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Grilled Eggplant Stuffed With Herbed Quinoa Drizzled with Tomato Coulis and Garnished with Micro Greens

cheffd
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American, Mediterranean
Servings 12 Hors D'oeuvres

Ingredients
  

  • 1 Lb Fresh Eggplant
  • 1/2 Cup Assorted Chopped Fresh Herbs (Thyme, Parsley, Marjoram, Chives, Sage, Rosemary)
  • Olive oil for cooking
  • Kosher salt and pepper to taste
  • 12 each Whole Fresh Chives
  • 1/4 Cup Fine Diced Sweet Onion
  • 1 tsp Chopped Fresh garlic
  • 1 cup Dried Quinoa
  • 1/4 cup Fine Diced Fresh Mushrooms
  • 2 Tbsp Fine Diced Fresh Carrots
  • 2 to 3 Cups Vegetable stock or Water
  • For tomato Coulis:
  • 1/4 cup Minced White Onion
  • 1 tsp Chopped Fresh garlic
  • 2 Cup Canned Diced Tomato
  • 4 or 5 each Leaves of Fresh Basil
  • 1/4 cup Red Wine
  • Kosher salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/4 cup Olive oil

Instructions
 

  • make the Tomato Coulis: Blend the tomato at high speed until totally smooth. Heat olive oil in a Heavy pot. Saute the onion and garlic until translucent. Add the red wine and reduce until it is almost gone. Add the Tomato and basil and bring up to a simmer. Allow it to simmer about 45 minutes to an hour, stirring as needed. If it gets too thick, add a little water. You want the acidity of the tomatoes to cook off. When done, season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
  • prepare the eggplant: If you have a slicing machine, that works best for this. Or you can use a mandolin or knife if you can slice thin and even slices. First, Pick eggplants that are not too large. About 3 inch diameter is best. Slice The vegetable lengthwise. about 1/8 inch thick. Brush them with olive oil and sprinkle evenly with a little bit of the herb mixture, salt, and pepper. Preheat a grille or grille pan and grille the slices carefully over high heat. You want nice marks and the eggplant to become pliable enough to wrap around food. Set aside.
  • make the Quinoa: Heat olive oil in a pot over medium high heat. Saute the Onion and garlic until translucent. Fold in the carrots and mushroom sand continue to cook for about 1 minute. Add the Quinoa, and mix all ingredients. Add the stock, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Then cut back to a simmer. Cook until the quinoa is tender, but not falling apart. If it is cooked, but there is still liquid,remove from the heat and strain out the extra liquid. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Then fold in the remaining herbs. Allow to cool.
  • Dip chives into Boiling water to make them pliable.
  • lay out the eggplant slices on a sheet pan. Use a scoop, spoon, or your hands to place a generous amount of quinoa about an inch up in the wide part of the eggplant. Roll up the eggplant. Fold the sides over to partially cover the quinoa. Then roll up the eggplant into a package. Repeat with the each slice. Then, wrap each bundle with a chive and tie it tight. reheat in a 350 degree oven.
  • Reheat the Coulis. Spread a thin coating on a small plate. Place the eggplant bundle on top. Then drizzle a little more sauce over the top and garnish with micro greens, a couple drops of fine olive oil, and Some fresh ground black or mixed peppercorns.
Keyword Grilled Eggplant, Herbed Quinoa, Micro Greens, Solstice, Strawberry, citrus, soup, dessert, vegan, gluten free, Stuffed, Tomato Coulis