Ottolenghi's Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango

This week's theme at I Heart Cooking Clubs is "Use Your Noodle."  Since I love pasta this theme was right up my alley.  I saw this recipe and knew it was the one that I would make.  Noodles, eggplant, and mango.  All ingredients that I love.  Unfortunately, I couldn't find soba noodles at the local grocery store but already had a package of udon noodles in the house so I used those.  I also substituted a whole jalapeno pepper in place of the red chile pepper.  My grocery store doesn't carry those and I've found that Ottolenghi uses them a lot in his recipes!  This is a perfect spring or summer meal.  It's served room temperature and does require the sauce being premade and the eggplant browned.  But it's light and refreshing with a hint of spice.  I didn't even attempt to try to get the kids to eat this.  It had a little kick to it plus they don't like eggplant . You have to like eggplant to really enjoy this dish!  My adapted recipe is below.  For the original recipe check out Plenty: Vibrant Vegetable Recipes from London's Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi.

Soba Noodles with Eggplant and Mango
Recipe adapted from Plenty:  Vibrant Vegetable Recipes from London's Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi

Serves: 6

Ingredients:
1/2 cup rice vinegar
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
grated zest and juice of 1 lime
1 cup vegetable oil
1 eggplant, cut into 3/4-inch dice
12 ounces udon noodles
1 large ripe mango, cut into 3/8-inch dice
2 1/2 cups cilantro leaves, chopped
1/2 red onion, very thinly sliced

Directions:
In a small saucepan gently warm the vinegar, sugar and salt for up to 1 minute, just until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and add the garlic, jalapeno, and sesame oil. Allow to cool, then add the lime zest and juice.

Heat up the vegetable oil in a large pan and shallow-fry the eggplant in three or four batches. Once golden brown remove to a colander, sprinkle liberally with salt and leave there to drain.

Cook the noodles in plenty of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally. They should take 5 to 8 minutes to become tender but still al dente. Drain and rise well under running cold water. Shake off as much of the excess water as possible, then leave to dry on a dish towel.

In a mixing bowl toss the noodles with the dressing, mango, eggplant, half of the cilantro and the onion. You can now leave this aside for 1 to 2 hours. When ready to serve add the rest of the cilantro and mix well, then pile on a plate or in a bowl.

Mommy & Daddy Rating: 1 1/2 thumbs up.

Sauteed Eggplant with Honey and Thyme

It's that time again for Eating the Alphabet Recipe Challenge hosted by Brenda at Meal Planning Magic.  This month's letters were E/F and I had to make a recipe using a fruit, vegetable, grain, or legume that begins with one of those letters.  Although I make eggplant often because I like it, the kids don't.  I really try to embrace this challenge each month and try cooking with a new veggie or legume. But when I saw this recipe at A Spicy Perspective and Sommer said, " This my friends… is how to cook eggplant. This is how to get the reluctant eggplant-eater on board" I had to try this.  I really want my kids to like eggplant!  Unfortunately, this recipe did not make them like eggplant.  I was sure it would since they love honey!  But they ate 4 bites each for me and called it quits.  I liked the taste of the eggplant after soaking in milk overnight and then dredged in flour and fried.  I actually preferred the eggplant without the honey and thyme.  I was eating pieces of this eggplant topped with some sliced mozzerella on italian bread and it was delicious!  If you have a reluctant eggplant eater you may want to give this recipe a try. 

Sauteed Eggplant with Honey and Thyme
recipe from A Spicy Perspective

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant
2 cups milk
½ cup flour
3-5 Tb. olive oil
3 Tb. honey
2 Tb. fresh thyme leaves
Sea Salt

Directions:
Peel the eggplant and slice it into thin 1/8 inch rounds.

Place the eggplant slices in an airtight container and pour the milk over it. Cover and refrigerate over night.

In a small pie pan, mix the flour with 1 tsp. salt. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Line a plate with paper towels.

When the oil is hot, dredge a few slices of eggplant in the flour and tap off the excess. Gently place them in the skillet and pan fry for 2 minutes per side. Remove and place on the plate to drain.

Repeat with the rest of the eggplant, adding oil to the skillet as needed. Sprinkle the slices with a little more sea salt as they come out of the skillet.

Serve warm, drizzled with honey and sprinkled with thyme.

Family Rating: So-so.

Spicy Eggplant and Tofu Stir Fry

My sister is a vegetarian.  She was up visiting  from Maryland with her family several weeks ago.  My husband and I had planned an asian inspired dinner including spicy rice and pork tacos.  I wanted to have something for my sister to eat, besides side dishes, and knew when I found this recipe that it was what I was going to make.  Ashlee at Veggie by Season, where I found this recipe, was inspired by P.F. Chang's Chicken and Eggplant when she created this dish.  I've only eaten at P.F. Chang's a couple of times and have never tried that dish, so I have nothing to compare it to.  However, this recipe was really easy to make and had great flavor!  Everyone (including the non-vegetarians) enjoyed this.  Since my husband and I love tofu, this is definitely a dish that I'd make again for us....the kids, not so much!

Spicy Eggplant and Tofu Stir Fry
recipe slightly adapted from Veggie By Season

Ingredients:
2 tsp. sesame oil
1 large eggplant, slightly peeled and diced in 1" chunks (about 2 lbs.)
Kosher salt
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. vegetable stock
2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp. sherry
1 tbsp. sriracha
1 tbsp. dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp. ground pepper
4 scallions, white and green parts, trimmed and sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. cornstarch
1 block of firm tofu, pressed and cut into 1-inch cubes

Directions:
Heat a pan over medium heat.  Add sesame oil and eggplant, season with salt and stir fry for 5 minutes, until caramelized and slightly softened.

