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Cinnamon Mornings and Chocolate Dreams
Whether you're hosting a formal get-together or need a quick brunch idea, this book will spark your imagination and your appetite.
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Ingredients: 1 Eggplant (about 1 lb) 1 tube (1 lb) pre-cooked polenta. Buy this from a supermarket and store in the fridge 1 onion (8 oz), peeled and chopped to ¼ inch ¼ lb mushrooms sliced, sautéed and then diced to ¼ inch 2 tablespoons of fresh herbs ( basil, oregano and thyme work well) 1 can (14 oz) tomatoes drained (retain the juice) and chopped 1 ½ cups of Mexican mix shredded cheese Salt and pepper Sprigs of fresh rosemary to garnish Instructions: Set oven at 350F. Serves 4-6 depending on the egg- plant. 1. Rinse the eggplant, trim off and discard both ends. Cut eggplant at an angle into slices about ½ inch think. Cut the same number of slices of the polenta, cutting at an angle if necessary to ensure that slices match the size of the eggplant slices. 2. Oil a hot griddle plate and sear the egg-plant slices until they are lightly browned. Remove. 3. Lightly coat a 14 by 17 inch baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray. Arrange eggplant slices topped by a polenta slice evenly on the sheet in a single layer. Lightly coat tops with cooking spray. 4. Bake until eggplant is soft when pressed and polenta is heated through, about 15 – 20 minutes. Do not let the slices brown or dry out further. 5. Meanwhile in an 8 to 10 inch fry-pan over medium heat stir together the onion and herbs stirring occasionally until the onion is lightly browned (about 5 minutes). Add the chopped tomatoes , mushrooms and ¼ cup juice and simmer uncovered until the flavors blend (5 to 10 minutes). Add salt and pepper to taste. Cover and keep warm until eggplant is ready 6. When eggplant is soft, remove sheet from oven. Spoon onion-mushroom-tomato mixture carefully on top of the polenta to form a mound. Return the sheet to the oven for 5 minutes. 7. Remove the sheet again from the oven. Sprinkle ¼ cup of cheese over each eggplant mound and return to the oven for 2 minutes until the cheese melts. 8. Remove and serve. Garnish with fresh rosemary, and a slice of melba toast (see below) Melba toast: Toast white bread until brown. Remove from toaster and carefully with a sharp serrated edge knife split each slice into two thin slices. Place these two slices on a baking sheet and put in the oven for 5 minutes to dry |
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