Grilled Eggplant and Pesto Pizza with Cherry Tomatoes Marinated in Balsamic Vinegar and Extra Virgin Olive Oil

I am not going to lie to you.

This may change the way you feel about eggplant.

You may even actually love it.

And maybe you’ll even have the urge to fist bump me, because yes, I knew all along that eggplant is absolutely delicious when grilled.

While this pizza (as most things written about on LLN) is easy to assemble, it does take a bit time to prep the ingredients; especially when you don’t own an outdoor grill.

If you do own an outdoor grill, I implore you to invite me over so I can steal borrow it, because my stove top grill pan makes me suffer my own shining half way through the process.

But back to speaking truths.

Roo hates eggplant. Or supposedly hated it because he loves this pizza. He even stated yesterday it might be one of his favorites.

<insert surprised Scooby Doo noise>

But Roo never stood a chance. It’s composed of some of his favorite things: 1) pizza, 2) pesto, 3) cheese, 4) pizza

The boy loves pizza, true story.

And until last night, he did not love eggplant.

When I’ve previously mentioned my feelings for the bulbous purple plant, he would counter that it was mooshy and flavorless. I would say it was prepared wrong, but he would just shake his head, refusing to let it cross our threshold. Tofu was the only other food he hated more.  And peas. Sad.

I couldn’t really relate to Roo’s hatred for eggplant. I’ve always liked it, and maybe because I grew up eating it, I’ve never had a chance to dislike it.

I remember several fall nights where my mom would roast it in the oven, only to toss it with a bit of soy sauce and serve it as a side to salmon. Eggplant is one of her favorites, and when I told her Roo hated eggplant, she questioned my choice in men.  But this isn’t news. She’s always questioned my choice in men (my ex lived on a diet of Cheez-it Party Mix).

This week though, we received an eggplant almost the size of Evil Monkey,

from our CSA, and I knew we had no choice but to have it for dinner.

And how was I going to introduce eggplant to Roo?

The gateway meal: pizza.  (And in case you wanted to know, the gateway meat for vegetarians is bacon. Fact.)

With fall around the corner, I’ve been craving nothing but carbs.  Perhaps it’s my body wanting to prepare for winter hibernation, but all I can think about is bread. Warm bread.

A crusty pizza with silky eggplant, deep in flavor from the char from the grill, only to be countered by a bite from pesto, was exactly what I needed.  And now that I’ve “ripped off the band aid,” that is conquering Roo’s dislike for one of the “No no no I don’t like it!” list, I’m a little bit more confident in convincing him that tofu isn’t all that bad.  Somehow I don’t think telling him it’s “cheese” is going to be the way.

This is definitely a make-it-as-you-go kind of pizza. I haven’t listed the exact quantities of the ingredients, because maybe you like a super cheesy pizza compared to me. Or, you want a super thin layer of pesto because you want to really taste the grilled eggplant. Have some fun with it and make this dish your’s!

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Ingredients

Store bought frozen pizza dough from Whole Foods (it’s surprisingly good!), or the no-knead dough recipe I always go to

Flour (to roll out you dough with)

Store bought pesto, or the basil pesto recipe that I like (pesto freezes wonderfully so if you have leftovers, freeze it for later!)

One eggplant, sliced thinly (I slice it about a quarter inch thick)

Olive oil

Sea salt

Fresh mozzarella

Goat cheese (optional, but so so good)

*The cherry tomatoes on the side/piled on top of the pizza upon serving is also optional, but Roo and I really enjoyed this “hey these are about to go bad, let’s use them!” ingredient

Cherry tomatoes, cut in half

A good balsamic vinegar

Extra virgin olive oil, if you have it, or just use a good mild tasting olive oil

More sea salt

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Equipment

Two medium sized mixing bowls (One if you’re not making the cherry tomatoes marinated in balsamic vinegar and olive oil)

A spatula (a spoon will also work)

Tongs (to flip your grilled eggplant with)

A plate (to set your grilled eggplant aside on)

A grill (and I’m jealous of you if you have it) or a stove top grill pan (that I have and secretly loathe)

A pizza stone (if you have it) or a baking sheet that can withstand the heat of a 475F oven

A rolling pin (if you have it) or a wine bottle will also work

Parchment paper (not really necessary if you own a pizza peel, but I don’t, so that’s how I slide the pizza onto the stone), or a pizza peel

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Place your oven rack to the middle position in the oven. Place your pizza stone on the oven rack and preheat the oven to 475F.