In a small bowl whisk together the soy sauce, vegetable stock, sherry, sriracha, sugar, pepper, scallion, garlic and cornstarch. Pour over eggplant and turn heat to low.

Mix eggplant with sauce, bring to a low simmer. Gently stir in tofu, combining with eggplant and sauce.

Simmer mixture for another 5-8 minutes, until eggplant is tender.

If mixture gets too dry, add another splash of vegetable stock or soy sauce (in equal parts).

Family Rating: 2 thumbs up!

Cheesy Grilled Eggplant Sandwiches

I have been debating whether to get a grill pan for awhile now.  In the summer my husband is the "grill master" and uses our Weber charcoal grill a lot.  I do not know how to use the charcoal grill, nor do I really want to use it!  But I have so many "grilled" recipes that I'm not sure I'll ever be able to make.  I almost bought a cast-iron grill pan.  But we already own a cast-iron pan.  The only difference this pan would make would be to put "grill" marks onto the food!  So I decided against it.  As my husband pointed out, we own a George Foreman grill, that we haven't used in years!  So I made these sandwiches by grilling the eggplant on the George Foreman and then cooking the sandwiches on it to get the "grill" marks.  The good thing about these sandwiches is that I was able to customize the kids' sandwiches.  My daughter doesn't like cheese, neither of the kids wanted eggplant (although they had to have a taste!), and so on.  My husband and I found these to be really tasty.  But of course, we love any excuse to eat prosciutto!!!

Cheesy Grilled Eggplant Sandwiches
Recipe slightly adapted from EveryDay with Rachael Ray, August 2008

Ingredients:
1 pound small eggplants, trimmed and thinly sliced lengthwise
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
8 slices Italian bread
4 slices Swiss cheese, torn into two pieces
4 ounces  thinly sliced prosciutto

Directions:
1.Preheat a grill to medium. In a large bowl, toss the eggplant slices with 2 tablespoons olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Grill, turning once, until softened, about 4 minutes.

2.Lay the bread on a work surface. Top 4 slices with a layer each of cheese, prosciutto, eggplant and another layer of prosciutto and cheese. Top with the remaining bread slices.

3.Brush the outside of the sandwiches with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Grill, covered, turning once, until crisp, about 2 minutes.

 Family Rating: 1 1/2 thumbs up.  

This post is shared at:
Full Plate Thursday @ Miz Helen's Country Cottage
Tasty Thursdays @ The Mandatory Mooch
Foodtastic Friday @ Not Your Ordinary Recipes

Eggplant Salad

As we were creating the menu for my son's family birthday party my husband looked at the grocery circular, noticed eggplant on sale and said let's make eggplant.  He described ingredients and steps that sounded very similar to this salad recipe that I had in my recipe folder.  It was easy enough to make and the only cooking involved was the microwave!  The look of it reminded me of baba ghanoush but it was a little chunkier.  At the meal it was a light side that tasted okay.  I definitely wasn't a fan of the leftovers the next day.   

Eggplant Salad
from food network magazine

Ingredients:
2 eggplants
1/4 cup red onion, minced
3 tablespoons olive oil
cilantro
half a lemon
salt and pepper

Directions:

Soak red onion in water. Pierce the eggplants with a fork; microwave until soft, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool slightly, then halve, scoop out the flesh and chop. Drain the onion; toss with the eggplant, olive oil, some chopped cilantro, a squeeze of lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Drizzle with more olive oil.

Family Rating: So-so.

Ricotta Eggplant Rolls

I mentioned in my last post that I had recently bought a large container of ricotta that was on sale.  I really didn't want to end up wasting it and throwing half of it away, which is usually what happens. So, I made sure to find a bunch of recipes to use it all.  First was the cookies, then were these eggplant rolls.  I love eggplant!  Especially when it's fried and made totally unhealthy!  My kids don't really like it, but every once in awhile I still make it.  I ended up making the whole batch of sauce, but halved the eggplant part of this recipe (I posted the original, which serves 8).  Of course it was delicious, but it was truly a labor of love, as I told my husband.  Breading and frying eggplant and then rolling it with the ricotta mixture and then baking does not make for a quick weeknight dinner!  I made ravioli for the kids, knowing that they'd try a bite at most.  Of course this was delicious but unfortunately not something I'd make a lot.

Ricotta Eggplant Rolls
allrecipes.com - by Fran Weidman

Yield:  8 servings

Ingredients:
1/2 cup vegetable oil, divided
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes in puree
1 (10 ounce) can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon white sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cups plain dried bread crumbs
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 large eggplants, peeled and sliced lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices
1 (15 ounce) container ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)

Directions:
1.Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic, and cook until fragrant and lightly browned. Pour in the crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce. Season with Italian seasoning, salt, sugar, and pepper. Simmer covered over medium-low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and set aside.

2.Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). In a large shallow dish, stir together the bread crumbs and flour. In a separate dish, whisk together the eggs and cream with a fork.

3.Heat the remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Dip each eggplant slice into the egg mixture, then coat with breadcrumbs. Fry each slice until golden brown in the hot oil, turning once. Drain on paper towels.

4.Spread a thin layer of the marinara sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. In a large bowl, stir together the ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese and parsley. Spread 2 to 3 tablespoons of the cheese mixture onto one side of each slice of eggplant. Roll up, and place in the baking dish seam side down. Spoon the remaining tomato sauce over the rolls. Cover the baking dish with a lid or aluminum foil.

5.Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven. Garnish with additional chopped parsley before serving if desired.

Family Rating: 1 1/2 thumbs up.