Eggplant And Sun Dried Tomato Spread Recipes

EGGPLANT AND SUN-DRIED TOMATO SPREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle.
• Cut off and discard top of garlic head to expose cloves. Brush top of head with 1/2 tablespoon olive oil. Wrap garlic in foil and roast until tender, about 45 minutes. Cool to warm, then squeeze garlic cloves from skins into a small bowl, discarding skins.
• Meanwhile, cut eggplant into 1/2-inch pieces and toss with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in a large colander. Let drain 30 minutes. Squeeze eggplant in a kitchen towel to remove liquid.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then sauté one third of eggplant until browned and tender, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Cook remaining eggplant in olive oil in same manner (in 2 batches), transferring to bowl.
• Add 1 cup cooked eggplant to garlic and coarsely mash together. Stir into remaining eggplant with sun-dried tomatoes (without tomato oil), parsley, basil, lemon juice, and 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Season with salt and drizzle with tomato oil.
• What to drink:
• Artezin Mendocino Zinfandel '07 or Château de Chamirey Mercurey Rouge '07

ROASTED EGGPLANT & SUN-DRIED TOMATO SPREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Cut off the stem ends of the eggplants, then cut into 1-inch cubes and place in an oven-proof covered casserole dish.
• Place the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, paste and water, salt, pepper, and pepper flakes into a small food processor and pulse until blended.
• Dump the tomato mixture over the eggplant cubes and toss to coat well.
• Roast the eggplant covered for 30 minutes, then stir well and cook another 30 minutes. Stir again and return to oven until the eggplant is very soft, about 20 minutes. (Fresher, young eggplant will take longer)
• Let the eggplant mixture sit covered until it is room temperature.
• Taste, then adjust the seasonings as needed.
• Serve with slices of crusty Italian bread.

EGGPLANT AND MOZZARELLA PANINI

Steps:

• Heat a grill pan or panini press.
• Brush eggpant slices with 1 t olive oil and season lightly with salt and pepper.
• Grill until marked and just soft, about 4-6 minutes. If using the grill pan, turn once.
• Cut bread into 4 pieces; slice pieces in half lengthwise.
• Drain and dice sun-dried tomatoes. In small bowl, mix mayonaise with tomatoes.
• Cover one side of ciabatta with mayo mixture.
• Divide grilled eggplant slices between the four sandwiches.
• Add cheese on tops and add other slice of bread on top.
• Brush sandwiches with olive oil and grill until cheese is melting and bread is crisp, about 5 minutes.
• Serve with marinara sauce or picante sauce.

EGGPLANT SANDWICHES WITH FONTINA CHEESE AND SUN-DRIED TOMATOES

Steps:

• If desired, trim off and discard the skin of each eggplant round. Place each round on a flat surface and hold a knife parallel to the surface. Cut each round in half, splitting each sandwichlike almost but not through to the end. Leave a small hinge at one end of each round. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Fill each sandwich with a round of Fontina cheese and top each piece of cheese with a sun-dried tomato. Close each sandwich.
• Dip each sandwich in flour and shake off excess. Beat the egg with water and dredge each sandwich, bottom and sides, in the mixture. Dredge each sandwich, bottom and sides, in bread crumbs to coat thoroughly. Shake off excess.
• Fill a heavy skillet with oil to a depth of about half an inch. Heat until the temperature on a fat thermometer is about 375 degrees. Add the sandwiches in one layer and cook, turning occasionally, about three minutes or until each round is golden brown and cooked through. Drain on absorbent paper towels. Serve, if desired, with tomato sauce or garlic, oil and anchovy sauce.

SUN-DRIED TOMATO AND PARMESAN SPREAD

Steps:

• Place all ingredients in a food processor; cover and process until blended. Chill until serving.

EGGPLANT AND TOMATO SPREAD

Steps:

• Preheat an outdoor grill for medium heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Brush cut sides of eggplant and tomatoes with 2 tablespoons olive oil.
• Place eggplants and tomatoes, cut sides down, on the preheated grill. Cook eggplant for 4 minutes, then flip and grill until tender, about 10 minutes more. Cook tomatoes until very tender, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer eggplant to a cutting board and tomatoes to a food processor.
• Scrape eggplant pulp from the skins. Discard skins and place pulp in the food processor with tomatoes. Add tahini, parsley, and garlic; pulse until mostly smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
• Transfer to a serving bowl. Top with feta cheese and sesame seeds.

EGGPLANT STEAKS WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATOES AND OLIVES

Steps:

• 1. Trim the ends from the eggplants and peel off the skin. Cut each eggplant lengthwise into four or more 1/2-inch-thick slices. (Some of the slices will be smaller than others, but all should be of equal thickness.) If needed, trim a thin slice from each of the rounded sides so the pieces will lie flat on the baking sheet. Sprinkle the slices with coarse salt and layer in a colander to drain for at least 30 minutes or for up to 2 hours. Rinse the eggplant slices under cold running water and dry well with paper towels, pressing to remove as much moisture as possible.
• 2. Preheat the broiler and position the oven rack about 4 inches from the heat. Line a large heavy baking sheet with aluminum foil. Arrange the eggplant slices on the sheet in a single layer and brush both sides with oil. Broil for 7 to 9 minutes, turning once, until the eggplant is tender and lightly browned on both sides. Leave the broiler on.
• 3. Meanwhile, combine the goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and olives in a small bowl. Toss gently to mix. Divide the mixture evenly over the broiled eggplant slices. Sprinkle the Pecorino Romano cheese evenly over each slice and return to the oven. Broil for 1 minute, or until the goat cheese has softened and the grated cheese is just beginning to brown at the edges. Watch carefully to avoid burning. Scatter basil over the top of each slice and serve at once.