Both mushrooms and eggplants have unique texture and mild flavor, that blend beautifully with cheeses. In the dish here, I decided to combine both in one bake, and the result was just what I was hoping for: tasty aromatic bake, with different soft textures of the mushrooms and eggplants, unique mild red wine flavor from the goat cheese and red wine, and crispy top, from the Panko breadcrumbs.
The bake can be served as a vegetarian entrée, as part of a brunch buffet, or as a side dish with chicken or meat. Try it and enjoy.
Notes:
* I didn’t peel the eggplant, as I wanted a more rustic texture and extra fiber in the dish. If you want a more delicate bake, feel free to peel it.
* Drunken Goat cheese is a semi-firm Spanish cheese. It is cured in red wine, thus has a purple rind and a slight flavor of red wine. It is available in many stores, and online.
* For easier grating of the cheese, cut it roughly and place in a small food processor, fitted with the metal blade. Add 1 Tbs flour and process.
Makes: 16
Prep time: 25 minutes
Baking time: 1 hour
Ingredients:
1 Tbs light olive oil
2 Tbs butter
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
2 tsp salt + to taste
½ tsp freshly ground four peppers mix + to taste
8oz (225 grams) white mushrooms, legs removed, roughly cut
1 Large eggplant, cubed (about 4 cups) (see notes)
¼ cup flour
1 cup whole milk, at room temperature
¼ cup rosé or red wine (I used rosé)
7 oz (200 grams) Drunken Goat cheese, grated (see notes)
1 lbs (455 grams) small curd cottage cheese, 4% fat
½ tsp freshly ground nutmeg
3-4 dried sage leaves, crumbled
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup Panko bread crumbs
1. Preheat the oven to 350F (175C). Line a 12”x8” (20.5cm x 30cm) baking pan with baking paper.
2. Mix the oil, butter and garlic in a large frying pan. Sauté over medium-high heat for 30 seconds, and add the onion, salt and pepper. Mix and sauté, until the onion softens and starts to caramelize.
3. Add the mushrooms, mix and sauté until they start to brown. Add the eggplant, mix and cook for 6-7 minutes, mixing occasionally. Add the flour and mix well. Gradually, while mixing, add the milk and bring to an almost boil. Add the wine, mix and lower the heat to medium-low. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until the mixture thickens. Add the goat cheese and mix to melt.
4. Remove from the heat, let cool a bit and add the cottage cheese. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste, along with the nutmeg and sage. Add the eggs and mix well.
5. Sprinkle ½ cup of Panko breadcrumbs over the lined pan. Add the mixture over it and level with a spatula. Sprinkle the rest of the Panko breadcrumbs on top.
6. Bake for 1 hour, until the bake is set and the top is golden-brown. Let cool in the pan for five minutes before cutting.
Looks great 👍
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Thank you! 🙂
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Looks yummy. Never heard of ‘Drunken Goat Cheese’ – have to check it out
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Thank you Smitha, I’m glad you liked the dish. The cheese is very tasty. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it. 🙂
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Love the combination of flavors and that cheese especially. Fun to learn about new ingredients. Wine always makes a dish “better”. Whenever mushrooms are called for I always sub with zucchini – just a family preference!
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Thank you Judi, I’m glad you liked the dish. The cheese is so tasty, well worth looking for. As for zucchini instead of mushrooms – I think it can work well here. 🙂
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Oh yum, a lot of my favourite flavours (and textures)!
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Thank you Irene, I’m glad you liked the bake. It turned out very tasty. 🙂
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A nice meatless main dish or side dish Thanks for sharing,
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Thank you, I’m glad you liked the dish. It’s my pleasure to share. 🙂
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Can’t wait to make this one ! Have even exited the blogs to see whether Down Under knows the cheese . . . and it looks as if we are civilized enough to do so 🙂 ! Love both eggplant and mushrooms . . . red wine methinks as I only seem to imbibe rose when I reach God’s country Provence !! Oh, and I think this could be a full meal with some salad on the side . . . shall send to friends . . .
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Thank you Eha, I’m glad you liked the bake. I had a vegetarian entree in mind when I prepared it, so yes, it can definitely make a full meal with a nice salad on the side.
Glad you can get this tasty cheese where you live. It’s so tasty! 🙂
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Looks so delicious! I like the addition of bread crumbs for the lovely crunchy texture.
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Thank you Megala, I’m glad you liked the dish. The Panko breadcrumbs are so crispy. Highly recommended. 🙂
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Hi Ronit, your recipes look amazing and l like them very much. I am wondering if you could leave me your email address for a possible partnership with you?
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Thank you Wyatt, I’m glad you liked the recipes. Of course I’ll need more details. You can either email me at pensoron@gmail.com or via LinkedIn.
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I’m an eggplant and a mushroom lover. This sounds delicious!
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Thank you Blaine, I”m glad you liked the recipe. I’m also a big fan of both, so it made sense to mix them in one bake! 🙂
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Perfect dish for Fall, love the flavors Ronit.
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Thank you Myra, I’m glad you liked the dish. It was so flavorful and aromatic. Definitely a keeper! 🙂
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A clever combination of flavors and textures…I bet it is terrific.
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Thank you Karen, this combination worked so well. Definitely a keeper! 🙂
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Yum! I am definitely making this Ronit!
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Thank you Sandhya, I’m glad you liked the dish. I hope you’ll enjoy it! 🙂
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Oh, what fun! These sound absolutely dreamy. I’ve only had drunken goat cheese as is. Now I’m going to start grating it on everything!
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Thank you Mimi, I’m glad you liked the bake. Drunken goat cheese is indeed so good as is, but it’s also wonderful in such bakes. I sure you’ll enjoy it too. I’m already curious to see how you use it. 🙂
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