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By Lorie R. Thompson

In my younger days, I could not wait for September to arrive as it was the beginning of the hunting season. Deer season in Georgia and the elk bugling in the West, made September a banner month for Mountain Man and me. The high country of the Rocky Mountains called to our young hearts. Golden aspens, dry air, and cool weather, after a hot North Georgia Summer, combined with the excitement of travel and elk hunting, made for compelling reasons to head West. One of my treasured memories was a telephone call to my Mama, standing in a phone booth in tiny, Elk City, Idaho. We had come into the town after seven days of hunting in an isolated and rough wilderness area. I made a “collect call” home to JOLJRPU4HTHHJJLW[LK[OLJOHYNLZHUKHZZVVUHZ^L^LYLJVUULJ[LKZOLZHPK¸.HPSHUK[OLºIHIPLZ»HYLHSSKVPUNÄUL¹ What???? What babies? When I left home in early September, my sister-in-love, Gail, was expecting “a” baby (as in one) to arrive in late November. What is this about babies (plural) in mid-September? My Mama went on to tell me that Gail had unexpectedly gone into labor and delivered a surprise set of twins. Both babies were in Atlanta in neo-natal care, but both were doing good. As a side note, they were some of the last children born in Rabun County Hospital. Our little truck could not make it back to Georgia fast enough to suit me. By the time we pulled back into Wiley, Georgia my new nephew, David, was home, although with a heart monitor and my new niece, Denise, was thriving, although still in Neonatal care. It was an exciting time for our family. The surprise and joy of that moment was a treasure. September is a month to harvest the last of the Summer garden. The eggplant, okra, pepper, and tomatoes will continue to WYVK\JL\U[PS[OLÄYZ[MYVZ[6ULVMT`MH]VYP[LMVVKZPZYVHZ[LK[VTH[VLZ;OL`HYLWSLU[PM\SPU:LW[LTILYZVP[PZHNYLH[[PTL[V roast up a pan. They cook down into this rich, sweet, goo that is perfect on top of bread, cheese, or anything else. I love them stacked on top of oven-fried eggplant. Let me tell you how to do it.

Spread a thin coating of olive oil onto a baking sheet. Wash and cut tomatoes into equal-sized slices, placing them in a single layer on the baking sheet. Slice 2-3 cloves of garlic, and add to the tomatoes. Salt them and sprinkle with crushed red pepper. Drizzle with olive oil. Place in a pre-heated oven at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until the tomatoes are soft and browning. Stir, turning the tomatoes over, and cook an additional 15 minutes or until tomatoes have reduced. Eggplant is one of my favorite vegetables. We always have them in the garden in September. I make oven-fried eggplant rounds and often use them for the base of eggplant parmesan. They are delicious as a side or as an appetizer stacked with fresh mozzarella and a drizzle of the roasted tomatoes on top. Let me tell you how to make them. Wash and dry your eggplant. Remove both ends and slice into equal 1/4 inch slices. Sprinkle each round, lightly on both ZPKLZ ^P[O ZHS[·WSHJL PU H JVSHUKLY 7\[ H OLH]` WV[ ÄSSLK with water on top of the eggplant to compress them. Place the colander in the sink or into a bowl and allow them to drain for 30 minutes.

After draining, the eggplant can be diced up and sauteed with tomatoes, onions, squash, and peppers for Ratatouille. Or, it could be oven-roasted with nothing more than a drizzle of good olive oil but, let me tell you how to oven-fry it for crispy rounds. They are worth the effort.

To oven-fry, pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Lay a cooling or baking rack inside a sheet pan. (if you don’t have a YHJR `V\ JHU JVVR [OLZL S`PUN ÅH[ PU the pan, but they do not crisp as well.) Spray the rack with cooking spray. Mix 1 C seasoned bread crumbs and 1/3 C of ÄULS` NYH[LK WHYTLZHU 0M \ZPUN NS\[LU free or plain bread crumbs season them with 1/2 tsp of granulated garlic and crushed red pepper, 1 tsp of parsley, basil HUK VYLNHUV HUK * VM ÄULS` NYH[LK parmesan. Or, use 2 T of Italian Seasoning in place of individual herbs.

Dredge each eggplant round in the breadcrumb mixture. Spray with cooking spray on both sides and re-dredge the slices. Olive oil spray is excellent here, but use what you have. Layer the breaded slices on the baking rack and place it in a hot oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes and turn the slices over. Bake for another 10 minutes or until the slices are brown. They will “crisp” up as they cool.

These are delicious straight out of the oven, but they are lovely “stacked” with a layer of fresh mozzarella and a spoon of roasted tomatoes and garlic on top. The eggplant alone would make an excellent meal for me, but Mountain Man is a true carnivore and would not consider this a meal without meat. So, I add braised baby spinach and pan-fried, Italian Sausage, peppers, and onions.

The spinach is simple. Melt 2 T of butter HUK  ; VM VSP]L VPS ^P[O  ÄULS` diced shallots and garlic cloves. Soften the shallots and garlic cloves in the butter and oil. Add 1 tsp of salt. Slowly add a large tub of fresh spinach to your pan and allow it to wilt down, adding more as it wilts. The baby spinach is very tender and requires no more than wilting to serve.

;OL:H\ZHNLWLWWLYZHUKVUPVUZULLK[VILWHUMYPLK\U[PS[OL]LNL[HISLZHYL[LUKLYHUK[OL:H\ZHNLPZÄYTHUKJVVRLK through. Onions love butter, so add some butter to your pan. Slice and add onions and peppers salting lightly. As they begin [VZVM[LUHKK[OL:H\ZHNLHUKJVVR\U[PS[OL:H\ZHNLPZÄYTHUK[OVYV\NOS`JVVRLK:LY]LHSVUNZPKL[OLLNNWSHU[YV\UKZHUK the roasted tomatoes. Delicious! I wish for you a cool and dry September with plentiful tomatoes and eggplant. May God bless you with golden days to create golden memories.

Lorie Thompson is a REALTOR at Poss Realty in Clayton, Georgia. Her expertise in her industry is second only to her culinary talents. Lorie is a dynamo in the kitchen. Honestly if she prepares it, it will likely be the best you’ve ever had! Lorie and her husband, Anthony (Peanut), make their home in the Persimmon Community. She is the proud mother of Joe Thompson and Kendall Thompson.