Late Harvest Caponata

My vegetable drawer runneth over. My hectic schedule has not afforded me the opportunity to preserve as much of my late summer produce in the forms I'd like to have put together, and the fruit flies are surrounding the dish filled with my friend Dave's succulent tomatoes. I needed to do something. I put this caponata together inspired by a food network recipe, but I made some adjustments based on what I had in the house. It made three 1.5 pint containers worth, as well as a smaller pint jar which I plan to share with the man whose tomatoes made up a good deal of the dish. It was delicious. For dinner, we mixed some in with a light garlic quinoa, sprinkled with just a little fresh Parmesan cheese and some fresh herbs sprinkled on top. Perfect.

You need:

1 lg. onion, chopped
4 c. chopped tomatoes
2 bell peppers, chopped
2 eggplant, peeled and chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1/3 c. golden raisins
2 tbsp. capers
1 tbsp. dried oregano
2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

Coat the bottom of a very large skillet or dutch oven with olive oil. Turn the heat to medium, and salute the onions until soft. Add the eggplant and celery. Cook for 8 minutes. Add the peppers and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the raisins, oregano, and 1 c. water. Cook for 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes, capers and cider vinegar. Cook an additional 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve by itself or over rice, pasta, pizza dough, etc. etc. etc.

Pumpkin and Chicken Curry with Basmati Rice

Tonight, a small group of good friends will gather to remember a dear friend whom we lost in 2009. She was kind and funny as hell. Each year, on her birthday weekend, we head to her favorite watering hole for Guinness on tap and reminiscing. That means I need to get dinner on the table quickly and easily - no fuss and little energy. In this month's Parents magazine, there was a entire series on pumpkin recipes. I knew I had all of the ingredients already in the pantry and freezer, so I decided to give it a shot. And I'm lucky that my kids like curry. I just tweaked it a little to suit our tastes, leaving out the cayenne and replacing the spinach with swiss chard.

You need:

4 tsp. olive oil

12 oz. chicken breasts, cut into thin strips

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 tbsp. minced ginger

1 tbsp. minced garlic

1 c. unsweetened coconut milk

1 c. canned pureed pumpkin

2 tbsp. curry powder

1/2 tsp. salt

3 c. shredded swiss chard

2 tsp. lemon juice

2 c. steamed basmati rice

Heat 2 tsp. oil in a large skillet. Add the chicken and cook until just done, about 4 minutes. Remove and set aside. Reduce the heat to medium and add the onions, garlic, and ginger. Cook for 5 minutes or until tender. Add the coconut milk, pumpkin and spices. Add 1/2 c. water. Simmer, uncovered, for ten minutes. Add the chicken and swiss chard and cook until wilted. Stir in the lime juice. Serve with the rice.