Summer of Eggplant

The actual summer is over, gone, dunzo. This we know. And so, we felt the need to shine a little light on our very own Summer of Eggplant, whose bountiful trail on Food52 spans all seasons. A lighting designer located in Atlanta, GA, here's a cook with particularly identifiable style: like Bouchon, restaurant home to her favorite cookbook, her food is pristinely casual. Her repertoire is chic but accessible (see her recipe for Lettuce Wraps or Maryland Style Boiled Peanuts, pictured above), much like we imagine the cook herself to be.

And her blog of the same name, Summer of Eggplant, confirms our hunch. "A food map of memories," as she charmingly describes it, the blog contains a lovely roll of photographs and entries which narrate her life as noted through food. It makes sense: each of her recipes has a story. Take Tuna Croquetta with Smoked Paprika Aioli, which she invented on the fly for a friend's wedding shower one summer. And her affection for 'overly pampered cheeses' (great turn-of-phrase, no?) further reiterates her signature sensibility. So, to you, Summer of Eggplant, here's to many, many wheels of luxurious fromage.

Read our profile Q&A with Summer of Eggplant below and check out her blog here.

• What is the strangest food you have ever eaten?
  Gator? Turtle? Ranch flavored crickets?


• What do you cook when home alone?
  Tagliatelle, European butter, maldon, pepper, maybe some parm, maybe some parsley.


• Your most treasured kitchen possession:
  Boring but true, the food processor.


• Your ideal meal:
  Outdoors with good company, good wine, wonderful weather, great food.


• Something you'd like a chance to eat or cook:
  Right now all I want is cheese, crazy cheese. A friend gave me a few really awesome cheeses for my birthday and now I just want to eat $20 hunks of overly pampered cheeses. That or I'd love to learn how to cook Indian food authentically.


• The number of bottles of wine you own:
  Vacillates between 2-20. It just goes.


• The ideal number of guests for a dinner party is:
  8


• Kitchen pet peeve:
  Dirty or messy, dishes in the sink.


• Your favorite cookbook:
  A scrapbook I have put together of favorites. But if it must be actually published then Bouchon.


•