Aubergine Goats Cheese Salad With Mint Chilli Dressing Recipes

AUBERGINE & GOAT'S CHEESE SALAD WITH MINT-CHILLI DRESSING

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/ gas 6. Cut the aubergine into 3cm chunks. Drizzle with olive oil and season. Arrange on a baking tray and roast for 25 mins or until browned.
• Rip the bread into pieces and put on a baking tray. Just as the aubergine is nearly ready, pop the bread into the oven and bake for 8 mins.
• To make the mint-chilli dressing, mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl and season. Toss about one-third of the dressing with the aubergine and save the rest to pour over the salad. Arrange the tomatoes, salad leaves, shallots, dressed aubergine and crisp bread on a large platter. Drizzle the reserved dressing over and scatter the goat's cheese on top.

GRILLED EGGPLANT AND GOAT CHEESE SALAD

Steps:

• Place a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Drizzle the olive oil over the slices of eggplant and toss to coat. Grill the eggplants until tender and grill marks appear, about 3 to 4 minutes per side.
• Place the eggplants side-by-side on a serving platter. Sprinkle with the pine nuts, goat cheese, basil, and mint. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper.
• Cook's note: Plating the eggplant salad this way allowed the cheese to stay bright white. The salt and pepper showed up on it. The herbs remained green and fluffy. The grill marks on the eggplant were distinct.

EGGPLANT WITH TOMATO-MINT SAUCE AND GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 500°F. Spray 2 large baking sheets with oil spray. Arrange eggplant rounds on prepared sheets; brush lightly with 1 tablespoon oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake 10 minutes. Turn rounds over and bake until tender and golden, about 10 minutes longer. Remove from oven. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
• Meanwhile, heat remaining 1/2 tablespoon oil in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion; sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and stir 1 minute. Add tomatoes with their juices, mint and oregano and simmer until sauce thickens and is reduced to 1 3/4 cups, breaking up tomatoes with back of spoon, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Spoon half of tomato sauce into shallow 2-quart baking dish. Arrange eggplant rounds atop sauce, overlapping slightly. Spoon remaining sauce over. Sprinkle cheese over. Bake until heated through, about 20 minutes. Sprinkle with basil.

BEET, MINT, AND GOAT CHEESE SALAD

Steps:

• 1. Bring a medium saucepan of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add beets; return to a boil then reduce heat and cook gently until tender, approximately 15 to 25 minutes. (Miniature beets will take as little as 10 minutes; large beets could take 30 minutes.) Remove pan from heat and allow beets to cool completely in the cooking liquid before draining. (This can take up to one hour, and can also be done up to 1 day in advance - just refrigerate.) Discard the water and slip the beets out of their skins using paper towels to grasp the beets. Trim curly ends, cut beets into wedges; set aside. (Some beets peel more easily than others. Do the peeling over the sink, as it's a messy job. Always slice on a cutting board so as not to stain the countertop.)
• 2. Cut the goat cheese log into disks, about 1/2-inch thick, yielding 8 to 10 rounds. Place the flour on a small plate. Lightly beat the eggs in a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl, combine the chopped parsley and breadcrumbs. Line up the three plates next to each other. Dip each goat cheese round first in the flour, turning to coat, then in the egg, then in the bread crumbs.
• 3. Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. (a nonstick skillet is best for ease in clean-up.) Add the breaded goat cheese rounds and lightly brown both sides. Use tongs to carefully flip rounds. Drain on paper towels.
• 4. Warm the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add the beets and cook 3 minutes, stirring to coat. Stir in mint, then lemon juice, salt and pepper.
• 5. To serve: Place salad greens on plates, top with several wedges of beets and 1 or 2 rounds of warm goat cheese. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and serve immediately.

ROAST EGGPLANT SALAD WITH GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 400°F Brush the eggplant slices with 1 tbs of the oil, then season with salt and pepper.
• Arrange on a baking tray or sheet and roast for 20 mins until browned, popping the tomatoes on the tray for the final five minutes.
• Tear the flatbread or pita into pieces and place on a separate baking sheet. Brown in the oven for 8 mins or until crisp, then remove.
• For the dressing, in a small bowl, mix the vinegar, mint, chopped shallot, chili, remaining oil and some salt and pepper.
• Scatter the eggplant slices, tomatoes, sliced shallot and crisp flatbread into a serving bowl. Pour over the dressing, sprinkle with the goat cheese and scatter over a little arugula.

EGGPLANT SALAD WITH PEPPERS, MINT AND CAPER-FETA VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Whisk together the oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
• Toss eggplant with 1/3 cup vinaigrette, reserving the rest. Arrange on a baking sheet. Bake, tossing occasionally, until tender and golden around edges, about 30 minutes. Let eggplant cool somewhat. (It can be warm but not hot enough to melt feta or wilt mint.)
• Whisk feta, garlic and capers into reserved vinaigrette. In a large bowl, combine eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and mint leaves. Toss with vinaigrette, and serve immediately or within several hours. (It holds up all day.)