Late-Summer Roasted Eggplant Pasta

Aida Mollenkamp Easy Healthy Dinner Recipe Roasted Eggplant Pasta

It’s that time of year: time to shake out the sweaters, shine the apples, and celebrate fall. I’d be more than willing to, except the weather in California is anything but fall-like and the gardens here are still brimming with late-summer produce. Add to that the fact I just scored a load of eggplant from some very generous friends with some very green thumbs and, well, I’ve been cooking with eggplant like it’s the height of the summer. But the great thing about eggplant is it has a long growing season that lasts into October (at least around these parts), so I figure it’s fair game to cook with. At least until I see a leaf change color or feel the need to pull out a scarf.


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Urban Legend Of The Smooshed Sandwich

Aida Mollenkamp Easy Recipe Prosciutto Avocado Pressed Sandwich

Urban legend has it that the smooshed sandwich came about when a mother put her toddler on the kitchen counter while making a sandwich. The mother turned away for a second and when she looked back her baby had sat on (and thus squashed) the bread.

I love that imagery but it’s more likely this sandwich came about when someone made a no-cook panini by putting a sandwich at the bottom of a picnic basket and letting it get smooshed by the other contents. Whatever the origin, it’s a fun sandwich that kids adore making. There’s something about manipulating and squashing food that gets kids jazzed and this sandwich takes full advantage of that. The fillings are a riff on the BLT, known as the PALT (prosciutto, lettuce, avocado, and tomato) around my house, but feel free to use whatever sandwich fixings your kids like. No matter how you fill it, just make sure you leave yourself adequate smoosh time because it a flattened sandwich is all that more fun to eat.


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