Fried Eggplant With Chickpeas and Mint Chutney

Fried Eggplant With Chickpeas and Mint Chutney

adapted from the New York Times

FOR THE EGGPLANT:

• 2 eggplant, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, more as needed
• 1 white onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 pound ripe tomatoes, chopped
• 15-ounce can cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 ½ teaspoons garam masala
• ½ teaspoon sweet paprika
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ⅛ teaspoon cayenne
• sea salt, as needed

FOR THE MINT CHUTNEY:

• 1 cup mint leaves
• 1 cup cilantro leaves and tender stems
• 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
• 1 green onion, cut into 1-inch lengths
• 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
•  Plain yogurt (optional)

1. Season the sliced eggplant with salt. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, then add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. When the oil is heated add enough eggplant slices to fit in one layer without overlapping. Cook until the bottoms are browned, then flip and continue to cook until well browned and soft, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Add more oil if things begin to dry out. Transfer cooked eggplant to a plate lined with paper towels to drain and repeat with more oil and eggplant until all the eggplant is cooked. Taste eggplant and add more salt if necessary.
2. Heat another tablespoon of oil in pan, then add the onions. Cook until golden soft.
3. Add garlic to the onions and cook until fragrant, 1 or 2 minutes longer.
4. Add all the spices and cook for 1 minute longer, then add tomatoes, chickpeas and 2 tablespoons of water.
5. Partly cover the pan and bring to a simmer. Continue cooking until tomatoes start to break down, about 10 to 15 minutes.
6. Add eggplant to the pan and cook until sauce thickens, or about another 5 to 10 minutes.
7. While the eggplant cooks, combine all the ingredients for the chutney in a blender with 2 tablespoons water. Blend until puréed, about 1 minute. Taste and adjust for more lemon juice or salt as needed.
8. Serve the eggplant topped with the chutney and, if using, the yogurt.

Eggplant Manicotti

Eggplant Manicotti

• 1 lb eggplant
• 1½ cups ricotta cheese
• 1 cups mozzarella, grated 
• ½ cups parmesan, grated plus extra for 
• ¼ cups basil leaves, shredded
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ cups spinach, chopped
• 2 cups tomato sauce*

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cut the eggplant lengthwise into 1/4-inch thick slices and generously salt both sides of each slice. Let the salt draw out the moisture from the eggplant for 20 minutes.
3. In a large bowl, fold together all three cheeses with about half of the basil, spinach and 3 tablespoons of the olive oil.
4. Rinse the eggplant slices and pat dry with a paper or kitchen towel.
5. Brush each slice, front and back, with the remaining olive oil and arrange on a baking sheet. Roast for 10 minutes to make the slices more tender and pliable then cool on the baking sheet.
6. Add about 2 teaspoons of the cheese mixture to narrower end of a slice of eggplant. Roll up the filling and, if necessary, use a toothpick to keep everything in place. Repeat with remaining eggplant slices.
7. Spoon some of the tomato sauce into the bottom of a baking dish, arranging the eggplant manicotti rolls so that they lay in the pan seam-side down in a single layer. If you used toothpicks you can remove them at this time.
8. Spoon the remaining sauce over the top of the manicottis and bake them for 30 minutes or until they've heated all the way through and the cheese is bubbly.
9. To plate, spoon some of the hot tomato sauce onto the middle of the plate, then, using a thin spatula, remove the manicottis and place on the plate, sprinkle with basil and more parmesan cheese.

*Use your favorite recipe or store bought (we like Bertolli's Organic in a pinch) and check back later this summer for Vibrant Valley Farm's own tomato sauce recipe.