Cocolón: menu of the week

Already back from a long holiday, where we have surely tried a little of everything, I present a menu for this week with tasty and simple alternatives.

For the entrance, how about some stuffed aubergines, they are my favorite fruits, they have a very interesting flavor, although they are not always to everyone’s taste, I learned to master them a little more already in my job as a cook, where I discovered their multiple applications, roasted , tanned, purees, soups, stuffed, among others.

Eggplants are very traditional in Mediterranean cuisinesAlthough its origin is Asian, it has its particularity since it always denotes a slight bitterness, which is usually covered by leaving it in salt for a few minutes, prior to frying or roasting in a pan; It is also eliminated when roasting in the oven, care must be taken to remove the seeds that are usually abundant in some varieties or when they are not very ripe

There are long, short, round, oval, purple or black skin, the characteristic is that their skin should be firm, smooth and shiny, their meat hard, sometimes like spongy.

After that entry we will have a meat stew, it sounds simple, indeed it is. I like stews over low heat, those that are made slowly, cooked in a good rehash, soaked with a lot of wine and in which the vegetables are added depending on their hardness, the spices and herbs are perceived in the aroma and their sauce is linked to an effect. from the binding of its own juices without the need for starches.

And to finish a dessert with one of our emblematic products, the bananaTaking advantage of the fact that we have just launched the culinary guide to bananas, we will have some flambé bananas.

Stuffed Eggplant

Ingredients:

• 4 aubergines
• 2 red peppers
• 2 onions
• 1 fennel
• 8 cloves of garlic
• Olive oil
• Bacon
• Mature cheese
• Shall
• Black peppercorns
• Smoked paprika
• Fennel leaves

How to do it:

1. Cut the aubergines in half, make a few slight cracks in the pulp or meat, season with salt, a drizzle of oil and bake 180 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes, approximately.
2. In the same baking tray place the onions, peppers, fennel and garlic.
3. Remove from the oven, with the help of a spoon, extract the meat while keeping the firmness of the eggplant.
4. Peel the peppers and cut them together with the onion and fennel into small cubes.
5. Re-fry the mashed roasted garlic, add the bacon and sauté.
6. Add the chopped peppers, onions and fennel, then the aubergine pulp and stir well, add the cooking juice of the vegetables.
7. Season with salt, pepper, smoked paprika and fennel leaves.
8. Fill the aubergines, add a little grated cheese and bake at 200 degrees for 10 minutes.

Meat stew with wine and vegetables

Ingredients:

• 1 kilo of beef, pulps
• 6 pearl onions
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 1 can of peeled tomatoes
• Shall
• Black pepper
• 1 liter of red wine
• 2 cups balsamic vinegar
• 2 carrots
• 2 zucchinis
• 2 cups mushrooms
• Rosemary and fresh thyme
• Sunflower oil

How will we do it

1. Cut the meat into medium cubes, seal in a pan with oil over high heat, remove and reserve.
2. Chop the onion and garlic very finely and sauté in the same pan where the meat was sealed for about 30 minutes over low heat until fully caramelized.
3. Add the meat, season with salt, pepper, stir for 5 minutes.
4. Add the vinegar, then the wine and then the tomato, cook for about 1 hour and a half, until the meat is soft and the liquids have evaporated forming a somewhat thick sauce.
5. Chop the zucchinis, mushrooms and carrots, sauté them in oil over high heat until al dente, season with salt, pepper, rosemary and fresh thyme, add this preparation to the stew at the end before serving.

Bananas flambéed with rum, pineapple and panela

Ingredients:

• 4 not so ripe bananas
• 1 cup of panela
• ½ cup butter
• 1 cup dark rum
• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 1 cinnamon stick

How will we do it:

1. Marinate the bananas in the rum for 10 minutes.
2. Brown them in a pan with butter and remove them.
3. Add the panela and stir.
4. Add the cinnamon, rum and pineapple juice, cook until it begins to take consistency.
5. Add the bananas and simmer for a few minutes until soft and integrated into the sauce.