vegetables

Time to start putting all those great veggies from your garden to work with some easy recipes gathered from family and friends! I got inspired to pull together a few of my own after traveling to Vermont this past week and sampling fresh-out-of-the-garden recipes from our friends Judie and Bob and our host at the Eddington House Inn, a bed-and-breakfast where we stayed in North Bennington.

At the Eddington House Inn, a beautiful Federal style home built in 1857, we woke up to eggs put under the broiler with fresh-grated parmesan cheese and green onions. The handled ramekin was set on a plate and curved along the outside were three slices of vine-ripe tomatoes from the nearby Grandma Moses Schoolhouse at the Bennington Museum. Very simple, but verrrrry delicious.

Then, at Bob and Judie's in Shaftsbury, we were treated to a lunch of chilled gazpacho and herbed chicken and tuna salads with slices of a low-acid, orange heirloom tomato grown from seed (from Harris Seeds). It got even better at dinner, with stacks of grilled eggplant with mozzarella-tomato-basil (marinated in balsamic dressing) and green beans with feta and slivered almonds (see recipes below). Yum!

Judie's gazpacho

Heriloom tomatoes from Harris Seeds

And wouldn't you know it? When I got home, I found myself in the kitchen of my Italian neighbor, Rosalia, who delighted in showing me some of her garden-fresh recipes. Here's a pic (left to right) of her homemade tomato sauce, pickled eggplants and caponata - recipes below).

Rosalia's tomato sauce, pickled eggplants and caponata

It all inspired me to use more of the veggies from my own garden, sneaking tomatoes and onions into my grilled cheese, trying to recreate the Eddington House eggs and even making my own salsa. Here's the "Tuscany Bread" I made with just plain 'ol slices of leftover white bread, grated mozzarella and Early Girl tomatoes out of my garden. After I took them out of the oven, I squeezed lemon juice on them (a trick I learned from my days of working at Pizzeria Uno, which once offered "Tuscany Bread" as an appetizer. They added basil on the top, too. Wish I had some, but the bread still went over big with my picky 3-year-old and meat-and-potatoes husband!

My fancy "Tuscany Bread" 

Judy's garden recipes

Gazpacho

4 – 5 tomatoes  (red, orange/yellow or a mix)

1 large cucumber

1 green pepper

¼ - ½ onion, depending on taste

2-4 cloves of garlic (more if you’d like)

Cilantro (fresh if possible) – at least ¼ cup

Lemon juice (to taste – at least 1 tablespoon)

Hot or chipotle sauce, salt & pepper to taste

Chop cucumbers, tomatoes and onion into large chunks and then place in food processor with other ingredients, pulsing until nicely chopped.   Add in more lemon, salt, pepper, hot sauce & cilantro to taste.

If your tomatoes and/or cucumbers are dry, add in some tomato juice or V8 juice for a soupier consistency.   You can also add more cucumbers if you’d like (or need to get rid of them!)

Grilled Eggplant with tomato-basil-mozzarella

1 good sized, firm eggplant

2-3 tomatoes (depending on size)

Fresh mozzarella cheese

Fresh basil and chives

Olive oil

Balsamic vinegar dressing (Newman’s Own or just a mix of one-third balsamic vinegar and two-thirds olive oil.)

Heat grill and while it’s heating:

Slice eggplant into 1 ½ - 2   inch thick slices (rounds).   Brush with olive oil on both sides.

Slice tomatoes so that you have an equal amount of tomato slices to place on each eggplant round.

Slice mozzarella (if not already pre-sliced) – enough for one piece on each eggplant round.

Once grill is hot, place eggplant slices on the grill, making certain to turn as needed so that they don’t burn.  Generally they cook in a few minutes. 

Remove from grill and place in flat dish/platter. Immediately add slices of mozzarella on top of each eggplant piece.

Top with tomato, chopped basil and chives to taste and then pour a small amount of balsamic dressing over entire platter.   Can be stored at room temp for an hour or so; otherwise refrigerate and bring to room temp before serving.  

