Tomatoes have taken over our valley this hot dry summer. The delicious giant purple heirloom Brandywines overran all the other plants in my garden. The GluFru masterminds chose wisely and so we had much to do with our tomatoes. Greek Salad, goat cheese stuffed cherry tomatoes, tomato sorghum biscuits and Thomas Jefferson's own scalloped sweet tomatoes. But the winner this month was our host Robin, who shares her recipe below...
Below is my recipe for the Stuffed Eggplant with ricotta and ham which I made, it was based off this recipe in the Boston Globe.
2 medium Italian eggplant
Olive oil (for sprinkling)
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon chopped fresh coriander
6-8 sprigs fresh thyme
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 medium ripe tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 bay leaf
1 cup fresh whole milk ricotta
1/3 cup finely grated pecorino cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
8 slices ( 3/4 pound) Boars' Head Sweet Sliced Ham thinly sliced, then finely chopped
2 egg whites
1/4 cup water
Extra fresh thyme (for sprinkling)
1. Set the oven at 400 degrees. Have on hand a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
2. Halve the eggplant lengthwise. Place them in the baking dish, cut sides up. Sprinkle generously with oil and salt. Bake for 20 minutes. Leave to cool.
3. With a teaspoon, scoop out the eggplant flesh. Chop it coarsely; transfer to a bowl.
4. In a skillet, heat the 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. When it is hot, add the red onion, garlic, fresh coriander, and thyme. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring often, for 4 minutes.
5. Stir in the eggplant flesh. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, for 7 minutes or until the mixture is pulpy and well flavored. Discard the bay leaf. Leave to cool slightly.
6. Lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees.
7. Stir the ricotta, pecorino, more cilantro, diced ham, egg whites, salt, and pepper,together then mix into the eggplant mixture. Fill the eggplant shells with the stuffing.
8. Return the shells to the baking dish. Add the water to the dish. Bake the eggplant for 45 minutes uncovered. Let cool for 30 minutes before serving.
