I want to taste nothing but creamy tomato soup, flavored with the herbs of my choice. Typical recipes will have bouillon cubes or chicken broth and flour.

I decided against those ingredients, using heavy cream and white wine for a smooth and robust tomato bisque soup.

This Tomato Bisque Soup Recipe is a Healthy Version

The result is a healthier, cleaner taste of pure tomato. I picked the tomatoes and herbs out of my garden, and I wanted to share a soup that you could easily make without a lot of fuss, yet still have those sophisticated flavors. (see the faster, cheat version below).

Of course, you can pair this with a grilled cheese sandwich and make that classic American meal.

Put a Creative Spin on Tomato Bisque Soup

• Add fresh sweet corn, cut from from the cob, for texture.
• Add in homemade croutons, or crunchy bacon.
• Add hot sauce and chopped avocado.
• Add a some chile oil and replace cream with coconut milk.  So this at the end before stirring. Skip the wine.
• Add a drizzle of honey. Honey does something to tomatoes that I just adore.
• Skip the cream and simply have a great tomato basil soup.

Fresh garden tomato bisque soup is just one of many great tomato recipes made with food from my garden. You might also be interested in the fresh garden tomato sauce.

Fast Tomato Bisque Soup using Passata

Passata is simply strained tomatoes and sea salt, found in your local grocery store next to canned tomatoes, most often in glass bottles. Use Passata as your start. Add the wine first and when the alcohol burns off, add the heavy cream and warm through. Finish with fresh herbs, salt and pepper as needed. 

More Fabulous Soup from Spinach Tiger

• Roasted Red Pepper Soup
• Italian Beef Macaroni Soup
• Ribollita Tuscan Cabbage Soup
• Green Potato Soup
• Carrot Ginger Soup
• Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Toasted Pecans
• Healthy Spicy Tortilla Soup
• Creamy Garden Tomato Soup
• Summer Chicken Soup 
• Spinach Soup
• Snowcap Heirloom Beans with Shrimp
• Bean Soup with Bacon Bits
• Split Pea Soup with Portabello Mushrooms
• Garden Fresh Tomato Basil Soup
• Broccoli Basil Spinach Soup

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My Favorite Tools for this Recipe

• Soup Crocks
• Soup Ladle
• Stick Blender
• Le Creuset Dutch Oven (I have several, but this one is smaller and on my to buy list)
• Passata

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Fresh Tomato Bisque Soup

Homemade fresh tomato biscque soup with tomatoes from the garden, blended until smooth.

Course Soup

Cuisine American

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 4 hours hours

Total Time 4 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 10 tomatoes see note
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion peeled, cut in chunks
• 2 carrots peeled, cut in big chunks
• 1 piece of celery or a dash celery seed
• fresh parsely small handful
• fresh basil small handful
• 6 sprigs of thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dry thyme
• 1/2 cup white wine or dry sherry optional
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons butter

Instructions

• Cut an x in the bottom of each tomato. Submerge tomatoes into boiling water for 30 seconds. You may do this 4 tomatoes at a time.
• Cool. Peel.
• Cut in half, squeeze some of the water and seeds out.
• Put in crock pot with onion, carrot, celery olive oil, thyme, basil. Add white wine.
• Cook on high for 4 hours or low for six hours. (this part is very flexible. Just make sure there enough liquid in slow cooker).
• Put into blender or use a stick blender with butter and blend until smooth.
• Add back in soup pan. Turn burner on low. Add in heavy cream. Cook just until warm and blended.
• Top with freshly cut parsley and basil, sprig of thyme or any herbs you like.

Notes

You may want to make more than 10 tomatoes, just follow the ratios. 20 tomatoes will easily fit in most slow cookers. 

Cheat Tomato Bisque: Use Passata as your start. Add the wine first and when the alcohol burns off, add the heavy cream and warm through. Finish with fresh herbs, salt and pepper as needed. 

The post Tomato Bisque Soup Recipe with Fresh Tomatoes appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

We quickly looked up a few recipes and made garlic confit. They he and the boys ate nearly a loaf of sourdough bread with the softened garlic. You can call that a good day.

