Grilled Eggplant With Feta Food

GRILLED EGGPLANT WITH BALSAMIC VINEGAR, FETA, AND GRILLED BAGUETTE

Steps:

• Sprinkle eggplant slices with 2 tablespoons salt, place in a colander, and let stand 30 minutes. Wipe off salt and moisture with paper towels.
• Mix olive oil, thyme, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Reserve 1 tablespoon oil mixture. Place vinegar in a small saucepan over high heat. Cook until reduced by half, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in reserved oil mixture, and let cool.
• Preheat grill to medium; brush grill with vegetable oil. Brush eggplant slices generously with some remaining oil mixture. Grill eggplant, covered, until slightly charred and tender, about 4 minutes per side.
• Increase grill temperature to high. Brush baguette with remaining oil mixture, and grill until toasted, about 3 minutes. Cut baguette into pieces in various sizes.
• Place eggplant, baguette, and feta on a large platter. Drizzle eggplant and feta with some vinegar mixture, then sprinkle torn basil over top. Serve with remaining vinegar mixture.

GRILLED EGGPLANT AND PEPPERS WITH FETA

Steps:

• Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat and lightly oil the grate.
• Place eggplant and all bell peppers into a large bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat. Sprinkle with steak seasoning; coat well.
• Place eggplant and bell pepper slices directly on the preheated grill. Cook until eggplant is softened, marked, and slightly charred and peppers are softened and marked, 15 to 20 minutes, turning every 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat as necessary to prevent burning.
• Remove from grill. Arrange in 4 piles, starting with a slice of eggplant and alternating eggplant and pepper slices, including one slice of each bell pepper color in each pile. Top with feta cheese. Sprinkle with basil and oregano. Serve warm.

GRILLED EGGPLANT WITH TOMATOES, BASIL, AND FETA

Steps:

• Generously season eggplant slices with salt. Place vertically in a colander, overlapping them. Let stand 30 minutes; rinse and pat dry.
• Preheat grill to medium-high. Liberally brush cut sides of eggplant with oil. Grill, turning once, until tender, about 4 minutes a side. Mix tomatoes, pine nuts, feta, red-pepper flakes, and oil; season with salt. Spoon over eggplant; top with basil.

GRILLED EGGPLANT WITH FETA RELISH

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk vinaigrette and garlic powder until combined. Stir in feta, cucumber, tomato and onion. Refrigerate, covered, until serving., Brush eggplant with oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill, covered, over medium heat or broil 4 in. from heat 4-5 minutes on each side or until tender. Top eggplant with feta mixture. If desired, sprinkle with basil.

GRILLED EGGPLANT-FETA STUFFED CHICKEN BREASTS

Steps:

• Preheat a grill to medium. Prepare the chicken: With your knife parallel to the cutting board, slice each chicken breast in half horizontally without cutting all the way through; open like a book. Cover with plastic wrap and pound until 1/2 inch thick.
• Make the filling: Whisk 1/4 cup olive oil, the harissa, cumin and a pinch each of salt and pepper in a bowl. Brush the eggplant with some of the harissa oil. Brush the grill grates with olive oil. Grill the eggplant until tender, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Meanwhile, mix the bulgur, tomato, feta, parsley, mint, lemon juice and remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a separate bowl; season with salt and pepper.
• Season the pounded chicken on both sides with salt and pepper and brush with half of the remaining harissa oil; top with the eggplant and bulgur mixture, leaving a 1-inch border around the edges. Roll up the chicken toward the pointy end; tie with 3 pieces of kitchen twine. Brush with the remaining harissa oil.
• Grill the chicken breasts, turning, until cooked through, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes, then remove the twine and slice.

EGGPLANT WITH MARINATED FETA

Steps:

• Toss 2 Japanese eggplants (cut into 2-inch pieces) with 1 cup grape tomatoes, 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon each kosher salt and pepper. Bake at 500˚ F, turning once, until tender, 12 to 14 minutes, then broil until charred, 3 to 4 minutes. Mix 3 ounces diced feta, 2 tablespoons each olive oil and lemon juice, 1 tablespoon chopped oregano, 1 sliced garlic clove and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Serve over the eggplant mixture.

