Briam
Although Sally and Holly didn't make it to Corfu on their recent trip, I found this interesting Corfu-an dish on a Chef Rick Stein food/culture documentary where he visited the island among others in the Mediterranean. Briam is basically a "deep dish" roasted veggie 'casserole' with whatever is ripe, plus a splash of good olive oil.
Tomatoes
Eggplant
Zucchini
Onion
Green Bell Pepper
Garlic
Oregano
Fresh herbs -- any combination of:
Parsley
Mint
Dill
Basil
Cut everything into finger-sized pieces. In a large bowl drizzle good EVOO over all the veg (not the herbs), and toss to coat. Now -- you can arrange everything in pretty rows of overlapping slices -- or just chuck it all randomly in a 2" or deeper baking dish. Top with your fresh herbs. Drizzle a bit more EVOO on top, add about 1/2 cup of water or broth (or even wine) and maybe some crumbled feta.
Top with foil and bake at 400F for 45 minutes or more, until the potatoes are done. I made a 9"x9" baking dish batch -- 3-4 tomatoes, a couple skin-on potatoes, a couple Japanese eggplant, a couple zucchini, a bell pepper and an onion, plus fresh dill and parsley and dried mint and oregano. Dinner for two easily. Serve with Kalamata or similar olives and fresh bread to sop up the juices...
Blueberry Drop Scones
I got the urge the other day to make some blueberry scones. Drop scones, not formed scones. Not overly sweet, "Simple to make, simple to bake" as they say. Not pretty, perhaps, but tasty.
2-1/2 cups Bisquicktm or similar baking & pancake mix
1/4 cup Sugar
1/4 cup cold Butter, shaved or cut into small bits
1/4 cup Dairy -- real or plant milk or cream
2 Eggs
2/3 cup Blueberries 00 fresh or frozen (still frozen)
Preheat the oven to 400F
In a largeish bowl stir together the baking mix and sugar. "Cut" the butter into the flour until well distributed.
Beat together the eggs and dairy
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and cold to combine. Lastly carefully fold in the berries until well distributed.
DROP (hence the name Drop Scone) spoonsful of the dough spaced well apart. Or... drop the whole batch of dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet. With a wet spatula spread the dough in a rough circle or rectangle about 3/4" thick.
Bake for 10 minutes, remove from the oven and slice the rectangle into squares or wedges. Return to the oven and bake another 10 minutes until you get a nice golden top.
My own take on an upscale dinner version of a quesadilla.
Large (9") Burrito size Tortilla
2 Eggs Beaten
Mushrooms, sliced
Onion, diced
Bell Pepper, diced
Taco Seasoning
Feta Cheese
Cheddar or Mexican blend shredded cheese
toppings of choice
Beat together the eggs while you fry the mushrooms, bell pepper and onion is a large non-stick skillet.
Pour the eggs over and around the veggies. Use a spatula to try and keep the eggs in a 9" circle.
Dust the cooking egg/veg mix with taco seasoning, and sprinkle some shredded cheese and cheddar on top.
Flip as you transfer to a plate, then return the quesadilla to the skillet -- tortilla-side down.
Cook for a couple minutes to brown the tortilla. Add more cheeses.
Fold in half and transfer back to the plate. Top with salsa or whatever you choose, and serve.
Persimmon Jam
Simple, easy and will keep, tightly closed, in the fridge for 6 months or until it's gone... The lemon juice acts like pectin to help the jam set up.
8-10 Ripe Persimmons
1 cup Sugar
Juice of half a lemon
½ teaspoon Cinnamon
½ teaspoon Nutmeg or Mace
1/4 teaspoon Allspice
Cut the tops off the persimmons and peel them. Cut into pieces and with your food processor puree the fruit, sugar, spices and lemon juice to a smooth consistency.
Cook the puree in a saucepan with the burner on medium-low for 30-45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes to cook out excess water and thicken significantly. Don't let it stick to the bottom of the pan!
Ladle into a screw-top jar(s) and let it cool on the counter before you transfer to the fridge.
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