Stuffed Eggplant Mini-Rolls

18 slices of grilled eggplant
I used two bags of the delicious frozen eggplant slices from Picard, but if you don't have that kind of product on hand, slice and grill three eggplants
Lightly oil a large gratin dish. If you use frozen eggplant slices, thaw them.

a handful of pinenuts
Toast the pinenuts in a dry skillet.

two large Carr?s Frais
Carr?s frais are squares of fresh cheese, lightly salted. Substitute cream cheese or fresh goat cheese.
Put the cheese in a small bowl, and fluff it with a fork.

a small jar of black tapenade (olive paste)
Take each eggplant slice in turn, spoon a little cheese on the largest end, add a little tapenade, sprinkle a few pinenuts, and roll up the slice. Use a toothpick to hold it into place, and put the roll in the gratin dish.

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F) and put the dish in for about ten minutes. They should be warm, but not hot.

Serves 6.
I served each of us three rolls, arranged in a triangle, with three olives (brought back from Italy by Laurence and Jean-Christophe) in the middle, and slices of baguette. The different tastes complement each other very well, making this a light and fresh opener...
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How to Grill Eggplant

TO PREPARE: Use a vegetable peeler to peel lengthwise strips of skin from the eggplant: it will look striped. Alternatively, use a fork to score the skin deeply. (Cooked eggplant skin can be tough; smaller eggplant can have more tender skin, so you can leave it all on if you prefer.)

Trim the ends. Cut the eggplant crosswise into rounds about 3/8 inch thick. Brush both sides of the slices with plenty of olive oil and season well with kosher salt just before grilling.

TO GRILL: Heat a gas grill to high, put the eggplant slices on the grate, and cover the grill. Grill, checking occasionally with tongs, until the slices are well browned on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side.

Move the slices from the heat and stack them to finish cooking (put them on an upper rack, set them over a turned-off burner, or wrap them in foil off the grill). Let sit 15 to 20 minutes. (Eggplant will often still be raw in the middle without this last step of letting the residual heat steam the flesh.)

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Grilled Eggplant "Sandwiches" with Pesto & Mozzarella

2 small (Italian) eggplant
Trimmed and cut into 3/8-inch round slices (to yield about 24 pieces), grilled
Lay the grilled eggplant slices in one layer on a parchment- or foil-lined baking sheet (put similar-size slices next to each other).

1/2 cup prepared basil pesto
3 to 4 ounces thinly sliced fresh mozzarella, drained well on paper towels
Spread each slice with a little pesto (about 1/4 teaspoon) and top every other slice with a piece of mozzarella.

salt
Sprinkle salt on the cheese and top with the other eggplant slice.

Refrigerate if not serving right away.
Heat the oven to 350°F.

2 tablespoons freshly grated parmigiano reggiano
Sprinkle the sandwiches with the grated parmigiano and heat until warmed through, 4 to 5 minutes.

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Eggplant Pickles

Biggmenu - Salads

Eggplant

A slightly sweet, tender vegetable covered with a shiny skin that ranges in color from purple, which is the most familiar, to red, yellow, or white, depending on the variety. The shape of the different varieties ranges from a pear or globe shape to a long, slender shape. Aubergine requires a long, warm growing season, so it is most plentiful in late summer to fall. Aubergine is excellent when saut?ed, broiled, baked or slowly cooked in meat dishes and stews. In the United States, it is more popularly referred to as the eggplant.


http://www.foodsubs.com/Eggplants.html

Baba Ghannouj (Eggplant Dip)

1 large round eggplant (aubergine)
Cook the eggplant in a hot oven or on a fork over the flame of a gas stove.
When it is well cooked through and the skin is blackened, douse with cold water, peel and chop into small pieces.

2 or 3 cloves of garlic
Mash two or three cloves of garlic to a paste with about the same volume of salt.
Add eggplant, mash to a smooth consistency.

60 milliliters (3 oz., 4 Tbs.) tahina
60 milliliters (2 oz., 4 Tbs.) lemon juice
Blend the tahina and lemon juice to make the Arab version of this dish;
omit the tahina for the Turkish version.

3 tablespoons natural yoghurt [optional]

mayonnaise [for the jewish version, instead of tehina and yoghurt]

salt, red pepper
olive oil
chopped parsley
slices of red bell pepper to garnish
Serve in a bowl with little olive oil on top and garnish with chopped parsley, red pepper slices and a dusting of red pepper.
Serves five.
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Baba ghanoush from Wikipedia
Baba Ghannouj
Baba Gannouj + photos step by step - Appetizer - Baba Gannouj (Moutabal)/Aubergine Dip