Κυριακή 21 Αυγούστου 2016

Delicious Summer Eggplant boats with Feta





About Summer Eggplant boats with Feta
This is a recipe that I cook every summer and it was slightly altered from year to year until I finally got myself to write it down in 2007. It carries all the summer scents and flavours that I love and it’s even tastier the next day, right out of the fridge. This of course happens rarely since it’s too good for there to be any left.


INGREDIENTS
2 eggplants
1 and a half onion
2 garlic cloves
220gr Feta
3-4 tbsp Olive oil
100ml white wine
40 sultana raisins

For garnishing
12 leaves of Fresh mint
6 cherry tomatoes
A cup of strained greek yogurt


PREPARATION
Cut the eggplants in half, lengthwise. Remove the inner part of each halve with a knife or a sharp spoon. You are creating an eggplant ‘boat’ with a wall thickness of around 1/3 of an inch (7mm).  Cut out a thin slice of the peel on the bottom of the ‘boat’ to create a steady base.
Brush the eggplants inside and out with olive oil and place them on a baking tray. Pre-heat the oven at 180 C and keep the eggplants there for about 15 minutes, then remove and leave to cool.  Don’t worry if they look uncooked, you will bake the eggplants for a second time, later.
As the eggplant ‘boats’ are in the oven gather the eggplant crumb that you removed earlier and cut it to smaller pieces. Don’t overdo it or you’ll end up with eggplant puree. ¾ of an inch pieces will do.
Heat the olive oil in a medium-sized pot, add the diced onions and garlic cloves and fry for a few seconds. Add the eggplant crumbs and stir the ingredients for a minute, in medium heat. Pour in the wine and let it simmer for 2-3 minutes, then add the sultanas. Turn off the heat but don’t remove the pot from the stove. Now dice the feta and thinly cut the mint. Add half the feta and half the mint to the pot. Remove it from the stove and stir it softly a few times. We want the feta to flavour up the ingredients but not melt completely.
Leave the contents of the pot to cool off a bit.
Now take a spoon and fill the eggplant ‘boats’ with the content of the pot. Drop the other half of the diced feta on top and insert the baking tray in the oven for a quick bake at 180 C. Just watch the oven and remove the tray when you see the feta slightly melt and the edges turning a golden brown. Leave the eggplants to cool off a bit.
Serve on the plates; add a generous dollop of yogurt, decorate with cherry tomatoes and sprinkle with mint.

Καλή Όρεξη!

Bon Appetit!