The Versatile (and Yummy) Eggplant
There is (almost) unanimous agreement among both vegans and meat eaters that eggplant is one of the best vegetables to cook with. The versatility of dishes and its way of melding with other ingredients it is cooked with. No wonder that you find eggplant an ingredient in cuisines around the world, from Asian to Italian to its popularity here in the US as a favorite choice for grilled vegetables at barbecues.
Whatever you call them, from eggplant in the US, to they are called eggplants, to aubergine in the UK, and in Italy melanzane, it is an intriguing vegetable with also many types of eggplants in the world. It is part of the nightshade family of vegetables (along with others like tomatoes and bell peppers), eggplants are a staple of Italian cuisine. But there are some tricks to cooking with eggplant to make it “just right”.
So we turned to our in-house chef, Jacqueline Mitchell, to help us out. You might recognize Jacqueline where we cooked along with her during two different VeroTalks, one with Ojai Pacific View’s wines and another with Aldo Clerico’s Barolo wines, plus she is the “star” of our ever-growing YouTube Channel.
A chef in an authentic, small family run trattoria in Italy for over 10 years, Jacqueline is also the daughter of the mother-daughter team behind the California winery Ojai Pacific View. In this article, she shares how to make one of her favorite dishes she learned to make at the Langhe favorite Italian restaurant, Trattoria Risorgimento, where she worked for the Colonna family. And yes, it is an eggplant recipe!
Tips for Cooking with Eggplant
Jacqueline says that she was excited when in her first few weeks on the job at the popular trattoria in the Langhe. It was where she began to learn how to cook different dishes with eggplant. After all, cooking with eggplant wasn’t really something she was familiar with doing back home. Once she began to recreate these recipes for friends and family while home in the US on vacation, she found that people were downright amazed that eggplants could taste so delicious!
A Millefoglie di Melanzane, or Eggplant Parmesan Stack, ready to enjoy.
Jacqueline says, “When I would buy eggplants in the US, people would stop to ask me what I was going to do with them. Like there was some kind of stigma or fear about cooking with eggplant! My first memory of an eggplant dish was one my grandma used to make: Grandma would say ‘this is only good way to eat an eggplant’. She was referring to a dish made from cubed up eggplant smothered in a metric ton of cheese and breadcrumbs. I mean, of course it was good, but you couldn’t taste the eggplant! It wasn’t until I moved to Italy and started working at Trattoria Risorgimento in Treiso that I really learned how to cook with eggplants.”
So what are some of Jacqueline’s tips and tricks she picked up from the Italian restaurant where she worked?
First, is to salt your eggplant. She says, “cut up your eggplant as needed for the recipe, then salt it well. Let it sit then a good bit then drain off the liquid. This helps counteract bitterness, tenderize the ‘meat’ of the eggplant, and make it less spongy after cooking.”
Jacqueline’s second tip is that “whenever you are cooking with eggplant and oil, make sure to add your eggplant only once the oil is very hot. It is a fairly absorbent vegetable so making sure your oil is hot will help to make sure your eggplant browns in the oil and just doesn’t soak it up and get soggy.”
Last but not least, you need to have patience. All of the slicing, cooking and layering with eggplant can take time. But the results are worth it - not only will you be pleasantly surprised by the authentic taste of the eggplant but also the mouthfeel and how it blends in with the other ingredients in the dish.
Authentic Italian Eggplant Recipe
The eggplant recipe we are sharing with you is a variation of a baked eggplant parmesan,or parmigiana con melanzane in Italian, but instead it is made into fancy looking stacks. While it can be great as a meal, because of its presentation and size, it is traditionally served as an appetizer, or antipasto at the Italian restaurant Trattoria Risorgimento. Plus it has a different name, which is called Millefoglie di Melanzane, translated literally as “thousand sheets.”