Since then, I thought of of a way to improve that first go around. But before I get into that let’s answer a few questions about garlic confit.

What is Garlic Confit?

Confit is cooked covered in fat. Duck confit is slowly cooked in duck fat. It was a method of preservation. Vegetables can be cooked confit style slowly cooked in olive oil.

Garlic confit is peeled, covered in olive oil and either cooked very slow and low on top of the stove or in the oven.

How Long Does Garlic Confit Last?

Although confit was originally discovered for preservation, I suggest making garlic confit in small batches and eating within a reasonable time.You can keep your garlic confit in the refrigerator for up to two weeks and frozen for up to 3 months.

How Do You Peel Garlic?

My method is simple. I put the garlic heads in a stainless bowl, cover it with another bowl and shake up and down. The skins will fall off. Please don’t buy pre-peeled garlic. Use fresh whole garlic heads for this recipe (or any recipe). Pre-peeled garlic goes rancid quickly.

How to Make Garlic Confit in the Oven

• Peel garlic.
• Put in oven proof dish. I use an onion soup crock so I can pile up the garlic cloves and completely cover with olive oil.
• Add olive oil and some peppercorns.
• Add fresh thyme sprigs.
• Bake at 275 degrees F for 1 hour until the cloves turn soft and golden.
• Spread on bread and be in heaven.

How to Use Garlic Confit

• Spread on Sourdough Bread.
• Add to ground meat, like meatballs. The sweetness of garlic confit is better than adding raw garlic. I did this yesterday and so yum.
• Add to soups, stews, tomato sauce.
• Spread on steak
• Add to mashed potatoes.
• Add to cooked vegetables like eggplant spread or white beans dip.
• Spread on burger buns or hoagie buns.

Store in airtight jar in the refrigerator.

Don’t forget to try duck confit.

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Garlic Confit

Garlic Confit, baked in olive oil and thyme to spice up your favorite dishes.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Italian

Keyword garlic, garlic confit

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 3 garlic heads
• 4 thyme sprigs
• 1 cup olive oil more if needed
• 1 teaspoon peppercorns

Instructions

• Peel garlic cloves. An easy way is to place garlic in stainless steel bowl. Top with another stainless steel bowl and shake. The peels will come off.
  
• Place garlic cloves in oven proof bowl. I used a soup crock. Top with olive oil. Cover with foil.
  
• Bake at 400 degrees F. for about 1 hour, 15 minutes, until garlic is golden and softened.
  
• Store in jar in refrigerator for up to two weeks.
  

The post How to Make Garlic Confit in the Oven appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

In the pictures, you can see the soup is a little more brothy than creamy. Today I changed that up a little and added in heavy cream and pureed about 1/3 of the soup in a blender. Wow. It’s just so good.

This soup can be made in about 30 minutes and is a great lunch idea or a late Sunday night supper. We tend to eat heavier at lunch on Sunday and lighter in the evening. This might be one of my go-to light Sunday night suppers.

What Mushrooms to Use for Creamy Mushroom Soup

I personally like the baby bella mushrooms also known as cremini mushrooms. They are meatier, firmer and tastier than white button mushrooms. I also like to add mushroom powder that I purchase at the farmer’s market. It’s a mix of several mushrooms and adds flavor and color.

Ingredients for Mushroom Soup

• m1 1/2 pounds baby bella Mushrooms (or your choice)
• shallots
• chicken broth
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/3 cup dry sherry, red or white wine (optional, but desireable)
• 1 tablespoon mushroom powder (or half ounce dried porcini mushrooms)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Worcestershire Sauce
• herbs
• salt, pepper

More Creamy Soups You Might Like

• Tomato Bisque
• Butternut Squash Soup
• Broccoli Basil Soup
• Golden Cauliflower Soup
• Spinach Soup
• Roasted Red Pepper Soup
• Italian Eggplant Soup
• Healthy Asparagus Soup

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Creamy Mushroom Soup

Creamy Mushroom soup (No Flour, Low Carb)

Course Soup

Cuisine American

Keyword low carb soup, Mushroom soup

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons shallots diced
• 1.5 pounds Cremini (Bella) Mushrooms sliced, see notes
• 1/3 cup sherry or white wine
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons mushroom powder or 1/2 ounce dried mushrooms Mushroom Powder
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce optional or in place of wine
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

