Eggplant Parmesan

serves a whole lot, pretty good for dinner parties.

• about 4 small/med eggplants.  I used the striated variety from the market
• garlicky bread crumbs
• 2 eggs
• 1-2 jar of tomato sauce
• shredded mozz
• shredded parm
• basil

Peel the eggplants and slice.  sprinkle salt over them in a sieve.  Let it sit for about 15 minutes.  Rinse and pat dry with a clean towel.  Whisk eggs in a shallow bowl and spread bread crumbs on a plate.  Dip the eggplant slices in the egg and then bread.  lay them out on a bake dish.  Bake at 350 for 8 minutes on each side.  

in a deep bake dish, layer the eggplant.  throw in some basil.  spread some sauce.  sprinkle cheese. continue with all these ingredients and finish with cheese.  Bake for about 25 minutes at 350.  

Serve with pasta or with bread!

Miso Tempura Eggplant

• 3 Japanese eggplants
• 3 T white miso paste
• 1.5 T mirin (it’s also useful for making teriyaki)
• 1 T Rice Vinegar 
• 1.5 T water plus extra for right consistency
• 1.5 T sugar
• tempura batter mix
• oil for frying

slice eggplants on the diagonal and then in half.  Whisk miso, mirin, rice vinegar, sugar and water. Add a little bit o’ water if the marinade is too thick.  Pour over eggplant pieces and mix to coat.  Let it sit.

Mix the tempura batter according to the directions on the package (usually you will just add water).  Fill a pan/pot/skillet whatever with oil high enough to cover an eggplant piece and heat it up on medium.  When the oil shimmers, fry up the eggplants in a single layer, working in batches. Serve over rice and throw in some cilantro and a squeeze of a lemon!