Cook's Challenge!

I'm not sure, but I ate it last night. Was I supposed to cook any of it?

Hello? You are supposed to cook a big batch for Gather friends!

I'll have some please

Shannon you really wouldn't want to sample anything I cooked except for maybe my brownies. I suck.

Just passing through with triple points for you!

MR, my brownies suck! Sounds like we might have a fair exchange to work out ;)

I'll cook up the manicotti and fry the eggplant in olive oil, then add crushed Roma tomatoes to a jar of sauce and pour over the top of the manicotti and eggplant on a plate. The brioche will be sliced and served with real butter. I'll melt down the chocolate, dip strawberries in it and serve them with fresh whipped cream for dessert.

I don't even know what brioche is..lol. But I would fry the eggplant and serve the mannicotti stuffed with chives, and ricotta cheese, and cover them with crushed tomatoes, and serve strawberry ice cream with shaved bittersweet chocolate on top. That's good for me.

Charlene, it is a French bread.

I dont know Shannon but if you make it , I will stop by and eat it...lol

I'd more or less do what Rob did, but I would fill the manicotti with a combo of the cooked eggplant and (1) ricotta cheese, add the (sauce) and some (3) mozzarella cheese, the brioche I would slice the roma tomatoes on and add some more of the mozzarella and broil it lightly. Same dessert.

Bulk Italian sausage
Powdered sugar
Eggs

Stuffed Manicotti and Chocolate Brioche French Toast Fingers

Peel, seed and crush some of the Roma tomatoes. Cook over medium-low heat until thickened into a sauce. Season with salt and pepper.

Brown Italian sausage in olive oil, stirring regularly to break up. Remove from pan, leaving some juices.

Peel and slice eggplant, then cut slices into smaller pieces. Saute in sausage pan until tender, seasoning lightly with salt and pepper. Mix eggplant and sausage together.

Parboil manicotti until flexible but not completely done. Stuff with sausage-and-eggplant mixture. Pour some of the tomato sauce into a baking dish, lay the manicotti on top, and pour the rest of the sauce over them. Bake until sauce is bubbling and manicotti are done.

For dessert: Grate chocolate. Cut brioche into medium-thick slices. Beat eggs. Take two slices of brioche and dip in the egg wash. Pan-fry one side until golden. Flip over and top one slice with grated chocolate. When the second side is done and chocolate is partly melted, top the chocolate slice with the other one and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into finger slices, sprinkle with powdered sugar, and serve.

That sounds great Jonathan!

You're on, Rob ... I'll bring cookies!

Bruschetta, Katie! Yum!

Oh my, Jack... that French toast sounds awesome!

Thanks John!

The funny thing is, Shannon, I don't even have a sweet tooth. I just like experimenting.

I sure do, and mine especially includes chocolate.

1. manicotti
2. eggplant
3. roma tomato
4. brioche
5. bittersweet chocolate
6. mozzarella
7. egg
8. strawberries

Fill the manicotti with fried, cubed eggplant mixed with grated mozzarella cheese. Place in oiled casserole dish, fill in the sliced Roma tomatoes, add grated mozzarella, drizzle with oil and heat till bubbly.

Brioche being a sweet bread, for dessert I would make French toast by dipping in egg mixed with water and frying in oil, top with sliced strawberries and shave on the chocolate.

I did this with water to be able to use strawberries - in real life it would be mjölk, lol!

Cristina - I was debating whether to give up the Italian sausage in order to have ingredient room for strawberries. As you can see, I resisted... but yours sounds just perfect.

Cristina, I never use milk when scrambling eggs for anything. I always use water :)

Shannon - my father always uses milk when making scrambled eggs. That said, I must admit I can't eat his eggs - they're too moist. I need my scrambled eggs dry, and preferably with salsa.

My mom asks me to use milk when I make eggs for everyone, she doesn't like the idea of water. That being said, everyone agrees that my eggs are the best.

And what's even funnier, as much as I love Mexican food, I almost never incorporate Mexican into breakfast. I also don't care for steak or grits for breakfast either.

I suppose this is my cultural snobbery coming out - but while I will eat polenta (preferably thick-cut and fried in olive oil) until the cows (or the bufala di mozzarella) come home, I will not eat grits. And when you consider that they're basically the same thing, that makes no sense.

I hear ya, Jack!

I would cut up the eggplant into small dice, saute it until soft, add it to some ricotta cheese with chopped roma tomatoes, fill the manicotti tubes with it, put some sauce over top and bake it.

For dessert, melt the chocolate and drizzle it over some brioche toasted.

Nice, Risa!

Most of the things I thought of have been done, so now I have to brainstorm!

Vegan Manicotti with Fresh Tomato Sauce

extras: fresh Italian herbs, heavy cream, tofu

Begin sauce by simmering tomatoes with oil, salt and pepper and herbs. Simmer all day, adding water if needed. Cool slightly.

Salt eggplant. Rinse and drain well. Dice and cook with snipped herbs in oil for a few minutes.

Cook manicotti according to package.

Stuff diced tofu and eggplant in manicotti. Cover with sauce and bake til bubbling.

Mix cream and chocolate chips til smooth. Drizzle over the top of the brioche and refrigerate. Serve brioche with whipped cream.

hi shannon