sister sister

For those of you who don't know, my sister is basically the coolest most wonderful person on the planet. Now, I know I'm biased, however, a lot of sisters hate each other so you'll just have to take my word on this one. My little sister is my best friend in the whole world, and probably would be yours too if you had the chance to meet her. At the moment she's busy studying and saving the world at college in Boston, but this weekend she visited New York. My cousins, aunt and uncle all came down from Boston for the weekend, and on Sunday my parents came in, so it was one big family reunion. We had a delicious brunch, and went to the Knicks game (Linsanity anyone?). I'm one of those dorks that basically can't get enough of spending time with my family, so this weekend was wonderful.

To top it off, my sister and her boyfriend spent the evening with me and my boyfriend last night at my apartment, giving them a perfect chance to make their sugar pie, honey bunch debut. Since my parents had come in that morning, thus making their standard delivery of 4 bags of produce, I had lots of veggies in my fridge, to say the least. Another great thing about my parents visiting is that they never seem to come empty handed. And since my dad shares the same love for produce that I do, he always brings me all of my favorites (well, to be honest, all veggies are my favorites). With tons of delicious produce to choose from, I decided to feature the beautiful eggplant and zucchini that had arrived earlier, pairing it with fresh basil and garlic. The results, pure deliciousness (and some board game fun as well).

the first of many games played

Cheesy Herb Baked Zucchini and Eggplant, served along side Pasta with Heirloom Tomatoes and Fresh Herbs

3/4 eggplant, sliced thinly

1 medium zucchini, sliced thinly

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

1 cup of pasta sauce of your choice

2 cups of spinach

4 cloves of garlic, minced

8 (or so) leaves of fresh basil

A few pinches of salt and pepper

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp basil

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp thyme

building the layers- delicious fresh basil.

...and it grows

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees
Pour 1/3 of the pasta sauce into a baking dish
Place thinly sliced eggplant along the bottom of the dish, so that they overlap and cover the entire bottom of the pan
Sprinkle with salt, pepper, herbs and 1/3 of the garlic
Top eggplant with the fresh basil leaves
On top of this layer, add another 1/3 of the tomato sauce, spreading evenly with a spoon
Next, put 1/2 of spinach on top and sprinkle with 1/2 of cheese
Repeat layering, using the slices of zucchini (and any leftover eggplant) instead of eggplant
Bake covered for 45 minutes, finishing off with 5 minutes uncovered, and 2 minutes uncovered under broil

The finished masterpiece

2 Cups uncooked pasta (I used gluten free, brown rice pasta)
A sprinkle of salt
1 cup miniature heirloom tomatoes (cut into fourths)
1 cup red pasta sauce
Fresh Herbs of your choosing


Bring salted water to boil in a large pot, adding pasta and cooking until done
Once your pasta is drained, add it back into the pot with a splash of olive oil at the bottom of the pot (so that the pasta doesn't stick)
Stir in pasta sauce, tomatoes and herbs

enjoy!!

paired with pasta, a perfect Sunday night dinner.