• Heat a dutch oven and then add the butter
• Saute shallots until softened.
• Scrub mushrooms with a mushroom brush or paper towel. Trim stems and slice.
• Add sliced mushrooms. Saute mushrooms until golden brown.
• Add in wine or sherry and cook on low uncovered for five minutes. Add Worcestershire sauce if you need more flavor or in place of wine or sherry. I like to add both.
• Add in 3 cups of broth. (reserve remaining broth if you need it.)
• Add mushroom powder, or dried mushrooms to pot once broth is hot.
• Reduce heat to low. Add in heavy cream. Stir frequently. Don't let boil.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Remove 1/3 to the blender to puree and pour back in. You can puree more of the soup if you want, depending on how creamy you desire. You can even puree all of it.
• Garnish with herbs sage for fall, dill for spring, or use thyme.

Notes

You CAN chop your mushrooms much smaller if you prefer.

The post Creamy Mushroom Soup Recipe (Flour Free) appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

You may remember when I posted keto fried eggplant here which is the foundation of this recipe.

Use Pork Panko for the Breading

I use what is keto life is called Pork Panko, which you can buy already made, or easily enough, you can make yourself.

Pork panko is simply pork skins crushed into faux bread crumbs. All you need to do to make your own is buy your favorite pork skins and put them in a food processor. You can store them in a jar in your pantry.

Cooking Tips for Making Keto Fried Eggplant

I  discovered that using a non-stick frying pan with NO oil makes crispier eggplant. I  use the copper chef frying pan that requires no oil or butter.

Quick Tomato Sauce

You can easily use a can of quality San Marzano Tomatoes, which, within about 20 minutes will yield a perfectly good SUGAR FREE, NO NONSENSE Tomato Sauce.

The Filling: Ricotta Cheese for Keto Eggplant Lasagna

I love ricotta cheese, but because it can be a bit bland, I will add a few tablespoons or more of pecorino romano cheese to the mix, with a little nutmeg, parsley, salt and pepper.

Sweat the Eggplant

First make decision as to how many layers you want to make your keto eggplant lasagna. You can decide thick or thinner slices. I also peel the eggplant with a potato peeler to remove the skin. Then After slicing crosswise, I lay on paper towels and salt well. After about an hour, the eggplant will sweat, or release moisture. This helps the eggplant fry better.

Building Keto Eggplant Lasagna

This is the fun part. My ratio is 3 2 1. This means three layers of eggplant, two layers of ricotta cheese and one layer of mozzarella, which all layers have a thin layer of tomato sauce. This is then baked for about 20-30 minutes. Rest for ten minutes.

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Keto Eggplant Lasagna

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Keyword eggplant lasagna, keto eggplant

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 2 eggplants Medium to large size
• 2 tablespoons salt for sweating eggplant
• 4 eggs beaten
• 2 cups pork panko can substitute almond flour
• 1 1/2 cup pecorino romano grated and divided
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
• 2 cups ricotta cheese
• 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 2 cups tomato sauce recipe here

Pork Panko

• 4 cups quality pork skins.

Fast Tomato Sauce

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cloves fresh garlic can use garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder optional
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cans San Marzano Whole Tomatoes

Instructions

• Slice off skin. Slice eggplant medium thick about a 3/4 inch or half inch.
• Sweat the eggplant. Lay out on cloth or paper towels and salt heavily on both sides. Use more cloth or paper towels to absorb the liquid.
• Beat 2 eggs. Use more as needed. You may need four eggs.
• Add salt and pepper into eggs.
• Mix pork panko with cheese. I like to use 1/2 cup cheese to 1 cup pork panko, but you can decide for yourself. Keep in mind that pecorino is salty, but I think that adds flavor. You CAN skip the pecorino, if you want to or replace with parmesan.
• Dip into egg, then breadcrumbs and fry eggplant over medium heat NO OIL. until golden brown on each side. Drain on paper towels.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Put tomato sauce in bottom of baking dish. You can use your own sauce, or make the fast sauce below.
• Layer eggplant with tomato sauce and ricotta cheese. You can do three layers of eggplant with two layers of ricotta cheese or two layers of eggplant with one layer of ricotta cheese. It's up to you. I like three layers.
• Top with Tomato Sauce and mozzarella
• Bake until cheese is completely melted and slightly golden brown. Allow to rest 10 minutes before cutting.

