Eggplant Stuffed With Almonds Currants And Rice Recipes

EGGPLANTS STUFFED WITH LAMB, RICE, AND CURRANTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in an ovenproof pot over medium heat. Cook onion, stirring often, until soft and lightly caramelized, 10 to 12 minutes. Add lamb, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook until lamb is cooked through and no longer pink, 3 to 4 minutes. Add stock, rice, and currants. Bring to a simmer. Cover, and transfer to oven on lowest rack. Cook for 1 hour and 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, slice eggplants in half lengthwise; brush each cut side with 1/4 teaspoon oil. Roast, cut sides up, on a rimmed baking sheet on top oven rack until centers are soft and tops are browned, about 40 minutes. Let cool.
• Gently scrape eggplant flesh into a large bowl, reserving skins. Stir in lamb-rice mixture, chopped herbs, and lemon zest. Divide stuffing among eggplant skins. Garnish with more herbs and lemon zest.

EGGPLANT STUFFED WITH ALMONDS, CURRANTS AND RICE

Steps:

• For sauce: Heat oil in large saucepan over low heat.
• Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 30 seconds.
• Add curry powder and stir 30 seconds.
• Mix in tomatoes and season.
• Bring to boil, reduce heat to low and cook until tomatoes are very soft, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes.
• Mix in tomato paste.
• Puree in processor until smooth.
• Adjust seasoning.
• (can be prepared 1 day ahead) For pilaf: Heat 4 tsps olive oil in medium skillet over low heat.
• Add onion and cook until soft, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes.
• Add rice and stir until milky white, about 2 minutes.
• Add water, currants and season to taste.
• Bring to boil, stir, and cover.
• Reduce heat to low and cook until tender, about 18-20 minutes.
• Remove from heat, do not open, and let stand for 10 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 450F.
• Lightly grease shallow baking dish large enough to hold 4 eggplant halves.
• Make 1/8 inch deep cut around edge of each eggplant.
• Score 3 times down center.
• Arrange eggplants cut side up in dish.
• Sprinkle surface with salt and 2 tblsps olive oil.
• Bake until eggplant is tender when pierced with knife, about 25-30 minutes.
• Cool slightly.
• Remove eggplant pulp from skins using spoon; do not pierce skin.
• Coarsely chop pulp and add to pilaf.
• Taste and adjust seasoning.
• (can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover skins and pilaf and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature before continuing.).
• Heat 2 tblsps olive oil in small skillet over medium-low heat.
• Add almonds and pine nuts and a pinch of salt.
• Stir until nuts are toasted a light-brown, about 2 minutes.
• Stir into pilaf with cilantro and spearmint.
• Preheat oven to 350F.
• Oil baking dish.
• Place eggplants, cut side up onto dish.
• Spoon pilaf into shells.
• Sprinkle with remaining 1 tblsp oil.
• Bake until hot, about 15 minutes.
• Reheat sauce, stirring frequently.
• Divide sauce among 4 plates and top with eggplant.

ALMOND CURRANT RICE

Steps:

• Prepare rice according to package directions, adding butter and salt. Just before serving, stir in almonds and currants.

TURKISH STUFFED EGGPLANT WITH SPICY LAMB AND RICE

Steps:

