Eggplant Recipes

Eggplant Parmigiana Variation

Slice eggplant and sprinkle with salt, allow to rest on paper towels for 5 minutes: dip slices in slightly beaten egg and then Italian-style crumbs. Saute the slices in a half/half mixture of olive oil and butter until brown on both sides. Pour spaghetti sauce into the skillet and heat to de-glaze the skillet. Pour sauce in the bottom of a baking pan and top with eggplant. Top each eggplant with a tomato. Cover each with slabs of Mozzerella cheese.

Peel and slice zucchini: dip slices in slightly beaten egg and then Italian-style crumbs. Saute the slices in a half/half mixture of olive oil and butter until brown on both sides. Arrange the slices on top of the cheese.

Top each with a little chopped basil mixed with olive oil (or pesto if you have any on hand) and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake 350 degrees until cheese is bubbly about 20 minutes.

Grilled Baba Ghanoush with Grilled Naan

1 large firm eggplant (about 1 1/3 pounds), cut in half lengthwise
olive oil
1 tablespoon tahini
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup minced shallots
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
naan
olive oil

Preheat grill. Brush flesh of the eggplant with olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Grill flesh-side down for 15 to 20 minutes, turn over and grill an additional 15 minutes, or until soft. Let cool slightly and remove the flesh with a large spoon and mince.. In a large bowl, mix the tahini, garlic, shallot, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, cayenne, cilantro together until combined. Fold in the eggplant and re-season with salt and pepper and more lemon juice if necessary.

Brush naan with olive oil on both sides and grill for 1 to 2 minutes on each side. The Garlic Naan at Trader Joe's is pretty good, if you don't make your own.

Bharta

1 eggplant large size, or several smaller ones
1 onion, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1 green chili, chopped
1 -inch ginger, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1/4 teaspoon garam masala
1/8 teaspoon turmeric powder
salt to taste
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice

Peel and cut the eggplant into pieces about 1 inch square. Saute them in peanut and sesame oil. Let them become really squishy. Remove the eggplant and let them cool. Whir them in a food processor and set them aside.

Saute all the other ingredients, whir in food processor add spices, lime juice, salt and eggplant. Makes a great sandwich, or serve on crackers as a dip.


Stuffed Eggplant

4-6 eggplants
Day-old bread, crusts removed and crumbled (for amounts see below)
1 or 2 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup Italian flatleaf parsley, finely chopped
A sprig of fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
1/4 cup Pecorino Romano, grated
olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Stem the eggplants but don't peel them. Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise, sprinkle with salt and set flesh side down on a paper towel for about 5 minutes. Then scoop out the pulp with a spoon, leaving about 1/2-inch from the skins.

Sliver the pulp–for each cup of chopped eggplant pulp you’ll need about 3/4 cup crumbled stale bread. Mix the slivered pulp with the bread, garlic, parsley, mint and cheese, a glug of olive oil and season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper.

Lightly grease the skins of the eggplant shells with a dab of olive oil, and place in a parchment paper-lined ovenproof dish.

Heap the shells with the mixture, drizzle with more olive oil, and bake at moderate temperature (190° C / 375° F) until done, roughly 45 minutes to 1 hour.