eggplant

sesame soy eggplant with soba noodles :: by radish*rose

sesame soy eggplant with soba noodles

radish*rose 0 comment

I love eggplant, and am always looking for fresh ways to cook with it. Steaming the eggplant turns it into a soft and silky sponge ready to soak up a flavorful Asian-inspired marinade. This recipe is inspired by one from the New York Times for a cold summer salad, but since it’s winter where I am, I’ve adapted it to be a lovely topping for nutty, hearty buckwheat soba noodles instead, which can be enjoyed warm, room temperature, or cold, and I’ve added baby spinach to the overall dish instead of serving it atop greens. But if you like, you can go with the original recipe’s plan of serving it over baby arugula, or perhaps over zoodles (zucchini noodles made with a spiralizer) if that’s your thing. How’s that for versatility? Continue reading

eggplant chickpea bake with feta and pine nuts :: by radish*rose

eggplant chickpea bake with feta and pine nuts

radish*rose 0 comment

Eggplant is something people have strong opinions about. I happen to love its hearty texture and delicate flavor, but I prefer it when baked instead of fried, because eggplant likes to soak things up, and frying can cause it to soak up too much oil. For this Mediterranean-inspired eggplant chickpea bake, we are going to broil the eggplant instead of frying it. Then we layer it with yummy things like tomato sauce with oregano, tangy feta, and hearty chickpeas, and we bake it. While baking, the eggplant will soak up beautiful, sunny Mediterranean flavors from the sauce, rather than oil from frying. I call that winning at eggplant! Continue reading