Hello, dear readers!
Where I am, it has been very sunny and warm for the past week, and we have been spending as much time as possible outside, sitting on park benches etc. Which, of course, requires picnic food. And this, my dears, is the perfect picnic food. I kid you not. Please try this! It is really good.
I ripped the recipe a while ago from some magazine, which one I can sincerely not reconstruct. But as usual, I adapted it a little anyways, and I am sure that this is a dish that (thankfully) turns out a little different every time it is made, depending on how much of what one has at hand. So, I’ll just tell you how I prepared it, but obviously the ingredients can vary, depending on what you like!
The recipe does take some time since the veggies have to cool before you stuff them into the bread, but it can be very well prepared in advance, and let me tell you: it is worth it!
One more thing: in my last post, I talked about how a store bought chili paste prevented me from posting the recipe in question. Well, I cheated again: I used store bought pesto, because I simply did not have the time to make my own. (I am very ashamed now.)
Ingredients:
1 medium eggplant
1 medium zucchini
2 red peppers
arugula salad; I used about three handfuls
1 big ball mozzarella
basil pesto; I used about 4 table spoons
1 regular white bread
salt, pepper, olive oil
Directions:
Wash the veggies and slice them into shapes that correspond to your bread; I used a tin loaf, so I cut my veggies into long stripes. Fry the vegetables, one kind at a time, in olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper. I suggest frying them slowly, and on medium heat, because that results in a flavor that resembles grilled vegetables. Scrape the skin off the peppers (if you feel like it), and let everything cool on a cookie rack, so the grease can drip off.
Wash and chop the salad. Slice the mozzarella into thin slices.
Now comes the fun part: cut off the top of the bread, and carefully hollow it out (make sure to leave a ‘frame’ that is wide enough, so that the whole thing will not collapse). Then, slather the inside sides of the bread with pesto, and fill with the other ingredients in layers. When you are done, put the top back on. To serve, cut into slices. Enjoy!
Yummy! This is my kind of food.
Next up: fried risotto balls, and rhubarb cake and lemonade.
xoxo, F.
SweetSmart 