Eggplant Balls from an Amalfi Coast Culinary Vacation

Not all delectable meatballs require meat. This hearty and healthy poor man’s caviar dish, eggplant balls, comes from the kitchen of one of our best-selling cooking vacations, home to The International Kitchen’s Mediterranean Cooking Class on the Amalfi Coast. Our culinary travelers can feast and learn how to cook both traditional Italian pasta dishes as well as fresh seafood.

Eggplant is one of our favorite ingredients. (Learn more about this versatile vegetable!). It lends itself to a variety of dishes, is wonderfully hearty, and pairs wonderfully with sauces from a lot of different cuisines.

See more of our favorite eggplant recipes, including:

• Vietnamese Eggplant in a Clay Pot
• Soufico from Ikaria, Greece
• Eggplant caponata

Please contact us for details on this or any of our amazing trips on the Amalfi Coast.

Eggplant Balls

Serves: 2
Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Cook method: Fry

Ingredients:

• 1 eggplant
• 4 tablespoons grated parmesan
• 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs
• 1 tablespoon of egg yolk
• Basil
• Parsley
• Salt to taste

Instructions

1. Chop the unpeeled eggplant into pieces, and then boil in salted water for 40 minutes.

2. Drain the eggplant and squash with a fork to eliminate excess water. Spread out on a work surface and squash again with a fork, then leave to cool.

3. Mix the eggplant pieces with finely chopped basil, parsley, grated parmesan, egg yolk and breadcrumbs. Mix the ingredients well. Should the mixture be a little sloppy, add more grated parmesan.

4. Roll the mixture into small balls that are slightly flattened on both sides and then toss the eggplant balls in the breadcrumbs. Fry in hot peanut oil for a few minutes, or until golden brown.

You can enjoy the Amalfi Coast during our Mediterranean Cooking Experience, which includes hands-on cooking classes in the teaching kitchen, wonderful excursions, and 5-star accommodations.

By Peg Kern

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