Calabrian Eggplant Ragout with Hazelnuts Chocolate and Raisins - 28g Carb 5g Fiber
By:
Servings: 6
Preparation Time :0:00
Categories: LowerCarbs Meze Vegan
2 pounds eggplant -- peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes salt
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate -- broken up
1/4 cup blanched whole hazelnuts -- 1 ounce, crushed
3 tablespoons pine nuts -- 1 ounce
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup golden raisins grated zest from 1 lemon
Lay the eggplant cubes on some paper towels and sprinkle with salt. Leave them to drain of their bitter juices for 30 minutes, then pat dry with paper towels.
In a medium-size casserole, heat 1/3 cup of the olive oil over medium heat, then cook the eggplant until softer but still firm, about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the remaining 1/3 cup olive oil, the sugar, vinegar, chocolate, hazelnuts, pine nuts, cinnamon, raisins, and lemon zest. Season with salt and reduce the heat to low. Cook at a simmer until soft, about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Transfer to a platter and serve hot, warm, or at room temperature on a buffet table with some crusty Italian bread.
Servings: 6
Author Note: This unusual dish from the hill town of Catanzaro in Calabria, a few miles from the Ionian Sea, is called 'melanzane alla Catanzarese' and is typically served as an antipasto. Catanzaro was probably founded by the Byzantines after they ousted the then recent Arab interlopers with the help of the Langobards. There is a definite Greco-Byzantine cultural imprint, but the source of this peculiar, yet delicious dish appears to me to Spanish or Catalan. The city was once the center of a silk and velvet trade, and it's possible that buyers, who came from far and wide, arrived in Catanzaro with culinary ideas as well.
Cuisine: "Italian"
Source: "Little Foods of the Mediterranean by Clifford Wright, 2003"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi): "Sept 2012"
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 427 Calories; 36g Fat (71.6% calories from fat); 4g Protein; 28g Carbohydrate; 5g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 7mg Sodium
Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 1 1/2 Vegetable; 1/2 Fruit; 7 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates
