Eggplant Schmeggplant

Good lord, this one definitely makes me angry.  At one of my last dinner parties, I served this dish and the crowd went wild.  I mean WILD.  Then I tasted it.  I couldn’t even finish it.  It was what I thought one of the worst dishes that I had ever created.

But it gets worse.

Before the dinner party ended, two people  begged for the recipe!  And the next day all the  thank you’s included a nod to the eggplant.  I  was fit to be tied!

The moral of the story is that when you cook,  you don’t have to like what you cook.  It truly is  about your guests.  But all the same, I am going  to call this recipe Eggplant Schmeggplant  because I hate it so (but everyone disagrees!)

Let’s grab a cart.  This recipe, when served in 1-2 roll portions, can feed about 10 people.  It all comes down to how the eggplant holds up!

*2 Cups Cous Cous

*2 Tablespoons Orange Marmalade

*1 Green Chili

*1 Red Chili

*2 Large Eggplant

*10 ounces of feta (just to be safe)

*2 Cups of Fresh Mint

*1/2 – 1 Cup Lemon Juice

*Freshly Ground Black Pepper (to taste)

*Olive Oil (for basting)

First finely slice your eggplant from top to bottom.  You want to get about 10 slices out of each eggplant.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grab two pans.  Take each piece of eggplant and baste LIGHTLY with olive oil on each side.  Layer them on the pan and pop into the over.  Mine took about 10 minutes, but check in on them around this point.  They should be soft and pliable.  Take them out and put them to the side to cool.

Prepare the two cups of cous cous (plain) as directed on the box.  When finished cooking, add the marmalade, stir, as set aside.

Mince the two chilies (taking out the seeds if you can’t stand the heat).  Chop the mint finely (or just wizz in the food processor).  Then in a nice size mixing bowl, crumble the feta and add the mint, chilies, lemon juice and cous cous and mix gently until fully blended.

Now the fun part.  Get a nice spoonful of the mixture and place it on the large end of the eggplant slice.  Fold over and pinch slightly (being gentle as the eggplant is fragile) and roll until the end.  Place on your serving platter and move onto the next one.  When you are done, you should have a nice little stack of those babies looking ready to be eaten.

You will have a bit of the leftover filling mixture, so gently sprinkle it over the eggplant rolls.  Then pop it into the refrigerator and serve within the hour.

If you make this one, I would love your opinion.  I’m still not convinced.