LSH 7 - The Italian (Cooking) Job

Halu! It's been a while since I've posted here and as you've probably noticed, Malou and I have been going gah-gah over cooking. Sometime last week, I believe around Wednesday, I was hankering for some eggplant parmesan and salmon. We just came from our biweekly grocery the previous weekend and I didn't want the large eggplant to go bad. So with some provisions and a large appetite, I set out for The Italian Cooking Job...


Eggplant Mozzarella and Provolone Dish

(1) 8oz can tomato sauce
(2) teaspoon olive oil
(1) clove garlic, chopped into slivers
(4) tablespoons dried basil or more depending on one's taste
(1) teaspoon black pepper
(1) eggplant
(1/2) cup shredded provolone
(1/2) cup shredded mozzarella

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place the olive oil in a sauce pan. Turn the stove on medium heat. Once olive oil is hot, add garlic slivers.
3. Once they turn slightly brown, add the tomato sauce. After five minutes, add the dried basil and black pepper. Keep stirring the tomato sauce until the basil and the black pepper is mixed completely with the tomato sauce.
4. Turn the stove to low heat and cover the pan. Let it simmer for another 10 minutes.
5. Clean the eggplant under cold running water. Remove the skin of the eggplant and then chop into 1/3 inch thick disks.
6. Place eggplant disks in the bottom of a baking dish. Pour just enough of the tomato sauce on top of the eggplant disks to cover them. If you have a small enough baking dish, you can add another layer of eggplant disks and tomato sauce.
7. Spread the mixture of mozzarella and provolone cheeses on top of the tomato sauce. Place baking dish in the oven and set timer to 10 minutes. Check on eggplant dish by making sure the cheese has melted and covered the entire pan. Serve immediately!


Baked Dijon Salmon

(1/4) cup butter, melted
(3) tablespoons Dijon mustard
(1 1/2) tablespoons honey
(1/4) cup italian dry bread crumbs
(2) salmon fillets
(1) lemon sliced into 1/3 inch disks

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place lemon slices on the bottom of a pan. Put salmon fillets on top of the lemon slices.
3. Mix the butter, Dijon mustard and honey in a bowl. Brush mixture on the salmon fillets.
4. Cover the fillets with the bread crumbs.
5. Place the pan in the oven for 15 minutes. Check on the fillets until they are a cooked well. Serve and enjoy!