Vegetarian

Eggplant Parmigiana

Ingredients
2 eggplants
1 onion
1 garlic
¼ cup Domenica Fiore Reserva organic extra virgin olive oil
2 (28 fl oz/796 mL) cans plum tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
⅓ cup fresh basil
2 eggs
Plenty of fine bread crumbs
Buffalo mozzarella (cut into ¼-inch slices)
Grated Romano cheese

Method
Slice eggplants into ¼-inch thick slices. Put slices on paper towels and layer towels on top. Put heavy item (a pot of water or stack of books) on top, and leave for one hour to soak sour fluid out.

Meanwhile, to make the sauce, sauté chopped onion and garlic in olive oil. Add tomatoes, salt and pepper and fresh basil. Cook on low-medium heat for 2 hours.

In a bowl, whip the eggs and add a touch of water. Dip pressed eggplant pieces in egg and coat with breadcrumbs. Coat twice.

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

In a saucepan, fry eggplant in olive oil until golden brown. Place on pieces of paper towel to soak up grease.

In Pyrex oven dish, layer the eggplant, Buffalo mozzarella and sauce. Make 3 layers. Sprinkle generously with grated Romano cheese.

Bake for 35 minutes. Let sit for 10 minutes before serving. Serve with a full-bodied red wine.

Arugula and Fontina Pizza

Ingredients

Pizza dough
2 Tbsp active dry yeast
2 cups warm water
3 ½ cups bread flour, plus more for kneading
1 Tbsp Domenica Fiore Reserva organic extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp honey
Sea salt

Toppings (per pizza and size dependant)
2 cloves garlic, roasted (see note below)
⅓ cup Fontina cheese (unpasturized from Italy, if possible), shredded
⅓ cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 cups baby arugula leaves, washed and dried
¼ tsp red chili flakes
Sea salt
Domenica Fiore Reserva organic extra virgin olive oil

Dressing
Juice of ⅓ lemon
Domenica Fiore Reserva organic extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt

Method
To make the dough, sprinkle yeast over ¼ cup of the water and let sit until it becomes frothy, about 5 minutes. Add the rest of the water, half the flour, olive oil, honey and salt, and stir until smooth. While stirring gradually add the rest of the flour until it starts to come away from the edge of the bowl. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth, about 10 minutes. (If you want to make life easier, make the dough in an electric mixer!) Form dough into a ball, dust with flour and place in a wooden bowl. Dust with flour, cover with a tea towel and leave in a warm spot to rise for about 1.5 hours, or until doubled in size. Uncover, punch the dough down and allow it to rise until doubled in size again, about another 1.5 hours. Divide dough into equal-size balls, wrap in plastic and store in fridge until ready to use (they will last about 3 days in the fridge).

Note: Whole Foods makes good fresh dough if you are feeling lazy! Available in the prepared foods section.

Roll out dough on a floured surface and brush with oil. Then place oil side down on a hot charcoal grill and cover for about a minute. You’ll know it’s done when the dough begins to bubble and blacken on the edges. A little bit of char is essential. Remove from grill, brush the uncooked side with oil and flip over, so the cooked side is facing up. Now brush the cooked side with more oil, spread the roasted garlic on and sprinkle both cheeses evenly across the surface. Return to the grill for another minute or until the underside begins to blacken and the cheese is melted.

Meanwhile put arugula in mixing bowl, squeeze lemon over top, sprinkle with sea salt and Domenica Fiore Olive Oil and toss. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.

Remove pizza from grill, spread dressed arugula overtop. Then sprinkle red chili flakes and add a drizzle of olive oil. Cut and serve on a cutting board.

Note: you can buy prepared roasted garlic at fine food stores but it’s easier and tastes better if you make it yourself. Take one head of garlic, slice off the top and pull the cloves apart slightly. Drizzle generously with olive oil, wrap tightly in foil and bake at 400ºF for about 30 minutes, until the garlic is soft and can be squeezed out.