Eggplant-chèvre stacks
I love this late-summer/early-fall dish. Tarragon can be so dramatic and ill-placed, but it works great in this tomato sauce, plus eggplant and chèvre pair incredibly well together. I like this dish to feel a little more rustic, so I don’t peel the eggplant, preferring the chewy contrast the skin gives the dish. I also use Spinning Spider Creamery’s herbed chèvre, generously dabbed onto the eggplant.
Eggplant-chèvre stacks
adapted from Food and Wine
Ingredients
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon butter
4-5 shallots, sliced
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 teaspoons dried tarragon
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup Panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan
2 eggplants, sliced in 1/2 inch rounds
3 eggs, beaten
Canola oil, for frying
Chèvre of your choice
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°.
In a medium bowl, combine the bread crumbs, Parmesan, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, tarragon, other 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and pepper and the sugar and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 25 minutes.
Dip each slice of eggplant in the eggs and then in the Panko mixture, coating well. In a large frying pan, heat about half an inch of cooking oil over medium-high heat until very hot. Fry the eggplant in batches, 2 minutes per side, turning once, until cooked through. Drain on paper towels.
Place half the eggplant slices in a single layer on a baking dish. Put a dab of goat cheese on top of each and then top with the remaining eggplant slices. Top with another dab of goat cheese. Bake about 10 minutes. Put the sauce on plates and top with the eggplant. Serve with pasta if desired.
I served this dish with thick slices of tomato sprinkled with Bacon Salt (so not kidding) and it was a good choice.
