Green Chile Stew with Tomatillos

This one is from the internet, and it is a good one!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 1 (3 pound) boneless pork shoulder roast , trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1 -inch cubes 2 tablespoons olive oil, or more if needed 1 large onion, chopped 3 cloves garlic, minced 2 cups chopped fresh tomatillos

1 Cup (or more!) diced green chiles 2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped 2 teaspoons dried marjoram 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro 1 cup water 1 pinch salt, or to taste (optional) 2 tablespoons sour cream, divided 6 sprigs cilantro

Directions:

1.	Stir together the flour, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and cumin in a large bowl. Place the cubed pork into the mixture, and stir well to coat the meat with the seasonings.
2.	Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat until the oil shimmers. Working in batches if necessary, place the meat into the hot pan in a single layer. Pan-fry the pork until brown on all sides, about 15 minutes. Remove the pork to a bowl, and cover to keep warm.
3.	Cook and stir the onion in the hot pan over medium heat, adding more olive oil if necessary, until the onion is translucent and beginning to brown, about 7 minutes. Return the meat to the pan and stir in the garlic, tomatillos, chiles, marjoram, chopped cilantro, and water. Check seasoning and add 1 pinch of salt to taste, if needed. Cover and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the meat is tender, about 1 hour. Skim excess fat off the stew before serving in bowls, garnished with a dollop of sour cream and a cilantro sprig on each bowl.

Eggplant Parmesan

If you are like us right now you are enjoying an abundance of fresh eggplant from the garden. I've had several people ask me how I make my Eggplant Parmesan, so I wrote it down and want to share it.
The instructions include how to prepare eggplant for baking or frying, and how to make eggplant parmesan. Just remember you must drain eggplant before frying or baking for best results. And the results are delicious!

How I make Eggplant Parmesan

Eggplant Parmesan tastes great by either frying or baking the eggplant, I think just a bit more tasty with frying, just consider the billions of calories frying adds. With either baking or frying, preparing the eggplant ahead of time is essential in making it really good! Look at “THE IMPORTANT PART!” before you start! Give yourself enough time to prepare it properly.

Ingredients:

3 large, or 5-6 medium, eggplants

3-5 eggs

1 jar or can or spaghetti sauce (I use Hunts in a can, but use what you have, or make your own. You can add mushrooms or onions, even sausage, if you want)

1 cup spicy salsa (or just use spaghetti sauce)

2 cups freshly shredded Romano and/or Parmesan cheese (NOT the stuff in the can!)

3 cups flour, plus oil for frying (keep oil about ½ deep in your skillet), OR about 3 cups Panko bread crumbs, if you are baking the eggplant.

You can add chopped hot peppers to spice it up a bit. (I use about 2 large jalepenos and 2 yellow hots)

Salt

Other Stuff You’ll Need:

Lots of paper towels!

A cookie sheet or two (if baking), or a large skillet (if frying)

2 mixing bowls

9”x13” baking dish

  

Prepare your eggplant:

For a 9”x13” baking dish, which generously serves 6-8 people, you need 3 large eggplants, or 5-6 medium. You can leave the skin on if they are nice and fresh from the garden. I usually peel off about half the skin. Or, you can totally peel them, if you want.

THE IMPORTANT PART! Slice your eggplant about 1/3” thick. Lay single layer slices on paper towels. Sprinkle with salt. After 5-10 minutes, flip slices and salt the other side. Let slices drain on paper towels for at least a few hours, or layer them between paper towels and put them in the fridge for up to 3 days! Blot and press slices gently with paper towels just before you are ready to bake or fry them. You want to get out as much water as you can. This will decrease the amount of oil you use to fry them, or make them crispier if you bake them.

NOTE: It is normal for eggplant to darken a bit when sliced and exposed to the air, but it doesn’t change the taste! Salt helps keep it from darkening, and helps draws out the moisture.

Fry or bake your eggplant:

When your eggplant is well-drained and blotted dry, preheat oil in a skillet to 375, or preheat oven to 400. In a mixing bowl, beat 2-3 eggs (add more as needed). In another bowl, have your flour or bread crumbs. Dip eggplant slices one at a time in egg, then in flour (if you are frying), or bread crumbs (if you are baking). Gently knock off excess flour before frying. Keep slices in a single layer, with a bit of room around them when frying or baking. If frying, fry each side about 3 minutes. If baking, coat the cookie sheet with Pam first, flip slices after10-15 minutes, and continue baking for another 10-15 minutes. You want the slices lightly browned and crispy either way.

If you are frying, drain fried slices on paper towels and blot the tops.

Assemble the dish:

After you have all your eggplant fried or baked, it’s time to assemble. Preheat the oven to 350. If you baked your eggplant, spray the baking dish with Pam. In the baking dish, cover the bottom with salsa (or sauce). Then add a layer of eggplant, sprinkle on peppers if you use them, smear on a layer of sauce, then sprinkle with a nice layer of cheese. Keep layering this way, 3 or 4 layers. End with sauce covered in cheese.

Bake:

Cover the dish with foil. Bake about 40 minutes. When the cheese looks all melted and bubbly, and it’s slightly browned around the sides. it is done.

Final Note:

You can assemble the dish ahead of time, just bring it back to room temperature before baking. There’s lots of room for flexibility in making eggplant parmesan—just be sure to salt and drain the eggplant before you cook it.

Enjoy!

Gayle