Recipe - Jewish Caponata

3 pound Eggplant
1 tablespoon salt
One fourth teaspoon pepper
Three fourths cup Olive oil
2 Celery stalks; minced
1 Onion;large, minced
3 Peppers, green,red & yellow
cored & minced
1 Garlic clove cut or sliced up
1 Carrot;large, peeled &
minced
2 teaspoon Flour
2 pound Tomatoes; ripe, peeled* and
cut up
1 cup Green olives; pitted,
coarsely chopped
2 tablespoon Wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Sugar
3 Basil leaves;fresh ;OR
1 teaspoon dried Basil
1 tablespoon Parsley, Italian;fresh
chopped
2 tablespoon Capers; drained

Caponata Ebraica * to peel tomatoes, drop them first into boiling water for
about 1 minute, then in cool water and the peel will come off immediately.
according to the author, "It's hard to believe, for example, that eggplant
and fiocchio (fennel), the quintessence of Italian cooking, were originally
only used by Jews." She quotes Pellegrino Artusi in the cookbook _Scienza e
L'Arte di Mangiar Bene_ published in 1910 that forty year earlier (1870s)
that eggplants and fennel rarely appeared in Florentine markets as they
were considered to be Jewish food only. Peel and dice eggplant. Season with
salt & pepper and set aside in colander to drain off liquid. Heat the oil
in a large skillet; add celery, onion, peppers, garlic and carrot and cook,
uncovered, over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, 10 to 12
minutes. Transfer vegetables to shallow baking dish, but retain the oil.
Add eggplant to oil in skillet and sprinkle with flour. Fry, stirring, over
moderate heat, until lightly golden. Add to baking dish with vegetables.
Add tomatoes, green olives, vinegar, sugar, basil and parlsey and place in
350F oven for One half hour. Remove from oven; mix well, taste for seasonings
and add salt and pepper if necessary. Add capers, stir and place in oven
for a couple of minutes longer. Serve hot as a side dish or cold as an
appetizer. SERVES: 6 as side dish or 12 as an appetizer

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini