Gluten-free Gourmand

I like to eat big.   When I was a kid, just a skinny little thing, family and friends would marvel at the huge piles of pasta I would heap on my plate and top with meatballs.   I mean, I would really pile it on – and at 10 I would pack away more of the dish than most adults.   Italian food was a staple growing up and my mom taught me how to make my grandma’s spaghetti and meatballs, as well as other hearty meals like fresh pasta and home-made bread.   Whatever I loved to eat, I would learn how to make it. My home-made creations weren’t always perfect.   I am still teased for the time I tried to make eggplant ravioli without a recipe when I was 16.   It took 5 hours.   When we finally sat down to eat at 10 pm, everyone was famished, but I had made some miscalculations.   Each person got about three ravioli.   They weren’t even good!   That was when I learned that eggplant, while delicious, can be spongy and bland when not cooked...