Baklazhannaia Ikra The Poor Mans Caviar Recipes

POOR MAN'S CAVIAR

Steps:

• Stir together avocados, tomatoes, green onions, black beans, and Mexicorn. Stir in red wine vinegar, canola oil, and hot pepper sauce. Cover, and chill 1 hour.

BAKLAZHANNAIA IKRA, THE "POOR MAN'S CAVIAR"

Steps:

• Preheat the oven at 220°C (425°F).
• Wash the veggies (eggplant, bell pepper and tomatoes), and place directly on the oven rack to "grill" for about 1 hour. Place an iron baking tray, lined with parchment paper under the rack, to collect the juices (it avoids messing up your oven). Check the veggies every 25 minutes, and turn them, to allow the skin to char evenly.
• About 10 minutes before the 1 hour needed for your vegetables to char has passed, heat olive oil into a non-stick deep frying pan, then add shallots and parsley stems, and sauté for 5 minutes over medium heat. Pour 100 ml dry white wine (or water) into the pan, before adding the garlic. Stir often, to avoid burning. Add the garlic, and cook for about 3 more minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.
• Remove the eggplant, tomato and bell pepper from the oven, and allow to cool off for about 10 minutes (you should be able to handle them without getting burned). Peel off their skins, then chop finely.
• Return to your frying pan, and bring it back to a boiling point, before pouring the roasted tomatoes, eggplant and bell pepper. Cook for 7-10 more minutes, allowing the flavors to blend. Season with salt, pepper, and lemon juice, stir well, and let the dish cool off. If you like spicy foods, add a dash of Tabasco sauce, or a sprinkle of chili flakes.
• To get a true Russian dish, make sure you prepare a centerpiece while you wait for your Baklazhannaia Ikra to cool off. The picture accompanying the recipe should inspire you. Make sure that the salad, and all other raw ingredients are dry before placing the bread or the crackers onto the plate.
• You could also serve Baklazhannaia Ikra simply, as a spread, directly onto bread, without wasting time on decorating. It tastes very nice hot, but it is best enjoyed cold.

BAKLAZHANNAIA IKRA(POOR MAN'S CAVIAR)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 F, Bake the eggplant on a rack in the center of the oven for about an hour, turning it over once or twice until it is soft and its skin is charred (poke a few small holes in it so it won't explode). Meanwhile, cook the onions in 4 Tbs of olive oil over moderate heat for 6-8 minutes until they are soft but not brown. Stir in the green pepper and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes longer. With a rubber spatula, scrape the contents of the skillet into a mixing bowl. Remove the skin from the baked eggplant with a small sharp knife, then chop the eggplant pulp finely, almost to a puree. Add it to the mixing bowl and stir in the tomatoes, sugar, salt, and a few grindings of black pepper. Mix together thoroughly. Heat the remaining 2 Tbs of olive oil in the skillet over moderate heat and pour in the eggplant mixture. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, then turn the heat to low, cover the skillet and simmer for an hour. Remove the cover and cook for an additional half hour, stirring from time to time, until all moisture in the pan has evaporated and the mixture is thick enough to hold its shape in a spoon. Stir in 2 Tbs of lemon juice and taste for seasoning, adding more salt, pepper, and lemon juice to taste. Transfer the "caviar" to a mixing bowl and chill, covered with plastic wrap, until ready to serve. Serve on squares of rye or pumpernickel bread or on some sesame seed crackers.

POOR MAN'S CAVIAR: EGGPLANT SPREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to highest setting, at least 500 degrees F.
• Cut 2 or 3 slits into whole eggplant. Place eggplant directly on the oven rack in the middle of the oven and roast the eggplant until it is tender, about 20 minutes. Keep the slits facing up so that the eggplant does not loose liquids as it roasts.
• The roasted eggplant will look like a flat tire when you remove it from the oven. Using a sharp utility knife, carefully peel skin away from eggplant flesh. Add cooked eggplant flesh and juice to food processor and combine with garlic, allspice, salt, and pepper and parsley. Pulse grind the eggplant into a paste, add a drizzle of olive oil. Transfer to a serving dish. The seeds of the eggplant will make the spread resemble caviar eggs, and so the name: poor man's caviar.
• To serve, surround a bowlful of spread with crusty bread rounds.
• Tidbit: Mixed olives and selections of Italian sheep's milk cheeses are suggested accompaniments to this menu to round out your buffet. They require no recipe or preparation and add something to the offering overall. Place them on the buffet near the eggplant caviar and bread.

BAKLAZHANNAIA IKRA (POOR MAN'S CAVIAR)

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Bake the eggplant on a baking sheet in the center of the oven, turning it over once or twice, until it is soft and its skin is charred and blistered, about 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, in a skillet, cook the onions in 4 tablespoons oil over medium heat until they are soft but not brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the green pepper and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes longer. With a rubber spatula, scrape the contents of the skillet into a mixing bowl.
• Remove the skin from the baked eggplant with a small, sharp knife, then chop the eggplant pulp finely, almost to a pure. Add it to the mixing bowl and stir in the tomatoes, sugar, salt and a few grindings of black pepper. Mix together thoroughly. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in the skillet over moderate heat and pour in the eggplant mixture. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, then turn the heat to low, cover the skillet, and simmer for 1 hour.
• Uncover and cook 30 minutes, stirring from time to time, until all the moisture in the pan has evaporated and the mixture is thick enough to hold its shape in a spoon. Stir in 2 tablespoons lemon juice and taste for seasoning, adding salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste. Transfer the “caviar" to a mixing bowl and chill, covered with plastic wrap, until ready to serve. Serve on squares of bread or on sesame-seed crackers.

WORLD COCKTAIL

Steps:

• Pour vodka in a shallow bowl. Tear off small pieces of the gold leaf with tweezers, avoiding squeezing or folding it (thick pieces will sink). Float the pieces on the vodka.
• Combine the rest of the ingredients (except gold leaf, vodka and Champagne) in an iced metal shaker. Shake vigorously and pour into a trumpet flute, filling 3/4 of the way. Top with Champagne.
• Pour in the vodka, letting the gold slide onto the surface.

POOR MAN'S CAVIAR

Steps:

• For an authentic smoky flavor, roast each unpeeled eggplant by laying it directly over a low, open, gas flame, and turn every minute with a pair of tongs until the skin is completely charred and the eggplant is very soft and limp (about 20 to 30 minutes).
• Alternatively, prick the eggplants all over and roast on a baking tray in the middle of a preheated 400 degree Farhenheit oven, for 45 minutes, or until until the insides are very soft and the outsides are dry and almost crisp.
• Let the eggplants cool briefly, then peel (the skin should come off easily) or scrape out the flesh.
• Puree eggplant pulp in a blender.
• Heat a little olive oil in a fry pan or skillet, and fry the onion until it becomes pink-brown.
• Add the tomato, green bell pepper and salt and pepper, and cook over low to moderate heat for several minutes until soft (also add 1 to 2 cloves garlic, chopped, at this stage if desired).
• Rub as much of this mixture, as possible, through a sieve and mix with the eggplant puree.
• Check the seasonings and stir in the lemon juice, adding a teaspoon more at a time, to taste, if desired.
• The consistency should be that of thick mayonnaise.
• Garnish with freshly chopped parsley and serve, as an appetiser, with chunks of Turkish bread.

POOR MAN'S CAVIAR

Steps:

• Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
• Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• Serve with Frito Scoops or tortilla chips.