We’ve had a fantastic growing year for our eggplants, making us very happy at the farm since eggplant is on the top of our favourite veggies list! Denise loves to make big batches of babagaboush that we all take home at the end of the day, each batch seems to be better then the last. One day we’ll share her recipe with you ;) Today we did our last harvest of eggplant for the season in anticipation of frost! We recently tried out this recipe from Chatelaine and loved it, so hope you enjoy it as well!

Ingredients:

• 8 small eggplant {if you only have large eggplant, cook for about 1hr)
  
• 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1 tsp salt
  
• 1/2 tsp pepper
  
• 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
  
• 1/2 cup torn mint leaves
  
• 2 tbsp toasted pine nuts
  

Sumac Tahini Sauce:

• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
  
• 1/4 cup tahini
  
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
  
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
  
• 1 tsp sumac, divided in two
  
• 1/4 tsp salt
  

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 375F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Keeping the eggplant attached at the stem, slice eggplants vertically, 1/2 in. apart. Press each eggplant at the stem until the slices fan out, then brush with oil. Season with salt and pepper.
• Arrange on sheet and bake, flipping halfway, until tender, about 30 min.
• Sauce: Whisk yogurt, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, 1/2 tsp sumac and salt in a bowl. Slowly whisk in 1/3 cup water, plus 1 tbsp, until smooth. To serve, drizzle over eggplants. Top with pomegranate seeds, mint, pine nuts and remaining 1/2 tsp sumac. Enjoy!

We pulled out a ton of cucumber from the fields this week! Since it’s also tomato season, my mind went immediately to gazpacho. This gazpacho was really easy to make and perfect for a hot summer day. Feel free to mix up the ingredients as well. I recently had a melon gazpacho and with corn season upon us, I’m sure this recipe would taste great with some fresh corn! 

Ingredients:

• 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded
• 1 large or two small bell peppers, stemmed, seeded
• 2 lb mini heirloom tomatoes
• ½ medium onion
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp salt
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• Pepper to taste
• Handful of chopped herbs 

Directions:

With lot of zucchini, onions, garlic, parsley and sumac here on the farm, once we found this recipe from Saveur Magazine we knew we had to try it. This recipe is great for using up what’s in season right now and very easy to make!

Ingredients:

• 3 tbsp. canola oil
  
• 1⁄4 tsp. minced fresh ginger
  
• 3 large onions, chopped
  
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
  
• 1 tsp. ground turmeric
  
• 5 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1⁄4”-thick slices
  
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  
• 4 tbsp. flour
  
• 1⁄2 tsp. baking soda
  
• 7 eggs, beaten
  
• 2 tbsp. chopped parsley
  
• Sumac, for garnish
  

Directions

• Heat oven to 400°C. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a 12” skillet over medium-high heat. Add ginger, onions, and garlic; cook until soft, 6–8 minutes. Add turmeric and zucchini; season with salt and pepper; cook until tender, 12–15 minutes. Stir in 3 tbsp. flour and baking soda; let cool.
  
• Stir eggs into zucchini mixture. Grease a 9” x 13” casserole with remaining oil; sprinkle with remaining flour; pour in mixture. Bake until set, 25–30 minutes. Garnish with parsley and sumac.