MISO GLAZED EGGPLANT AND KALE

I’m so glad that we’ve sprung ahead once again, I love that after 7 o’clock in the P.M. it’s still light outside!  That means I’m not getting into my jammies until about 8 o’clock, but I’m A-Okay with that!  Hooray for an extra hour of good photo taking lighting!  Hooray for my watch being the correct time once again…ya…I don’t know how to change my watch.

Any hoo…Billy and I recently stopped in our old neighborhood and dined at our old favorite sushi restaurant.  They make the most wonderful miso eggplant appetizer; the eggplant is creamy and has a sweet and salty miso glaze, delish!  I had forgotten how much I loved that stuff.  

I love it so much that I’ve decided that it should be an entire meal rather than just an appetizer, so I added kale to my recipe, to give it body and extra nutrition; and because kale is quite a sturdy green it can hold up to the miso glaze without getting overwhelmed.

Sooo, normally I would have step by step photos, but I messed up.  I actually did have photos that I took the first time that I made this dish; but then I redid the dish as I wasn’t a hundred percent happy with it and I changed the cooking method slightly.  My second go round at Miso Glazed Eggplant and Kale gave me the perfect texture, and balance of flavors…but no photos!

The recipe calls for Japanese eggplant which are long, thin eggplants, that are never bitter and almost sweet when cooked.  If you can’t find Japanese eggplant I might substitute mini eggplant, or small graffiti eggplant,  but not regular eggplant.

So I’m done my blog post, and I think I’m going to go out for a walk and enjoy the extra hour of day light!  What are you gonna do with your extra hour?

MISO GLAZED EGGPLANT WITH KALE

Serves 2

3              Tbsp.        Red Miso

2              Tbsp.        Honey

2              Tbsp.        Water

1              Tbsp.        Rice vinegar

2-3           dashes     Toasted sesame oil

2-3           Tbsp.        Grape seed or canola oil, divided use

8              cups        Kale, stemmed and chopped

1               lb.          Japanese eggplant, cut into about 1 ½ inch pieces

1-2           pinches    Crushed red chili pepper

1                            Scallion, cut into about ¼ inch pieces

1               tsp.        Toasted sesame seeds

   1.       In a small bowl whisk together the red Miso, honey, water, rice vinegar and sesame oil; put that to the side.

   2.       Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add the kale to the pan and sauté, stirring frequently, until the kale has wilted, but is still bright green in color, this takes 2 to 3 minutes.  Remove the kale from the pan and set it to the side.

   3.       Add another tablespoon of oil the same skillet and heat over medium-high heat.  Add the eggplant to the skillet and brown the eggplant on all sides (this will take about 3 minutes), if the pan gets too dry add the remaining tablespoon of oil.  Add the crushed red chili pepper and the miso sauce that you prepared earlier, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds; the sauce will thicken to the consistency of a glaze.  

   4.       Add the kale back into the skillet and toss it with the eggplant just to reheat the kale.  Remove to a platter and sprinkle the scallion and sesame seeds over the top.

Serve with rice, farro, or quinoa.


I shared this recipe at:  The Weekend Potluck, Freedom Fridays



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Noodles with Spicy Peanut Eggplant

Mama T's Stuffed Eggplant

Rigatoni with Eggplant and Ricotta

Kale Mushroom and Cheese Twice Baked Potatoes

VEGETABLE FRIED RICE

Another Easter celebration has come and gone; so my thinking is that after the busyness of last week, a quick and healthy dish is in order. 

Vegetable Fried Rice goes together in a jiff.  Just dice the ingredients, get your pan really good and hot and you have dinner in just a few minutes.

I do have to mention however, that the key to good fried rice is using leftover cooked rice.  The starches change when the cooked rice has been refrigerated.  But to me that’s cool because I’ll make a big batch of steamed rice for dinner one night with the intent of using the leftovers the next night in my fried rice.

You can serve vegetable fried rice as your main meal or as a side dish.  I made this a while back and served it along with Chinese Picadillo. If you like you can go ahead add some diced leftover chicken or whatever you have left over in your refrigerator.  Today it’s about taking it easy!

Here’s what you do.

The cooking goes super quickly, so have your ingredients ready.

Get the pan really hot and heat the oil.  Add the onions and carrots, they take the longest to cook.  Cook while stirring for a minute or so.

Now add the broccoli and bell pepper.  Cook and stir for another minute or so.

Add the water chestnuts and cook for about 30 seconds.

The key to good fried rice it's best to use left over cooked rice.  Give that a stir and cook until the grains have separated and the rice is warmed through.

Toss in the spinach.

Stir in some soy sauce.

This is me being lazy.  I make a well with the rice, exposing the bottom of the pan.  Pour the beaten eggs into that well and stir them.

Notice that the cooked eggs are still in the center of that well.  Now go ahead and mix everything together.

