Pastamore's August Seasonal Recipe

     Eggplant is in season practically everywhere, and they are super cheap in the grocery stores right now!  For this months recipe we wanted to put a different twist on a veggie burger.  We were looking for something to make that is very light and delicious.  We found that the flavors match up wonderfully to a real eggplant Parmesan. Pastamore's August seasonal recipe really delivers a veggie burger that is out of this world and features our Pastamore Roasted Tomato Blend Dipping Oil. 

 

GRILLED EGGPLANT PARMESAN SANDWICH
Serves 4

  Ingredients 
  1 - large eggplant
3-4 Tbsp - Pastamore Roasted Tomato Blend Dipping Oil
1/2 cup - panko bread crumbs
4 - buns
2-3 oz - Parmesan cheese
2 - tomatoes
1-2 Cups - baby spinach (arugula also acceptable)
12-16 - leaves of fresh basil
Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar
As needed - salt and black pepper
 

Directions:

1.)  Pour the Pastamore Roasted Tomato Blend Dipping Oil into a plastic container that is slightly wider than the eggplant.  Place the bread crumbs into a bowl or plate of similar size.

2.)  Use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin from the eggplant.  Slice the eggplant in 3/4" thick coins.  One at a time, dip both sides of the eggplant slices into the container with the Pastamore Roasted Tomato Blend Dipping Oil.  Once coated on both sides, season both sides with salt and black pepper.  Next, place the eggplant onto the bread crumbs.  Press down on the eggplant so that the crumbs stick.  Do this to both sides of all of the eggplant.

3.)  Turn the grill on to medium-high heat.

4.)  While the grill is heating, slice the tomatoes in half (top to bottom).  Drizzle both sides with Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar, and then season with salt and black pepper.

5.)  Place the eggplant and tomatoes onto the grill.  Cook the eggplant until it has achieved a nice color, and the flesh of the eggplant has become tender.  Cook the tomatoes until they have achieved nice grill marks on both sides.  Flip the eggplant and tomatoes only once during cooking, and cook time should be approximately 7-10 minutes.  When they are almost finished, lightly toast the buns on the grill.

6.)  Plate the bottom half of the bun, and top with the baby spinach.  Next, add the eggplant and and then top with grated Parmesan cheese.  Roll the basil leaves up and cut them very thin (chiffonade), and add to the top of the sandwich.  Drizzle a little Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar on the plate, and finally add the top bun and grilled tomato to the plate.  Be sure to try dipping the sandwich in the balsamic on the plate while eating.
 

Chocolate Chipotle Burger

We have recently released a Dark Chocolate Balsamic Vinegar, and many customers have been asking what they can do with it.  The easy answer is to simply drizzle it over desserts, such as cheesecake or ice cream.  However, the great flavor of this fantastic balsamic vinegar works wonders with savory flavors.

Chiles and chocolate have been popular in desserts, and the flavor profile also works well with beef.  This recipe may seem like a strange combination, but you won't be able to put the burger down once you take a bite.  The chocolate balsamic offers a nice sweet, chocolatey undertone that can be tasted throughout the entire burger.

Ingredients:  Servings - 4
1 lb - ground beef (80/20 or 85/15 preferred)

1 Tbsp - Pastamore Dark Chocolate Balsamic Vinegar

1/2 tsp - salt
1/2 tsp - chipotle chile powder
1/4 tsp - black pepper
1/4 tsp - red pepper flakes
3-4 oz - aged Manchego cheese (regular Manchego also acceptable)
4 - sweet hamburger buns (e.g. King's Hawaiian hamburgers buns)
1 - large sweet potato/yam
2 - red bell peppers
1-2 cup - baby spinach
As needed - salt and black pepper
As needed - vegetable oil

Directions:
1.  Combine the ground beef, salt, chipotle chile powder, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and the Pastamore Dark Chocolate Balsamic Vinegar in a large mixing bowl.  Mix until evenly combined.  Form the meat into four even sized patties, and place on a plate to the side.

2.  Place a large pot of water on the stove over high heat.  While the water is heating, peel the sweet potatoes, and then cut the sweet potatoes into 1/4" thick slices.  Make the cut on a bias so that the pieces of sweet potato are longer.  Once the water has come to a boil, place the sweet potatoes into the water and cook for 5-7 minutes.  The sweet potatoes should only be partially cooked because they will be finished on the grill (and they will fall apart if over boiled).

3.  Turn on the grill to medium-high heat. 

4.  While the grill is heating, cut the red bell peppers in half lengthwise.  Dispose of the stems, veins, and seeds.  Lightly drizzle with vegetable oil, and rub to evenly coated.  Lightly coat with salt and black pepper.  Once the sweet potatoes have dried, oil and season them like the red peppers.  Slice the Manchego cheese.

