During my lunch hour I popped over to the Thursday afternoon Farmers
Market in the middle of the Financial District and scored some fantastic long
eggplants and a few, true to the name, purple and white ones that look like
well…. eggs. I also managed to nab some of the sweetest, seedless Princess
grapes on the planet, a handful of gorgeous heirloom tomatoes and a monster
zucchini!
While I waited for the non-veg items to make it home from the market I got right to work on this:
Yaprakes de Berenjena (Eggplant Rolls with Tomato Sauce)
Pg. 62 from Joyce Golstein’s Sephardic Flavors
Now, I’m one of those cooks that rarely sticks to the recipe on the page. I am all about substitutions. I think this was born out of being a poverty-stricken grad student for so many years. One just can’t always afford all of the required ingredients or the time to get them, now can one? So I will give you the recipe as written – with my changes noted. Sound good? Ok.
For the eggplant:
2 Longish globe eggplants
Olive oil for frying
2 Eggs
Salt
Peel the eggplants vertically in a striped pattern. Cut in half lengthwise and then cut each half crosswise into slices about 1/3 inch thick.
Pour olive oil to a depth of ½ inch into 1 or 2 large sauté pans and heat over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, beat the eggs in a small bowl until blended. In batches, slip them into the hot oil. Fry, turning once, until golden on both sides and cooked through, about 8 minutes, adding more oil to the pan as needed. Using tongs or a slotted spatula, transfer to paper towels to drain. Sprinkle lightly with salt and let cool.
(Right here I’d love to show you a photo of my mile high stack of golden-fried eggplants, but alas, my camera’s battery died right after I shot the veggies! I put it on the charger and got just enough juice to shoot the results)
For the tomato sauce:
8 Ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped (here I used one large can of San Marzano tomatoes- the ones from the market were mealy)
2 tsp sugar
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 Tbs olive oil
Pinch of cinnamon (I used pumpkin pie spice- because I love nutmeg too)
1 Ripe tomato, sliced
Combine the tomatoes, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste in a small saucepan. Place over medium heat, bring to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes break down and form a sauce, about 15 minutes. Stir in the olive oil and cinnamon. You will want 2 ½ to 3 cups of tomato sauce.
While the sauce boils away and the eggplant is cooling, make the meatballs.
For the meatballs:
½ pound ground beef, not too lean
¼ cup fresh bread crumbs (I used about
1/8 cup Matzo meal crumbs – we had it, I’m not gonna waste it)
1 tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground pepper
1 small onion
Combine the meat, bread crumbs, onion, olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix well and form into walnut-sized balls, making them slightly oval.
Take 1 meatball at the bottom of each slice of eggplant and roll up. Place the eggplant rolls, seam side down, in a wide sauté pan. Cover with the tomato sauce and then with the tomato slices. Place over very low heat, cover and simmer until the filling is cooked, 20-30 minutes.
Here is my steaming sauté pan of Sephardic goodness!
Top with 1/3 cup toasted pine nuts and serve hot.
TA DAH! Nice huh?
This was declared to be a, and I quote “BIG HIT” from the resident Jew… although she claimed that it needed cheese (umm so not Kosher). The “serve hot” bit of the recipe… I say hold off for a few minutes actually. I burnt the living daylights out of my mouth! There is no skin left on the roof of my mouth ……yummy. While I am skinless, it was very much worth it! This dish was surprisingly easy, and so so tasty. I think this might just be that new 'company’s coming let me ‘whip something up’ dish' in my arsenal. I highly recommend the pumpkin pie spice—it is just fan-tab-ulous.
Enjoy!
