Though some people primarily associate Italian food with pasta (with red sauce), minestrone, and veal Parmesan there's a lot more, and modern cooks are doing all sorts of interesting things. This will be a nice antipasto, or could work well at a quick, simple lunch if served with a crisp salad. The wine? A white, along the lines of a Greco di Tufo. To serve 4:
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
- 8 slices toasted whole-wheat bread
- An eggplant weighing about 1 1/3 pounds (600 g)
- 1/4 pound (100 g) Mozzarella, thinly sliced
- 8 sun-dried tomatoes, (the kind packed in oil), drained
- Olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- Sprigs of parsley for garnishing
- Salt
Preparation:
Begin by heating your grill -- a stovetop grill will be fine.Wash the eggplant and slice it into 1/4-inch (5 mm) slices. Brush them lightly on both sides with olive oil and grill them, turning them a couple of times, until done, about 10 minutes.
Mix, in a bowl, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the cayenne pepper, the oregano, and salt to taste. Brush the slices of toasted bread with the mixture, arrange the slices of eggplant over them, top them with the mozzarella and tomato, garnish them with the sprigs of parsley and serve at once.
This will also work well with grilled peppers or zucchini.
