Panzanella with Eggplant and White Beans

This is something I like to make when I have some left over bread hanging out.
I had a nice Sour Dough with some Kalamatta Olives in it.

Heat your oven to 400.
Cube the bread into bite sized peices and place on a sheet pan.
Throw 5 clove of garlic on as well, (tossed in Olive Oil.)
Salt and Pepper the mess.
Toast until the cubes are very crunchy, overly crunch is good.

Take 2 Eggplant and slice into 1 inch rounds.

Heat a non stick pan to medium high. Let it get really hot.
Put some Olive Oil in it and let it heat for 45 seconds to 1 min.
Drop the Eggplant in and leave them be, no fudging, no messing with 'em.
Salt and lots of fresh ground pepper.
After 3-4 mins turn and cook the other side the same way.
Its important to season both sides of the Eggplant.
They should look similar to this.

Next you make the Lemon Basil Vinaigrette.
1 Lemon, Squeeze it for all its worth.
5 Garlic Cloves that you roasted in the oven.
12 Basil Leaves laid flat, rolled up, and sliced thin. (Chiffonade)
2 Thyme Sprigs, leaves only, chopped.
Salt and Pepper to taste.
1/2 cup Olive Oil, whisk the oil slowly into the other ingredients. Add more Oil if too tart.

At this point, you can chop one Tomato, Olives, Capers, or whatever else you feel would be good in the salad.
I added
1 Tomato, seeded and diced.
1 can White Beans (I really like Great Northerns, they're so creamy!)
Combine all the ingredients except the Vinaigrette.
Toss slowly with the Vinaigrette so everything gets coated.
Grab a fork and enjoy this Recycled recipe.

Marinade the Tempeh all day.

True words to live by compliments of Mathew Webster.


Tempeh Marinade.
1 package of your favorite Tempeh sliced.
1/2 cup Shoyu or any Soy Sauce.
1/4 cup Rice Wine Vinegar.
1 small piece of Ginger root, grated.
2 cloves of Garlic, grated.
2 tbsp. Olive Oil.
2 tbsp. Chili Garlic paste.
Put it all in a bag, shake shake shake and leave in the fridge overnight.
Heat a nonstick pan to medium high.
Sear both sides of the Tempeh.
(Don't fudge with the Tempeh if it feels like it is stuck. It will let go when it is ready to be turned. The Less you mess with it, the more crispy it will be.)

Boil 4 purple potatoes and chop into quarters. Don't cook them all the way though.
Set the oven to 400.
Put potatoes on a sheet pan with,
1/2 a pound of Crimini Mushrooms.
2 Shallots, chopped.
4 cloves of Garlic, Rough chopped.
1/4 cup of Fresh Thyme.
Coat with Olive Oil.
Salt and tons of black pepper.
Cook for 30 mins.

1 bunch Swiss Chard (or any other dark leafy green) rough chopped.
1 Shallot, chopped.
3 cloves of Garlic, Minced fine.
Sautee in Olive Oil.
Salt and Pepper to taste.

Roach Clips...

Shit will hit you hard broo........

Moroccan Carrot Soup.

2 lb Carrots. Save 1 whole Carrot for garnish.
2 tablespoons Olive Oil.
1 medium Onion, diced.
2 tablespoon Cumin seeds.
1-2 Sprigs Rosemary, chopped.
1 tablespoon Crushed Red Pepper.
3 cups Vegetable broth.
15 cloves of Roasted Garlic. Save
1 tablespoon ground Coriander.
2 tablespoon Smoked Paprika.
1 package Silken Tofu.
Salt and Pepper to taste.
1 Loaf Crusty Bread for dipping.

Preheat the oven to 375.
Place Carrots and Garlic Cloves on a sheet pan.
toss with 1 tablespoon of Olive oil.
Salt and Pepper both.

After about 30 minutes, check to see if the garlic is soft.
Remove the garlic from the pan.
Continue cooking the carrots for another 30-45 minutes until soft.

In a deep soup pan heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
Add the Cumin seeds and stir as they pop open 1-2 minutes.
Add diced Onion and sauté until golden.
Add Chopped Rosemary, Crushed Red Pepper, Coriander, Paprika and stir.
Add cooked chopped Carrots, 10 roasted Garlic cloves, Silken Tofu and 2 cups Vegetable Broth.
Add Salt and Pepper to taste. I really enjoy a lot of pepper in this soup.
Bring to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes you are ready to purée the soup.
I'm lucky enough to have an Immersion blender. (Thank you Jessi!)
You could also use a food processor.
If the soup is too thick, add more of the Vegetable Broth.

Ladle into a bowl.
Garnish with Carrot and Roasted Garlic.
Serve with fresh Crusty Bread.
Enjoy!

welcome to my Blog.

I always wanted to start a blog. I really enjoy cooking and many of my friends told me I should make one and post some recipes. I finally decided to go for it. This should not be looked at as solely a food blog. It is merely a blog of things that interest me, and things I feel my friends would enjoy. You can expect all things food, skateboarding and anything else I deem quality content. The name of my blog may confuse some simply because there are no avocado's grown in Brooklyn. This is why I decided to call it The Brooklyn Avocado.

Avocado Toast.


1 slice of toasted bread, bagel or anything in between.
1 thin sliced tomato salt and peppered.
1 avocado sliced, salt and peppered.
1 tablespoon of olive oil drizzled on top.

Who needs Cream Cheese with this delicious accompaniment?