GRILLED EGGPLANT & FETA SALAD

Steps:

• Cut eggplants lengthwise into ¼ inch slices. Heat up a grill pan (or grill). Brush both sides of the eggplant slices with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and dried oregano. Grill eggplants for 3-4 minutes on each side or until tender. Using a grill pan - as opposed to a regular pan - gives the eggplants brown grill marks which look really attractive when you present the salad. If you don't have a grill pan, it's only aesthetic so don't worry.
• Arrange the grilled slices on a serving platter. Sprinkle feta, pine nuts, basil and mint over the top. Finally, just before serving, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper as needed.

GRILLED EGGPLANT STACKS WITH TOMATO AND FETA

Steps:

• Blend basil with oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt in blender until finely chopped. Pour into a paper-towel- or coffee-filter-lined sieve set over a bowl and let drain 20 minutes. Gather together sides of towel or filter and press gently on it to extract more oil. (You will have a generous 1/3 cup oil.) Reserve 1 tablespoon basil oil separately for serving. Scrape basil solids into a small bowl and reserve.
• Prepare grill for cooking over medium-hot charcoal (moderate heat for gas); see "Grilling Procedure," below.
• While grill heats, cut off bottoms of eggplants, then cut 6 (1/2-inch-thick) crosswise rounds from each, starting from cut end. Reserve remaining eggplant for another use. Cut 4 (1/3-inch-thick) rounds from large tomato and 2 center slices (1/3 inch thick) from each medium tomato, reserving remaining tomato for another use.
• Lightly brush eggplant rounds on both sides with basil oil and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Grill on a lightly oiled grill rack, covered only if using a gas grill, turning over occasionally, lightly brushing eggplant with more basil oil occasionally if it looks dry, until eggplant is very tender, 6 to 10 minutes. (Leave gas grill on.)
• Make stacks:
• On baking pan, arrange 4 largest eggplant rounds side by side and spread each with a generous 1/2 teaspoon of reserved basil solids, then top each with 1 of 4 largest tomato rounds. Season tomatoes with salt and pepper and top each with about 1 tablespoon feta. Make another layer with medium-size eggplant rounds, basil solids, medium tomato rounds, salt, pepper, and feta, then top with remaining eggplant and feta.
• Set baking pan on grill and cook stacks, with grill cover closed, until heated through and cheese on top is softened, about 3 minutes. Transfer stacks to 4 plates and drizzle plates with reserved basil oil.
• Grilling Procedure
• If using a charcoal grill, open vents on bottom of grill, then light charcoal. When charcoal turns grayish white (about 15 minutes from lighting), hold your hand 5 inches above grill rack to determine heat for charcoal as follows:
• Hot: When you can hold your hand there for 1 to 2 seconds
• Medium-hot: 3 to 4 seconds
• Low: 5 to 6 seconds
• If using a gas grill, preheat burners on high, covered, 10 minutes, then, if necessary, reduce to heat specified in recipe.

GRILLED EGGPLANT WITH FETA, MINT AND CHILI

Steps:

• Preheat a grill on high.
• Slice eggplant into thin slices lengthwise. There will be about 10 from each eggplant.
• Finely chop red chili - include seeds if you want it extra spicy.
• Finely chop mint - save a few bits for sprinkling over the top of finished dish.
• Juice lemon.
• Crumble feta into a bowl. Add red chili, mint and lemon juice and stir to combine. Add some freshly ground black pepper.
• Brush both sides of each eggplant slice with oil. Grill for about 2 minutes on each side or until tender.
• Lay a slice of eggplant out onto a cutting board.
• Place a heaping teaspoon of the feta mixture onto one end of the slice. Roll up the eggplant with the feta inside.
• Place seam side down on a serving plate. Repeat with remaining eggplant slices.
• Sprinkle with the reserved mint.
• Serve.