Have you ever seen eggplant growing?  They are beautiful plants with large, furry, purplish-veined leaves, (reminiscent of oak leaves) pretty lavender flowers and of course, the glossy purple fruit. It’s a very striking plant!

A few lavender flowers are evident at the top of the frame and a nice, glossy eggplant is towards the bottom center of the frame.

The eggplant we are familiar with got it’s name in 18th century Europe, where yellow & white cultivars looked like they were growing hen or goose eggs. The plant originated in India and has been cultivated since before written history. Aubergine (as the British call it) arrived in Europe in the 16th century. The bitter taste of the seeds comes from the bit of nicotine they contain; eggplant is a member of the tobacco family.

We had 6 prolific plants this year in our garden and the harvesting is underway. The search for what to do with them started well before the harvest. Most eggplant recipes are for some form of ratatouille or eggplant parmesan. Those are great, but they don’t stimulate my creativity enough to get me into the kitchen to cook. Many Indian dishes use eggplant. Those recipes are a bit involved and hopefully we’ll find some weekend time to try those before the eggplants are gone from the garden. There were also a couple of eggplant soup recipes I want to try, but it’s too warm out for soup making right now. What finally grabbed my attention was a simple recipe with slices of eggplant filled with couscous & herbs then rolled up and baked. The recipe calls for some fresh tomatoes, which also came from the garden. This is a great vegetarian dish!

Eggplant-Couscous Rolls  (adapted from EatingWell.com)

Makes: 4 servings  Active Time: 45 minutes  Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 2 eggplants, (1 pound each), ends trimmed
• 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 9 ripe plum tomatoes, (1 1/4 pounds total)
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup couscous
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese, plus 2 tablespoons for garnish
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray. Standing the eggplants on end, remove a thin slice of skin from two opposite sides and discard. Cut the eggplants lengthwise into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Brush both sides of the slices with 2 teaspoons of oil and arrange them in a single layer on the baking sheets. Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Place them, cut-side down, on the baking sheets along the eggplant slices. Peel the garlic cloves and place them on the baking sheet. Bake the vegetables for 10 minutes. Turn the eggplant slices over and continue baking until the eggplant is lightly browned and tender and the tomato skins are blistered, about 10 to 15 minutes longer.

The eggplant slices and halved & seeded tomatoes get roasted.

Bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in the couscous, thyme, salt and 1 teaspoon of oil. Remove the pot from the heat, cover and let it stand until the water is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Uncover the couscous and let it cool for 15 minutes. Stir in the feta, mint and pepper with a fork.

Feta cheese & mint are folded into the couscous.

Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Put some of the couscous mixture in the center of each roasted eggplant slice. Roll up the eggplant slices firmly around the filling and place, seam-side down, in the prepared dish. Cover with foil, then bake for 15 minutes.

A couple spoonfuls of the couscous mixture are rolled up in the eggplant slices.

Peel the skin away from the roasted tomatoes and put them in a small saucepan. Mash the tomatoes and the garlic together with a fork and add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil, salt and pepper to taste. Heat gently over low heat.

Fresh tomato sauce will go over the cooked rolls.

To serve, spoon the tomato sauce over the eggplant rolls and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons feta cheese.

With great dishes like this, we may be going meatless more than just one day a week!  ~Linda

Eggplant-Couscous Rolls  (adapted from EatingWell.com)

Makes: 4 servings  Active Time: 45 minutes  Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 eggplants, (1 pound each), ends trimmed
• 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 9 ripe plum tomatoes, (1 1/4 pounds total)
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup couscous
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese, plus 2 tablespoons for garnish
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray. Standing the eggplants on end, remove a thin slice of skin from two opposite sides and discard. Cut the eggplants lengthwise into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Brush both sides of the slices with 2 teaspoons of oil and arrange them in a single layer on the baking sheets. Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Place them, cut-side down, on the baking sheets along the eggplant slices. Peel the garlic cloves and place them on the baking sheet. Bake the vegetables for 10 minutes. Turn the eggplant slices over and continue baking until the eggplant is lightly browned and tender and the tomato skins are blistered, about 10 to 15 minutes longer.

Bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in the couscous, thyme, salt and 1 teaspoon of oil. Remove the pot from the heat, cover and let it stand until the water is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Uncover the couscous and let it cool for 15 minutes. Stir in the feta, mint and pepper with a fork.

Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Put some of the couscous mixture in the center of each roasted eggplant slice. Roll up the eggplant slices firmly around the filling and place, seam-side down, in the prepared dish. Cover with foil, then bake for 15 minutes.

Peel the skin away from the roasted tomatoes and put them in a small saucepan. Mash the tomatoes and the garlic together with a fork and add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil, salt and pepper to taste. Heat gently over low heat.

To serve, spoon the tomato sauce over the eggplant rolls and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons feta cheese.