Make Homemade Pork Panko

• Take high quality pork skins and place in food processor. They will process quickly and are a good substitution for breadcrumbs.

Fast Tomato Sauce

• Use two large can of San Marzano Tomatoes. Squeeze with hands and use all of the tomato except the very ends of tomato.
• Put small amount of olive oil in sauce pan. Add a garlic cube, some onion powder, salt and pepper. Once garlic is golden (if burned, throw out start over), add tomatoes. Cook on medium low heat, while making the eggplant. this sauce can be ready in as little as twenty minutes.
• You will probably have some sauce left over, which you can freeze for future.

The post Keto Eggplant Lasagna appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

A few weeks ago we went to New Orleans, and one of the restaurants inspired this dish of orange beets.

Compere Lapin served us a beautiful beet salad made with pistachios and kale pesto. When I purchased the beets to attempt to make this, the beet greens were so fresh I couldn’t discard them. Thus, beet greens pesto. If you can’t find beets with healthy beet greens attached go ahead and use kale or serve with this homemade basil pest0 or this seven herb garden pesto.

Beets are no stranger to Spinach Tiger. I have over 25 beet recipes and the most popular one has always been my red beet smoothie.

There are months that beets go off my radar, but that shouldn’t happen because the health benefits are just too powerful. 

Beets contain betaine, a substance that relaxes the mind and is used in other forms to treat depression. It also contains tryptophan which is also found in chocolate and contributes to a sense of well being, promotes the health of internal organs and a growing body of evidence shows that betaine is an important nutrient for the prevention of chronic disease. Beet Greens are also extremely healthy, high in iron, Vitamin K, magnesium and much more.

I’ve sauteéd beet greens in this recipe but this is the first time I’ve used them raw.

Ingredients

• Red Beets (feel free to use beets of other colors)
• Olive Oil
• Basil
• Garlic
• Orange
• Lemon
• Pistachio Nuts

Roasted Orange Beets with Beets Greens Pesto is the Foodie Salad for Health Nuts

I roasted the beets after dousing with a little olive oil and a lot of freshly squeezed orange. The beets greens were mixed with some olive oil, a little basil, garlic, orange and pistachio nuts. I had my doubts that this would work, but when you take a bite of the beet with the beet greens pesto, lemon it comes together well.

This is a simple dish, but it has complex flavors and layered textures. You could add in some goat cheese and make this a meal all by itself or serve it with a more subdued fish dish.

More Beet Recipes from Spinach Tiger

• Ginger Roasted Salmon with Orange Roasted Beets
• Golden Beets Carpacio
• Red Beet Risotto with Goat Cheese
• Red Beet & Bacon Goat Cheese Flatbread
• Raw Red Beet Pesto
• Red Beet Smoothie
• Beet Greens and Candy Striped Beet Salad
• Red and Golden Beet Crostini with Goat Cheese
• Roasted Golden Beets

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Roasted Orange Beets with Beet Greens

Orange Beets salad with a pesto of beet greens, pistachios and lemon for a wonderful side dish.

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 pound red beets with beet greens attached
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• juice and zest of one orange
• squeeze of half lemon
• 1/4 cup pistachio nuts roasted salted
• 1 clove garlic
• few leaves of basil optional
• sea salt
• black pepper

Instructions

• Trim off beet greens. Wash well.
• Using a pairing knife or potato peeler, peel skin from beets and cut into quarters or large bite sized pieces.
• Douse with a tablespoon of olive oil and juice of half of the orange with zest.
• Wrap in foil and roast in oven at 350 degrees for 35-50 minutes or until tender. Check at 15 minutes and turn.
• Remove and douse with remaining orange and zest of that orange while still warm.

