Eggplant Napoleons

It's been the summer of eggplants for us, with the purple vegetable growing in abundance in our garden. 

We've been enjoying grilled eggplants as a side dish for dinner, and have taken them to take to parties in the last month too. They're delicious hot off the grill or at room temperature.

 Start by slicing the eggplants, then salting them and letting them sweat on a paper towel for an hour or so. It removes the bitterness and gets rid of some of the water too. I pat them dry, then toss them with olive oil, salt, pepper, minced garlic and an herb - usually mint, but thyme is nice here too. Grill them until they're browned on one side, then flip and brown on the other side.

We usually have more than we need for one dinner, so I gave some of them new life by making eggplant Napoleons. 

Just take a slice of the grilled eggplant, smear a little tomato sauce on top (I had fresh tomato sauce thanks to my dad's and my niece's gardens). Then place a slice of some fresh mozzarella over that and continue with two more eggplant slices until you finish with eggplant and sauce on top. Place it back on the grill for just a minute to melt the cheese, (with the lid closed) - or place it in a 350 degree oven for a few minutes until the cheese has melted.

They make a great meal all by themselves, but they're nice alongside a piece of salmon and some garden fresh green beans too.

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Eggplant Napoleons:

 

printable recipe here

 

grilled eggplant slices

fresh mozzarella

tomato sauce

 

 

To grill the eggplants, slice each eggplant about 1/2 " thick, then place on paper towels and salt both sides with table salt. Let the slices sit about an hour. Pat dry, then toss with some olive oil, salt, pepper and chopped mint (or thyme).

Place on the grill and grill until each side has browned. Then in a heatproof pan, or aluminum foil pan, place a slice of eggplant, a slathering of tomato sauce, and a slice of fresh mozzarellla. Top with another slice of eggplant, more sauce and another slice of mozzarella. Finish with a final slice of eggplant and more tomato sauce. Place the Napoleons back on the grill (put them on a tin-foil pan first), close the lid and cook until the cheese melts - another five minutes or less. Alternately, put the Napoleons in a 350 degree oven for about five minutes.