Melanzane A Scapece Marinated Eggplant Food

VEGAN MELANZANE (EGGPLANT) PASTA SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir onion, carrot, and garlic until onion is golden, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, sugar, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer; turn heat down to low. Continue simmering, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat vegetable oil in a separate pan over high heat. Fry eggplant slices in the hot oil until lightly browned, about 2 minutes per side. Drain eggplant slices on paper towels.
• Mash the tomatoes in the saucepan using a fork for a less chunky texture. Remove from heat. Add eggplant and olives; stir gently to incorporate.

MELANZANA ALLA PARMIGIANA (PERFECT EGGPLANT PARMIGIANA)

Steps:

• Heat about 1 inch extra-virgin olive oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. Pat eggplant slices dry with a paper towel and fry eggplant in batches in the hot oil until golden, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer eggplant to a paper towel-lined plate using a slotted spoon; season with salt.
• Combine tomato puree (passata), 1 tablespoon olive oil, garlic, salt, and 4 basil leaves in a saucepan; simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes. Remove garlic from sauce.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking dish.
• Place a layer of fried eggplant in the baking dish and cover with a layer of tomato sauce. Top with a layer of mozzarella cheese, oregano, Parmesan cheese, and chopped basil leaves, in that order. Continue layering in the same order with remaining ingredients, ending with a layer of mozzarella cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until heated through and cheeses are melted, about 40 minutes. Let stand a few minutes before slicing.

MELENZANA ALI OLIO

Steps:

• On the evening before you intend to make the dish, prepare the eggplant. Cut the ends off the eggplants, and peel. Cut the peeled eggplant into long strips about as big around as shoestring french fries. Place the strips into a large bowl, and stir in 1/2 cup of coarse salt.
• Place a sturdy dinner plate upside down in a clean sink, making sure that the drain is not blocked. Place a generous handful of the eggplant strips onto the center of the plate, and cover with another upside down dinner plate to create an eggplant sandwich. Layer more eggplant and plates until all of the eggplant is sandwiched. Cap it off with one additional plate, and press down firmly. Set a sturdy stock pot on top, and fill with enough water to create some pressure on the eggplant layers. Not so much pressure that you break your dishes though. Let this pressing process stand overnight.
• The next day, fill a large bowl with ice water. Begin dismantling your stack of plates. One layer (handful) at a time, briefly swish the eggplant around in the ice water, then squeeze dry and place into a clean bowl. If your hand starts to hurt, you are swishing too long. Once all of the eggplant is rinsed and squeezed and in the bowl, mix in the vinegar. Let rest for about 15 minutes.
• Heat a splash of the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic, red pepper flakes, oregano and sea salt. Cook and stir just until fragrant. You do not want to cook the garlic. Set aside to cool.
• Your eggplants should be well rested now. Give them one last sqeeze. Make it a good one, or your melenzana is going to taste like pickles. ''Don't worry, this is the last time, I promise...'' (This is to be said to the poor little melenzana - they've been through so much!)
• Place the squeezed eggplants into a large bowl, and stir in the contents of the skillet and remaining olive oil until well blended. Transfer to sterile 1 pint or 1/2 pint jars. Make sure to fill the jars to the top, and top off with any olive oil that may be left in the bowl. Wipe the rims with a clean dry cloth, and seal tightly with new lids. Refrigerate for at least a month before opening.

ANTONIA'S PASTA ALLE MELENZANA (EGGPLANT PASTA)

Steps:

• Heat 1/2 cup of oil and the butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onion and eggplant and cook gently over medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring often, until tender. It may be necessary to add more oil as the eggplant soaks the oil up quickly. Towards the end of cooking time, add the whole garlic cloves and half of the basil leaves.
• In the meantime, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and blanch the tomatoes for 4 to 5 minutes until the skin splits and the tomatoes are softened. Remove the tomatoes with a slotted spoon and place them in a mesh colander set over a large bowl. Reserve the cooking liquid.
• When they are cool enough to handle, core the tomatoes and peel off the skin. Using clean hands, squish the tomatoes, pushing the pulp through the sieve into the bowl underneath. At first you will have a watery liquid. Add the tomato liquid to the eggplant and then continue to push the tomato pulp through the sieve, until you have only seeds and hard pulp pieces left. Finally, add the rest of the pulpy liquid to the eggplants and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the sugar and continue to cook for 10 more minutes, until thickened.
• In the meantime, bring the reserved cooking liquid back to a boil, add additional salt, and cook the fettuccine according to directions on the package. Drain well.
• To serve, spoon a third of the eggplant into a bowl and set aside. Toss the pasta in the saute pan with the remaining eggplant and add the packaged mozzarella. Place the mixture in a large serving bowl and top with the reserved eggplant, the fresh mozzarella and the Parmesan. Garnish with the remaining basil leaves and serve hot.

PASTA MELANZANA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain. Keep warm.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic; cook and stir until softened. Mix in the eggplant. Let the eggplant cook for 5 minutes without stirring. Then stir and cook until tender, about 5 more minutes.
• Mix in the spinach and season with salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes. Stir in the drained pasta and lemon juice along with 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Transfer to a serving dish and top with remaining cheese and cracked black pepper.