Eggplant Parm 'N' Pesto Quesadilla

New York. The Big Apple. The City That Never Sleeps. The Empire State.  Whatever you call it, to me it will always be
the roots of my tree.

The place I was born, where I spent the early part of my childhood growing up, and where most of my family still lives today.

There's no other place quite like it...the raw energy couldn't be duplicated even if you tried...it finds it's way into your veins and gives you a rush like nothing you've ever felt before.

Times Square is mesmerizing no matter what time of day...
taxis honking, weaving in and out of traffic...
people surging up and down subway stairs. 

I love how small I feel beneath the skycrapers of Manhattan - how the skyline twinkles at night - the smell of fresh basil, pasta, pizza and pastries throughout the streets of Little Italy - the trendy boutiques and cafes in SoHo - the buzz on Broadway - even the hustle and bustle in Grand Central Station.

Ohhhh but what I love MOST about New York resides on the east side of Long Island, on a tree lined street in Ronkonkoma, in Aunt Marie's Kitchen....and that's Grandma's cookin'. Meat-a-balls as big as your head. Eggplant Parmigaina baked to perfection. The very thought of it puts me in a groove of emotion I can hardly contain....fuhgettaboudit... I can almost taste them right now.....just a small sample of the 150,000 calories I usually consume while sitting at Grandma Tina's table.

Of course, if she doesn't witness you eat the food with her own eyes it doesn't count, so you always want to make sure she actually sees you putting the food in your mouth, otherwise, you're sure to hear "eh, Jaiiiime, you-a so skinny, you don't-a eat nothing...come-a eat, eh, mangia mangia"...and believe me, she's watching...with arms folded in the corner, giving nods of approval with each bite....before you know it, the platters start coming your way... antipasta, baked ziti, sausage and peppers, scotchada, lemon chicken, caprese, garlic knots, and trust me, that's just the beginning..... The most special memories I carry with me involve eating around the table with mi familia.

This recipe I'd like to share with you today is a beautiful fusion of Italian and Mexican cuisine. My love affair with basil comes in to play and combines itself with the flavorful crispy goodness of eggplant cutlets layered with ripe juicy roma tomatoes, and 3 cheeses all snuggled up in a warm tortilla. A quesadilla is sort of like a mexican version of a panini, yes? The only limits are your imagination when it comes to creative combinations of ingredients to serve up, so go a little crazy and try something new....like my Eggplant Parm 'n' Pesto Quesadilla....and make some beautiful memories

with the ones you love....mangia!

Eggplant Parm 'n' Pesto Quesadilla

ingredients:

3 - 3 to 4" pieces from a small oblong eggplant appx. 1/4" thick

1 egg, beaten with a splash of water

1/2 cup of breadcrumbs

3/4 teaspoon of salt

*(SHORTCUT: In a pinch, you can also substitute 6 small frozen eggplant cutlets that can be found in freezer section of most grocery stores, I like Trader Joe's, if so eliminate above ingredients)

2 tbsp of olive oil

2 oz. of cream cheese, softened

5 tbsp of pesto (recipe for pesto below)

1 Large Roma Tomato, sliced

1/2 cup of grated Parmiggano Reggiano, divided

1/4 cup of grated Fontina Cheese

1/8 tsp of cracked black pepper

1 - 10" tortilla

cooking spray

to prepare eggplant:

slice 3 to 4 pieces of eggplant from the large part of the eggplant into 1/4" thick slices

salt front and back of each eggplant slice, lay on plate for 10 minutes so it will sweat out any bitterness

then, rinse each eggplant slice off well to get salt off and pat dry

dip in egg and then bread each side in breadcrumbs

*(if substituting frozen eggplant cutlets, you may skip the above steps)

fry in olive oil until medium golden brown on both sides

lay on paper towl to drain

to assemble quesadilla:

lay tortilla on cutting board side by side

spread cream cheese evenly on tortilla

spread pesto evenly on top of cream cheese on tortilla

sprinkle 1/4 cup of parmiggano reggiano on one half of tortilla

lay eggplant cutlets evenly on same half of the tortilla

sprinkle fontina cheese just on top of eggplant cutlets

lay roma tomatoes evenly on top of fontina cheese and eggplant cutlets only

sprinkle remaining parmiggano reggiano on top of tomatoes

sprinkle cracked black pepper evenly over parmiggano reggiano

fold other half of tortilla over to cover eggplants cutlets so that it forms a half quesadilla

to cook quesadilla:

spray large skillet or flat iron gridle with cooking spray

place assembled quesadilla on top of pan or gridle over medium-high heat

cook appx. 2 to 3 minutes and flip gently making sure to keep ingredients inside quesadilla intact

cook other side appx 2 to 3 minutes or until cheese is melted and tortilla has a medium golden brown crispiness to it

place on cutting board and use pizza cutter or large knife to cut into 4 pie pieces

plate, serve hot and mangia!

Basil Pesto

2 cups fresh Basil Leaves

2 garlic cloves

1/4 cup toasted pine nuts (pignoli, pinon)

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

pinch of salt

pinch of black pepper

Blend all ingredients in a blender, voila!

*I like to mix in 1/2 cup of shredded parmiggano reggiano after the pesto is blended for an extra layer of flavor :)

I want to take a moment to thank thingamajigetc.blogspot.com for presenting me with "the beautiful blogger award" - I truly am speechless. It is such an honor to be noted for bringing some beauty into another's life and I am truly grateful for this acknowledgement. I would love to pass this special award on to the following blogs: Life Beyond The Picket Fence, Let me think, sophistimom, The Art of Choosing Joy, Enjoying the Small Things, and HELLO my name is Heather - you all have brought beauty to me through your magnificent blogs - keep shining sweet bellas!