If you’re going to use your cherry tomatoes, put them in one of your mixing bowls and sprinkle with a bit of salt.  Add a couple tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil.  Toss to combine (I used my hands).  Set aside to marinate.  (Trust me, the longer you let them sit, the better!)

Turn on your grill and set to “medium.” If you don’t have a grill like me, place your grill pan on your burner over medium high heat.

Throw the thinly sliced pieces of eggplant into a medium sized mixing bowl. Throw a good pinch of salt in there and a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Toss the ingredients with your hands (or a spatula). When all the eggplant is coated, start grilling.

Grill the eggplant slices until they are tender and have grill marks on both sides.  Set the grilled eggplant aside.

Roll out the pizza dough on a floured surface, to your desired thickness. I like a super thin crust, but if you’re a thick crust person, work away.

Spread the pesto on top of the pizza dough with your spatula (or a spoon if you don’t have one).

Lay the slices of grilled eggplant on top.

Shred pieces of fresh mozzarella up and scatter over the pizza. I like to make it so that at least every slice has one bite of mozzarella.

When the pizza is arranged to your liking, bake in the oven (on your baking sheet or pizza stone) for about ten to fifteen minutes, until the crust is golden brown (or deeply browned if that’s your thing) and the cheese is bubbling (and hopefully also a bit browned).

Remove the pizza from the oven and crumble bits of goat cheese on top (optional).

Upon serving, spoon a couple of marinated cherry tomatoes on top, for a delicious, juicy bite! (Also optional)

Marinated Chickpea and Red Onion Salad

The heat has been pretty unbearable this week. Our cats have been found in the tub, sprawled out against the white tile, trying to tell us that the air conditioning in our uninsulated apartment is insufficient. The fact that Roo and I can’t even sit on the same couch together without sweating, with the a/c on 60 degrees and the fan blowing full speed is kind of ridiculous.  Then again, living on the third floor of a triple decker that hasn’t had any work done to it since the beginning of time is also pretty ridiculous.

I felt especially bad when Monkey laid down on a Target bag that previously held a pint of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. The cool condensation trapped against a plastic bag was just too much temptation for our furry little ferret.

I was totally snarfing down ice cream as I took this photo. Bad owner.

Despite my previous protest of not making salad after salad this summer, I caved. I’ve been making salads for the past couple of days and Roo hasn’t said a word. He actually commented, “this is really good,” on several occasions, and my paranoia of him leaving me over lettuce has actually subsided. He’s even mentioned that he would definitely eat some of them again; this salad being one of them.

The key to this dish is the marinade and the almost pickling effect it has on the ingredients. Another positive is that this salad contains loads of protein, and many, many delicious components (don’t worry, it’s still simple, and easy to adjust what you want in it), that aren’t the usual horror show that’s the American salad seen in chain restaurants.  Iceberg lettuce, unripe, mealy tomatoes and cucumber slices that taste like raw wet cardboard?  No thanks.

Again, this was a ploy to use up a lot of what I received from my CSA.  But you know what?  It worked.  I really do love it when the stir-fry approach to dumping everything into a wok works when applied to chopping everything up and throwing it onto a plate for a salad.

Adapted from Saveur

Serves two to three generously

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Ingredients

8 tablespoons olive oil

4 tablespoons red wine vinegar

half teaspoon of dried oregano

half teaspoon of dried thyme

1 teaspoon of dijon mustard

1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes (I like things spicy, if you don’t start with a quarter teaspoon)

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 cup of dried chickpeas, soaked overnight and drained or 1 can (12 – 15 ounces) of chickpeas drained, rinsed and drained again

1 cube of sharp cheddar cheese, two inches by two inches, cut into even smaller cubes *this is your salad, if you hate cheddar, go with something else, like provolone, and cut the pieces into what you’d like to have speared onto your fork along with the other veg*

1 large ball of fresh mozzarella, cut into half, then cut into even smaller pieces (save the other half for a caprese salad or whatever your fancy)

1 red onion, sliced thinly (we love red onion and love lots and lots of it on our salad)

Half a head of lettuce, leaves torn into easily edible pieces (be sure to make your lettuce leaves as dry as possible!)

1 cup of fresh basil leaves, torn into easily edible pieces *you MUST use fresh basil! It really makes the salad special*

1 ear of cooked corn (either from the night before, or that day), cooled, and kernels cut off the cob

1 cucumber, about the length of your hand (from tip of middle finger to wrist), chopped

2 carrots, peeled and cut into easily edible pieces (I prefer stick form)

1 red bell pepper, chopped

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Equipment

A very sharp knife

A small mixing bowl (if you have a set of three for mixing bowls, I use the smallest one for this recipe)

A whisk

A spatula

*Maybe a small pot (for chickpeas that have soaked overnight)

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Whisk in your small mixing bowl the oil, vinegar, dried thyme and oregano, dijon mustard, garlic and crushed red pepper flakes.

If you are using chickpeas that have been soaked overnight, make sure they’re soft enough.  If they’re not, throw the chickpeas in a small pot with water over a burner set on medium heat.  Bring the chickpeas to a boil, then back down to a simmer.  Sometimes I have to cook them for 30 minutes, sometimes an hour.  Check them periodically, and when they’re soft enough, drain the chickpeas, rinse them with cold water to cool them down a bit, and throw into your dressing bowl.

If you are using chickpeas from the can (or your overnight chickpeas are soft enough), after they have been rinsed and drained, throw them in your dressing bowl.  Add the mozzarella, sharp cheddar and onions.  Stir to combine everything so that it’s all coated with the dressing, with a spatula.  Let the mixture marinate at room temperature for about an hour, stirring once or twice in the meantime.

While you’re waiting, plate the (please be dry) lettuce, basil, cucumber, red pepper, carrots and corn on two (or three) plates for your meal.  I like the lettuce to be at the very bottom, topped with the basil, and then the other veg just thrown about on top.

When it’s time to eat (!) top the plates with the chickpea mixture.  I love to add cracked pepper on top, I can’t say why, but it just makes it so much better.

Try to pick up everything with your fork, or at least some basil, chickpea, cheese and <insert other veg here>.  Devour.  Like a lady of course.

Bitter Greens Pizza

It was Halloween weekend and a six hour drive from Boston to Philly.  The drive down was kind of perfect.  We were on our way to a wedding (his friends) and it had been a while since we took a mini-vacation for ourselves.  We talked about prior relationships, about how we love Coldplay’s album, A Rush of Blood to the Head, and we laughed about embarrassing childhood memories.  To couple that with stopping at practically every Starbucks we encountered, the six hours in a car wasn’t so bad.

Yet, with each state line we crossed, I became more anxious.  I had never met his best mates from college before, so I started thinking the usual “crazy.”

“Will they like me?”
“Will they think I’m pretty?”
“Will they think I’m funny?”
“What about their girlfriends!?!”

I’ll be the first to admit it, women secretly compete with each other.  There may be some ladies out there, completely adamant that we do not. But trust me, we do.

When we meet each other for the first time, we compare ourselves to each other.  First, it’s looks, then the list can vary amongst women.  With me it’s: career, personality, clothing, then it gets incredibly trivial (if it hasn’t already), nitpicking at things like, “wow, your laugh is REALLY annoying. Stop finding everything I say funny. Stop.”  I mean, who hates someone that finds you funny?  I do, if you laugh sounds like a bag of wailing cats.

Strangely enough, I didn’t exactly hate my time there.  I actually had a bit of fun, and ending up liking all of the wives.  The girlfriends on the other hand, not so much.  Perhaps it’s because they all knew each other prior to the wedding, but as I explained to Roo, they all had, “bitch face.”  And to my surprise, he later admitted, “yeah, it’s true.”

But it wasn’t the girlfriends that ruined our weekend.  It was something that was my fault, but in reality (after talking about it a day later), a giant misunderstanding between the both of us.

It was the night of the reception, and a bit of alcohol was consumed.  I had said something rude to Roo before we went to bed, and unfortunately, it was blown out of proportion.  Way, way out of proportion.

The car ride home was utter hell.  He didn’t talk to me. The whole six hours.

