A comforting combo of sweet and tangy tomato sauce, caramelized onions, raisins, and roasted eggplant.
Eggplant was one of those foods we never ate growing up because it’s the one thing my dad doesn’t like. After going mostly vegetarian, I decided to re-try this dreaded nightshade. I can’t say it was love at first taste, but I can say that after figuring out how to cook it, I genuinely enjoy it. My family, on the other hand, not so much. I left my test batch of this dish on the stove top; my mom tried it, not knowing what it was. And she loved it! She even had no idea it was eggplant! So if you are in the 99% of the population who doesn’t like eggplant, aside from using the emoji, give it another chance in this easy dinner meal. This Lebanese inspired eggplant was born after a recent outing to a Lebanese restaurant; all I could think of after leaving the restaurant was how I could recreate the dish I enjoyed. This dish has a sweet and tangy tomato sauce, caramelized onions, raisins, and roasted eggplant. Plain eggplant may not be your new favorite, but hopefully this recipe will be!
Serve with pita bread, rice, or even mixed into pasta shells. Add protein of choice to the side. You’ve got yourself a warm, cozy dinner perfect for a winter evening.
LEBANESE INSPIRED EGGPLANT
What You'll Need:
1 medium sized eggplant
1 onion, sliced, then cut in half
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ cup raisins
Salt and pepper
Lemon slices, optional
How To Make it
Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium pot over medium-low heat. Add onions and stir to coat in the oil. Cover with lid and allow to cook slowly, stirring now and then. Caramelizing onions takes patience, so keep the heat low, and let onions soften. Keep cooking until onions turn golden, then add sugar. Stir. Cover again, and cook until onions reach a caramel color. This should take about 45 minutes. Remove from heat.
While onions are caramelizing, preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Add cherry tomatoes and 1 tablespoon of oil to a casserole dish. Stir to coat the tomatoes in the oil. Cover the dish with foil and bake until tomatoes have swelled and the skins have burst, 35-40 minutes.
If you have enough oven space, the eggplant can be roasted simultaneously. Peel the eggplant and slice it into inch thick rounds. Use the remaining tablespoon of oil to brush the tops and bottoms of the eggplant rounds. Keeping the oven at 425 degrees, bake the eggplant for 25 minutes, or until nicely browned.
After the tomatoes have cooled slightly, place them in a blender with the tomato paste. Blend together until thoroughly incorporated.
Add the tomato mixture to the caramelized onions, keeping the heat low. Mix them together, and then add the raisins.
Once the eggplant has cooled slightly, cut it into chunks, and add it to the pot. Stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with squeezed lemon(optional). Tastes delicious with crusty bread or rice.
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Abby
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