Marinated Eggplant

I forgot to take a picture of the finished product.  Here's my whole mezze meal.  The eggplant is to the left of the cucumbers.

They do sell this canned in Mediterranean sections of the market, or with the pickles and condiments in better markets.  I wanted to learn how to do it in case imported convenience versions are unavailable this summer.

My eggplant bush died.  I suspect a plant disease.  I only got a couple of eggplants off it anyway.  I need to think of something to put in the pot.  That's a big piece of garden real estate not to have something in it.  Maybe carrots.  Where I was going with this is that eggplants have gotten expensive.  I'll have to decide if it costs more to buy them or try not to kill a starter plant.

You're going to use a lot of olive oil on this one.  Eggplants soak it up.  I'm going to post a half recipe of what I made.  It was so much, I put some in the calzones I saved the onions for.

1 eggplant

1/4 C olive oil, plus a whole lot more as needed

*3 Tb lemon juice

*2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1.  Slice the eggplant into thin slices, less than half an inch thick.  Brush both sides with olive oil while you heat up a foil-lined grill or large skillet over medium-high heat.  This is really a grilling recipe, but you can absolutely do it on the stove.

2.  Arrange slices on cooking surface.  Cook until tender, turning as needed.  This does take a while, like 20+ minutes if you're doing it in batches.

3.  While the slices are cooking, whisk together the other 1/4 C oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl.

4.  Toss cooked slices in the dressing.  Allow to chill at least 6 hours before serving.  Store refrigerated in a non-reactive container, preferably glass.  Plastic picks up flavors.  Serve as a condiment, sandwich topping, or tapas.

Difficulty rating  :)