I was pretty much convinced due to my lack of self-editing that we were going to break up.  It made me angry, then sad, and then we were back in Boston; pulling into the Whole Foods so I could buy groceries to make dinner with.

I ran inside, not knowing what I was going to cook.  I randomly grabbed a few things, and before I knew it, we were back in our apartment.  He was on the couch, and I was sitting at the kitchen table looking at a paper bag filled with god-know’s-what I grabbed.

Perhaps it was the mood I was in, perhaps it’s because we had the whole weekend to indulge and my liver was crying out for antioxidants, but what I whipped up that night was Bitter Greens Pizza.

It’s a dish that I saw on Anthony Bourdain’s show, No Reservations.  He spoke about this spinach pizza (go to 11:30) that was made by Jim Lahey at Co.  At Co they call it the “Popeye,” but to me it will always be, “Bitter Greens.”

It was exactly what I wanted: bite from the spinach, a little salty from the pecorino, but coated your tongue nicely with that melty gooey mozzarella.  And when you’re sad, really really sad, it’s kind of perfect to make you feel just a little bit better.

Adapted from Jim Lahey at Co

I’m going to be the first to tell you that I have no shame that I buy pizza dough at Whole Foods.  It’s under $2, and I make two pizzas (about 10″ each) with it.  I have made pizza dough before (courtesy of Artisan Bread In Five Minutes a Day), but I just didn’t taste the difference.

For those of you who would like a homemade pizza dough recipe, this one is great.  But, I’m a bit lazy.  And when I want pizza, I want it now.  Whole Foods pizza dough makes me live that dream.

Toppings:

Olive Oil

2 cloves of garlic thinly sliced

1/4 cup swiss cheese grated (I use Jarlsberg)

1/8 cup pecorino cheese grated

1/8 cup mozzarella grated (I used low moisture since it’s what I had in my fridge)

1/4 pound fresh spinach with tough stems removed (about a half a bag of the pre-washed spinach you find at your local grocer)

Put your pizza stone in the oven on the middle rack.  Preheat your oven to as high as it’ll go before broil.  On our’s it’s 550F.

Throw a half handful of all purpose flour down on a square of parchment paper that will be about the size of your pizza stone.  If you have a pizza peel, prepare your pizza on that.  Otherwise, if you keep forgetting to purchase a peel until you make you pizza, like I do, parchment paper it is.

Add a couple splashes of olive oil onto the dough.  Stretch out the dough manually with your hands.  I find that working the dough this way results in 1) not having the pizza dough fall on the ground when I attempt to throw it, 2) it doesn’t get overworked.  Note: your pizza will NOT be round.  But that’s ok.  Your goal is to make the crust as thin as you can be stretching it out manually.  According to Jim Lahey, 12 is the magic number (skip ahead to 13:40).

Arrange your swiss cheese, pecorino, mozzarella around your pizza so that with every bite you get a combination of all three cheeses.  Throw your slices of garlic about your pizza as well, with the same principle in mind.  Top your pizza with the spinach.  It’ll look like a giant mound of leaves on top, but it’ll wilt down after spending time in your hot hot oven.

Slide your pizza onto your stone in your oven.  If you’re using parchment paper, bake for five minutes, then remove the parchment paper from underneath the pizza so the stone.  By that time, the dough will have partially baked and will release easily from the parchment paper.  You want to remove the paper so that the dough can form and excellent crust by baking on the stone.  Bake for an additional five minutes.

If you’re not using a stone, bake for a total of ten minutes.

Around the ten minute mark, I start peeking into my oven to see where the crust and toppings are in the brown/burn stage.  I like it to be super brown (ie almost burned), it takes about an additional minute after the first peek for the pizza to be done.  But your tastes (and oven) might be drastically different from mine.  Keep an eye on your pizza as it will bake quickly at this temperature, and take it out when it reaches your liking of crust color.

Place on a cutting board to cool.  Cut with a serrated bread knife (seriously, who needs pizza wheels?) in a sweeping motion and serve.

I highly recommend eating the pizza by folding it in half so that the spinach is surrounded by cheesy garlicky goodness.  But you may think that’s not classy.  This is Liz Lemon Nights.  We’re classy like wine out of a box.  And night cheese.