Making in advance:  If you don’t have time (or space on the grill) to do this just prior to your meal, you can prepare and grill the eggplant in advance, and then refrigerate until ready to prepare the entire dish.   To finish the dish,  heat your grill, place eggplant on the grill then turn it off. Place mozzarella on eggplant and close grill lid; leave on grill for about 3-5 minutes until the cheese gets soft but not melted.   Remove from grill, place on platter and add tomato slices and other ingredients.

Green beans with feta and slivered almonds

Fresh green beans  (approximately 2 -3  cups)

Feta cheese –crumbled  (approximately ¼ - ½ cup)

Slivered almonds  (approximately ¼ cup)

Place fresh, rinsed green beans in a microwave-safe glass dish and heat on High for 3-5 minutes, depending on amount of green beans and how well you like them cooked.  Remove from microwave, drain any remaining water, sprinkle with feta cheese to taste, and top with slivered almonds.  Add pepper (or garlic pepper) to taste.

Rosalia's garden recipes

Tomato sauce

Any kind of tomatoes (although many people prefer the meatier Romas)

Cook tomatoes with onions, garlic, celery and other herbs to taste. Pass through hand strainer (or put in blender or food processor). Put in pan and boil again. Add salt and black pepper if desired. Warm canning jars in oven for 15 minutes at 100 degrees and fill up with hot sauce. Put on thick lids and let jars rest upside down (to form a good vacuum seal) for a few days (put a towel underneath and on top of jars to protect table and help keep the heat in). Can be stored indefinitely.

Pickled eggplant

Slice eggplant (use the thin, long kind and pick when young and tender). Cut into thick slices, sprinkle with salt and let sit 4 to 6 hours. Squeeze solution out of egglant and discard solution. Put eggplant slices in jar, then add white vinegar (4 or 5 cups) and 2 cups water. Let sit for 24 hours in open jar and squeeze eggplant slices again. Put eggplant back in jar with oregano, garlic and olive oil to taste. Let stand for one hour. Can also be stored indefinitely. Great for antipasto, sandwiches or as a topping/side for broiled steak or chops.

Caponata

Slice up four eggplants (long and skinny ones, picked when young and tender). On stove in a saucepan, mix together 1/2 cup vinegar and 1/4 cup sugar. Let them melt together. Then add chopped eggplant, celery, onions, capers and Italian green olives to taste. Great as a main entree, brushchetta or pasta topping.

Spring is that iffy time of year … warm days and garden center plant displays make you want to get outside and start gardening right away. But is it too early to sow seeds or plant/transplant seedlings or starter plants outdoors? Too late? Well, in the interest of low-maintenance, easy-care gardening – even now in the planning and planting stage – here's a zone map and planting guides from Burpee that can help:  

(Just in case you can't see the color key on this map too well, grey means a last frost/outdoor planting date of June 15; purple June 5; green May 25; yellow May 15; red April 26; beige April 3; orange March 3 and peach February 25.)

Unless you live in the colder areas with a last frost/outdoor planting date of June 5 or later, it might be too late to start seeds for the flowers and vegetables listed above (broccoli, eggplant, pepper, swiss chard, tomato, coleus, geranium, impatiens, salvia and snapdragon). That's because the general rule of thumb is that seeds sown indoors should be started about eight weeks before the last frost date in their area. Otherwise, they won't be ready in time. It's probably a safer bet, if you want to grow these veggies, to buy starter plants at the garden center. On the other hand, I hate rules – and in the garden, they can – and will – be broken.

If it's not already past your area's last frost date (see map), you can go ahead and direct-sow these seeds into the ground outside. If you live in a warm area, however, you can still grow these veggies in a cold frame protected by a shading material like burlap.

After your area's last frost date (see map above), transplant into the ground outside the following seedlings (grown indoors or bought from the garden center): bean, cantaloupe, cucumber, eggplant, pepper, squash, tomato, watermelon. Seedlings grown by you indoors, by the way, first need a week or two to "harden off." Not sure how to do this? Check out this great post on how to harden off plants by About.com's Gardening Guide, Marie Iannotti.

Hope this helps! For planting and weather information that's more specific to your area, it's also a good idea to contact your local agriculture or horticulture extension office. See you here next time on Your Easy Garden by Tesselaar!