Beet Pesto

• Mix in small food processor or blender, beet greens remains olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and two tablespoons pistachio nuts. Blend until smooth. Taste to season with salt and pepper. Add more olive oil if needed.
• Bring beets to room temperature. Drizzle with more olive oil if needed. Season with salt and pepper. Top with beets pesto and remaining pistachios.

The post Roasted Orange Beets with Beet Greens Recipe appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Let me tell you, how silly that disappointment was because my Vitamix has become indispensable in my kitchen and one investment I think everyone should make.

Why a Vitamix?

It does everything it says it will. It crushes and pulverizes in a way I’ve never seen a normal blender do.

There are other brands that claim the same thing at a less expensive price, but your Vitamix is for your lifetime, and at the end of the day more cost effective.

Vitamix Soup Recipes From My Kitchen

One of the my favorite things to do is make soup,  and these are my favorite Vitamix Soup Recipes that can be made in minutes. A Vitamix is not the same thing as a blender.

I say this because we went through several blenders, which cannot pulverize the way a Vitamix does.Here are some amazing soups made in the Vitamix that not only taste delicious, but are creative and super healthy and healing.

Golden Cauliflower Soup with Toasted Almonds

Made with Turmeric and Curry Spices, this soup is heavenly.

Asparagus Soup, the Detox Soup

Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Carrot Ginger Soup

Roasted Pumpkin Soup

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Garden Fresh Tomato Bisque

Creamy Garden Tomato Soup

Vitamix Soup Recipes with Greens

30 Minute Health Soup

Green Potato Soup with Watercress, Leeks

Spring Pea Soup with Tarragon

Spinach Soup

Gazpacho from My Garden

Classic Cream of Cauliflower Soup

Broccoli Basil Soup with Pecorino

I’ve made this soup at least twenty times.

Soups with Boldness

Borscht – This is a vegetarian version and what I eat when I need a real pick up in the winter.

Pumpkin Carrot Curry Soup

Vitamix Soup Recipes with Fruit

Fruity Nutty Carrot Soup

Chilled Cantaloupe Soup

Watermelon Gazpacho

This is so unique and fun in the hot summer!

Spicy Maple Apple Soup

Usher in the fall in a most creative way.

So tell me what soup you would want on the table first? I love them all.



The post Vitamix Soup Recipes Made in Minutes appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

First of all, you extend gratitude. Then you make garlicky spinach with walnuts.

To my delight, people love spinach and will stick it in everything. It’s funny, as I’m Spinach Tiger, but I don’t think I have enough spinach recipes here, although I love this spinach salad with grilled peaches and this spinach soup.

This recipe uses garlicky spinach uses fresh spinach, but you can use pre-packaged spinach, frozen spinach, fresh spinach purchased at grocery store. This just picked spinach is a little different in that it has larger leaves and is full of sand. You will need to get a tub and rinse the leaves very well. Once you’re sure you got all the sand out, lay out on paper towels and dry well.

If you have a lot of spinach as I did, you can freeze the leaves. Follow these careful instructions here so your spinach will last.

Spinach, unlike kale, cooks way down, so plan to make more than you think you need. Spinach shrinks by 75%.

Is  spinach low-carb?

I’m glad you asked. Spinach is high in fiber, low in carbs and this recipe will be placed in my 30 low carb vegetables post which links 75 of my low carb vegetable recipes.

Does spinach have protein?

Yes. 2.71 mg per 100 grams. This is not a high amount, but spinach is a good source of iron, calcium and Vitamin A.

The benefits of spinach can be found in my extensive Spinach 101 found here.

There are three types of Spinach

• Savoy: Dark green, crinkly, curly, sold loose in fresh produce department and is the hardest to clean.
• Semi-savoy: Less crinkly, and easier to clean.
• Flat Leafed: most often packaged, easiest to clean, most consumer friendly.

The recipe for Garlicky spinach is pretty straight forward. I slice garlic thinly and do a very quick sauté in olive oil. After about a minute I add walnuts to get them nice and toasted. Add a little salt, swirl around and then add my spinach. Lower the heat and sauté away. It takes mere minutes to get the spinach wilted. Serve immediately.

