Kickass Eggplant Parm

My mom's in the hospital.  She's had a recurring heart problem over the years that's pretty serious.  Yesterday they did an outpatient procedure they hoped would stabilize the situation and get her home.  I spoke to her shortly after the procedure and she said she felt great, better than she had for a long time.  If all continued to go well, they'd release her today.  

Last night I called her so she could tell me how to make her famous (within my family anyway) eggplant parmigiana.  She walked me through it and said she still felt great and couldn't wait to get home where she'd have the ability to sleep without a random orderly at her bedside to wrangle her blood pressure at 3am.

While I enjoyed a day at Central Park with Eliza, my mother called to tell me her heart was back on the fritz and that she didn't want to talk to anyone.  I didn't hear the phone ring so I heard these words over my voicemail.  I called her a few times tonight at the hospital but was met by a busy signal.  Perhaps she has taken the phone off the hook.

I'm stuck here in New York because I've accepted a job on a pilot for the next two weeks and I was tied up with meetings and prep for that.  I've wondered since she was admitted on Tuesday if I should go home but my mother encouraged me to stay where I was.

I made my mother's eggplant tonight in between attempts to call her room.  I've cooked a fair amount of food over the past two nights for Eliza and family to enjoy while I'm at work next week.  Next Thursday, while I work a probable 16 hour day, C and the kids will indulge in my kickass eggplant parm.  I'd say it exceeds my expectations but I knew it would be good because the master shared her technique.  It's so good, I doubt there will be any leftover for me.

One of my specialty dishes is various kinds of risotto.  I've made it for two boyfriends, C's kids, two cocktail parties, one dinner party and Christmas Even dinner last year.  The night I made apple risotto for Eliza and myself, my mother was admitted to the hospital.   My mom called from the hospital parking lot as I sat down to dinner with my daughter.

I realized I've never made my risotto for my mother.  Risotto is such a great dish to make for people you love because you have to stand over it, tend to it, love it.  

I really hope I get to make risotto for my mom.