Ingredients and seasonings in this Anise-Flavored Eggplant Stir-Fry recipe straddle Asian and Italian cuisines, combining eggplant with anise-flavored fennel. Serve it with rice and some green veggies, simply prepared (greens, broccoli, or broccoli rabe), and a fresh salad augmented with chickpeas. Contributed by Susan Jane Cheney.
Baba Ghanouj is—like hummus—a classic Middle Eastern spread meant to be scooped up on wedges of pita bread. It’s also good as a dip for raw veggies. This recipe is a must-try for eggplant lovers!
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Make a simple vegan eggplant pizza recipe special by adding fresh tomatoes and olives to the top. It’s a perfect pizza to make on cool summer evenings, though you can enjoy it year round as long as you can find decent tomatoes. Use tomatoes that are ripe yet firm, and dense and fleshy rather than seedy. Roma (plum) tomatoes are ideal for this.
This pizza goes down easy, so double the recipe to serve a hungry crowd; this recipe makes 6 slices, serving 2 to 3. Serve with a big colorful salad containing chickpeas for a simple and tasty meal. Continue Reading…
If you’re an eggplant fan, you’ll enjoy these 6 delicious ways to use eggplant in main dishes. Whether you’re vegan or just looking for more veggie-oriented meals, you’ll love these! Creole Stuffed Eggplant (above) was inspired by recipes in old Creole cookbooks. It’s filled with typical Creole flavors like celery, bell pepper, onion and garlic, and seasoned with fresh herbs — parsley, basil, and thyme. It’s a heavenly dish for eggplant fans! Continue Reading…
Here’s a simple way to prepare the abundance of Japanese eggplants or the mini eggplants of summer. The hoisin marinade cooks into these small eggplants and makes them irresistible! Serve with a cold Asian-style noodle dish and a simple tofu dish for a delicious warm-weather meal. Or, serve on its own as an appetizer or first course. Look for hoisin sauce in the Asian foods section of well-stocked supermarkets, or at natural foods stores or Asian groceries. Continue Reading…
Similar to the delectable appetizer often found on Japanese restaurant menus, this pan-sautéed teriyaki eggplant couldn’t be easier to make. For heartier appetites, allow more than just one mini eggplant per serving, as this has an addictive flavor and goes down easy! Serve as an appetizer or side dish. Photos by Evan Atlas.
Pasta alla Norma is one of those great classic Italian recipes that’s simple and healthy. Its basic embellishments are eggplant, onion, garlic, and basil. It’s quick, too — in the time it takes to boil the water and cook the pasta, the sauce is started and finished. Be generous with the red pepper flakes if you like a little spice to your pasta dishes— they really give the flavor a boost. Serve with a colorful salad to which chickpeas are added for extra protein. Continue Reading…
This spread featuring eggplant with a hint of tahini is reminiscent of baba ghanouj, but gives tomatoes a starring role as well. It makes a lovely late-summer appetizer. Serve with Bruschetta, wedges of whole grain pita bread, or pita chips.
This delicious stuffed eggplant dish is inspired by recipes I came across in old Creole cookbooks. It’s filled with typical Creole flavors like celery, bell pepper, onion and garlic, and seasoned with fresh herbs — parsley, basil, and thyme. It’s a heavenly dish for eggplant fans! Photos by Hannah Kaminsky. Continue Reading…
This recipe is based on one of my favorite Chinese take-out dishes—spicy Szechuan eggplant—with a lot less oil than its restaurant counterpart. I’ve devised this lower-fat version as a way to satisfy my craving for it. Add tofu to make it more of a main dish (see the variation below recipe box). Otherwise, you can serve alongside a simple tofu or seitan dish. If you love eggplant, it’s really tasty any way you present it. Photos by Evan Atlas. Continue Reading…
A twist on a classic Italian meal features baked eggplant slices stacked with cashew ricotta, balsamic infused baby spinach and your favorite marinara sauce. Just add a colorful salad and fresh whole grain bread (or a simple pasta or grain dish) for a fantastic meal. Make sure to start soaking the cashews and pine nuts for the “ricotta” well ahead of time. Contributed by Jennifer Strohmeyer, from Virtually Vegan Mama. Continue Reading…
This classic French vegetable stew is a perfect way to enjoy several abundant summer garden vegetables — eggplant, zucchini, peppers, and tomatoes —in a single, savory dish. Fresh basil, and oregano or thyme provide extra pleasure for both the palate and the eye. Serve on its own with crusty bread, or over pasta or polenta. Continue Reading…
As part of my agenda to convert everyone into Eggplant Lovers (aka Aubergine Admirers and Brinjal Buddies), I’ve transformed the traditional Hungarian chicken paprikash into a vegan dish worthy of an eggplant. Mild Hungarian paprika gives the sauce its vibrant color and rich, distinctive flavor, while tofu “sour cream†adds creaminess and zing. Recipe and photo contributed by Susan Voisin, Fatfree Vegan Kitchen.
From an old Creole recipe, this offbeat eggplant soup was a favorite discovery on a trip to New Orleans many years ago. It makes a wonderfully warming soup for winter or early spring. It’s believed that the soup originated locally due to the abundance of the eggplant crop in the region. Continue Reading…
Here’s a simple, delicious roasted eggplant stew shared with me by a Turkish friend. Eggplant is always abundant in the Mediterranean, so it’s not unusual to find it used widely in many cuisines in the region. Continue Reading…
Eggplant was just made to be grilled, and grilling it with an Asian-flavored marinade brings out the best of its subtle flavor. This is a nice accompaniment to grilled plant proteins — tofu, tempeh, and/or seitan. Continue Reading…
Caponata is a relish-like eggplant salad that’s a classic Italian appetizer. Its other characteristic ingredients include fresh tomatoes, celery, and olives. Serve on fresh bread or slices of Italian bread that have been baked until crisp (bruschetta) for a first course before serving a pasta dinner. Continue Reading…
Serve this tasty pasta salad all year round. It’s flavored with traditional eggplant caponata ingredients (including olives, ripe tomatoes, and fresh herbs), and it’s great for an everyday dinner, potluck, or buffet. It’s best served at room temperature. Photos by Evan Atlas. Continue Reading…
For this delightful couscous stuffed eggplant, you can use regular couscous, or try it with Israeli couscous, as shown in the photo. Regular couscous has more of the look and feel of a grain; Israeli couscous more like a tiny pasta. If you’re looking for a gluten-free variation, you can substitute quinoa, which is also excellent in this preparation. Continue Reading…
The eggplant in this luscious pasta salad takes on a crunchy, almost pickle-like texture, and the zingy marinade penetrates its every fiber. You have to make this one the day before you plan to eat it, but it’s totally worth the wait. Excerpted with permission from The Sexy Vegan Cookbook: Extraordinary Food from an Ordinary Dude * Continue Reading…
