Recipe - Baked Stuffed Eggplant

2 small Eggplants; cut lengthwise
2 small Tomatoes; Red Ripe,
halve/seed/dice
One fourth pound Mozzarella Cheese; minced
5 Fresh Basil Leaves; shredded
(5 to 6)
2 tablespoon Fresh Parsley; chopped
2 Cloves Garlic; finely minced
One fourth cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 pn Dried Red Pepper Flakes

Preheat oven to 350F.

With a tablespoon, scoop out some of the pulp from the eggplant halves,
making sure not to break the skin. Place the eggplant halves on a large
platter and sprinkle generously with slat. Let stand about 20 minutes to
allow the salt to draw out the eggplant's bitter juices. Pat the eggplant
dry with paper towels.

Dice the pulp of the eggplant and put it in a bowl with the tomatoes,
mozzarella, basil, parsley, garlic, and olive oil. Season with salt and
pepper flakes. Fill the eggplant's cavities with this mixture.

Oil a baking dish lightly, and put the eggplant halves into the dish. Bake
until they are lightly golden, soft to the touvh, and easily pierced with
the tip of a thin knife, 15 to 25 minutes, depending on the size of the
eggplants. Serve hot or at room temperature.

NOTES:

This is from Biba Caggiano's _Trattoria Cooking_ cookbook. It is easy to do
and can be doubled and frozen for an additional meal later on.

One of Biba's notes is that she will dice any leftover eggplant and toss it
quickly in a skillet with extra virgin olive oil and freshly minced tomatoes
and serve it over penne, shells, or rigatoni.

Recipe by: Janet Morrissey janetm@MAGNUS1.COM

Posted to recipeludigest Volume 01 Number 178 by RecipeLu
recipelu@geocities.com on Oct 29, 1997