October 13, 2010 (Updated March 22, 2023)

Eggplant Domination

by Anne Mauney, MPH, RD

25 comments

Today, I did something that scares me. I cooked eggplant.

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I know. I have no idea why eggplant scares me. I can roast veggies like a champ, sauté string beans with the best of them, and turn plain ole sweet potatoes into epic fries or delicious mashed treats, but for some reason I’ve been avoiding eggplant. Until now.

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(Maybe because it’s kind of scary looking.)

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Heh.

Anyway, today I decided it was time for a show down. I did some research, punctured this guy with a fork a few times, and then baked him at 450 for 20 minutes.

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Success, I think?!

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I decided to use this recipe to turn him into baba ganoush.

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I didn’t know if I was supposed to leave all the seeds in or not. Did I do that right?! Lol. It tasted good, though, so I guess that’s all that matters 🙂

What have you done lately that scares you?

~ ~ ~

In other news, there’s a cool new website I’d like to introduce you guys to — it’s called Well, Then!

Well, Then is a community where people can share and discuss with others their favorite ways to be well. There are videos and conversations on the site ranging from eating healthy and exercising to living with a disease! It’s actually a really cool community, run by a non-profit organization. Well, Then just launched a new website, and asked me to share some of my favorite ways to be well with their community members.

So far, I’ve posted the following:

I’ll be contributing a bunch more videos and picture posts throughout the year, so stay tuned! Disclaimer: Well, Then is compensating me for my submissions to their site, but I do think it’s a really awesome organization, or else I wouldn’t have agreed to participate 🙂 Check it out if you get a chance!

Vegan Vegetarian
- anne

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25 comments
  • HKP
    That's funny, I cooked an eggplant today, too - haven't done that in ages! Actually, 2 of them, in my Rigatoni with eggplant and black olive sauce. Tasty!
    Reply
  • Alicia
    I made Baba Ganoush the other day too and I'm pretty sure you leave the seeds in. I'm interested to hear what others have to say though.
    Reply
  • K
    I have no idea if you are supposed to leave the seeds in! hehe. I have never cooked an eggplant either but mostly because I've convinced myself I don't like it... but I've only not liked it when other people have cooked it, so maybe I'll give it a try someday. Tonight we are cooking with Thai chilis! I've never done that before!
    Reply
  • Cynthia
    Eggplant totally scares me too and believe it or not, I have never tried eggplant before. I would love to try it and cook eggplant parmesan or something like that. But I guess I have been too scared to do anything with it.
    Reply
  • carpensm
    Yup also a little scared by eggplant... not sure why. But the baba looks amazing!
    Reply
  • Tracey @ I'm Not Superhuman
    Eggplant is my arch nemesis. Somehow I always mess it up when cooking with it. The skin's too tough. The slices are too thick. And so on. Glad your experience was a success.
    Reply
  • grocery goddess jen
    Good for you, both on the eggplant and Well,Then front! I haven't cooked anything that scares me lately, but there were stinging nettles in my latest CSA box, and making those freaks me out! I'll give it a whirl though.
    Reply
    • Anne P
      Stinging nettles?!?! That sounds scary :)
      Reply
  • lauren
    nope, seeds stay in. it's pretty impossible to deseed an eggplant - it looks like a gourd but it's actually a nightshade. next time the best thing you can do is find a male eggplant - they have virtually no seeds. little italian secret.
    Reply
    • Anne P
      No way! How do you know if one is male?! Lol
      Reply
  • Jen Robinson
    Yes you don't need to de-seed eggplant. It kind of scares me to cook it too but one of my all time fave dishes is a Chinese spicy eggplant dish. Mmmmm....
    Reply
  • Emily @ For Sweets Sake
    I had my first run in with eggplant last week. and I hated it haha I like all veggies! I have no idea why I've avoided eggplant all these years and now I try it and I was just not happy with my experience. Of course I cooked it...so that could have been the problem...
    Reply
  • Maren
    I'm always scared of eggplant too, I always cook mine wrong!
    Reply
  • yummieecupcake
    eggplant is one of the beautiful veggies i've seen! what veggie is purple?!!
    Reply
  • Haley
    I LOVE eggplant! In Hawai'i we have a lot of the long, Japanese variety, but I'll take it however I can get it :).
    Reply
  • Marg
    I'm clueless with eggplant, have no idea how to cook it.
    Reply
  • Holly @ couchpotatoathlete
    I have roasted eggplant once and it tasted horrible -- I wonder if I chose a "bad" eggplant? They aren't so scary -- they look like Grimace from McDonalds! :)
    Reply
  • Lisa (bakebikeblog)
    oooh I think babaganoush is the PERFECT dish to make with eggplant! YUMMO!
    Reply
  • Karis
    I didn't like eggplant until I tried a recipe using an eggplant from my CSA box...what a difference from grocery store eggplants! I've made a few eggplant recipes this summer, including baba ganoush, which tasted great. I think ratatouille is my favorite eggplant recipe that I tried this summer.
    Reply
  • Lauren
    Eggplant is one of those wonder veggies. You can make so many amazing things out of it.
    Reply
  • Renie
    I usually boil the eggplant for about 10 to 15min and then I place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. It makes it very easy to peel the skin off. Leaving the seeds in for your recipe should be ok, since you put it in the food processor. I just find the seeds a little bitter.I love eggplant and when I make lasagna, I leave the pasta out and replace it with eggplant. Goooood.
    Reply
  • Ravenous Rowie
    I am so with you on eggplant scariness! I think I'd go the same route though, baba ganoush first! I actually have a recipe for it that I've been saving, but I haven't worked up the courage to make it yet. I also don't know what I'll do with all of it, because nobody else in my house will even touch eggplant! sigh
    Reply