The Versatile Chef

When I was a kid, I pretty much took life, and all that it had to offer, for granted. The fact that I lived in a nice little house, in a nice little neighborhood was a given. Routines came easily. I walked to school every day with the same set of friends, and my family sat down to dinner each night around the same time. Looking back...those routines were like a beautiful set of jewels!

Something I also took for granted was Mama Melisi's versatility in the kitchen! To this day, this is a sharp contrast to my culinary skill, which is extremely limited. I tend to shop for the same things in the supermarket...and cook the same meals for dinner! In fact, the only time I ever changed my actual route through the aisles of Publix Supermarket, was when they closed my store of fifteen years! Once in the "new and improved" Publix, I felt tortured and dyslexic, as I hopelessly searched for my usual boring items!

In contrast, when Mama Melisi shops, it's always a whole new adventure! Encompassing a wide array of ingredients, her list of meals is endless, and she can take one food item, and prepare it in several ways!

Take, for example, eggplant. When one thinks of eggplant, the probable preparation that comes to mind is the Italian Parmigiana version...thin slices fried up, and smothered in sauce and mozzarella cheese. Not so for Mama Melisi! I could give you at least five different ways she makes eggplant. The only given, was picking it fresh out of the garden. The outcome, however, was always a surprise!

During those northern summer months, imagine how she fired it up on the grill, enhancing the flavor, and serving it with a multitude of other grilled veges! Or, pucker up your lips and let some pickled eggplant penetrate your taste buds...just enough vinegar and garlic cloves in the jar! She also would dice it up into delightful and sneaky little chunks, well camouflaged by the fresh marinara sauce! Or she stuffed it good with ricotta cheese, and treated us to eggplant rollatini! Finally, we always loved her eggplant parmigiana...never fried, but delicately baked, and light as a feather! I remember a family member recently experiencing this for the first time, and labeling it Eggplant Souffle!

As an adult, I now delight in her versatility...never taking it for granted. And although my trips to Publix are still rather dull, I do venture into unknown waters by trying out some of these recipes myself! However, if all else fails, the Versatile Chef still frequents South Florida on a regular basis, takes over my kitchen, and cooks up a storm for whoever walks through the door!

Today, we offer you Mama Melisi's Eggplant Parmigiana...whether you pick it fresh from your garden, or find it in the produce aisle, we offer you the recipe with love!

From Mama Melisi and Me

Eggplant Parmigiana

Ingredients:

l large eggplant (make sure it is firm)
Italian flavored breadcrumbs
Flour
2 Eggs
Pam Olive Oil Spray
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Pecorino Romano Grating Cheese
Black Pepper
Parsley
Marinara Sauce (recipe taken from blog 1 - "A Pot of Sauce")

Preparation:

Peel eggplant - hold eggplant upright and peel from the top to bottom (much easier this way)
Slice about 1/4 inch in thickness and set aside
Mix 1 cup Italian flavored bread crumbs with 1/2 cup flour
Take 2 eggs in a flat type bowl, and scramble with a fork
Add 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, a little chopped parsley, and a tablespoon of grated cheese
Mix well

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Line 2 cookie sheets with aluminum foil and spray with Pam Olive Oil Spray

Take each slice of eggplant and swish in the egg mixture
Next coat slices with flour mixture and place on cookie sheets
Drizzle olive oil over the eggplant slices lightly
Place in oven after all of the eggplant is prepared and bake for 45 minutes
(No need to turn...remove and cool a bit)

Get a casserole baking dish and cover bottom with marinara sauce
Place eggplant slices on the bottom
Add some sauce to the eggplant
Sprinkle with your grating cheese and layer until you have used all of the eggplant
Top with more grated cheese

Bake for 45 minutes in a 350 degree oven

Bueno Apetito!