¡Olè!

I got my ass handed to me on the spin bike yesterday. It felt awesome. I did a 40-minute spin class from iTrain. The instructor was good and the music was rockin. It felt good to sweat!

Meanwhile, B made dinner! This doesn't happen very often, but it's always good when it does!

Baked Eggplant Olè was one of the first meals B made for me when we started dating (aaawww). It is yummy and great as leftovers too.

Baked Eggplant Olè

from The Vegetarian Gourmet's Easy International Recipes (this is a totally awesome cookbook!)

Ingredients

• 1t olive oil
• 1/2c chopped onion
• 1/2c chopped bell pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 medium eggplant, peels and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 medium, ripe tomatoes, chopped (or 1 15oz can of diced tomatoes)
• 1 4-oz can green chilis, chopped and drained (or 2-3 fresh hot peppers)
• 1/2c shredded part-skim Mozzarella cheese
• 1/2c shredded Cheddar cheese
• 2 slices whole wheat bread, cut into small cubes
• 1/2t ground cumin
• 1/2t chili powder
• 1/2t dried oregano
• 1/4t salt
• 1/8t pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375F
2. Lightly oil a 1 1/2 quart casserole or spray with nonstick cooking spray
3. Heat oil in a large, nonstick skilled over medium. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic and eggplant (and peppers if using fresh). Cook, stirring frequently, 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well. Spoon mixture into prepared casserole. 
5. Bake covered, 30 minutes.

You can serve this like a traditional casserole, or pile it into tortillas and roll them up like a burrito. We like ours with Tapatio, but that's not very surprising.

We enjoyed our eggplant with a simple salad on the side - mixed greens, zucchini, cherry tomatoes, goat cheese, and Angela's Better than Bottled Balsamic dressing. 

I was planning to go for a run today, but I've had a migraine all day long, despite consistent hydration and several doses of Excedrin Migraine. I once tried to run with a headahe, thinking that the endorphins would make it go away. This was a very bad idea. Running is hard when you have a headache. It literally felt like my brain was bouncing around inside my skull. Ouch.

Other things that are hard when you have a headache? Teaching 150 12-year-olds. I don't recommend it. I am exhausted (and I still have a headache!).

Stuff and.... Stuff

Work Stuff
Sometimes I look around my classroom and think, "How awesome/weird/hard/fulfilling/frustrating/inspiring is my job?!" Sometimes I think all of those things at once. Today my students designed a logo that incorporated three positive aspects of their life and then wrote a well-organized paragraph explaining each aspect. It was so fun to watch them work and be creative and think about the things in their lives that make them unique.

Relationship Stuff
My friend Cindy (I've known her since elementary school!) just celebrated her 1-year anniversary with her sweet husband, Daniel. She had some incredibly profound things to say about marriage that I think are great for everyone, whether you are married or in a committed relationship or single. Thanks, Cindy!

Half Marathon Stuff
Thanks for all your congratulatory comments on my first half marathon yesterday! I'm still gathering my thoughts and promise a recap within the week. The good news? I told my students today that even though it was so hard, I am planning to do another one!

Food Stuff
For dinner tonight, I made Stuffed Eggplant with steamed green beans from the in-laws' garden. Clearly I'm really running with this "stuff" theme.

It was.... OK. It's missing something, but I'm not sure what it is. I imagine the leftovers will be pretty legit, though. Leftovers always rock. Once I work out the recipe kinks, I'll be sure to post it here.

Tonight I am alternating between reading "Mockingjay," grading vocabulary tests, and watching either last week's Bachelor Pad or Buffy on Netflix. Really, I'm just enjoying sitting for an extended period of time. I don't think I've ever enjoyed sitting as much as I do right now!

Time Has Come...

...For me to go back to work! It's been a fabulous summer, but I'm officially back in "school" mode! My students don't arrive for class until next Tuesday, but yesterday morning found me looking like this.

So professional! It was hard to drag myself away from the yoga pants and t-shirts and get dressed out of the side of my closet that hasn't seen any action since May!

Don't be fooled though. I totally look like this when I roll out of bed pre-6am.

How do you people work out before you go to work? I can barely work my alarm clock.

This is a really busy (and stressful!) time for me, so I'll have to ask your forgiveness in advance for sporadic posting in the next week or so. Once I get my schedule figured out and get over the need to nap every afternoon (seriously, I turn into a 70-year-old woman during the first two weeks of school. It's ridiculous), I promise it will be business as usual over here.

Until then, here's a yummy curry that I made last week. Mmmmm, eggplant!

This recipe came about for two reasons. Reason #1 - Brian complained at the grocery store that I never cook with eggplant. Reason #2 - We got an eggplant in our CSA box!

This recipe is slightly adapted from Stacey's adaptation of a Food52 recipe. I did not have Japanese eggplant on hand, so I used one enormous regular eggplant from the farm. I also tossed in some curry powder because, as I've mentioned before, Brian and I like it hot. This recipe was awesome. It also makes a TON of curry. We ate curry leftovers for a week. Not that I'm complaining!

Eggplant, Cauliflower and Tomato Curry
(adapted from One Hungry Mama)

2 tbsp organic vegetable oil
1 tsp organic mustard seed powder
1 tsp organic ground cumin
1 organic onion, sliced
1/2 head organic cauliflower, cut into florets & steamed
1 large eggplant, cut into 1/2″ squares
1 organic jalapeno pepper, seeded & finely chopped
1 tsp organic coriander
2 cans organic diced tomatoes, with juice
1/2 tsp organic garam masala

1/2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp organic black pepper
organic limes, optional
chopped organic coriander, optional
raisins, optional

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat until it shimmers. Add mustard and cumin and toast until fragrant.

2. Add onions and stir occasionally until they turn deep brown in spots.

3. Add steamed cauliflower and saute until it takes on some color. Remove from pan to make room for eggplant (it won’t fry nicely if the pan is too crowded).

4. Add remaining tablespoon of oil and, when hot, fry eggplant until the skin begins to turn brown and the flesh softens.

5. Return cauliflower to pan and add chile, coriander, tomatoes, garam masala, curry powder, salt and pepper. Turn heat to medium low and cook until the eggplant is soft. Add a little water if it gets too dry (keeping in mind that you want a thick/solid sauce, not a thin/watery one).

6. Serve with rice and lime wedges. Top with chopped cilantro, a dollop of plain yogurt, and raisins.

One of my favorite kitchen tools is my Typhoon bamboo steamer. We registered for one when we got married without really knowing what we would use it for, but I seriously use it all the time. It's especially great for cauliflower, asparagus, and broccoli, although I know you can steam fish in it too. While I was working on something else, Brian presteamed the cauliflower in this recipe for me. He's so sweet!

What are your favorite kitchen tools?
I also especially love my hand held citrus juicer and my garlic press. They both make using fresh ingredients (instead of bottled lemon juice or jarred minced garlic) so much easier. They get a lot of action in our kitchen!