Flamboyant Eggplant Parm Bruschetta!

Hey guys!

How is everyone doing on this very very cold morning? Well, at least it’s extremely cold here in Dublin right now. If you are reading this from one of the warmer regions of the planet, let it be known that I am insanely jealous of you.

This week has been a crazy one for us weather-wise. Good news is that we got the first major snowfall of the season. Oh, it was so beautiful! We enjoyed watching it, hanging by the window of our toasty warm living room. I did sneak outside for a few moments to get some pictures and videos but came scurrying back in, when it began to feel that my ears will fall off because of the cold. We got some pretty lovely videos of the fall though. If you follow me on Instagram, check out the one that I posted on my feed the other day. Ireland doesn’t get a lot of snow and that’s the reason why we were very very, very excited when this happened.

On a less happy note, the wifi and phone signal for two days at our place was just crazy. It kept coming and going randomly and was truly very annoying. House-arrest and weak wi-fi? Me not likey.

That is why I am very happy that we are now back to our normal selves.

Speaking of the recipe on hand, I actually made it for this week’s theme of FoodieMonday Bloghop group, of which I am a delighted member. The theme this time was Bruschetta. Keeping the same in mind, I made an Eggplant Parmesan Bruschetta with some tomato-basil soup for the Sunday dinner.

This eggplant Parm recipe is totally inspired by Jamie Oliver’s version of the same (I am a die-hard Gordon Ramsay fan..but I do like Jamie’s Italian recipes a lot!) I just made the sauce my way and converted the whole thing into a topping for my Bruschetta, which thankfully all worked very well together.

I was scared that using eggplant in this type of dish will seem weird but the end result was so good that we couldn’t even taste eggplant distinctly in our bites. Moreover, hubby who is sort of a picky eater when it comes to non-Indian cuisine, polished off two large pieces with his soup and had another one for breakfast the following morning, before leaving for work. This is when I know that the particular recipe has scored a home-run! 😉

Try it friends…it’s one of the tastiest new combinations that you would have tasted in a while!

Happy Winters! Stay warm, be lazy and have a great weekend ahead! xx

Ingredients:

– 1 large eggplant

– 2 eggs

– ½ cup flour

– 3 tbsn Olive Oil

For the sauce-

– 3/4th tin of chopped tomatoes

– Some fresh Basil leaves

– 2 cloves Garlic, chopped

– 2 shallots, finely chopped

– 1 Bay-leaf

– Salt and Pepper to taste

– 1 tsp sugar

– 1 tsp dried Italian mixed herbs

– 1 tbsn tomato ketchup

Also needed-

– Some Parmesan cheese

– Some crumbled Mozzarella

– 2 Baguettes

Method:

– Peel the eggplant and cut it into thin, round disks of equal diameter. With a round cookie cutter, cut circles of equal sizes out of all the disks. Set the circles aside and discard the shavings.

– In a shallow bowl, whisk your eggs. Season with a little salt and pepper and set aside.

– In a dish, take your flour. Again season lightly.

– In a frying-pan, heat your olive oil.

– Take two eggplant circles at a time and coat them in the seasoned flour.

– Brush the excess flour and dip in the eaten egg. Once coated well with egg, immediately put the circles on hot oil to shallow fry, turning once when the bottom looks well cooked.

– Repeat this process with all the eggplant circles. You can shallow fry 5-6 circles at a time in one batch but make sure that you don’t overcrowd the pan!

– Place the fried eggplant circles on a kitchen towel to drain off the extra oil and set aside.

– Next, make your simple tomato sauce. In the same pan, heat the oil that is left in the pan afer frying the eggplant.

– Throw in your chopped garlic and bay-leaf. Saute for a few seconds.

– Add the chopped shallots and cook for a few minutes, till they turn slightly translucent and pinkish.

– Pour your chopped tomatoes in the tempering and mix well. Cover and cook for 4-5 minutes.

– Finally, add all the seasonings, tomato ketchup and also tear your fresh basil leaves and throw into your sauce.

– Taste and adjust the seasonings according to your preference. Switch off the gas and let it cool a bit.

– In the meanwhile, preheat your oven to 200 degrees.

– Slice the baguettes across the middles and place them facing light side up, on a greased baking tray.

– Smother your baguettes with a thick layer of your homemade tomato sauce.

– Next, place your fried eggplant disks on the baguette. Lather in more sauce on top of the circles.

– Sprinkle your crumbled mozzarella generously on top of your loaded baguettes and finish with yet another generous grating of parmesan cheese all over your baguettes.

– Bake at 190 degrees for around 7-8 minutes and then broil for around a minute or two to get the cheese crisp and golden.

– Serve immediately with hot soup or as it is! Enjoy!