Great ideas people. And to take off on tosser's: I think it would go well with a baba ghanouj dip. This is like hummus but with eggplant. Here a typical recipe [but I like it with less tahini and more lemon juice...makes it 'lighter'.]: 3 Large eggplants 1 cup Tahini 1 1/4 cup fresh Lemon juice 4 cloves Garlic 2 tsp. Salt Parsley Pomegranate seeds Olive oil Preparation Electric blender or food mill. Cut stem and green hull from top of eggplant. Bake it whole or broil over an open flame (sensational if done over slow charcoal fire) until the flesh is soft and the skin becomes crisp and starts to crack open. Scoop pulp out of the skin. Mash thoroughly or pass through a food mill. Slowly beat in lemon juice alternately with taheeni. Crush garlic with salt and mix to a paste with a little lemon juice. Blend this into the eggplant mixture. Adjust seasoning to taste adding more salt or lemon juice. Pour onto shallow serving dishes or platters. Garnish with chopped parsley or leaves. Arrange pomegranate seeds in rows across top. Serve cold with olive oil, radishes and green onions. Baba ghannouj can be prepared in small quantities in the electric blender. Beat the grilled pulp first, then alternately add taheeni and lemon juice, and garlic crushed with salt. Prepare a third of the quantity given above so as not to overfill the blender. [That is, use a few big bowls and do it in thirds. -dean] BTW...Eat at a Middle Eastern restaurant. Lebanese and Israeli ones will give you many ideas for your veggies!!!

I shared this once, and gave it to a friend. Can't wait to try this. Mexican French Bread 2 eggs 1/3 cup milk 2 tablespoons granulated sugar 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 4 (10-inch) flour tortillas 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, divided 3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar 1. In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla until well blended. 2. Cut each tortilla into quarters then place in egg mixture. Gently stir to completely coat tortillas. Allow to soak 10 minutes, or until softened. 3. In a large skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high heat. Add 4 tortilla quarters and cook 4 to 5 minutes, or until golden, turning halfway through cooking. Drain on a paper towel-lined platter. Repeat with remaining butter and tortillas. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar and serve immediately.

Meatballs In Tomato Sauce These meatballs are cooked right in the sauce 1 cup fresh bread crumbs 1/3 cup milk 2 tbsp olive oil 1 medium o nion, finely chpped 2 tsp cumin 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp cayenne 28-oz can diced tomatoes, undrained 3 tbsp tomato paste salt and pepper 1 lb ground beef 2/3 cup finely chopped cilantro Combine bread crumbs and milk and let sit 5 minutes. Heat oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add onions and saute 5 minutes. Add 1 tsp of the cumin, cinnamon and 1/4 tsp cayenne to the onions and cook another 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, 1 cup water and 1/2 tsp salt, and tomato paste. Increase heat to high and bring to boil. Lower heat to steady simmer and cook 15 minutes. While the sauce simmers, prepare the meatballs. Mash crumbs and milk to smooth paste. Add the meat, 1 tsp cumin, half the cilantro, salt and pepper and the 1/4 tsp cayenne. Mix with hands to combine thoroughly. Make 1 1/2" balls. Nestle into the sauce, cover, and cook 10 minutes. Remove lid and simmer 5 minutes to thicken the sauce. Stir in remaining cilantro and salt and pepper to taste.

DS got home and we ate. The next day I replaced his battery and wiper blades. On Saturday I got snow tires on his car. So he’s set for winter. Snow tires are usually overkill in the Willamette Valley, but he’s not been driving all that long, and when we do get snow here it is so wet that it quickly turns to sheet ice. A couple years ago the ice stayed for over a week, it was so slick on sidewalks and roads that you almost couldn’t walk without traction thingies on your shoes. I feel better with him as equipped as possible, as he drives between Eugene and Portland. He’s been working on a project for his architecture class all weekend, including working all last night. So he’s staying in Portland longer than he’d planned, but with most classes online anyway, it’s not a problem. After about 36 hours awake, he finally got to bed, and will head back to college tomorrow. Here’s his model: He did all the plan and elevation drawings too. He actually did everything twice, because he decided his first effort wasn’t good enough. The whole project is done old school, with vellum paper and physical modeling. DS needs to get more facile with CAD software, but he feels that starting freehand allows more creativity. He mentioned that his classmates who do everything in the computer are tending to produce designs that are boxes, because the software thinks that way.