I Am Not A Racist, I Like Eggplant

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My local Beaner market recently had a sale on Eggplant so I brought 7 of them "black beauties" home. Now I find my xenophobic maladroitness in juxtaposition to my disclaimer of not being a racist to be amusing. Anyway I digress and not to get bogged down in social commentary one is going to continue to the point of this Thread.

I decided to make two different dishes with my "black magic" fruit which I am insanely fond of. The first is "Marinated Guinea Squash" and the second "Aubergine Parmesan."

The Marinated Guinea Squash is real simple, and that is to slice three of the Melazana "duskys" into .30 of an inch slices, salt them and place in a Collander to sweat them...for about 2 or 3 hours till limp. Rinse them several times to get the salt out and pat dry. Fry them in a skillet with about 1/2 inch of oil until golden brown on both sides. Layer them is roasting pan without absorbing the oil on paper towels. In between layers sprinkle with a BUNCH fresh chopped up Basil mixed with 3 or 4 cloves of crushed Garlic. After layering them, pour a 1/2 cup of Red Wine Vinegar and sprinkle with some Extra Virgin Olive Oil...place in Refrigerator for several hours turning them over so as the Red Wine Vinegar soaks into both sides of the Squash. It is a wonderful antipasto appetizer before dinner, and if you want to keep them for an extended period of time you can put them in the refrigerator in a jar covering them with Olive Oil. Beleive me they won't last that long.


The second dish is the traditional "Aubergine Parmesan" Slice the 4 purple beauties in .30 of an inch slices...I use my deli style meat slicer to effect for this. It slices them uniformly in no time flat. Salt and place in a Collander to sweat for 2 or 3 hours. When ready to prepare rinse well several time to get the salt out. No need to pat dry. Dip in flour, then dip into whisked eggs with a bit of water to thin into an egg wash and finally into seasoned Bread Crumbs. Fry in a large skillet at about 375 F in vegetable oil till Golden Brown, Drain on paper towels.

Meanwhile to make the Tomato gravy... I used 2 medium Onions, 3 pealed Carrots, 4 stalks of Celery all chopped fine in a Food Processor. In a a large skillet I placed the chopped vegetables with 4 cloves of Garlic, a few Tablespoons of Extra Virgin olive oil and 1.5 pounds of sliced Mushrooms. Saute until cooked through. Then puree 8 pounds of fresh Roma Tomatos placing them in a large Stock Pot, with 2 small cans of Tomato Paste, 1 cup of Red Wine, 2 cups of Chicken Stock the sauted vegetables, 3.5 Tblspns of Basil, 2 Tblspns of Oregano, 3 Tblspns of Parsley, roughly a Tblspn each of Thyme, Rosemary, Red Pepper Flakes, Sugar, and a bit of Sage. I never measure, I just pour until it looks about right. Let that simmer for 4 to 6 hours to reduce so that you have a nice thick sauce.

To assemble grate 1/2 lb Parmesan Cheese, 1/2 pound of Swiss cheese and 1/2 pound of Mozzerella cheese. Also 1 lb of Ricotta Cheese mixed with 2 tblspns Parsley flakes, 1 egg and a 1/4 cup or so of the Parmesan Cheese. Put a layer of the Aubergine in a large Roasting pan, put on a layer of Tomato gravy top with the various cheeses and repeat till finished. Place in a 350 F Oven for 20 minutes or so and serve.

[Bill Douglas]

I got GF to read the recipe. She said it would be gorgeous, an incredible list of ingredients. I'll have to get her to cook it for me some day LOL.

[wdfifteen]

I hate eggplant. Its texture is disgusting.

[JJ 911SC]

Excellent as a pasta substitute in Lasagna. Low-Carb, South Beach Eggplant Lasagna Recipe - Food.com

[wildthing]

I can tolerate eggplant these days. When I was younger, I hated them. I guess with age comes wisdom and tolerance...

[bkreigsr]

Thanks Tabs
mmmmm Aubergine, mmmm
Bill K

[Chocaholic]

My wife's eggplant parm is my favorite food. That's my birthday fare every year.

Didn't read all of Tabbys post (rarely do), so not sure what the racism part is about but would guess it was to add useless controversy to an otherwise useful thread.

[Crowbob]

Eggplant caserole (or squash) with cheddar cheese, Mmmm.

My birthday fare is Beef Stroganoff with vodka sauce.

It's Putin's fault.

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Originally Posted by bkreigsr

Thanks Tabs
mmmmm Aubergine, mmmm
Bill K

If I had a 72/73 911S Eggplant is the colour I would chose..