Grilled Bread With Eggplant Basil Food

GRILLED BREAD WITH EGGPLANT & BASIL

Steps:

• Heat 4 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, marjoram, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring often, until garlic is softened but not browned, about 2 minutes.
• Add eggplant to skillet and cook, tossing occasionally, until just starting to brown, 8-10 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water; season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing occasionally, until eggplant is very soft, 10-15 minutes. Let cool slightly; mix in lemon juice. Season with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice, if desired.
• Meanwhile, prepare grill for medium-high heat. Brush both sides of bread with remaining 4 tablespoons oil and grill until lightly charred, about 2 minutes per side.
• Spoon eggplant mixture on toast and top with basil and Parmesan; cut toast in half.
• Do ahead: Eggplant can be cooked 2 days ahead. Let cool; cover and chill.

GRILLED EGGPLANT PANINI WITH BASIL AIOLI

Steps:

• For aioli, place the first 8 ingredients in a blender; cover and process until smooth. , Brush vegetables with oil. Place in broiling pan and broil 3-4 inches from heat, or grill, covered, over medium heat until tender, 4-5 minutes per side. Chop the peppers when cool enough to handle. , Spread cut sides of each roll with 2 tablespoons aioli; top each with cheese. Layer bottoms with eggplant and peppers. Replace tops., In a panini press, grill sandwiches until cheese is melted, 5-7 minutes. Serve remaining aioli with sandwiches or save for another use.

ITALIAN GRILLED EGGPLANT WITH BASIL AND PARSLEY (MELANZANE GRIGLIATE AL BASILICO E PREZZEMOLO)

Steps:

• Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Brush eggplant lightly with olive oil on both sides. Stir together remaining olive oil, garlic, and salt in a small bowl.
• Arrange eggplant slices on the preheated grill and cook, turning occasionally, until tender and browned, 3 to 4 minutes per side.
• Arrange grilled eggplant on a platter. Brush with the olive oil and garlic mixture until eggplant has absorbed the oil. Sprinkle with the chopped basil and parsley and serve.

GRILLED GARLIC BREAD WITH BASIL AND PARMESAN

Steps:

• Light a grill or turn heat to high. Drizzle both sides of bread with olive oil and grill for 2 to 3 minutes without turning, until one side is crisp and beginning to char.
• Remove bread from grill and rub grilled side thoroughly with the cut garlic. Evenly distribute Parmesan on the grilled side and return toast to the grill, cheese side up. Close lid and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Transfer to a cutting board, slice each piece of toast in half and serve garnished with basil leaves.

GRILLED EGGPLANT AND FRESH MOZZARELLA ON CIABATTA WITH ROASTED RED PEPPERS, GARLIC MAYONNAISE, FRESH BASIL AND ARUGULA

Steps:

• Combine the mayonnaise and garlic in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.
• Heat a grill to high.
• Brush the eggplant on both sides with oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Grill until golden brown on both sides and just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Brush the peppers with oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Grill until charred on all sides, remove, place in a bowl, cover and let steam for 10 minutes. Remove the skin and the seeds.
• Put bread on the grill, cut side down, and grill for 30 seconds to warm through and crisp slightly. Spread the bread with the mayonnaise mixture and top the bottom half with eggplant, peppers, cheese, basil and arugula. Cover with the top of the bread and serve.

GRILLED EGGPLANT WITH MOZZARELLA, TOMATOES, AND BASIL

Steps:

• Prepare a barbecue (or preheat a broiler). Cut the eggplants into slices about 1/2-inch thick. Spread on a baking sheet and brush with olive oil on both sides. Set aside.
• Cut mozzarella in half crosswise, then slice each half about 1/4-inch thick to create half-moon shaped pieces. Slice tomatoes in the same manner. Arrange tomatoes and mozzarella decoratively around the edge of a large serving platter.
• Place eggplant slices on barbecue (or place on baking sheet in broiler) and cook, turning once, until nicely charred on each side; the eggplant should almost caramelize. Arrange the cooked eggplant down the center of the serving platter, surrounded by the tomatoes and mozzarella. Pluck about 12 large leaves from the basil bunch, stack them, roll them up like a cigar, then slice crosswise into thin shreds (?chiffonade?). Scatter the basil shreds over the vegetables and cheese, then drizzle balsamic vinegar and more olive oil over all. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste, and let stand until eggplant is at room temperature.