5.  Place the burgers, red bell peppers, and sweet potatoes on the grill at the same time.  Cook the sweet potatoes until they have achieved nice grill marks on both sides.  Cook the red pepper in the same way, and their cook times should be very close.  Cook the burgers until the desired doneness has been reached.  Turn the burgers only once during the cooking process.  When the burgers are 1-2 minutes away from being completed, top with the Manchego cheese.  At the same time, toast the buns on the grill.

6.  Place the bottom of the bun on the plate, and then top first with the spinach.  Place the burger on top of the spinach, and then add the sweet potatoes.  Finally, top with the top half of the bun.  Place the grilled red bell pepper next to the burger and serve.

Lemon Caper Tapenade Tuna Salad

Tuna salad makes for a great snack, a quick lunch, or a light dinner.  However, tuna salad is rarely a special or inspired dish.  This recipe utilizes our Pastamore Lemon Caper Artichoke Tapenade, and this addition gives a fantastic freshness and flavor.  Instead of your typical mayonnaise, this recipe is made with light cream cheese.  The cream cheese offers a rich flavor without the same calories you would find in mayonnaise.  Well this recipe may not make tuna salad the talk of the town, it will at least surprise your taste buds with a great treat.

Ingredients:  Serves: 2
1 - 5 oz can of tuna
1 Tbsp - Pastamore Lemon Caper Artichoke Tapenade
1 oz - low-fat cream cheese
1/2 Tbsp - stone ground mustard
To taste - salt and black pepper
As needed - whole wheat bread

Directions:
1.  Empty the can of tuna into a medium-sized mixing bowl.

2.  Add the cream cheese, mustard, and Pastamore Lemon Caper Artichoke Tapenade.  Use a fork to thoroughly mix all ingredients.

3.  Season the tuna salad to taste with salt and black pepper.

4.  Serve open-faced on one piece of whole wheat bread, or serve on two pieces of bread for a delicious sandwich.

Chilled Sweet Corn Soup

It is that great time of year when sweet corn is not only cheap but delicious as well.  Colorado is known for its Olathe sweet corn, and this soup is a great way to utilize this fantastic vegetable.  This recipe only has a few ingredients, and allows the corn flavor to really shine through.

But a soup, in summer?  Yes!  This soup is lighter than a soup I would serve in the winter, and straining the soup gives it a nice light texture.  On a hot summer day, a nice bowl of chilled soup will certainly hit the spot.

Ingredients:  Serves: 3-4
4 ears - fresh sweet corn
1 - medium yellow onion
3 strips - bacon

2 tsp - Pastamore Kettle Roasted Garlic Oil

1 qt - vegetable broth
2 cups - water
12 oz - milk
1/2 tsp - salt
As garnish - cilantro
To taste - salt and pepper

Directions:
1.  Place a large pot on the stove over medium-high heat.  Once the pot is hot, add the bacon.  Cook the bacon until the desired doneness has been reached.  While the bacon is cooking, slice the onion.  After the bacon has cooked, remove from the pot and place on a paper towel to dry.

2.  Add the onions to the pot and begin to cook.  If the onions begin to color too quickly, reduce the heat to medium.  Cook the onions for 5-8 minutes.  While the onions are cooking, remove the kernels from the corn.  Cut off one end of the corn, and then place that side on the cutting board.  Run a sharp knife down the side of the corn, keeping the knife as close to the core as possible.  Rotate the corn, and continue until all of the kernels have been removed.  Once the onions are ready, add the corn to the pot.

3.  Cook the corn and onion mixture for 5 minutes.  After five minutes, add the vegetable broth, water, and milk to the pot.  Bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer.  Add the 1/2 tsp of salt, and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

4.  While the soup is cooking, chop the bacon into fine pieces. 

5.  Remove the soup from the heat.  Place the soup into a food processor (or use an immersion blender) to blend the soup.  Blend until as smooth as possible.  Next, pour the soup through a fine mesh colander or a cheese cloth.  Get as much liquid out of the corn by pressing it with a spoon, or wringing it out until no more liquid comes out.

6.  Add the 2 tsp of Pastamore Kettle Roasted Garlic Oil, and then season the soup to taste with salt and black pepper.  Place the soup into the refrigerator, and allow to cool for at least 4 hours.

7.  When it is time to serve the soup, remove from the refrigerator.  Whisk the soup immediately before serving so that it is thoroughly mixed.  Ladle the soup into bowls, and garnish with the chopped bacon and fresh cilantro.