Garlicky spinach goes well with steak, over a pizza or flatbread, as a tartine, over pasta or mixed into rice. You could also use the leftovers to go into your favorite soup.

Switch out the nuts to almonds, pistachios or pine nuts.

An option I personally love is to add in some golden raisins.

Check out this post on low carb vegetables. Recipes Here.

Spinach Tiger’s Best Spinach Recipes

Healthy Asparagus Soup with Spinach

30 – Minute Health Soup

Greek Spinach Salad with Salmon and Lemony Dressing

Spinach Frittata

Sausage, Ricotta, Spinach Frittata

Grain Free Keto Spinach Tortillas

Spinach with Orzo and Italian Chicken

Green Smoothie

Spinach Salad with Grilled Peaches

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Garlicky Spinach with Walnuts

Sautè of Spinach with garlic and walnuts.

Course Vegetables

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• large bunch spinach
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup walnuts
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup golden raisins optional
• sea salt
• black pepper

Instructions

• Heat oil in pan.
• Add garlic, and walnuts.
• As soon as garlic is light golden, add in spinach, tossing in pan until wilted.
• Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.
• Serve Immediately.




The post Garlicky Spinach with Walnuts appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

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If you like to eat as I do, and I mean eat with gusto and joy, then vegetables can be the best thing that ever happened to you. You will especially love these big fat healthy, low carb vegetables which include my many delicious recipes, as they are satisfying, filling, lean a tad toward gourmet deliciousness.

Many are low carb recipes, spanning soups, salads and sides.

Eat Low Carb Vegetables with Gusto on a Keto Diet

Many people attack a keto type diet eating only meat, cheese and eggs. This is a big mistake for multiple reasons. The bounty of low carb vegetables will not only fill you up and please your palate, your body needs them for good health.

You can read this article for more on why you need to eat a nutrient dense vegetables on a keto diet.

Below is list of all low carb vegetables in alphabetical order,  that you can eat with gusto. A rule of thumb is the lowest carb veggies grow above the ground such as greens and cruciferous veggies. The higher carb veggies grow below the ground such as carrots or beets. I’m not suggesting you abandon root vegetables, but be aware of the sugar content and plan accordingly.

What are the low carb vegetables?

This is my go to list. There are enough recipes here to take your through every season. I am listing net carbs which accounts and deducts fiber content.

Artichokes (6 net carbs per medium artichoke)

(Recipe Coming)

The post 30 Low Carb Vegetables with Recipes – Keto Paleo Friendly appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

These are big fat party sandwiches.  These are the sandwiches that saved a party’s life a long time ago and catapulted me to start a food blog.

We were invited to a very large potluck goodbye party. Something stirred in me all day, as I worried that there wouldn’t be enough good food. The gal we were saying goodbye to was known for her culinary talent and the food she brought to gatherings.

I wanted the food to be deserving of her, so I made five dishes, including these big fat party sandwiches.

I’m a little obsessive like that. It’s not that I knocked myself out  in the kitchen the whole day. I merely put together the best big fat party sandwiches, special enough to celebrate a person who knew her food.

Ingredients like prosciutto, mozzarella, pistou, arugula were tucked into a long crusty bread baguettes  (store bought) for one of the sandwiches.  You can add in hard salami other Italaian meats if you desire. I also made ham, swiss, butter, mustard. I like that combination too.  If you use butter, use Irish butter. People will go crazy! I think mayo should be avoided for any kind of potluck, but that’s just me.

Why You Should Make Your Own Big Fat Party Sandwiches

You might be thinking that the local grocery store can make you big fat party sandwiches, but they never make them big and fat. The only big you usually get is too much bread and not enough meat. You also typically won’t get caprese or prosciutto, unless you’re in Italy, but then you don’t need my help.

How to Purchase Prosciutto for Your Big Fat Party Sandwiches

Prosciutto di Parma is expensive, You could be spending $28 a pound. There’s a reason prosciutto di parma is so expensive, and I talk about that in this post. But, sometimes you can find a decent prosciutto, locally made that will be more affordable. You can also shop for Boar’s Head which is reasonable in price.