EGGPLANT BREAD

Steps:

• Prepare a grill for high heat. Pierce the eggplant a few times with a fork or knife. Place on the grill, cover, and cook the eggplant, turning every 8 to 10 minutes, until completely charred on all sides and the flesh is soft when pressed, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and cool slightly for 10 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Spray an 8 1/2-inch-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.
• Remove the eggplant to a cutting board and squeeze gently to crack the skin so the flesh is exposed. Use a spoon to remove the flesh into a colander set over a bowl (you should have about 1 1/3 cups of flesh). Let it sit for 10 minutes to remove some of the moisture. Transfer the flesh to a large bowl. Add the vegetable oil, vanilla and eggs to the bowl and whisk until well combined.
• Whisk the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda and kosher salt in a medium bowl. Add the flour mixture to the eggplant mixture and fold with a rubber spatula until everything is combined. Fold in 1 cup of the pistachios. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs sticking to it, 1 hour to 1 hour 20 minutes.
• Let cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Flip the pan over to remove the bread and let cool completely on a wire rack, 40 to 50 minutes.
• Whisk the confectioners' sugar, butter, honey and 1 teaspoon water in a small bowl until smooth and thick. Spread the frosting on top of the bread, then sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup pistachios and the flakey sea salt.

BREADED EGGPLANT SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Combine the basil, oil, oregano, pepper and salt; set aside. Place egg whites and bread crumbs in separate shallow bowls. Cut eggplant lengthwise into six slices. Dip slices in egg whites, then coat in crumbs. , Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until tender and golden brown, turning once., Cut each tomato into six slices; place two slices on each eggplant slice. Spoon reserved basil mixture over tomatoes and sprinkle with cheeses. Bake for 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted., Meanwhile, rub garlic over one side of each bread slice; discard garlic or save for another use. Place each eggplant stack on a slice of bread; top with remaining bread.

GRILLED EGGPLANT SANDWICH

Steps:

• Heat a grill or grill pan to medium-high. Clean and lightly oil hot grill. In a small bowl, combine garlic with 1 tablespoon oil; season with salt and pepper. Brush garlic oil on cut sides of bread and grill until lightly toasted on both sides, 1 to 2 minutes. Top bottom half with cheese.
• Brush eggplant with 1 tablespoon oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until tender and lightly charred, 12 to 15 minutes, flipping once. Layer eggplant on cheese. Brush tomatoes with 1 tablespoon oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill until lightly charred, 2 to 3 minutes, flipping once. Layer tomatoes on eggplant, top with basil, and sandwich with top half of bread. Cut crosswise into 4 pieces and serve.

GRILLED EGGPLANT BURGERS

Steps:

• Whisk all seasoning oil ingredients in a small bowl.
• Brush eggplant slices with seasoning oil and place over medium-high heat on grill. Close lid and cook until tender, turning and brushing with remaining seasoning oil, about 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from grill. (You may also cook eggplant under the broiler, or saute them in a pan until tender, about 4 or 5 minutes per side.).
• Place a slice of cheese on 1 eggplant slice, then top with another eggplant slice. Top this with 2 tomato slices or a piece of roasted red pepper, then put 2 to 4 basil leaves on top of that. Top with third eggplant slice, then another slice of cheese. Top with a fourth eggplant slice. Finish with a grind of pepper.
• Repeat process to make 4 stacks. Place stacks on grill, close lid, and cook for about 2 minutes, turning once.
• Serve immediately, or make into sandwiches on crusty rolls or bread. These sandwiches may be served warm or wrapped tightly and chilled several hours or overnight.
• (I had mine open faced on ciabatta bread).