Individual Oven Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Looks simple enough, right?  I made up this Oven Baked Eggplant Parmesan recipe because I wanted individual eggplant Parmesan that didn't absorb lots of olive oil.  Eggplant is like a sponge and if you cut it and immediately cook it, you'll have to use lots of oil.  When you salt it before cooking and let the water drip out, it will cook without much oil at all.  If you are short of time, this is a good alternative.

Preheat Oven to 375.  Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.  To 2 flat bottom bowls, for example pasta plates, add 1/4 Cup Olive Oil to one and 1/2 Cup Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs to the other.  Peel and cut 2 Medium Eggplants into 1/2" slices. Dip the Eggplant into the oil then into the bread crumbs.

Place on the sheet pan.  Lightly season with Salt and Pepper to taste.  Place in the oven for 40-45 minutes.  About 1/2 way through cooking, flip the eggplant over and bake until it is golden brown.  Up til now can be done up to a few hours in advacne.  When ready to eat,  add 1 Tbl of Marinara and top with 1 Tbl  Mozzarella Cheese.  Place back into the oven until the cheese is melted or you can load it up and bake until the cheese is brown.  These can be served as a side dish, placed on top of pasta with marinara, or even served on a soft roll and eaten as a sandwich.  All in all, for my first crack at, they were quite tasty!!

Apple Crisp

My son has been raving about the fruit crisp that is served at the school cafeteria.  I have never made one before but thought I would give it a try. I sort of made up the recipe with some inspiration from a William-Sonoma Pie and Tarts book that I own.  I am going to post the recipe with my proposed changes vs. what I did and photographed yesterday.

I only had 3 apples and I could've used 4 or even 5.  The dish I used was too small in the length and width, which made the crumbly crust a bit thick. The juices didn't get a chance to bubble up through the crust, a look I think is appetizing  not to mention, the caramelized sugar that bubbles through is always yummy.  This recipe is quick to make, apples are readily available, and this dessert can bake while you make dinner so it's still warm. Perfect for this first day of fall.

There are a myriad of ways to amend this so let's simply call this a jumping off point. Changes can be in the spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamon, and vanilla) or the sugar source (brown sugar, molasses, maple syrup, cane sugar) or in the ingredients (the fruit itself, raisins, nuts) and I am sure there are more, but you get the idea.

Preheat the oven to 375.  Dice 1/2 Stick Unsalted Butter so it warms to room temperature.  Set this aside until the crumble is together.   In a bowl, mix together to combine 1/2 Cup Flour, 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar, 1/2 Cup Oatmeal, 1/4 Tsp Cardamom, 1/2 tsp Cinnamom, Freshly Ground Nutmeg to taste.  Using your fingers, blend in the diced butter until the butter is hidden.  Set aside
Core and section 4 large or 5 small Apples, I used Pink Lady's.  Dice to 1/2" cubes.  On the stove, heat an empty pan over medium heat and add 1/2 Stick Unsalted Butter and 1/2 Cup Sugar.  Once the butter melts, immediately stir in the apples and cook for about 5 minutes.  Add 1/2 tsp Vanilla and 1/4 tsp Cinnamon.  Remove from the stove and stir in 4 tsp Flour.  Pour apples in a buttered rustic looking casserole dish or even individual ramekins.  Top with the crumble but if it's going to completely cover the apples with too thick a layer, don't use all the crumble.  Bake for 40-45 (ramekins more like 25) minutes until golden and bubbly.  Serve warm with a small scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.  If you want to experiment and want to practice your creativity, this dessert is for you!

Craisin White Chocolate Coconut Cookies

It wasn't the best day to bake since it's still humid and it wasn't as cool as I like, but for some reason I decided I wanted to make chewy cookies by using coconut.  I looked at the ingredients I had on hand and settled on White Chocolate, Craisins, Nuts, and of course, coconut. The results were scrumptious! 
NOTE: Butter is VERY expensive now but I still prefer to use UnSalted Butter in my cookie recipes.  If you are unable to do that, you can use margarine or even a stick of each. 
In any event which ever you choose, it should be cool but not soft.

Preheat oven to 375.  Cream 2 Sticks of UnSalted Butter with 3/4 Cup Sugar and 3/4 Cup Light Brown Sugar.  Add 1 1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla and combine for another 20 seconds.  Add 2 Eggs, 1 at a time and cream until just combined.  Add 1 tsp Salt, 1 tsp Baking Soda and 1/2 Cup Oatmeal and combine for another 20-30 seconds.  Add 2 Cups Flour and cream until dough comes together.  Rough chop 2 Ghirardelli White Chocolate candy bars.  Rough chop 1 Cup of either Walnuts or Pecans. Add the following to the dough by hand, white chocolate, nuts, 1 Cup Craisins, and 1 Cup Coconut.  Scoop onto sheet pans and bake for 8-10 minutes.  Eat while warm!