A little over two weeks ago I purchased four eggplants at the Saturday morning farmer’s market here in Richmond. The noblest of the eggplants travelled with high hopes to Ann Arbor but made its way back; the other three have just been lolling about in the bottom of a veg drawer since purchase. I’ve been putting off doing anything with them because my favorite thing to do with eggplant is make baigan bharta, a roasted and smashed Indian eggplant delight. But with the hour required to roast the eggplants + 35 minutes for everything else, it is a dish that takes some time…time I just haven’t really had.
But oh, I am loathe to throw away food. Side note: I haven’t always been this way. I remember my mom fussing at me frequently for purchasing vegetables and then letting them go to waste. I tell you this now, Meesar: those days are past.
Tonight was the night that I decided I absolutely had (time?) to do something with the four mostly spoiled eggplants languishing in the crisper. Ever hopefully, I speared them, brushed them with olive oil, and roasted them in a 415 degree oven for a little over an hour. When they came out, the skins were black–to be expected–but, upon prodding, so were the insides–unquestionably not to be expected.
Fresh eggplant, when roasted properly, should give way easily to gentle poking. The skin should strip away effortlessly, leaving the creamy-beige flesh to kind of sigh out. Once cut in to, the whole thing should just sort of collapse, its structural integrity destroyed by roasting. It will often be creamy enough to skip a trip to the food processor.
Let me just put it this way: all of the eggplants save one exhibited none of these characteristics. They were tough, held their form past roasting, and definitely needed to be run through the food processor!
Nevertheless, I was able to make one of my best baigan bhartas ever. Not only that, but because I had four eggplants to get rid of and I usually employ only one while making this recipe, I QUADRUPLED the recipe with devastatingly delicious results.
(Something of a) Recipe: Three huge onions chopped & browned in olive oil + 8 tsp coriander, 4 tsp cumin, 2 tsp paprika, 2 tsp garam masala, 2 tsp chili powder, a few pinches of turmeric + four pureed eggplants + tons and tons of garlic (uhm, about 10 cloves) + two chopped jalepenos + a cup of chopped cilantro + half a bag of frozen peas + 28 oz can of chopped tomatoes (I usually use fresh) + a homemade vegan creme = 16 servings of super tasty deliciousness or meals for the next three days. Good to know it can be done!
Though it is a tremendous understatement to say that baigan bharta isn’t much to look at, here’s a picture:
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Friends,
I’m relieved to report that it is quite easy to find vegan eats in Ann Arbor. Last night we dined at Seva, the city’s most popular vegetarian restaurant. The menu is about 70% vegetarian, 30% vegan, yet many of the dishes can be made vegan. We started with the yam fries, though if they were made with true yams or just plain ol’ sweet potatoes, I’ll never know. They were certainly delicious. (Note: the accompanying dipping sauce is not vegan, though you can sub for another). Jiji and I caught each other up while sipping the outstanding Ginger Julep (Fresh ginger shot with Maker’s Mark Bourbon, sugar syrup & soda, garnished with a lemon wedge)–a very good complement to the crispy yam fries.
At Jiji’s generous treat, I chose the curried eggplant. The menu describes it thusly: “tender chargrilled eggplant with tamarind-coconut-peanut sauce, served with a really spicy vegetable-brown rice biryani and a cooling beet-soy yogurt raita.” The eggplant was cooked well but the sauce lacked the depth of flavor one might expect from its triple-noun nomen, and instead simply tasted rather sweet. The biryani was not nearly as spicy as advertised–on a scale of 1 to 10, it was a three. Nevertheless, all of the flavors–raita included–danced nicely together, and I am looking forward to enjoying the leftovers this evening before heading to see “Nico Icon” at the University of Michigan Museum of Art.
Today we went marketting at the tremendous Ann Arbor farmer’s market. It is so big, with so many vendors from all over, that the City of Ann Arbor devotes substantial space to it on its website. I made off with three bunches of organic heirloom kale, organic mizuna, organic arugula, un-sprayed spaghetti squash and “sweet potato” squash, and a half gallon of cider for just around $15–not bad! Best of all, my BFF treated me to 8oz of pure Michigan maple syrup. (At a dollar an ounce, it’s quite a treat.) I plan on baking the squash and serving it with the syrup for our lunch tomorrow.
We left the market for Zingerman’s, where we stood in line outside for about 10 minutes before we were able to enter & order. It was totally worth it. I chose Stewart’s Farmer’s Hash, Zingerman’s vegetarian hash. From the menu: “Oven-roasted sweet potatoes & redskin potatoes, piquillo peppers, sautéed spinach & crispy shallots. Served with buttered onion rye toast & sour cream on the side.” To veganise the meal, I subbed wheat for the onion rye and asked for it dry; I also requested that they prepare the hash with olive oil as opposed to the usual butter. No problem!
We sat down at the coffee and pastry house next door, where our food was delivered. There, we snagged an Americano (Jiji) and, because it was featured and I was feeling decadent, a cup of Vosges’ Aztec Elixir haute drinking chocolate, prepared by the barista with soymilk (no extra charge!). Composed of only ancho & chipotle chillies, Ceylon cinnamon, Madagascar vanilla bean, cornmeal (for thickening), and dark chocolate, it is divinity in a cup. I shared; we swooned.
Now I’m back home, trying to decide whether to grab a quick nap or head out to do a little exploring. Though I miss my sweetie very much, I am happy to get away for the weekend and experience someplace new. And while the food is quite good here, it is no match for the company. :) It will be hard to say goodbye!
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