Supper Guest

I usually do not fall victim to grocery displays, but yesterday I did. Just inside the door near the produce section was a display of home-grown (so the sign alleged) late summer vegetables: snowy white onions, brilliant red bell peppers, dark green zucchini, lemon yellow summer squash and plump, firm purple-black eggplants. They were lit up like the counters at jewelry stores, and were all sparkly from the overhead lights. The arrangement suggested ratatouille to me, as I'm sure it was designed to do, and I gave in to the merchandising ploy. As I rummaged through the eggplants, one of them made me burst out laughing. It had a nose! It looked very much like Richard Nixon, saggy jowls and all. Naturally, that's the one I brought home.



I spent several minutes turning Mr. Nixon this way and that, chuckling at the idea that the former "I-am-not-a-crook" President had been reincarnated as a vegetable. Then I began playing with my food. (Can't help it; I'm just made that way.)

As I added features with bits of other vegetables, Mr. Prez became Mme. Aubergine. I even loaned her a pair of my earrings so she could dress for dinner. Of course, she - like the oysters in Lewis Carroll's poem, The Walrus and the Carpenter - had no idea that she was to be the main course.



I prefer couscous with ratatouille, but had none, so I made do with rice. Mme. Aubergine was a very tasty guest, mixed well with the squashes, onions, mushrooms and the red pepper. Yum!


(C) 2011 Text and photos by Martha McLemore