Homemade Roasted Peanuts for Snack, Eggplant and Pepper Fry for Dinner!

Today is the day before I start graduate school.  Let's just say I needed to stay busy so I tried 2 new foods.

Roasted Peanuts
Kroger had "green peanuts" on sale for .99/lb so I decided to buy some.  I wanted to make my own roasted peanuts.  I found a recipe that I then adapted for my needs.  First I unshelled all the peanuts (this is a task best done while watching a good movie or tv show!).  Then put the unshelled peanuts in a bowl and drizzle a little olive oil them and shake on some salt.  Mix everything together with your hands (EVOO is good for the skin!).

Raw peanuts with EVOO and salt

Finally I laid them flat on a baking pan (which I lined with tin foil to avoid a mess) and baked at 350 for 15 minutes.  They came out so nice!  I love the taste of them and it's nice to know that they are fresh and what is on them.

Peanuts out of the oven!

Eggplant and Pepper Fry
I could not decide what to make for dinner so I decided to make something up.  First I diced eggplant and sweet peppers I had from the farmers market.  I went ahead and threw the eggplant in the frying pan to cook it (eggplant can burn FAST so be careful) and added the peppers until translucent.  After the eggplant and peppers were cooked I threw in a diced tomato I had and a teaspoon or so of some fresh basil pesto I made the other day.  I turned the temp to low and let it simmer for a bit.  Until it looked like this:

Okay this is only the half I didn't eat for dinner but you see how it looks!

I ate mine with some cheese and corn tortilla chips but this would be great with rice or quinoa pasta!  I plan on making some pasta for lunch tomorrow to finish this up!  I especially loved the colors and flavors mixed together!

That's all for today!  I will get better at writing posts with recipes, just trying to practice!