Stuffed & Baked Mini Eggplants

Photo: Sonia R. Martinez

Ingredients

3 Mini egg plants - scooped out

small Onions - chopped

Garlic - minced

Salt

Pepper (optional)

Tomato paste

Fresh oregano leaves - I used the mini leaves from stick ore

Nam Prik Pao Thai Chili Sauce or Tab

Shredded Mozzarella

Panko

Butter for sauteing

Preparation

Set oven to 350 F

Cut top of eggplants a bit below the green stem line.

Cut off a tiny little piece in bottom so that they can stand flat. Using a sharp knife, cut down into the eggplant all around the inside of the skin leaving as little of the white part as possible without being too thin. Cut across all the way down and then across again to make it easy to scoop out.

Chop the eggplant pulp, and onion as small as possible. Mince garlic.

Saute eggplant, onion and garlic in a bit of butter until onion is limp. Salt and pepper (if using) and just a bit of tomato paste. Mix in and turn heat off.

At this point I added a bit of the chili sauce and the tiny oregano leaves off the stick oregano (* shown in the photos with the eggplants)

Put a bit of shredded cheese in the bottom of each hollowed eggplant then a teaspoon of the filling, layering cheese and filling until overflowing.

Top with a little bit of the cheese and panko.

Bake for about 25 - 30 minutes (I used my little countertop toaster/convection oven since I only had 3 and didn't want to use the big oven for that small amount.