Monday Night Dinner

Dinner September 24th
Zucchini Basil Soup
Caprese Melts with Balsamic Reduction
BBB Salad (Beet, Bacon & Baby Spinach) + Hard Boiled Eggs

Zucchini Basil Soup
(serves 4-6 – freezes well if you make extra)

Olive oil
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
2 lb zucchini, chopped into 1” rounds
4 cups water/chicken stock (or a combination thereof)
2 oz basil leaves (or a medium sized bunch)
Zest & juice of 1-2 lemons (to taste)
Salt/pepper

Heat a generous glug of olive oil in a pot.  Add the onion and garlic, season with salt & pepper, and saute until golden.  Add the zucchini and water/chicken stock (I usually use about half water/half chicken stock).  Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for 20-30 minutes, or until the zucchini is very soft.

Remove from the heat, add the basil, lemon juice and zest.  Blend until very smooth and creamy either with an immersion blender, or in a Cuisinart.  Season to taste with additional lemon juice (or white wine vinegar), salt and pepper.

To serve, garnish with a dollop of sour cream or plain yogurt, a dusting of lemon zest, some julienned zucchini, and a drizzle of olive oil.

Caprese Melts with Balsamic Reduction

Ciabatta, cut into 1/3” thick slices
Olive oil
Basil leaves, whole
Fresh mozzarella (but not the fresh mozzarella that’s packed in water, you want something that has been aged? Dried? A little or it will be soggy), sliced
Summer ripe tomatoes, cut into thick slices

Brush one side of each piece of ciabatta with a little olive oil.  Toast in a 375 oven for about 7-12 minutes (this will depend on the efficiency of your oven – if you feel like watching your bread like a hawk you can also attempt this under your broiler, but don’t walk away for a second while you do this or you’ll end up with charcoal), until the bread is golden and slightly crusty/crunchy.

Top each piece of ciabatta with a thick slice of tomato – season with salt & pepper – a leaf of basil – and a slice of fresh mozzarella.

Return the now dressed ciabatta to the oven for 5-7 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and started to brown just slightly on top.

Drizzle with balsamic reduction & serve immediately.

Balsamic Reduction
1 cup balsamic vinegar (just the generic cheap stuff)
1 Tbsp honey

Simmer the balsamic vinegar and honey until reduced to a thick glaze – this will take anywhere from 10-20 minutes.

You can make this the night before, but you might need to rewarm it slightly to get it to a drizzling consistency.

BBB Salad (Beet, Bacon & Baby Spinach) + Hard Boiled Eggs

Baby Spinach (about 1 handful/person)
Beets, roasted & diced (about 1 beet/2 people)
Hard boiled eggs, sliced (about 1 egg/2 people)
Bacon, chopped & cooked until crisp (about 2 slices/3 people)
Balsamic Vinaigrette

Toss the baby spinach with the balsamic dressing.

Layer the salad into a large bowl with a layer of dressed baby spinach – a scattering of roasted beets – a decorative round of sliced hard boiled eggs – a scattering of crispy bacon – repeat until you have made enough salad for everyone at the table, being sure to end with the top layer being an embellished decorative layer.