Cooking With Dia

Gosh, it seems like it has been raining non stop for the past fortnight, so today was the first chance I got in a while to photograph food with some natural sunlight. I don’t have a posh studio or anything near to that, I just have a small kitchen and a window, and well…if it’s raining, the pictures won’t be as nice. I need that beautiful sunlight to come in to saturate the colors of the food, and today it did! Horrah!

I guess you could say I am going back to my “roots” with this recipe. I am Italian American, and Cotolette di Melanzane was something I frequently ate growing up. The first time I ever tried this dish I was over my dad’s apartment, and he neglected to tell me what was hidden inside the breadcrumbs…he just wanted me to eat it without being fussy over eggplant. I sliced into it and said, “This isn’t chicken!!!!” He laughed. I ate it up and said, “Well the inside looks unappealing but it tastes really good.” I still feel the same way. The look of the inside of cooked eggplant isn’t my favorite image to think of, but you can’t deny how great it tastes!

© Cooking With Dia 2012 www.cookingwithdia.com

Recipe: Dia’s Cotoletta di Melanzane (Gluten Free & Vegan)

Ingredients

1 large eggplant (aubergine)
1 cup of gluten free bread crumbs mixed with the seasonings of your choice
Salt for the eggplant expunging experience
4 tablespoons of gluten free corn flour
4 tablespoons of oragnic avocado oil
Splash of olive oil to fry

Instructions

First you will need to wash your eggplant.
Next slice it into 2cm thickness slices.
Place a couple paper towels inside of a colander.
Put the eggplant slices on top of the paper towels.
Sprinkle with salt and let the eggplant drain off some of that bitterness. (This will take about an hour.)
Afterward, make sure to rinse the eggplant slices well and pat dry.
Now you can set up a working station. Take out 4 bowls or 4 plates.
In the first bowl put the corn flour.
In the second bowl put the avocado oil.
In the third bowl put the seasoned breadcrumbs.
And the 4th bowl/plate will be to hold the slices once they have been coated and before they are about to be pan fried.
With each slice, pat in the corn flour, then soak in the avocado oil, then coat with the bread crumbs and then place on the 4th plate to wait until they are all coated.
Heat up a frying pan with a splash of olive oil on a medium-high heat.
Fry the slices on each side for approximately 2 minutes, or until it looks golden brown.
Place eggplant slices on paper towels to absorb any excess oil.
Serve with a simple heirloom tomato and basil salad or with the side dish of your choice.
© Cooking With Dia 2012 www.cookingwithdia.com

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