Remove from the heat and serve.  Vegetable Fried Rice can be served as an entree, or as a side dish.

You may also like:

Broccoli Cashew Stir Fry

Chinese Picadillo

VEGETABLE FRIED RICE

Serves 2 as a meal, 4-6 as a side

1              Tbsp.         Grape seed, peanut, or canola oil

1                              Small onion, small dice

1                              Carrot, small dice

½                             Red bell pepper, small dice

1 ½           cups          Broccoli; cut into small, bite sized pieces

4              oz.             Water chestnuts, diced small (a can is 8 oz.)

2              cups           Leftover cooked rice

1              cup            Fresh spinach, chopped

2              Tbsp.          Soy sauce, low sodium

2                              Eggs, beaten

  1.       Heat the oil in a large skillet (or a wok) over medium high to high heat. 

  2.       Add to the hot oil, the onion and carrot.  Cook and stir for about 1 to 1 ½ minutes.

  3.       Add the bell pepper and broccoli.  Cook and stir for about 1 to 1 ½ minutes more.

  4.       Add the water chestnuts.  Cook and stir for about 30 seconds.

  5.       Add the leftover cooked rice.  Cook until the grains have separated and the rice is warmed through.

  6.       Toss in the spinach.

  7.       Stir in the soy sauce.

  8.       Make a well in the middle of the rice, exposing the bottom of the pan.  Pour the eggs into the well and stir the eggs keeping them in that well, until they are cooked.

  9.       Now stir everything together and remove from the heat.

BROCCOLI CASHEW STIR FRY

Seriously y'all; I get these bouts of laziness and I wish that dinner would just make itself.  Well I that ain’t gonna happen, but this dinner is sooo easy that it almost makes itself.  

I’ve used a couple of convenience products to help move things along a lot quicker.  I had this Soy Ginger Sauce in my pantry, which already has the aromatics in there for me; so I don’t have to be mincing up a bunch of ginger and garlic.  I also had pre-washed and cut broccoli so all I had to do in that case was cut open the bag.  The only chopping I did was of the bell pepper, it doesn’t get too much easier than that!

Here’s what you do.

To make the sauce you will need Soy Ginger Sauce, Chinese rice cooking wine, and honey.  If you don't have Soy Ginger Sauce, substitute it with Soy sauce, freshly grated ginger, and minced garlic.

Mix the ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl.  Set that to the side.

In another small bowl, mix the corn starch with the water.  Set that to the side.

Roast some raw cashews in a dry, heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat.  When the cashews are golden, remove them to a dish and set them to the side.  You can use roasted cashews, but you will skip this step if you do.

Turn the heat up on the skillet, medium high to high.  Add a little grape seed, peanut or canola oil to the skillet.  When it's nice and hot add the broccoli florets.  I had a bag of pre-washed and cut broccoli in the fridge so that saved a few minutes of my precious time.

After about 3 minutes the broccoli will have a little color. 

That's when you will add the bell pepper.  Cook for a couple of more minutes; until the bell pepper just starts to soften.

Quickly stir in the Soy Ginger Sauce mixture.

Then add the cornstarch slurry a tablespoon at a time, until the sauce is the consistency that you like.

Toss the cashews in last.

Serve with steamed rice.

BROCCOLI CASHEW STIR FRY

Serves 2

2              Tbsp.     Soy Ginger Sauce

2              Tbsp.     Chinese rice wine

2              Tbsp.     Honey

1              Tbsp.     Cornstarch

4              Tbsp.     Water

1/3           cup       Raw, whole cashews

1 ½           Tbsp.    Grape seed or peanut oil

12             oz.        Broccoli florets

½                        Red bell pepper; cut into about 1 inch pieces

  1.        In a small bowl mix together the Soy Ginger sauce, Chinese rice wine, and the honey.  Set to the side.

  2.       In another small bowl, mix together the cornstarch and water.  Set to the side.

  3.       In a large heavy bottomed skillet roast the cashews over medium heat.  Stir often to keep from burning.  Remove the cashews to a bowl, set to the side.

  4.       Heat the oil in the same skillet over medium high, to high heat.

  5.       Add the broccoli to the hot skillet.  Cook and stir for about 3 minutes, until the broccoli just starts to brown.

  6.       Add the red bell pepper and cook for about another 2 minutes until the peppers just begin to soften.

  7.       Add the Soy Ginger sauce mixture; give it a quick stir, and then stir in the cornstarch and water a tablespoon at a time, until the sauce has slightly thickened.

  8.       Toss in the cashew at the last.  Remove from the heat, and enjoy with steamed rice.

Note*  Soy sauce with about a teaspoon of fresh grated ginger and a clove of minced garlic can be substituted for the Soy Ginger Sauce.

** You can substitute roasted cashews for raw cashews, just skip step 3.