Spicy Stuffed Eggplant - Badnekayi Ennegayi

Some old recipes need to be made exactly the way they were meant to be. This special eggplant dish is famous in South India for being itself! Just absolutely delicious and it looks as great as it tastes!

So here it is, my version of the BADNEKAYI ENNEGAYI (Spicy stuffed eggplant/brinjal/aubergine): 

Ingredients: 8 to 10 small sized eggplants, slit into 4 but not completely cut. Chopped onion, handful curry leaves, salt to taste, turmeric powder, 1 tsp mustard seeds, 1 tsp brown sugar/jaggery, 1 tsp tamarind. 

For the masala, 1/2 cup grated coconut, 1 tbls channa daal, 1 tbls peanuts, 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp sesame seeds, 1 tsp coriander seeds, a pinch of fenugreek seeds, few chillies. 

Make: Dry roast all of the spices & peanuts except grated coconut till golden brown. Next put roasted spices in with the coconut, tamarind & chillies and grind to a paste using a little water as required. Take the masala paste and stuff into the slit eggplants so it's overflowing with masala. It is also possible to just use chopped eggplants instead of stuffing.

In a non stick pan, put in some oil, add mustard seeds, turmeric powder then saute chopped onions and curry leaves. Now add in the stuffed eggplants by placing them neatly around in the pan (do not toss around). Sprinkle salt to taste and cover to cook. After about 10 minutes, add some water on top and slighlty move around the pan without tossing the eggplants. The masala will have cooked and become redder in colour, the eggplants will be roasted and cooked well. Cover and simmer for another 10 minutes. 

Serve hot with rice or roti! Enjoy :)

Eggplant Bruschetta

Eggplant or Brinjal or Aubergine, is one of those versatile veggies that you are either love or just don't like. It's no surprise that I'm a huge fan and I always try to bring Eggplant into simple dishes. Very few flavours match that of a nicely grilled Eggplant, with perfect roasted skin and soft flesh. So why not just enjoy this simplicity!

Taking the idea of Bruschetta, an Italian entree or side dish, typically made with roasted bread and topped with fresh tomato, basil, onions etc I tried creating the same with Eggplant instead of bread - the result was YUM! Those who love anything Eggplant will definitely love this one!

Here it is, my version of EGGPLANT BRUSCHETTA:

Ingredients: One medium sized Eggplant (firm), 1 tomato chopped, one red onion chopped, 1 spoon olive oil, salt to taste, herbs of your choice such as parsley, basil etc.

Make: Chop the Eggplant into thick circles (don't make it too thin as it will flop once grilled). On a griddle pan, grill/roast the circles nicely on each side with a bit of olive oil. Should take about 5 to 8 minutes each side. In a bowl, mix the chopped tomato, onion and all herbs with olive oil. Add chill powder if you like some spice. 

Once the Eggplant circles are well grilled, spoon some mixtures on each slice and serve immediately. Enjoy!

Wholemeal Veggie Pizza

Pizza...the name itself is enough to get the taste buds tingling! However, this humble Italian treat is often referred to as junk food - and sometimes rightly so with the large amounts of calories and traditional plain flour base. 

We love a good Veggie Pizza and I thought how can I make it healthier and more nutritious for my family..? The first obvious trick is to replace the plain flour with a more wholesome base, so I tried wholemeal wheat flour. Just like a soft wholemeal bread, it was absolutely delicious! To stick to the healthy twist on Pizza, I reduced the amount of cheese and increased the veggies :)

Here it is, my healthy nutritious version of the good old PIZZA!

Ingredients for one pizza base: 1 full cup wholemeal wheat flour with a pinch of baking soda (or use wholemeal self raising wheat flour instead), 1/4 cup natural yogurt, pinch of salt, water. 

Ingredients for pizza toppings: any veggies you like (if using eggplant, pre-roast chopped eggplant), tomato paste, olive oil, chilli flakes, spinach leaves, your choice of grated cheese.

Make: To make the base dough, combine all of the ingredients and mix with your hands into a firm dough. Cover and leave to raise for a few hours.

When ready, flour the work bench and roll out the dough to desired size. Use wheat flour to avoid any sticky dough. Transfer the base to your pizza baking tray. Brush the rolled out dough with olive oil. Spread tomato paste evenly on the base then sprinkle the chopped veggies, chilli flakes, cheese. 

Bake in a pre-heated fan forced oven at 160 degrees for about 25 minutes. 

Enjoy your healthy, delicious Veggie Pizza nice and hot!