Balsamic Portobello And Eggplant Stacks Recipes

PORTOBELLO STACKS

Steps:

• Marinate the mushrooms and onions in balsamic vinegar for 20 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• On a non-stick baking pan layer in four stacks: eggplant, mushroom, onion, tomato and cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until cheese is golden brown.

GRILLED PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS WITH BALSAMIC

Steps:

• Preheat the grill. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a small bowl, toss the garlic cloves with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and some salt. Wrap the garlic cloves in tinfoil and place on the tray in the center of the oven. Cook until tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, 20 to 25 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the balsamic with 3/4 cup of the olive oil and the mustard.
• In a medium bowl, toss the mushrooms in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Season with salt. Place them, stem-side up, on the hottest part of the grill. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, you may see liquid starting to emerge from the stem area. Flip to the other side and cook for an additional 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer them to a tray and place in the center of the oven. Cook until they are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, an additional 12 to 15 minutes. Season them lightly with salt.
• Remove the garlic from the oven. Squeeze the garlic pulp out from their skins and whisk it vigorously into the dressing. Arrange the mushrooms on a serving platter and top with the dressing. Serve immediately.

PORTABELLA STACKS

Steps:

• Scrape out the dark gills on the underside of each mushroom.
• Rinse lightly under water and wipe with paper towel.
• Thinly slice the eggplant and sprinkle with garlic salt.
• Put the mushrooms in an oiled baking dish.
• Drizzle with a few sprinkles of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
• Top with a couple eggplant slices.
• Add a basil leaf.
• Add mozzarella slice.
• Add a slice of red onion.
• Add a basil leaf.
• Add a slice of tomato.
• Add a basil leaf.
• Repeat layers and top with Asiago cheese.
• At this point I cut a wooden skewer in half and poke it down the center of each mushroom stack to hold them in place.
• Drizzle a bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar (not a lot or it will sweat too much).
• Bake in 400° for 20 minutes.

EGGPLANT AND PORTOBELLO (LASAGNAS) WITH ROASTED TOMATO VINAIGRETTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Arrange tomatoes and fennel in 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Drizzle oil over; toss to blend. Bake until fennel is tender and begins to brown, about 45 minutes. Cool.
• Spray 2 nonstick baking sheets with vegetable oil spray. Arrange eggplant and mushroom slices on prepared sheets. Bake until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes for eggplant slices and 40 minutes for mushrooms. Puree tomato mixture in processor. Transfer to strainer set over bowl. Press on solids to extract liquid; discard solids. Stir vinegar into liquid. Season vinaigrette with salt and pepper.
• Stir spinach in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until wilted, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray four 1 1/4-cup custard dishes with vegetable oil spray. Line each dish with 2 eggplant slices in crisscross pattern. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Top each with 1/4 of spinach. Top each with 1 mozzarella slice. Arrange pepper strips over, then basil and mushrooms. Top with remaining eggplant slices, cutting to fit. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover each dish with foil. (Vinaigrette and lasagnas can be made 1 day ahead. Cover separately; chill.)
• Bake lasagnas until very tender, about 25 minutes. Remove foil. Using small knife, cut around vegetables to loosen. Invert onto plates. Spoon vinaigrette over.