marinated eggplant with whipped ricotta

I had this recipe on repeat this summer, but it’s still just as relevant. It’s tangy, savory, crunchy, and the perfect starter or side dish. It’s room temp, so you can marinate the eggplants moments before serving or hours ahead.

You can make this with fairy tale eggplant, as I did here (if the name doesn’t do enough to suggest this, they are, objectively speaking, the cutest of all eggplants). However, you can also use Japanese eggplant (oblong and typically has a darker skin), Chinese eggplant (long, skinny, and bright purple), Italian or globe eggplant (most commonly carried in grocery stores here in the U.S.). The cook time below applies to fairy tale eggplants. For larger eggplants, you’ll just need to roast for a longer period of time, until tender.

This whole recipe is more of an invitation for substitutions than an actual recipe. I make this with pistachios, but pepitas, almonds, pine nuts, or hazelnuts would also be great. If you don’t have greek yogurt, you can season the ricotta with a teaspoon of lemon juice to replace the tanginess. If you don’t have ricotta, you can just use greek yogurt. You could also use labneh as a substitute for both ricotta and greek yogurt.

Marinated Eggplant and Whipped Ricotta

Ingredients:

For the roasted eggplant:

12 Fairytale eggplant (If using globe or Italian eggplant, use one. Either cut in half lengthwise and roast for longer or cut into 1 cm rounds.)

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

¾ Teaspoon kosher salt (season to your taste)

For the marinade:

4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Juice of 2 lemons

3 Cloves garlic, thinly sliced

¼ Cup shelled pistachios, roughly chopped 

2 Tablespoons or a generous sprinkle of za’atar

For the ricotta mixture:

2 Cups ricotta

½ Cup Greek yogurt

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 Teaspoon kosher salt (season to your taste)

Step 1:

Preheat the oven to 400° F.  Slice eggplant in half, lengthwise.  Place eggplant cut side up on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and season with salt.  Turn eggplant over cut side down.  Roast for 15-20 minutes or until the eggplant are tender and cut side is golden brown.

Step 2:

For the marinade, heat the oil in a skillet over medium low.  Add the garlic and pistachios and cook until garlic becomes golden brown and fragrant, shaking the skillet occasionally to prevent burning or uneven cooking.  Remove from heat when the garlic is just golden brown.  The garlic will continue to cook even after removed from heat, so try not to take it too far.

Step 3:

Transfer oil, garlic, and pistachios to a bowl large enough to fit eggplant and marinade in.  Whisk in the lemon juice.

Step 4: 

When the eggplant is ready, use a metal spatula to carefully lift each one off of the tray and into the bowl of marinade.  If you don’t have a metal spatula, of course, that is A-ok.  Metal is ideal because it’s thinner and can better remove the eggplant from the pan without mangling them.  The eggplant will be soft and the goal is to keep them as intact and attractive as they were to begin with (arguably more attractive because of the whole golden brown thing)

Step 5:

In a small bowl, mix together the ricotta, Greek yogurt, and oil.  Mix until smooth and smear onto a plate or in a shallow bowl.  Arrange the eggplant cut side up over the ricotta mixture.  Spoon the remaining marinade over the eggplant.  Finish with a generous sprinkling of za’atar.  

Do it ahead:

Eggplant can be roasted a few hours ahead and either kept separate or stored in the marinade.  The ricotta mixture can be made a week ahead and kept covered until you’re ready to use it.  Just don’t plate the whole thing far in advance because the marinade will mix with the dairy in an unappetizing way (by far, I mean don’t plate this in the morning, if you plan to have this for dinner. A few hours is totally fine).