Scoop out some of the inside of the bread after it’s cut lengthwise. You don’t need all that filler. When you use prosciutto, you don’t need as much as you do with regular ham, because the flavor is there. You could think of these as more caprese sandwich with prosciutto.

Back to that party that inspired these sandwiches. My five dishes disappeared quickly and two women fought over the last of these cupcakes, which have a gluten free counterpart.

This recipe is more inspiration than anything exact. You can leave out the prosciutto to make the sandwiches completely vegetarian. The pistou is a basil/olive oil condiment that adds a lot of punch for the mellow mozzarella.

Pistou is easy to make. It’s just olive oil, garlic and basil. (no cheese).

Tips for Making the Best Party Sandwiches

• Make sure the bread is crusty, not doughy. Do not use soft rolls, wrapped in plastic. Do not wrap the sandwiches in plastic, once made. Instead use foil; otherwise the bread will be soft and go soggy.
• Make sandwiches ahead, but do not add tomato or pistou/olive oil until right before serving.
• If making fresh and serving immediately, take the mozzarella out of the refrigerator 30 minutes in advance. It will taste better.
• If you can’t use FRESH mozzarella, opt for a different cheese, such as fontina or provolone.
• Use toothpicks to hold the sandwiches together, but make sure your guests can see them.  Use toothpicks like these.

If you’re entertaining gluten free guests, take these same ingredients and make an antipasto or big Italian cold cut salad.

You can also add in this amazing Cheese Plate. Yes, that’s prosciutto with melon. The women tend to gravitate to this.

You may also like these prosciutto appetizers for your party.

Prosciutto Cups

Prosciutto Tuscan White Bean Bruschetta

Prosciutto Crepes

Prosciutto Pear Pizza

Blackberry Shallot Crostini with Crispy Prosciutto

More Appetizers and Small Bites from Spinach Tiger

Crostini Recipes from Spinach Tiger

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Prosciutto Party Sandwich

Prosciutto mozzarella pesto in big fat crusty french bread, perfect for parties..

Course Sandwich

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 12

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 2 long french baguettes any kind or size you like
• 1/2 pound prosciutto
• 10-15 slices fresh mozzarella or provolone cheese or fontina
• 1/2 cup pistou recipe here
• fresh tomato slices
• salt and pepper for seasoning

Instructions

• Slice french bread lengthwise
• Remove some of the inside bread (optional). I like less bread.
• Layer meat, cheese, tomato. Add pistou.
• If you don't have pistou, layer chopped basil (chopped put on at the very last minute before serving) with drizzled olive oil. Feel free to add a smattering of oregano or Italian seasoning.
• Season with salt and pepper
• Cut cross wise into two-three inch pieces.

Notes

I also like to make French inspired ham and cheese, using cold butter, mustard, ham and cheese. You can however, mix a grainy dijon mustard with mayonnaise for an easy sandwich spread. Fill with arugula or mache as your green.

If you don't have pesto, layer chopped basil (chopped put on at the very last minute before serving) with drizzled olive oil. Feel free to add a smattering of oregano or Italian seasoning.
Season with salt and pepper
Cut cross wise into two-three inch pieces.

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Food is powerful. Italian food most often has the biggest punch and lends to creating intense food memories.

I have a funny story about the power of this baked eggplant parmesan recipe. It almost got me married. A long time ago when I first moved to California, I had the biggest crush on someone who didn’t know at the time, he would have the same crush on me, eventually.

One night I invited him over for dinner and served this traditional baked eggplant parmesan recipe.  He brought a bottle of chateauneuf du pape, which for a 22 year old, was fairly sophisticated. Back then 22 year olds drank beer and tequila.

He would often remind me that had it not been for that eggplant parmesan, he might not have asked for a second date. Then again, I’m not so sure he wasn’t try to win me over with that wine!

That night I made traditional, breaded, fried eggplant parmesan, and made it many times throughout that three year relationship. I never married him, although he wanted to. I have a feeling eggplant parmesan still has a special meaning for him to this day. 

I continued to made this eggplant parmesan for years. Then I stopped making it, which is total shame, because this is one of best Italian comfort food dishes. It’s one of the dishes my relatives in Sicily made for us when we visited. It’s one of the dishes my Aunt Rita was known for, and I still have memories of making it with her.  To that, I’m bringing it back and including a healthier, low carb option. 

