Recipe(tried): Eggplant Gratin

This is a really delicious dish I made from the book, "Going Solo in the Kitchen," by Jane Dorfer. It goes together really quickly and is quite tasty.

Tip: I roasted the eggplant for this dish in the same pan with some other veggies on Sunday while I was roasting a cornish game hen. I served some of the veggies with the hen, used the eggplant for this dish and then used the rest of the leftover veggies to top pasta another night.

Eggplant Gratin
This easy-to-make main course has a delicate flavor set off by a soft texture that's a cross between a custard and a souffle. The recipe makes enough for a hearty meal -- or you can recycle the leftovers with no loss of flavor. As the eggplant mixture looks beige when cooked, set it off with something colorful, such as sliced tomatoes topped with scallion greens or a raw carrot, zucchini, and lettuce salad. The cheeses are salty, so you may wish to omit the salt.

(Makes 1 generous serving)

1 1/4 lb eggplant, stem removed
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup cottage cheese (preferably low-fat)
1/4 cup Parmesan or Romano cheese
2 medium eggs, lightly beaten
2 tsps chopped fresh coriander or basil
Salt (optional)

Halve the eggplant lengthwise. Refrigerate 1/2 for use with another recipe. Oil the eggplant. Place a stainless-steel fork in the center to radiate the heat, put in a baking dish and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 30-40 minutes or until just cooked through. (I usually do this in advance. The baked eggplant keeps well in the refrigerator for about 3 days.)

[For what it's worth, I didn't bother with the whole fork thing. I just cut up the eggplant in cubes and roasted it with the rest of my veggies -- Caroline]

Cut up the eggplant and place in a food processor. Add the olive oil and the cottage and parmesan cheeses. Pulse until well combined. The mixture should have some texture, including pieces of skin. Add the eggs and herbs. Pulse again. Season with salt if you like.

Spoon the mixture into a well-greased baking dish about 6 inches in diameter. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for about 20 minutes. The eggplant mixture will puff up. Remove from the oven when the surface feels firm when you press upon it lightly. If you wait until a knife inserted comes out cleanly, the gratin is overdone and the soft texture will be lost. Let cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

LEFTOVERS

Cut any lefover gratin into 1/2-inch slices, dip them first in egg, then in flour, and brown in olive oil. Topped with chopped chives, the eggplant pieces taste delicious served alone. Or after browning, use them as the base for a vegetarian submarine sandwhich topped with tomatoes, chopped ripe olives and lettuce.

[Or just heat the leftovers up in the microwave or toaster oven like I did and enjoy! -- Caroline]