Recipe: Eggplant Coils

Recipe Source: Botascos, Jim. The New Greek Cuisine. Broadway Books, New York, 2006 pp. 76-7.

I'm not sure what part of this seemed like a good idea to me. I was trying to think of finger foods that I could serve at our Fourth of July party. I wanted vegetables, and preferably something that vegetarians could eat as a main course if we were so lucky as to acquire any. I decided that this recipe looked "interesting." When I decided that this recipe looked "interesting" I completely failed to take into account the amount of food I needed to make for this party. You see, while working with phyllo is not as difficult as some people think it is still not exactly easy, and I was asking it to do things that it didn't want to do. Like coil.

Ultimately it didn't work out too bad, but I made myself pretty miserable stressing about the coiling process. The trick is to use two hands and work quickly. I made a few changes, mostly involving cheeses and spice amounts. People were pretty pleased with the result, and the little coils seemed to be appreciated by most people present. If you make these ahead of time, reheat them in the oven and they shouldn't be too soggy.

Eggplant Coils (makes about 36; approx. $1.34 ea.)

6 eggplants

2 ½ cups olive oil, more or less

10 leeks, whites only, diced

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

2 cups feta cheese

1 cup goat cheese

1 ½ cups chopped toasted walnuts

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 ½ cups breadcrumbs

3 packages #7 phyllo dough

Equipment:

• Big Green Egg or other grill (you can also roast the eggplants indoors if you need to, but in my head the Egg gave the eggplants a nice flavor indeed.)
• Pastry brush
• Large sauté pan
• Large bowl
• Baking sheets
• Colander

1. Preheat your Egg direct high-heat grilling.
2. Pierce the eggplants a few times with a fork. This can be therapeutic.
3. Grill the eggplants, turning frequently, until soft and blackened.
4. Transfer the eggplants to a colander and let drain for about 30 minutes.
5. Peel the eggplants and discard the skin. Chop the flesh, add to the large bowl and set aside.
6. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in the sauté pan over medium-low heat.
7. Add the leeks with a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes. Don't let the leeks brown.
8. Add the leeks to the bowl. Add the cheeses, walnuts, parsley, cumin and bread crumbs. Mix well, cover and refrigerate overnight.
9. When you're ready to cook, preheat your oven to 325 ̊.
10. Lay a sheet of phyllo dough on a clean work surface, long side horizontal. Coat it with a bit of olive oil (that's why you needed 2 ½ cups) and put about ½ cup of the eggplant mixture on the bottom of the sheet. Spread it out slightly.
11. Fold in the ends a little bit and begin rolling up the dough to make a long thin cylinder, like a snake.
12. Coil up the snake using both hands. Work quickly but gently. Transfer the coil to the baking sheet and repeat until all the filling is used.
13. Bake 20 minutes. Cool 3 minutes then serve.