Prep Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 1 hrs
Servings: 4
About This Recipe
“I love eggplant, and am always looking for delicious new ways of preparing them.Here’s an interesting recipe for stuffing the purple beauties!:)”
Ingredients
2tablespoonsbutter
1teaspoonolive oil
3tablespoonschopped fresh basil
1largeonion, finely chopped
1/4 cupchopped fresh parsley
1/2 stalkcelery, chopped fine( or more, to taste)
1/2 teaspoondried thyme
3garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspooncayenne pepper, to taste
1cupdiced green bell pepper( or red or yellow or orange bell pepper or combination, if you prefer)
1/2 cupItalian breadcrumbs
4tablespoonsmelted butter
2mediumeggplants
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Heat the butter and olive oil together in large skillet.
Add the onion, celery, and garlic and saute over low heat until the onion is translucent.
Add the diced bell pepper and continue to saute until the onion is golden.
In the meantime, stem the eggplants and cut them in half lengthwise.
With a sharp knife, score each half several times lengthwise and across, carefully removing the pulp.
Leave a sturdy shell of about 1/4″ all around.
Chop the eggplant pulp and add it to the skillet mixture along with all the remaining ingredients except the bread crumbs.
Add a bit of water, just enough to keep the mixture moist.
Simmer, covered, over low heat until the eggplant is tender, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the bread crumbs.
Set the eggplant shells in an oiled shallow baking dish, which should be of a size that they can be securely propped up against each other.
Stuff the eggplant shells with the sauteed mixture, then drizzle them with 2 tablespoons of melted butter apiece.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 30-40 minutes, or until the shells are tender but not collapsed.
Serve with a bit of grated Parmesan for garnish.
Note:if you do not like green bell pepper, you might want to try substituting with orange, yellow, or red bell pepper.
Reviews
“I’ve never had eggplant before, and this is a great way to “cut my teeth” on it! I did make a few changes though. I didn’t have cayenne pepper so I used paprika instead, which worked out well, because I made this for my family and I have young children, and paprika is not as hot. I also added 1 and a half pounds of sage sausage. Since my DH believes “if it’s worth eating, it’s gotta have meat!” I am really glad I came across this recipe! We had it with a nice big green salad, and dinner was a success!! (taking bows)”
“This recipe was amazing!I haven’t worked with eggplant much, but they were on sale at the fresh market near me so I thought I’d experiment a bit.I’m so glad I did.We’ve put this into our regular rotation.Thanks so much for sharing!”
“This review is being done as part of the Adoptee Recipe Swap #1.I made this yesterday, and I had to use 1 large eggplant instead of 2 mediums.I prefer the smaller ones over the larger ones, but it is the off season, so….I pretty much made this per the directions, except I used packaged stuffing mix, instead of bread crumbs.I just happen to have that on had.It went together real easy and made a great dish.But, I do recommend to wait and make this with the smaller eggplant.There is a difference in taste, plus the cook time has to be adjusted a little with the larger eggplant.”