Vegivore Eats | Roasted, Stuffed Fairy Tale Eggplant

Fairy Tale eggplants are named as such because you feel like a giant when you're dealing with these petite little fruits.  I just made that up, being all glib about fairy tale references and what have you, but seriously -- when I saw these at the Hutchins Farm (Concord, MA) stand this week there was no second thought about bringing 'em home with me. 

photo credit: Figs With Bri (because I got right into mine and then audibly swore because I meant to photograph them first.  Look -- Bri's fit in measuring spoons...AW)

This Japanese variety is a luscious, stripey lavender, only a few inches in size, hardy and still delicate.  The insides are creamy eggshell white and when cooked correctly literally melt in your mouth.  Not at all bitter or seeded in the way that their bigger counterparts are.  No salting or heavy cooking required.  Tender, slender, plump and sweet.

Having never dealt with this hybrid specimen of eggplant before this, I figured I would attempt to treat them as I would the larger Italian varieties.  Once I realized that a quick roast (literally 5 minutes) would help that small amount of inner flesh pop right out with a teaspoon -- I had the idea in my head to stuff 'em like I would the big guys.  Tiny little two-bite appetizers of meaty mushroom and eggplant, mild chile, a pop of lemon, herbed bread crumbs for texture and dimension and a heady dose of cheese and shallot -- completely irresistible.

Roasted, Stuffed Fairy Tale Eggplant

Preheat your oven to 400.

Halve a pound of these miniature lil eggplant pretties.*  Arrange them cut side down on a foil-lined baking sheet and drizzle some olive oil over them; skate them around in the excess.  Pop in the oven for 5 minutes or so, then remove and set aside to cool while you deal with the other ingredients.

Finely dice: a shallot, Anaheim chile and two trumpet mushrooms.  Saute in oil over medium-low with salt and pepper until the mushrooms have released their liquid and everything is generally cooked.  Set aside.

Your eggplants should be cool enough to handle at this point.  Grasp them as best you can with their oily skins and scoop out the flesh from the middles, creating a divot large enough to fill but not so large that you damage the structure of your, uh, vessel (for lack of better word).

Coarsely chop the eggplant pulp and toss with your mushroom mixture.  Add a tablespoon or two of herbed bread crumbs (I food-process a few bread ends with garlic, rosemary and basil to make a surplus) and a generous squeeze of lemon.  Fold all ingredients together to create your filling.

Using a teaspoon (or your fingers, like I do), stuff each eggplant as much as you can with the filling.  Top with grated Romano cheese and put back in the oven to slightly melt the cheese and heat everything through, another +/- 5 minutes,

[ Arrange on a platter; "ooh" and "ahh"!  Eat in one or a few bites, but leave the stems and leaves...they're just decorative. ]

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* PRO TIP: Any variety of eggplant will oxidize almost immediately after being cut, turning the flesh brown and generally making for a super-gross experience.  To combat (and for the most part prevent) this, float the cut eggplants in a bowl of cold water spiked with something acidic like apple cider vinegar or lemon juice.