MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.02
      Title: Aromatic Aubergine au Asafoetida (*)
 Categories: none
      Yield: 1 servings

      1    eggplant (suitable size for
           -stuffing)
      2    leeks, chopped
      1 sm green pepper, finely diced
      4 oz hot Italian turkey sausage
    1/2 c  sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
    1/2 c  Parmesan cheese, grated
    1/4 ts compounded asafoetida powder
      1 Tb hot Indian curry paste
      1 Tb  olive oil

  Slice eggplant in half, lengthwise.  Do not peel (or wash,
unless you're one of those overly fastidious types).  Steam
(about 10-15 minutes) or parboil (about 5 minutes) or microwave
on high (about 5-7 minutes).

  Scoop out flesh from each half of eggplant (a power router
works real well for this), leaving about a 1/4 inch shell.  Mash
scooped-out eggplant pulp with fork, ricer, hammer, or a real
masher (if you have invited one for dinner).

  Saute leeks, pepper and sausage in oil until veggies soft
and sausage no longer pink, adding asafoetida and curry paste
after first minute or two.  Add mashed eggplant pulp during last
minute or two of cooking, stirring thoroughly.

  Stuff each eggplant half with about half of the pulp, veggie
and meat mixture. Top this with the grated cheddar and then top
this with remaining stuffing mixture.

  Bake (loosely covered with foil) in a pre-heated oven (350
degrees) for about 30 minutes or until shell is tender. Top with
grated Parmesan (remove foil first) and continue baking uncovered
until melted (the parmesan cheese that is, not the eggplant).

  Stand aside for about 5 minutes and then cut crosswise into
serving sized chunks.

 May be served with a side dish of beans to test the efficacy of
the asafoetida's supposed medicinal properties.

  Enjoy - or else!  BTW, I actually made and ate this for
dinner the other night and it's not half bad (though figuring
out which that half is, is a bit tricky at first).

(*)  "Asafoetida is a resin extracted from an oriental
umbelliferous plant.  It is dried and crushed and sold as powder
in Iran, India, and Afghanistan, where it is commonly used as a
condiment.  Its very bitter flavour and pronounced garlic smell
make it distasteful to Europeans.  It was popular with the
Romans, but was later used mainly as a medicine to treat
flatulence, etc."  (Larousse)

    Alan Cohen

                                    Kountry Cook (Vicki Phillips)
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