• Lamb and Rice Filling
• Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat, then add the onion and pepper, stir, and cook for 3-5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and crumble in the ground meat. Raise the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring, for 5-6 minutes, until the meat has lost its pink color and the mixture is starting to dry out and brown a little in the pan. Tilt the pan and spoon out any excess fat from the lamb. Sprinkle in the seasonings, stir, then add the tomatoes and puree, then the stock. Stir and scrape the bottom of the pan to dissolve the brown bits that have accumulated. Add the rice and herbs, and stir and cook a couple of minutes, until warmed through. Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking. When the filling is well mixed, moist, and flavorful-but not wet-remove it from the heat and let it cool.
• Eggplant
• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Combine all the ingredients except the eggplants in a small bowl.
• Cut the stem end from each eggplant, then cut it in half lengthwise. Take a look at the flesh, and if it is creamy white and not too seedy, don't worry about salting it. However, if it is a little darker, with numerous seeds, there's a good chance the juices will be slightly bitter, so you'll want to extract them. To do this, sprinkle the cut sides with about a teaspoon of salt each and place them cut side down on a plate or tray lined with a double thickness of paper towels. Place another plate or tray on top and weight that with a couple of pounds (cans of beans work well). Set aside for 10-15 minutes, then remove the weight and brush the salt off the surface, or rinse with running water and pat dry. Cut a shallow crosshatch pattern in the cut surface of the eggplant and brush generously with the flavored oil. Place the eggplant halves cut sides up on a lightly oiled baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes, rotating the pan once, until the eggplants are very soft when you squeeze the sides and the surface is golden brown. Cool completely.
• To Assemble
• With your fingers or a spoon, press the tender eggplant flesh to the sides, making a bed for the filling. Divide the filling among the halves. Sprinkle the bread crumb topping evenly over the filling and pat it lightly. Bake the filled eggplants for about 15 minutes, or until they're heated through and the crumbs are browned.

SICILIAN STUFFED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Halve the eggplants lengthwise. Run a small sharp knife 1/2 inch in from the edges of the cut side of each eggplant. Scoop out the insides of the eggplants with a spoon and reserve, leaving 1/2 inch thick shells. Sprinkle 1 teaspoons salt into the eggplant shells and invert on paper towels while preparing the filling.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Make the filling: Coarsely chop the reserved eggplant. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and chopped eggplant and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes, or until the onion is softened. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the remaining ingredients with the remaining salt. Place the eggplant shells, cut side up, in a 13x9 inch baking dish. Mound the filling in each shell. Drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoons of oil. Pour water into the pan to a depth of 1/2 inch. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 40 minutes.
• Remove foil and bake for 10-15 minutes more, or until the edges of the eggplant are tender and the bread crumbs are very lightly browned. Serve hot or at room temperature.

EGGPLANT WITH ALMONDS

Steps:

• Place the eggplant in a colander and sprinkle with salt. Set the colander in the sink to drain off liquid, about 20 minutes. Pat the cubes with paper towel to remove excess salt.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the onion in the oil until translucent. Add the garlic; cook and stir another 2 minutes. Stir in the eggplant and almonds, cooking and stirring until the eggplant is tender, but not mushy, about 20 minutes.
• When the eggplant is cooked through, mix in the tomatoes, mint, white wine, sugar, salt, and chili powder. Cook mixture for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally; remove from heat and garnish with parsley.

YUMMY STUFFED EGGPLANT WITH MEAT AND RICE

Steps:

• Cut the stem ends from the eggplants.
• Halve the eggplants lengthwise.
• Peel if desired; if the eggplant is fresh, there is no need to peel it.
• Use a spoon to scoop out the centers, leaving boat-shaped shells.
• Keep the flesh you scooped out to add to the stuffing.
• Sprinkle the shells with salt.
• Put them in a colander upside down and leave to drain for 1/2 hour.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees C.
• Prepare the stuffing: Add the rice to 3 cups boiling salted water and boil for 10 minutes until not quite tender.
• Rinse under cold running water and drain well.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a frying pan, add the onion and cook over low heat until soft but not brown.
• Leave to cool.
• Mix with the beef, parsley, cumin, turmeric and almonds.
• Chop the flesh removed from the eggplant.
• Heat 2 tablespoons oil, add the chopped eggplant and sprinkle with salt.
• Saute over medium-low heat, stirring often, until tender, about 10 minutes.
• Leave to cool and mix with the stuffing.
• Taste for seasoning; if you prefer not to taste a mixture that contains raw beef, broil or microwave a teaspoon of the mixture and taste it for seasoning.
• Rinse the eggplant shells, pat them dry and put them in a baking dish.
• Fill them with the stuffing.
• Mix the tomato paste with 1/4 cup water and spoon the mixture over the eggplant.
• Add enough water to the dish to cover the eggplant by one third.
• Add the garlic to the dish.
• Spoon 1 tablespoon oil over the eggplant.
• Cover and bake 15 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to 350 F and continue baking, covered, 15 more minutes.
• Uncover and bake, basting occasionally, 30 minutes or until the eggplant is very tender.