is coming for dinner. The large yellow one or spaghetti squash will be used for a casserole dish. The green ones- acorn and hubbard will be sliced and baked. The little ones will be used for decoration and eaten at a future date in a weekly dinner. I don't like squash. Perhaps if I actually tasted it I could change my mind!
#alocalfarmvisit#squash#freshvegetables#corn#apples#onions#buyingatalocalmarket

STUFFED EGGPLANT/MELANZANA ALLA PARMIGIANA

The summer harvest is in the markets. One vegetable that is plentiful is the eggplant/melanzana. You either like the vegetable or you don't. My mother used to fry it in thin slices but it absorbed so much oil, it is not a dish I make anymore. Some Italians like to slice it and put it in jars in oil to eat as an appetizer or on a sandwich throughout the year.

I use it in my veggie mix. However, one of my favourite ways to make it and Barb loves it, is stuffed.

STUFFED EGGPLANT

INGREDIENTS

Eggplant- regular or Sicilian. One eggplant makes two servings.

Garlic- 3 buds or more.

Bread crumbs- 1/2 cup per 1/2 eggplant. Some Italians like to make their own by using stale bread, made into cubes soaked in some water for moisture.

Parmesean/parmigiano cheese. Grated. Have as much as needed for the number of people you are serving.

Can of diced or whole tomatoes. You can use a fresh tomato if you want.

Olive oil.

Parsley.

Orgeano.

Salt, pepper.

DIRECTIONS

1. Wash the eggplant well.

2. Cut off the stem end. Cut the eggplant lengthwise in half. Place in a cassorole dish.

3. Scoop out the belly of the eggplant, leaving some pulp in the shell.

4. Dice the scooped eggplant. Dice the garlic buds, Chop the parsley.

5. Mix the eggplant, garlic, parsley with the bread crumbs and some olive oil-enough to make it moist. Add some oregano, salt and pepper to taste.

6. Put the mixture in the shells.

7. Add a generous portion of diced tomatoes on top. If whole tomatoes, chop into pieces to add on top.

8. Sprinkle with parmesean cheese on top of the tomatoes. Again add as much as you like to eat. Some people would also add mozarella or pecorino cheese. As a diabetic person less cheese is less calories so I do not use additional cheese.

9. Put in a preheated oven at 375 degrees.

10. Bake for about 45 minutes or until the outer shell is tender when poked by a fork.

11. When removed from the oven, let sit for awhile so it sets.

This dish is a good one to make when you are baking or making other oven dishes. Saves on energy.

As you can see the portions are big. Barb usually eats 1/2 of a piece, taking the other half to work for her lunch the next day. So one eggplant could make 4 servings if needed. Yes, it smells good when baking in the house.
#stuffedeggplant#parmigianocheese#bakingintheoven#sicilianeggplant#twokindsofeggplant#regulareggplant#buyingvegetablesatalocalfarm#cookingeggplantItalianstyle

THE ONION/LA CIPOLLA-A MUST FOR COOKING

Onions are used in cooking constantly. I don't eat an onion like I would eat a piece of fruit or a vegetable. I love fried onions- cooked in a little oil with no garlic- as a side dish on a steak or by other meat. Of course a slice of onion on a hamburger adds to the flavour!

Ordinary cooking onions are used in my sauces, soups and salads. Sometimes I buy the red onion to use in Greek Salad. Barb made a potato salad for a family event using them as a garnish on the top.

I was not impressed as I thought she put too many onions. She does not like to mix them in the salad but allows for people to decide if they want any onion or not. She thinks if the onion stays too long in the potato salad it begins to taste like onion!

Over the Labour Day weekend, we took one of our final little summer jaunts. We took a morning drive to the The Holland Marsh area north of Toronto and not very far from us.

It is a large wetland and agricultural area growing many vegetables especially carrots and onions.

There were still some onions growing in the fields ready for harvest.

On one road we saw crates of onions waiting to go to market.

The odour was quite pungent. You knew there were onions in the crates.

We stopped at one market in Bradford- the major town in the area.

I didn't buy any onions but some cauliflower and grapes. Barb wanted to make some grape jam for me- my favourite!
#cipolla#onion#goingtomarkets#granpalovestocook#adolphdimambro#onionsarepungent

CANADIAN COTTAGE FOOD WITH AN ITALIAN FLAIR

Last weekend Barb and I went to a friend's cottage on the Bruce Peninsula in Ontario. Near the small town of Wiarton on Colpoys Bay on Georgian Bay( Lake Huron). The lovely cottage had room for three couples. I prepared my sauce to put on penne, roasted peppers, rapini salad, beans from the garden and the ingredients for Greek Salad.

Barb bought the colourful bowls with lids at a kitchen store that are ideal for travelling.

The nice thing about the weekend was the lunch. Rose has Sicilian background-Southern Italy. She prepared a delicious lunch. One of the dishes- Melanzane in Carrozza/ Eggplant in a carriage was a welcome change for me.

Rose put a tomato for extra colour. The eggplant is prepared by cutting thin slices and let stand to ease out the moisture. It can be baked or fried. The trick is the mozzarella cheese in the middle. Dipped in flour, egg and then bread crumbs it can be fried or baked in the oven. So in carrozza means in a carriage. Or like a sandwich- the cheese is in the middle.

The presentation of the lunch was quite impressive.

Along with the melanzane in carrozza was a spicy Italian sausage, tossed salad and a stuffed yellow pepper. I need to share my stuffed pepper recipe sometime. It is very similar to the stuffing Rose used. I researched the internet for some recipes for the eggplant. Curious- two recipes say the dish Rose made is from Calabria and one says it is Neapolitan- from Naples. I will make it sometime and share my version of the recipe. Meanwhile we had good times eating good food. Too many cooks spoil the broth but in this case it was fun to have other cooks in the kitchen!
#cottagefood#calabriafood#melanzaneincarrozzawithaspicyItaliansausage#tossedsalad#eggplantrecipes#mozzarella#tomato