My newest addition to the eggplant recipes:Â Eggplant Rolls.
Grilled eggplant layers then rolled up with cheese and rice and finished with a tomato sauce. Simply delicious!
Eggplant was very popular in our home as I was growing up and I remember my mom using eggplants in cooking a few of her vegetarian dishes. I myself use eggplant in many ways. I find it being very versatile and excellent meat replacement. Not surprising, since eggplants are one of the nutrient-dense foods which means, they contain lots of vitamins, minerals, and are a very good source of fiber with having only a low amount of calories. Fantastic food to be part of a vegetarian or vegan diet, or those that want to watch their weight.
I prefer using the smaller eggplants for this recipe. Not only I find them having less seeds then the bigger ones, but also easier to work with as the rolls are smaller.
Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
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INGREDIENTS
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2 medium eggplants
Salt, for sprinkling
2 tbspgrape seed oil (or other vegetable oil)
1 medium onion, choppedÂ
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp paprika
1/4 lb. mushrooms, (about 5-6) finely chopped
3/4 cup vegetable stockÂ
1/2 cup rice
1 tbsp tomato paste
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup pasta sauce (orÂtomato sauce)Â
1/4 cup water
2-3 tbsp of grated parmesan
DIRECTIONS
Peel eggplant, slice lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick slices. Place in a bowl, sprinkle some salt on each slice and set aside.
Meanwhile prepare the filling:
Place oil in a pot: add chopped onions and salt and sauté until onion becomes translucent.Â
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Stir in paprika and the mushrooms and cook for a few minutes until mushroom have softened.
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Stir in the rice, stock and tomato paste and cook on low heat until all the stock has been totally absorbed by the rice (the rice should be sticking together).
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Season with salt and pepper as needed.
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Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
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For the eggplant:Â
To make eggplant more malleable and easy to roll, heat up a grilling pan ( use a spray to grease pan lightly if needed) and brown eggplantslices on both sides, until grilling marks start to show, about one minute per side.Â
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Remove from heat onto a plate and set aside slices to cool.
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To form rolls, put one slice flat on a board, place about a heaped tablespoon of rice closer to the wider end and roll it up. Arrange rolls into a casserole baking dish.
Mix together tomato sauce and water and pour over the eggplant rolls. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
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Bake at 375 F for about 30 minutes or until rice is fully cooked.Â(remove one and carefully cut into one to text the rice).
Serve warm.
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Makes: 4 servings
Bon Appetit!
TIP: For a vegan version, omit the Parmesan cheese or replace it with grated Daiya or other vegan cheese that you like.