Brooklyn, Connecticut and California Baked Eggplant.

Oct 2

Oct 2 Brooklyn, Connecticut and California Baked Eggplant.

I recently ate at Faun in Brooklyn and wanted to recreate their Baked Eggplant recipe. During one of my Jumbo Zoom Cocktail hours I told the group what I was doing and started putting my dinner together. My description tantalized my friend, John, who then ran out, bought some eggplants and made the same dish with my edits (I was already done with the first try).

I realized I should have baked the eggplant a bit first and I love that he added the fresh sauce to the side.

The proof is in the photos - I think Gaffer’s is better but you decide! Nice to know that like-minded chefs can somehow collaborate and improve each other’s meals :).

And just an addendum…it was a perfect meal to watch “The Many Saints of Newark” with….!!

John made it better with a side of fresh sauce and baked the eggplant first :)

Ingredients

1 Eggplant, cut in half

Tomatoes - you can use cherry, grape or large tomatoes - whatever is available to you. I like the cherry tomatoes especially now because I have so many in my garden

Pecorino Cheese - enough to sprinkle over two halves as well as extra for serving

Mozzarella - I used local Bocconcini but you can use any mozzarella that you find. The Bocconcini was perfect for this dish.

Panko - I actually used garlic croutons that I had on had that I pulverized - the croutons are the ones I make for my tomato soup.

Fresh Basil

Extra sauce and / or cherry tomatoes that have been cooked down into a sauce (the way John did it).

Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

Prepare eggplants - Cut in half vertically. Rub with Olive Oil, Salt & freshly ground black Pepper.

I put on parchment paper on a baking sheet but you could use a ceramic dish or Dutch Oven

Bake for 1/2 hour.

While it’s baking, cut your tomatoes in half if using grape or cherry tomatoes and / or slice your tomatoes if using larger ones.

When the eggplant is cooked, take it out of oven, sprinkle with pecorino cheese, panko and place cherry tomatoes on top. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake for another 20 minutes.

Check it- when it looks crispy enough for you, add the mozzarella cheese and fresh basil.

Leave it in for about 10 more minutes or until the cheese is done to your liking.

Serve with a side of sauce and grated pecorino cheese on the side.

John’s sauce -

giving credit where credit is due :).

Six cloves of garlic in 4 tbsps of olive oil. Brown the cloves and remove. Then sweat some onion in the oil. Once translucent, add about 20 cherry tomatoes. Salt and pepper. Add about half a cup of white wine and heat to a boil. Add a sprig of fresh basil. Cover and reduce to a simmer. After 5 minutes, gently burst the tomatoes with a spatula. Cover and heat on low for another 10 minutes. Serve.