Caprese Burger

The Caprese salad is a staple of traditional Italian cuisine.  The combination of fresh mozzarella, tomato, and fresh basil have stood the test of time.  The flavor profile can be found in many Italian dishes, and I figured why not lend these delicious flavors to a burger.

This recipe utilizes our Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar in both the meat and as a garnish.  This recipe was also created with focaccia bread as the bun and with a side of grilled eggplant to stay with the Italian theme.  This recipe is simple and delicious, and offers a nice fresh flavor for summer.

Ingredients:   Serves: 4
1 lb - ground beef (80/20 or 85/15 preferred)

1 Tbsp - Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar

1/2 tsp -salt
1/4 tsp - dried oregano
1/8 tsp - black pepper
1/8 tsp - garlic powder
4 oz - fresh mozzarella cheese
1-2 - tomatoes
6-8 leaves - fresh basil
1 - eggplant
As needed - salt, black pepper, and olive oil

As garnish - Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar

1 small loaf - focaccia bread (large enough to be mad into four buns)

Directions:
1.   In a large mixing bowl combine the ground beef, Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar, salt, dried oregano, black pepper, and garlic powder.  Mix until evenly distributed.  Form the meat into four even sized patties and place to the side.

2.  Turn the grill on medium-heat, and allow it to come to temperature.

3.  Cut the focaccia bread so that the sides of the buns will be flat.  Use a serrated or a bread knife to cut the bread into burger-sized pieces, and then cut in half to make a bun.  Place the basil leaves on top of each other, and roll them up like a cigar.  Them cut them into fine strips (this is known as a chiffonade).  Cut the tomato into 4 1/4" thick slices.

4.  Rinse the eggplant.  Cut the top and bottom off of the eggplant, and dispose of them.  Slice the eggplant into approximately 8 even-sized pieces.  Lightly drizzle the flesh of the eggplant with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

5.  Place the burgers onto the grill.  Cook until the desired doneness is reached, and only turn them once during the cooking process.  When the burgers are flipped add the eggplant and the buns to the grill.  Cook the bread until they achieve nice grill marks, and cook the eggplant until it becomes tender with nice grill marks.

6.  Cut the fresh mozzarella into 4 1-oz pieces.  Plate the bottom half of the bun and top with the burger.  Top the burger with the cheese, then tomato, and then finally with the fresh basil.  Finish off the plate with a drizzle of Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar.

Triple Bacon Burger

Here is a tasty burger that you can try out this coming July 4th.  The addition of bacon to everything in this burger makes it delicious, but not the healthiest.  However, this can be taken care of by using a low-fat ground beef or by using bits of bacon in the mayonnaise instead of bacon fat.  Either way, this will still be nice and bacon-y.

This burger is straight-forward, and doesn't take much more time than your typical burger.  Having a little bit of bacon in all aspects of the burger gives the burger an underlying bacon flavor.  This recipe uses our Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar in the meat, and this gives some acidity to break the richness of this burger.

Ingredients:  Serves: 4
1 lb - lean ground beef (93/7)

1 Tbsp - Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar

1/2 lb - bacon
4 - buns
4 slices - cheddar cheese
2 Tbsp - mayonnaise
1 - tomato
As garnish - romaine lettuce
1/4 tsp - salt
1/4 tsp - black pepper


Directions:
1.  Combine the 1 lb of ground beef, salt, black pepper, and Pastamore Traditional Barrel-Aged Balsamic Vinegar in a large bowl.  Mix until all ingredients are fully incorporated.  Place to the side.

2.  Turn the grill onto high/medium-high heat.  Place a large pan on the stove over medium-high heat.  Once the pan is hot, add the bacon to the pan.  Cook until desired doneness is reached, and then place onto paper towel to dry.  Reserve 1 Tbsp of bacon fat, and dispose of the rest.  Add the bacon fat to the 2 Tbsp of mayonnaise, and then whisk together.  Place the mixture into the refrigerator.

3.  Reserve 4-6 slices of bacon to top the completed burgers with, and chop the remaining pieces.  Add the chopped bacon to the ground beef mixture, and mix until incorporated.  Form four equal-sized patties out of the ground beef.

4.  Place the burgers on the grill and cook until the desired temperature has been reached.  Turn the burgers one time during the cooking process, and add the cheese to the top of the burgers when there is approximately 1-2 minutes left in cook time.

5.  Place the buns onto the grill and cook until they have become toasted.  Slice the tomato and lettuce for use as garnish.

6.  Spoon 1/4 of the mayonnaise mixture onto the bottom bun, and then top with the lettuce.  Place the burger on top, and then add the tomato and bacon strips.