All too often, vegetable side dishes play second fiddle to a show-stopping main course. Not this time! These grilled vegetables served with a vibrant green pesto will add a whole new level of pizzazz to your dinner table. This eye-catching dish is quite simple to prepare. But don’t give yourself away – let your guests think you toiled away in the kitchen all day.
Eggplant can get pretty soggy because it absorbs oil like a sponge. To prevent that, this recipe only uses a smidgen of oil brushed lightly over both sides of the eggplant. And the pesto goes easy on the oil as well so the flavors of the vegetables and herbs stand out – especially when gently warmed.
A non-stick skillet works as well as a grill pan for this recipe. Either way, you might need to cook in batches depending on how big your pan is. If you like garlic, you’ll love this pesto. If you’re not a fan, simply cut the amount of garlic in half. The pesto makes more than you’ll need for this dish and stores easily in the fridge or freezer, but I seriously doubt it will last that long. It’s just too good to leave alone.
Ingredients
2 medium eggplants
12 green onions
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
pinch of salt and pepper
Pesto Ingredients (makes 1 ½ cups)
3 cups roughly chopped parsley
1 cup roughly chopped basil
½ cup pine nuts
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ – 1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
Directions
- Preheat grill pan or skillet over medium-high heat.
- Slice eggplants lengthwise into ½ inch strips. Depending on the size of the eggplants, each will yield about 5 or 6 slices.
- In a small dish, mix 1 tablespoon each of lemon juice and olive oil. Brush a thin layer of mixture over both sides of eggplant slices, as well as a light sprinkle of salt and pepper.
- Grill/pan fry (in batches depending on the size of your cooking surface) the eggplant slices for 4 minutes on each side.
- Grill green onions for 3 – 4 minutes on each side.
- While vegetables are cooking, place all pesto ingredients in a food processor and blend for about 2 – 3 minutes, scraping down the sides occasionally. Note: This makes extra pesto, so store the remainder in a tightly sealed jar with a thin layer of olive oil on top to prevent pesto from browning. This will hold in the refrigerator for about one week (or freeze).
- Transfer pesto to a small saucepan and warm it over low heat.
- Arrange cooked eggplant and scallions on a serving tray. Spread about 1 tablespoon of pesto over each eggplant slice, or serve pesto separately.
- Serve hot immediately.
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