The dark delights of eggplant
Ray McVinnie shares two tasty ways to enjoy eggplants.
Stuffed eggplant with goat’s cheese & lentil salad
Serves: 4-6
■ 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for cooking
■ 1 onion, finely chopped
■ 1 carrot, finely diced
■ 1 stick celery, thinly sliced
■ 3 eggplants, halved lengthways, flesh scooped out and diced 2cm, outside skins reserved
■ 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
■ 2 teaspoons sweet smoked paprika
■ 1⁄2 teaspoon ground allspice
■ 400g can crushed tomatoes
■ 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
■ 11⁄2 cups brown or green lentils
■ 1⁄2 cup coarsely chopped flat-leafed parsley, plus extra to serve
■ 1⁄2 cup coarsely chopped coriander, plus extra to serve
■ Juice of 1 large lemon
■ 200g goat’s cheese (such as goat’s feta or chevre), crumbled
■ 3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
Heat the oil in a saucepan over moderate heat then add the onion, carrot, celery, eggplant flesh (reserve the skins) and garlic. Fry gently for 10 minutes, or until the onion is soft.
Add the paprika, allspice, tomatoes and vinegar to the saucepan and mix well. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 5 minutes, or until thick. Taste and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Spoon the tomato mixture into the reserved eggplant skins and place them side by side in a roasting dish just big enough to hold them.
Drizzle plenty of oil over the eggplant filling and a little into the roasting dish. Add enough water to the roasting dish to come one-third of the way up the sides of the eggplants, then place in the oven for 1 hour, or until well cooked. Remove from the oven, take the eggplants out of the water and set aside to cool.
Meanwhile, cook the lentils in a large saucepan of boiling water until tender. Drain well, then place in a bowl. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and season. Just before serving, stir the chopped parsley and coriander and the lemon juice into the warm lentils.
Serve the eggplants on the lentils with the goat’s cheese, sesame seeds and extra herbs sprinkled on top.
Orecchiette with eggplant, zucchini & breadcrumbs
The following – eggplant, zucchini, olives, mint, saffron and preserved lemons served with orecchiette and fried crumbs – is a combination I am partial to.
It may seem strange to people raised on the idea that there only needs to be one carbohydrate in a meal, but the crumbs are an economical way to add savour and crunch to a pasta dish without using expensive cheese.
I use the whole of the lemon, which is salty, so be careful when adding salt. This dish is also good served with crumbled feta.
Serves: 6
■ 8 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
■ 2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
■ Salt and freshly ground black pepper
■ 8 small zucchini, sliced 1cm thick
■ 1 eggplant, cut into 2cm dice
■ 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
■ 1 preserved lemon, cut into 1cm dice
■ 1 cup pitted black olives (I used kalamatas)
■ Large pinch of saffron threads, soaked for 20 minutes in 50ml boiling water, soaking water reserved
■ 400g orecchiette
■ 3⁄4 cup torn-up mint leaves
Heat 4 tablespoons of the oil in a frying pan over moderate heat and add the breadcrumbs. Season well. Gently fry for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until they are brown and crisp. Remove and reserve.
Put a large frying pan over moderate heat and add the remaining oil, the zucchini, eggplant, garlic, lemon, olives and the saffron with its soaking water. Mix well, cover and cook for 10 minutes until the vegetables are soft. Meanwhile, cook the orecchiette in plenty of wellsalted boiling water until al dente. Drain and place in a large, warm serving bowl.
Uncover the eggplant mixture and stir in the mint. Taste and season.
Add the eggplant mixture to the orecchiette and mix well. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs on top and serve.