“I enjoy cooking with wine and sometimes I put it in the food.” – Julia Child.

I’m not sure Julia Child would have appreciated Good Mother Diet as she was quite the meat lover and on her cooking show she was always throwing raw meat around or making raw chickens dance, but I can like her anyway as she was ground breaking in her approach to cooking.  She had a no nonsense approach in the kitchen and a great sense of humor.  In response to critics who thought she used too much butter,  she said “We should enjoy food and have fun. It is one of the simplest and nicest pleasures in life.”  I can certainly agree with her on that!

Eggplant is considered one of the worlds healthiest foods and it has a meaty texture that makes it a good substitute for meat.  Globe eggplants, in particular, are best if they are salted and drained (known as “degorging”) before cooking, to soften them and to reduce the amount of fat absorbed during cooking.  Raw eggplant can absorb an incredible amount of oil which adds unnecessary calories and fat.  Eggplant is naturally low fat and low carb.   Salting also removes any bitterness from the eggplant.

I spotted this eggplant recipe on Kalyns Kitchen and loved the simplicity.  It is inspired by Julia’s original recipe for what she calls Eggplant Pizza in her cookbook,  From Julia Child’s Kitchen.  Rather than making a traditional Eggplant Parmesan where the eggplant is breaded and fried before baking with layers of sauce and cheese, this version is grain free and brushed with olive oil and herbs before baking.  Slicing the eggplant into thick circles and making individual portions makes it very easy to serve.  I made this dish for a potluck where we needed to serve a lot of people, so I doubled the recipe. Needless to say, I came home with an empty platter!  I love a homemade sauce (and not just because it makes my kitchen smell divine) but you can skip that step and use any sauce you like from a jar as a shortcut.  I loved this recipe, which is not fussy but really delicious, and I will definitely make it again. Next time I’m hoping for leftovers!   Thanks Julia!

Photo Credit:  http://www.werecommend.com