This is the time of year when eggplants
are plentiful and delicious! One thing I like to do is make meals that can be
easily frozen and then enjoyed in the winter. Not everything works for that
purpose, but this dish does. Even so, the ingredients here make a smallish
casserole and could serve two with just a few "lunch" leftovers.
We're just going to fry up some eggplant
and make a casserole, lasagna style, with layers of hard cooked egg, fresh mozzarella
and sausage slices. Add a little
tomato sauce and top with freshly made balsamella
sauce. Bake, then let sit for at least 15 minutes and serve plain or on cooked grain
or rice. I used couscous today.
A wide variety of wines would accompany
this dish very well because it is mild and soft on the palate. You could use a
full bodied wine to complement, or a soft and not too dry white to enhance it.
I would initially think in the direction of a Brunello for the red or a Vouvray
for the white. But not tonight!!
I am not a great fan of West Coast Cabernets.
They tend to be too full and big, with a cloying aftertaste that I just don't
prefer. Maybe the grapes grow too well there. Grapes that grow where they shouldn't
want to (like the side of a volcano) seem to produce wines that are more in my
wheelhouse. But I realize that I'm probably in the minority here. So I
purchased one of the 1878 cases produced of John Bookwalter's 2008 Foreshadow Washington
State Cabernet, basically for the pleasure of visiting friends. The wine is just coming into
its own and will only improve over the next several years. I have to admit,
while this is a big ripe and round wine, it does not have the negative attributes I would expect from, say, a
California Cabernet. Maybe the Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley and Red Mountain
are more interesting places to grow. Also there is no Merlot in the blend! In
fact (don't tell anyone) I sort of enjoy this wine with the proper food match.
It is definitely a wine to accompany food.
Ingredients:
2 small Eggplants
 |
| most of the ingedients |
3 links Italian
Sausage (hot or mild)
1 HB Egg
6 oz Fresh
Mozzarella Cheese
2 cups Tomato
Sauce
2 Eggs, beaten
¼ cup Fresh
Parsley, chopped
Dusting Flour
Olive Oil for frying
2 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Cinnamon
Fresh Nutmeg to grate
salt & pepper to taste
Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese to
grate
2 cups Balsamella Sauce:
 |
| Balsamella Sauce ingredients |
⅓ cup butter
4 Tbs flour
2 cups Warm Milk
1 Egg,
well beaten
2 Tbs Parmigiano Cheese, grated
½ tsp Nutmeg, grated
Preparation (to
be done earlier in the day, or the day before):
1 Hard boil one egg
2 Peel Eggplants and slice into ¼"
slices. Place slices in a non-reactive colander and liberally salt each layer with
coarse Kosher-type salt. Place a bowl under the colander and a weight on top.
This will drain bitter juices from the Eggplant. Let this drain from about 2
hours to overnight. When finished, dispose of juices, rinse salt off Eggplants
and squeeze them dry with a kitchen towel (or paper towels).
 |
| using marble mortar to press eggplant |
3 Cook Sausage in a fry pan until nicely
browned on outside, and just cooked on inside.
4 In a small bowl, mix sugar and cinnamon.
5 Grate about ½ cup Parmigiano cheese, divide
it into two parts. One with about 2 Tbs. and the other all the rest (for the casserole),
reserve.
Create
Casserole:
1 Beat 2 Eggs in a shallow bowl. Mix in about
1 Tbs chopped parsley.
2 In a metal fry pan, heat oil to hot.
3 Sprinkle Dusting Powder on both sides of
Eggplant slices.
 |
| preparing to fry eggplant |
4 Dip Eggplant into beaten egg and fry, in
batches, until golden on each side.
5 Remove to paper towels and sprinkle with
cinnamon-sugar while they are very hot.
 |
| frying eggplant: note cinnamon-sugar |
6 When all Eggplants are done, slice Sausages
into ¼" slices.
7 Slice fresh Mozzarella as thinly
as you can.
8 Slice HB Egg.
9 Assemble Casserole as you would a lasagna:
· coat
bottom with Tomato Sauce
· layer
about one-third the Eggplant
· cover
with a little Tomato Sauce
· sprinkle
on a little Parmigiano
· layer
all the Sausage
· layer
about half the remaining Eggplant
· layer
the Eggs
· layer
the Mozzarella slices
· spread
Tomato Sauce over this layer
· sprinkle
any left-over Parsley and any remaining Parmigiano
· layer
the rest of the Eggplant
10 The final step is to pour the Balsamella
Sauce over the Casserole, but you must
make it fresh. So do so now:
·
beat one Egg in a small bowl
·
melt Butter in a 4 cup sauce pan
·
add Flour and cook gently, while stirring,
for about 5 minutes
 |
| butter and flour |
·
while stirring, warm Milk in microwave for a
few minutes
·
gradually add Milk and stir over moderate
heat until sauce bubbles and becomes silky
·
grate Nutmeg and add Parmigiano to sauce,
mixing in
·
remove from heat
·
mix a tablespoon of sauce to the egg
·
then quickly whisk the egg mixture into the
sauce
11 Pour all the Balsamella Sauce over top layer of Eggplant making
the Casserole well coated.
12 Bake in a preheated 375F oven for 45 ─ 60 minutes, until top is
golden.
 |
| finished baking |
13 Heat some Tomato Sauce to
pour on finished dish.
14 Remove from oven and let stand for at least 15 minutes before you serve.
 |
| Baked Eggplant over Couscous |
Enjoy!!
