Ingredients
2 lbs eggplant, peeled, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions
1/4 cup diced red pepper
4-6 basil leaves - thinly cut
1/4 cup grated parmesan 
1/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese 
2 eggs beaten
1/2 cup itallian bread crumbs
1 tsp butter
1-2 large tomatoes thinly sliced
salt to taste

Preparation
Steam eggplant until tender, drain and mash. Add butter, scallions, pepper and basil. Mix well then add eggs and bread crumbs and mix.

Butter a baking dish, line pan with sliced tomatoes, add eggplant mixture. Top with sliced tomates, top with cheeses.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 20-30 min or until cheese is lightly brown. Serve and enjoy.

Recipe by Frandelle Gerard, inspired by The Vegetarian Epicure by Anna Thomas 1972

Homegrown Win!
The judges at Taste of St. Croix had a dish we are sure they will remember for a long time. As they received the dish, in came all the parts: a whole pumpkin opened at the top like a jack-o-lantern, a bamboo tray with coconut shell cups containing fresh ingredients, a bamboo insulator with red-hot stones, tongs, safety glasses, and directions.

1) Put on safety glasses

2) Remove the pumpkin lid (which contained fresh local red snapper broth)

3) Add first 2 coconut cups containing fresh hand-sqeezed coconut milk and sliced kaffir lime, grated ginger and turmeric, and finely chopped lemongrass

4) Add red hot Caledonia stones (just pulled from the fire) from container with tongs into pumpkin until water boils, then cover and let simmer for 3 minutes

5) Remove pumpkin lid, let steam off, then add diced heirloom cherokee purple tomatoes and malabar spinach to finish

6) Serve with ladle into coconut cups, enjoy! 

We have to admit, we were surprised and elated to hear our names over the loudspeaker as first place winners, especially with such fine restaurants Savant and Tutto Bene in 2nd and 3rd place in the category! We are sure that with our farm-grown creation the judges really got a true taste of St. Croix!

Thanks to all the help -Jessica, Shelli, Patrick, and Nadja for making this laborious dish a huge success!

Recipe by Nate Olive & Tahirah Abu-Bakr

Serves 4

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Ingredients
1-2 Sliced Heirloom Green Tomatoes
3/4 cup Buttermilk
Corn Meal (look for non-GMO)
1/4 cup flour
Salt & pepper to taste
Other dried & cropped seasonings
Vegetable oil, deep or light fry

Preparation
Basically its a mixture of corn meal and flour or panko (a little more corn meal than flour), salt, pepper, and whatever fresh herbs you have.

Dip seasoned tomato slices in buttermilk (if you have, much better than milk...add a little hot sauce in there if you want), then dip in cornmeal/flour or panko mixture, then set on a rack until you fry in vegetable oil.

Also good if you dip in cornmeal mixture, then buttermilk, then cornmeal again. After you fry them, set them in a warm oven until you serve. 

The aioli we made was a mixture of stuff that we kept adding to until we liked it....but basically it's just mayo with a bunch of herbs.....yummy!!

Erin's award-winning 2006 Bush Chef Recipe