Eggplant Salad With Walnuts And Garlic Food

ROASTED EGGPLANT GARLIC SALAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Rub the eggplant and onion with the olive oil. Place on a baking sheet. Bake until the eggplant and onion have both softened, turning once, about 25 to 30 minutes. Add the garlic to the baking sheet with the eggplant and onions at the halfway point, after about 15 minutes. Cool until warm enough to handle.
• Peel the eggplant and the garlic and place in the bowl of a food processor. Cut the onion into quarters or large chunks, and add to food processor. Add vinegar, lemon juice, Parmesan, salt, and pepper. Pulse until combined. Pulse longer if making a dip. Add cilantro. Taste and adjust seasonings. Refrigerate until ready to eat.

MEDITERRANEAN EGGPLANT STEAKS AND ORZO SALAD WITH WALNUTS, OREGANO AND TOMATOES

Steps:

• Heat grill pan to medium-high. Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place a pot of water on stove to boil for pasta. Salt water and cook orzo to al dente.
• Brush the eggplant steaks lightly with extra-virgin olive oil and season liberally on both sides with salt and pepper. Grill 3 to 4 minutes for small eggplant and 4 to 6 minutes for large eggplant, turning occasionally, until the steaks begin to become tender but are not fully cooked.
• While eggplant cooks, defrost spinach in microwave on defrost setting, 7 to 8 minutes. Heat 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil in a skillet and add roasted peppers and garlic. Squeeze the spinach dry and separate as you add it to the skillet. Season the spinach with salt and pepper and heat through. Stir in olives and remove from heat. Place the eggplants on baking sheets. Top each steak with a few forkfuls of spinach mixture. Spread a few rounded spoonfuls of hummus evenly across the steaks on top of the spinach, covering it completely in a thin layer. Toss the bread crumbs with 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil and parsley. Divide the bread crumbs and scatter them over the steaks on top of the hummus. Bake to brown bread crumbs, 5 minutes or so.
• Toast walnuts while you cut up the tomatoes and place in a bowl. Cool nuts slightly, chop and add to tomatoes. Add the zest and juice of a lemon, 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, feta and oregano. Drain pasta, toss with tomato mixture and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve 2 steaks per person with orzo alongside.

EGGPLANT WITH YOGURT AND DILL

Steps:

• Toss 1 pound chopped eggplant, 3 unpeeled shallots and 3 unpeeled garlic cloves with 1/4 cup olive oil, salt and pepper on a baking sheet. Roast at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Add some walnuts; bake for 8 more minutes. Cool slightly, then squeeze the shallots and garlic from their skins and chop; toss with the eggplant, nuts, 1/2 cup plain yogurt, fresh dill and salt and pepper.

ROASTED EGGPLANT AND GARLIC SALAD WITH TOMATOES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Place eggplant in 13 x 9 x 2-inch roasting pan. Drizzle oil over; toss to coat. Roast 20 minutes. Add garlic; continue to roast until eggplant and garlic are tender, stirring occasionally, about 25 minutes longer. Remove from oven. Cool slightly. Finely chop garlic cloves. Transfer eggplant and garlic to medium bowl.
• Mix remaining ingredients into eggplant mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Cool to room temperature. (Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.) per serving: calories, 115; total fat, 7 g; saturated fat, 1 g; cholesterol, 0

EGGPLANT SALAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Pierce eggplants several times with a fork, and place on a baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hours, or until completely softened. Cool completely. Remove skin and chop fine. Transfer to a large mixing bowl, and set aside.
• In a skillet, cook garlic in 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat until lightly browned. Transfer to a small bowl. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, the vinegar, sugar, oregano, and basil until well blended and sugar is dissolved. Pour over the eggplant, and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and toss again. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.

EGGPLANT WALNUT RICOTTA ROLLS WITH FRESH GREENS AND BASIL SALAD

Steps:

• Wash eggplants, cut off and discard stems. On a cutting board, using a mandoline or sharp knife, slice each eggplant lengthwise in long pieces, 1/2-inch thick. Sprinkle eggplant slices with Kosher salt and place in a large colander to drain for 15 to 20 minutes. Discard liquid.
• In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, walnuts, garlic, olive oil, dill, sea salt, nutmeg, lemon juice and lemon zest. Mix all ingredients until smooth in texture and set aside. (Ricotta filling should be chilled until ready to use.)
• In a large deep skillet, pour ½-inch canola oil and heat over medium heat until oil is hot. Blot the pieces of eggplant with paper towel to remove any water droplets and fry eggplant slices in batches until golden brown on both sides, about 90 seconds per side. Remove from pan to drain flat on paper towels.
• Place slices of eggplant on a tray or dish and spread a tablespoon or two of the ricotta filling across each slice; roll up pin-wheel style and repeat until all eggplant slices have been filled and rolled.
• In a medium bowl, toss the salad greens with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Arrange the mixed greens on four serving plates and serve with eggplant walnut ricotta rolls. Toss torn basil leaves over the salad. Garnish salad with candied walnuts.

TURKISH EGGPLANT & PEPPER SALAD WITH WALNUTS & YOGURT

Steps:

• Wrap eggplant in a double layer of aluminum foil, sealing the package well. Set package directly over a medium gas flame or a charcoal fire, turning occasionally until eggplant is tender, about 25 minutes. You can also bake the eggplant unwrapped on a baking sheet in a moderately hot oven, about 400 degrees, pricking it first to prevent bursting, but it will not have the desirable smoky taste.
• Carefully unwrap the foil package, and when eggplant is cool enough to handle, remove the charred black skin. Scrape flesh into a bowl and add cold water to cover. Add lemon juice and let stand 30 minutes to keep the eggplant from darkening. Drain eggplant and squeeze dry.
• Over a gas flame or charcoal fire, or under a broiler, cook green pepper and chile until blackened and blistered all over. Set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove the skins, ribs and seeds. Mince the green pepper and chile.
• Put the eggplant, green pepper, chile and garlic in a mortar and pound to a paste. Alternatively, mince to a paste by hand. Stir in the olive oil, walnuts and yogurt. Season to taste with salt, pepper and wine vinegar. Let stand at room temperature for a couple of hours to blend flavors, or refrigerate for longer keeping.
• Makes 2-2 1/2 cups.

EGGPLANT SALAD WITH WALNUTS AND GARLIC

Steps:

• Cut each eggplant in half crosswise into 3-inch-thick rounds and then quarter them lengthwise. In a vegetable steamer over medium-high heat, and in batches if necessary, steam the eggplant for 10 to 12 minutes, until it is tender but not yet falling apart. Let the eggplant cool on a plate, discarding any liquid that accumulates.
• Mash the garlic and salt together into a smooth paste, using the side of a knife. Transfer the paste to a medium bowl and stir in the lemon juice, olive oil, and chile flakes. Coarsely chop the walnuts and add them. Add the parsley and eggplant, and mix well.