MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06

Title: Tomato Salsa With Roasted Eggplant & Basil
Categories: Appetizers, Salsa, Vegetables, Chiles
Yield: 4 Servings

1 sm Roasted eggplant
4 lg Ripe tomatoes; diced
1 sm Red onion; minced
6 cl Garlic; minced
3 tb Red wine vinegar
3 tb Olive oil
Fresh basil; chopped
Salt & cayenne pepper *

* When I made this recipe I subbed fresh ground black pepper for
the cayenne and added a seeded, minced green serrano for a more
subtle heat and flavour -UDD

Roasting the eggplant: Turn on a gas burner and lay whole eggplant
directly on the burner. Yes, directly on the flame. Turn frequently
as the skin blackens, until the outside skin of the whole eggplant
is thoroughly charred.

Remove from heat and allow eggplant to cool. Scrape burnt skin off
the meat of the eggplant. It can be quite soft and a little messy,
so this is best done in a clean sink.

Dice roasted eggplant and put in a medium-sized bowl. Add tomatoes
and remaining ingredients. Toss well. Add salt & pepper to taste.

Notes: There was considerable discussion of the many varieties of
heirloom tomatoes. Pardon me for preaching to the choir as I
digress for a moment. After WW II, due to improved transportation,
there became a need to develop tomatoes that would stand mechanical
harvesting, green harvesting, long shipment, etc., and still have a
good appearance as well as a long shelf life. These goals were met
but flavor was not a major consideration and was largely lost. The
result has been a tough skinned fruit that tends to taste much like
the cardboard boxes in which it is shipped. We all know that
home-grown hybrid tomatoes taste much better than the supermarket
cardboard charlatans.

A sample of the names of heirloom varieties: Abe Lincoln--Don
Podollia's Strain, Akers West Virginia, Amish Paste, Anna Russian,
Aunt Ruby's German Green, Black Plum, Blue Ridge Mountain, Box Car
Willie... Taps, The 1884, Tropic, Urbanite and Yellow Plum.

This fresh tomato salsa was delightful. The predominant flavor is a
hint of the red wine vinegar but there is enough cayenne to produce
a subtle lingering of heat. In addition to a red tomato, Tanya used
yellow pear tomatoes in the salsa and the salad.

Roasted eggplant takes on a smoky flavor. The charred skin is easy
to remove. One could also use a balsamic vinegar in this recipe.
The balance of flavors will depend on the vinegar used and the
acidity/sweetness of the tomato varieties. Add whatever seasoning
you like. Could add a jalapeno and perhaps some sugar if the
tomatoes are high in acidity.

The salsa was served with blue and yellow chips.

This was the last in the series of summer cooking classes at
Tanya's Soup Kitchen in Old Town. The theme was "From the Garden".

Recipe FROM: John Geckles, Aug 10, 1999

Uncle Dirty Dave's Kitchen

MMMMM

Wherever you go, there you are!

--- MBSE BBS v1.1.7.2 (Linux-x86_64)
* Origin: Outpost BBS * Johnson City, TN (1:18/200)