Caponata

I didn't even know what this was until a couple of days ago. I found myself with a large Ontario eggplant, and thought I might make some ratatouille.
I browsed a few recipes online and kept finding recipes for this dish. It's Italian, but it's not from my grandparent's region, so I've never tried it before. I decided to go for it.
One of the main reasons I picked this recipe instead of ratatouille was that I had a picnic today, and wanted to have something that could be snacked on, didn't require heating or cooling, could be easily carried and was vegan. This recipe was a hit. I got quite a few compliments on it.
There were so many conflicting recipes with different ingredients online that I ended up settling with the recipe in the hardcover copy of the Joy of Cooking on our bookshelf. It had the fewest ingredients and seemed the easiest for me.

Other than the small pain of sweating the eggplant, this recipe is a piece of cake. I served it with Melba toasts and some bread and hummous.

Thin Crust Pizza

I found a new recipe for thin crust pizza dough that didn't require any proofing and rising time.

My old dough recipe, although delicious, usually took about three hours to get ready because of all the different steps. Here's the recipe I took from some internet person.

.25 oz. pkt. active dry yeast
1/4 tsp. granulated sugar
3/4 cup 110 degree water
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt



Dissolve yeast and sugar in water; allow to rest for 8 minutes.
In a separate bowl, combine flour and salt.
Pour yeast mixture over flour mixture and mix well with a heavy spoon.
Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for 2 minutes.
Working from the edges to the center, press dough into a 12" circle.
Place dough on a lightly greased pizza pan and stretch dough to edges.
Spread sauce over crust and top with cheese and desired toppings.
Bake in a 500 degree oven for 8-12 minutes, or until edges are golden.

I topped half with paper-thin potato slices, rosemary, sea salt and olive oil. For the other half I made a quick fresh tomato sauce with basil and oregano, and put some havarti on top.

This one's a keeper. Definitely.