There are two ways to make this baked eggplant parmesan recipe.

I remember growing up and eating the breaded fried version. I also remember visiting relatives in Italy and eating the breadcrumb free, grain free, version.

Both are good. Both have their own taste profile. The choice is up to you.

The Baked Eggplant Parmesan Recipe Process

The best way to make both versions is to begin with salted sweated eggplant.

Use firm, fresh eggplant. Marcella Hazan, in her book, Ingredients, says to feel the eggplant. It should feel spongy. It should spring back to the touch, be glossy taut, completely smooth. It should feel light. If it’s heavy, it has too many seeds.

Lay out cloth or paper towels. Slice eggplant medium thickness. Salt liberally, place on paper towels. An hour turn over, and use more paper towels to get out the moisture. If you don’t do this, the eggplant could be bitter and absorb the oil you fry it in and become very greasy. This is an important step.

Traditional American Breaded Eggplant Parmesan

Once your eggplant is “fry” ready, dip it into beaten egg, and then Italian bread crumbs. You can vary this. You can use flour or gluten free flour. You can even use corn meal. The traditional way is to use Italian bread crumbs, but this is your eggplant. You could bake the eggplant, but I never do that. Frying is easier, and tastier in my opinion.

Traditional Italian Eggplant (Grain Free Version)

I discovered that eggplant and other vegetables like this fried cauliflower will yield to a bit of crispiness if you fry them in egg white. I imagine it’s the protein that does the job.

This is what my grain-free eggplant looked like.

I deep fried the eggplant after first dipping it into egg white wash. It will actually get slightly crispy like this cauliflower did in this recipe. The real key first is to make sure you heavily salt the eggplant and let it sweat out. I do this for a few hours. Some do it only for 30 minutes. You must do this or the eggplant will absorb all of your oil in minutes.

I used this tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella, but feel free to use any kind of mozzarella and also use some pecorino cheese or real parmesan, freshly grated.

When making this baked eggplant parmesan recipe, know that you can make it traditional with breadcrumbs and there is a gluten free bread crumb option. You can also go completely grain free.

Enjoy.

More Eggplant Recipes from Spinach Tiger

Eggplant Tomato Recipe

Eggplant Parmesan

Swordfish with Eggplant Sauce

Eggplant Crostini

Eggplant Bread Pudding

Eggplant Sausage Soup

Eggplant Benedict

Stuffed Eggplant

Spaghetti with Spicy Eggplant Sauce

Print

Baked Eggplant Parmesan Recipe

Eggplant parmesan, with a gluten free, grain free, paleo option.

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 2 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 2 eggplants
• salt
• 4 eggs may use less
• 2 cups Italian Style Bread Crumbs order here
• or 2 cups gluten free Italian Bread Crumbs order here
• 4 cups tomato sauce recipe here
• 1 pound mozzarella cheese shredded
• olive oil coconut oil or avocado oil for frying
• 
  
• Optional Grain Free Eggplant

Grain Free Parmesan[

Instructions

• Slice eggplant. I like it medium thick, about 1/2 inch. You may choose thicker.
• Sweat the eggplant. Lay out on cloth or paper towels and salt heavily on both sides. Use more cloth or paper towels to absorb the liquid.
• Beat 2 eggs. You may not need all four so beat more as you need them.
• Add salt and pepper into eggs.
• Dip into egg, then breadcrumbs and fry eggplant over medium heat in oil of your choice until golden brown on each side. Drain on paper towels.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Put tomato sauce in bottom of baking dish.
• Layer eggplant with sauce and mozzarella cheese. You can choose to make one layer, two layers or three layers.
• Bake until to layer is completely melted and slightly golden brown. Allow to rest 10 minutes before cutting.

Grain Free Eggplant Parmesan

• Sweat eggplant as above.
• Use egg white. Mix egg white with one tablespoon water.
• Season eggplant with salt and pepper.
• Dip into egg white.
• Fry in high heat oil for a few minutes each side.
• Drain on paper towels.
• Continue with directions above, starting with preheating oven to 400 degrees.

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