A Peak Inside a Nutritionist's Fridge

If you've read a lot of my blog-material, you'll know that I'm all about being real and honest. You aren't going to find a holier-than-thou nutritionist here. I say yes to offers of holiday chocolate, I buy non-organic food when I'm feeling cheap, and I let my son have store-bought crackers... oh the shame!

So here is a stripped-down, no editing look into the refrigerator of the Harrison family. (I completely forgot to take into account our freezer, which has various meats, ice cubes, a tub of aloe vera juice, an infant teething ring, a few inches of ginger root, 1/2 a pint of beet ice cream, a whole wheat pizza crust, and who knows what else!)

The top shelf in the door: Eggs (24 extra-large), active dry yeast, 3 hot pepper jellies and a spicy artisan mustard from Europe.

The middle shelf in the door: sesame oil, Braggs soy sauce, Sriracha, almost gone vinaigrette, Frank's red hot sauce, pickled banana peppers & liquid smoke.

My supplements: Floravit liquid iron.

Fruit: navel oranges (3), clementines (1,000), kiwis (3), apples (2), bananas (5)

Dairy: (whoops, upside down and too lazy to flip!) Table cream for guests to put in their coffee - which we don't actually use ourselves, Almond milk, eggnog

Other beverages: Tropicana no pulp orange juice, filtered water

Vegetables: 1 egg plant, a few carrots, a few tomatoes, tons of garlic, tons of onions, 1 large sweet potato, and a few red bell peppers

More dairy: 14% sour cream (I'm not sure why Calvin bought this - there must be some specific meal he's wanting it for), Ricotta (for lasagna), and 2 types of yogurt.

Even MORE dairy (phew!): old cheddar x2, extra old cheddar x1, mozzarella x1, vegetable cream cheese, and apparently a pack of turkey lunch meat that slipped into the cheese party

Green veggies: bell pepper, brussels sprouts, cucumber, green beans, broccoli, fresh spinach

Eggplant Casserole

Eggplant casserole is definitely my favourite food. I say that about a lot of things. 

It is the first full meat-free meal I've made that didn't result in a unanimous "Where's the meat?" from the boys.

Here's how I make it:

In a skillet, sautee a small onion or two until cooked. If there's not much oil/butter left, add more. With the heat on medium, add in an equal amount of flour and whisk to create a roux. (Feel free to use gluten free flour mix, brown rice flour, or cornstarch). Let cook for 30 seconds then whisk in one cup of milk. It will thicken as it heats up. Grate in a cup of cheddar cheese.

To this cheese sauce add one jar of homemade tomato sauce. Stir to combine, then set aside.

Heat a decent amount of oil in a skillet. In the meantime, chop one eggplant into 1/2" thick coins. Fry each piece, both sides, until soft. As the pieces are done frying (do them in batches, don't overload the skillet) layer them in a 9x9 with the blush sauce, like a lasagna. Finish with a layer of grated cheddar cheese.

Surprise! I have terrible fridge organization skills and this photo will prove it!

Bake the casserole at 400 degrees F for 40 minutes, then broil for a minute to make the cheese bubbly.