Tuesday, September 20, 2011

YUMMY EGGPLANT (AND THE ANSWER TO KEN. B'S QUESTION)


I LOVE cooking with eggplant.  And, I have found a recipe that is absolutely amazing and, best of all, my hubby likes it!  So, it's a winner in my book!  :)


Here it is:  Tomato and Eggplant Casserole


1 medium eggplant
1 T. finely chopped onion
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 T. butter
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 t. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 t. oregano
1/2 c. dry bread crumbs
1 large tomato, cored and cut into 6 medium-thick slices
1/2 c. grated cheese


Directions:


Peel the eggplant and slice 1/4" thick.  Put in a saucepan with the onion, salt, and 1/2" boiling water.  Cover and simmer about 10 minutes until tender.  Drain well and mash.  Blend in the butter, eggs, pepper, oregano, and bread crumbs.  Turn into a buttered 1½ -2 quart casserole.  Cover with the tomato slices.  Sprinkle with the cheese and salt and pepper.  Bake in a preheated 375° F. oven for 25 minutes until lightly browned.  Serves 6.


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I am also feeling really, really bad.....I never responded to Ken B's question on my flash freezing post.  It's not that I was ignoring you, Ken.  I just didn't see your question until recently.  For that, I apologize.  I will now attempt to answer your question about preserving the nutrients in fruit and vegetables and how quickly they have to be frozen in order to achieve this.


I did alot of research on the computer, and it appears that there are alot of differing opinions as to what vitamins are preserved during the flash freezing process and which vitamins are lost.   In fact, the opinions are so differing that it was very difficult to come to a conclusive answer.  That is why I am including some of the links that I found.  In this way, you can form your own opinion about the pros/cons of flash freezing and/or blanching and then flash freezing.   I just know that after reading the articles, I was slightly cross-eyed!   :)


http://www.veganforum.com/forums/showthread.php?366-Vitamin-loss-canning-freezing-amp-more


http://www.eufic.org/article/en/food-safety-quality/safe-food-handling/artid/freezing-foods-quality-safety/


http://www.experts123.com/q/what-is-flash-freezing.html


http://www.ehow.com/info_8373496_snap-freezing-mean.html




Have a wonderful day, Everyone!!!



A.Marie

1 comment:

  1. I like eggplant but my family doesn't. Thanks for the flashfreezing links!

    ReplyDelete

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