Millefoglie di Melanzane, is a play on the tomato smothered layers of eggplant parmesan. In Italy, as well as France, millefoglie (or mille-feuille in French) are desserts made with puff pastry in between cream. Instead of puff pastry, this recipe uses potato slices for a savory vegetarian dish. With soft eggplant, layered in between starchy potatoes and tart tomato sauce and a healthy sprinkle of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, you can make these stacks ahead of time, and then pop them in the oven to cook when it is time to serve. Who doesn’t love a make-ahead dish for parties and get togethers?
Wine and Food Pairing with Eggplant
When you have the eggplant recipe baked up and ready to serve with others, to maximize the enjoyment think about a really good wine and food pairing. Even though chef Jacqueline may be biased, since her family makes this boutique California red wine, she has this to say: “I serve my family’s California wine with this eggplant dish as often I can. Made with dolcetto grapes, our wine it is fruity and with slightly tannic. The acidity and flavor intensity in the wine melds well with the soft eggplant, chewy potato, and acidic tomato sauce. As well, dolcetto is a grape originally from the Langhe, where I worked at Trattoria Risorgimento, so I love the juxstapostion of this authentic Italian dish being paired with an Italian grape… but California Style!”
You can find Ojai Pacific View’s double gold medal winning Dolcettos and so many more wines in our curated portfolio of small production, hard to find natural wines. Add an Italian organic extra virgin olive oil as well to drizzle on top of your finished Eggplant Stacks.
For those of you that know our curation style, you know that we love to support small producers and bring you unique fun wines. And you can enjoy these curations by trying a selection of different wines and different winegrowers from our portfolio. We sell to both businesses and consumers across the US:
We are enlarging our network of distributors around the country. Reach out to us if you are interested in distributing our wines.
We sell to wine stores and restaurants in certain states - contact us if you would like more info.
We do corporate gifts and sommelier guided wine tastings. Email us and we’ll tailor unique and sustainable corporate gift ideas.
If our farm crafted wines and olive oils are not in your local shop or restaurant, buy wine online here, and we’ll ship it to you, including wine gifts, and we ship to most states. Ojai Pacific View’s Dolcetto is available to taste in the comfort of your home in several vintages, including the newly released 2021 vintage. You can also try their Dolcetto Flight Set, to taste three vintages in one set, with shipping included!
We also have an award winning wine club for true wine explorers seeking to continually discover unique, sustainable and authentic small production wines they never had.
Millefoglie di Melanzane - Eggplant Parmesan Stacks
Cooking and Prep Time: 1 hour
Portions: 4-6 portions
Ingredients:
1 Eggplant
4 potatoes, boiled and peeled
1 Onion, chopped
2 cups tomato sauce
5-7 Basil Leaves, chopped
1-2 cups Grated Parmesan
Flour, as needed
Salt and pepper, to taste
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Il Nostro Oro, Febo, Aurinia, or Caletra)
Wine Pairing Example:
Ojai Pacific View Dolcetto California Red Wine
Procedure:
1. Preheat your oven to 350o and line a baking pan with parchment paper. Slice the eggplant in approximately ½ inch round slices. Sprinkle the slices with salt and let them rest.
2. Sauté the onion in a little olive oil until translucent. Add the tomato sauce and bring to a simmer, season with a little salt and pepper, and let it thicken on low heat. When cooked, stir in the basil and set aside.
3. Pat dry the eggplant and dredge the slices in flour. Heat a thin layer of olive oil in a skillet, and fry the slices until browned and cooked through, flipping regularly. Set them aside on a paper towel until cool to handle.
4. Create your stacks by, on the parchment paper, starting with an eggplant slice as the base. Spread some tomato sauce on the slice and top with parmesan. Follow with a slice of boiled potato, topped with tomato sauce and parmesan. Repeat with eggplant, sauce, and parmesan, and then again potato, sauce, and parmesan. Each stack will have two slices of eggplant and two layers of potato, with sauce and parmesan in between each layer.
5. Place the stacks in the hot oven for about 10-15 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and edges of the stacks are bubbling.
6. Serve hot with a little extra tomato sauce on the side and a drizzle of olive oil and freshly grated parmesan on top.
This recipe is courtesy of Trattoria Risorgimento in Treiso, Italy.
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