Butternut "bruschetta" on sourdough toasts

I wanted to make a fancy-looking appetizer for the cookie swap/party I had this weekend, and came up with the idea to do a twist on the typical bruschetta using very finely diced butternut squash instead of tomato. I used maple syrup, sage and chili powder to give it both sweet and savory flavors, some bacon for extra dimension (we used soy "bacon" because we had some vegetarians coming to the party; you could use real bacon or even crumbled sausage if you prefer), and then some apple at the very end to give it a little crunch.

I'd suggest to start by peeling and chopping all the ingredients, as this is the most time consuming part of the recipe. I used:

4 c. butternut squash (about half of a large squash), peeled and finely diced
4-5 strips (soy) bacon, also diced
1 c. firm apple (about one Granny Smith or similar), diced. Toss with a little lemon juice to keep from browning.

2-3 Tbsp. good quality maple syrup
4-5 leaves fresh sage, crushed
1/2+ tsp. chili powder (adjust to taste)
1/2 tsp. salt
a few grinds fresh black pepper

1 large sourdough baguette (or 2 small), sliced into 1/4-1/2 inch thick pieces and toasted under the broiler

If you choose to use real bacon, start off by cooking this over medium heat in a large saucepan, until the pieces have crisped - this should happen pretty quickly. [If you use the fake bacon, skip this step and instead heat up 1-2 Tbsp. olive oil in the pan] Add the butternut squash, maple syrup, spices (sage through pepper) and sautee with occasional stirring until the squash has softened, about 10 minutes. Add the chopped soy bacon at this point. Cook another 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and mix in the apple - I left it mostly raw so it would give a nice crunch (to contrast the 'mushiness' of the squash). Spoon ~1 Tbsp. or so onto each toasted slice of sourdough and arrange on a plate. These taste best warm or at room temperature.

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Delicious salsa

I'm not a big fan of salsa out of a jar, but I love the fresh stuff. My husband and I tried our hand at homemade after having some really good salsa at Cafe de la Paz and now I'll never go back. It involves a lot of chopping, of course, but otherwise, couldn't be easier.

The quantities here are very general, pretty much everything can and should be altered to taste. We usually make a big batch and eat it over a week - it keeps well, but loses a lot of the fresh cilantro flavor after a few days. It's also a great potluck staple. Who doesn't love chips and salsa?

Ingredients:
5-8 medium tomatoes [firm varieties work best, but I buy whatever's cheap]
2 generous pinches salt
1 red onion
1-2 green or yellow bell peppers [I get a little variety pack of sweet peppers from the Mexican grocery store around the corner, they work wonderfully]
hot pepper (e.g., serrano or Anaheim) to taste. [I leave these out, personally, but if you like some spice, have a ball.]
Bunch (a couple handfuls worth) of fresh cilantro

Make it:
Cut the tomatoes into 1/4 inch chunks using a serrated knife (I use our bread knife but a regular steak knife will do). Tomatoes are kind of tricky to cut up uniformly because they're slippery, but once you get the hang of it, it's not so bad - in my experience, the best method is to cut them in half, slice the halves into wedges through the flesh side, and then cut the wedges into 4-5 chunks.

Sprinkle the tomato chunks with salt and then put them into a colander to strain off as much of the liquid as you can. The salt will help extract the liquid. I've found that this salsa tends to be pretty watery no matter what, so the longer the tomatoes drain, the better - let them hang out in the colander while you cut up the onion (small dice) and bell peppers (1/4 inch dice, remove as much of the membrane as you can).

If you do use the hot peppers, be careful to wash your hands and the cutting board thoroughly afterward. High on my list of things that suck are (1) getting capsaicin in my eyes; and (2) hot pepper flavor in a recipe where it's not wanted.

Combine the three main ingredients in your serving/storage bowl (never get more bowls dirty than is absolutely necessary. Mise en place is all well and good, but I don't have a dishwasher). If you're feeling spunky, you could throw in some pineapple chunks or mango at this point, too.

Chop up the cilantro - you can be anal retentive and pull the leaves off the stems if you want; I just chop straight off the bunch. Run the knife through your pile both vertically and horizontally to ensure a relatively fine, even chop, and then add the cilantro to the salsa. Salt and pepper to taste, making sure to take into consideration the saltiness level of your tortilla chips.

I promise my next entry will NOT prominently feature tomatoes.

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Eggplant Caponata

One of my favorite examples of culinary alchemy (discovered a few summers ago when our co-op farm stuck us with several pounds of eggplant that we didn't know what to do with) is Mario Batali's great recipe for eggplant caponata. You can definitely identify all the major components - the tomato sauce, the balsamic vinegar, the currants, and of course the eggplant - but it's still kind of a mystery to me how these flavors come together so beautifully and make another taste entirely.

Also a bonus, it cooks up really fast - prep time about 5-10 minutes, depending on your knife skillz, and another 15 minutes to cook. Technically, a caponata is designed to be served on crusty bread as an appetizer, but I think it works just as well as a main dish, served with pasta. Definitely a decent vegetarian option!

Recipe breakdown and commentary:
1/2 c. virgin olive oil [you can use less if you're mindful of calories - I usually use 1/4 c., or just enough to cover the bottom of the pan]
1 large Spanish onion [any type of onion is fine]
3 Tbs. pine nuts [TOTALLY optional - pine nuts are friggin pricey]
3 Tbs. currants [nobody actually has currants in their pantry. Chop up a handful of raisins instead, it's pretty much the same thing.]
1 Tbs. hot chili flakes [adjust to taste, I'm a spice wuss]
2 medium/1 large eggplant (yield ~4 c.)
2 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves (or 1/2 tsp. dried)
1/4 c. basic tomato sauce [if you don't make your own tomato sauce - although you really should, because it's easy - use any simple pasta sauce. Nothing too fancy or creamy!]
1/3 c. balsamic vinegar
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

How to make it:
Chop up your onion and eggplant. Size of dice/chop is up to you; I like a decent size slice of onion and about a 1/4 inch chop on the eggplant. If you want to have this over pasta, start the water boiling now.

In a large 12 to 14-inch saute pan over medium heat, heat the olive oil until hot but not smoking. Add the onions, pine nuts (optional), currants and chili flakes to the oil. Saute for 4 to 5 minutes, basically until the onions are translucent.

Add the eggplant, sugar, cinnamon, and cocoa and continue to cook for 5 more minutes. Your pasta water should be boiling happily by now, so start the noodles. A 1 lb. bag will make more than enough to go along with this recipe. [I usually just make enough for two servings (six handfuls of ziti) and set aside the extra caponata for leftovers, but you can do it all at once if you prefer.]

Add the thyme, tomato sauce, and balsamic vinegar. If you don't have enough liquid to really cover the bottom of the pan, add a little bit of water. Bring the mixture to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer the mixture about 5 minutes.

After you turn the heat down on the caponata, check on the pasta. It's probably al dente (firm but doesn't stick to your teeth) by now. Drain it and transfer it back to the pot you cooked it in. When the caponata is done simmering, transfer [some or all, depending on how much pasta you made] to the pasta pot. Give it a good stir, salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

Mangia!

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