Wash the eggplants, remove the stems.

In each eggplant, make 5 cuts lengthwise, but not all the way, starting the cuts from the side of the eggplant opposite to the tail (as in the photo).

Then salt and pepper the eggplants so that salt and ground black pepper get into the cuts, leave for 30 minutes.

Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan, add tomatoes, fry them over medium heat for several minutes, stirring. Then add salt and sugar, pour in a little lemon juice, simmer over low heat until the tomatoes soften (the result should be a sauce). Add chopped garlic, heat the sauce for another 1 minute on the fire and turn off the gas.

Cut the remaining fresh tomatoes into slices. Place 2-3 slices of tomatoes and 2 thin slices of cheese into each cut of the eggplant (leave some cheese for baking the eggplants). Prepare the second fan of eggplant with tomatoes and cheese in the same way.

Line a baking dish with paper and place eggplant fans. Pour the prepared tomato sauce over the top of the fan.

Then remove the foil and sprinkle the eggplants with the remaining grated cheese. Bake the eggplants for another 10 minutes at the same temperature.

Very tasty, satisfying and unusual eggplant fans, cooked with cheese and tomatoes in the oven, serve hot, sprinkled with chopped parsley.

Bon appetit!

Step 1: prepare the eggplants.

To begin, wash one large or a couple of medium eggplants under cold running water and dry them with paper kitchen towels to remove excess moisture. Then we put them on a cutting board, with a sharp kitchen knife we ​​cut each one in half lengthwise, but not all the way, and then each part divide into 3-4 layers, so that their thickness does not exceed 5-6 millimeters.
Sprinkle the eggplant fans on all sides with coarse rock salt, place them in a deep colander, put it in the sink and leave it there for a while. 30–35 minutes, during which most of the inherent bitterness will be removed from the vegetables.

Step 2: prepare tomatoes, cheese and ham.



Without wasting a minute, we wash the tomatoes, dry them, remove from each the place where the stalk was attached, and chop into rings or layers up to 1 centimeter thick. We shred Mozzarella cheese and smoked pork ham in the same way, although the slices can be made larger if desired.

Step 3: Prepare the garlic-butter mixture.



Now peel the garlic cloves and squeeze them through a special press into a small bowl. Add dried basil, a little ground black pepper and maybe a pinch of salt. Shake these ingredients with a table fork until smooth and put the resulting garlic-butter mixture aside, it will come in handy a little later. Also at this time turn on and preheat the oven up to 180 degrees Celsius.

Step 4: Stuff the eggplants.



When the eggplants are steeped, wash them again and dry them. Then we stuff the vegetables with prepared cheese, tomatoes and ham.


For example, placing 2-3 pieces of these products on each layer.


After this, move the fans into a small non-stick metal, or preferably glass, heat-resistant baking dish.


Pour over the previously prepared garlic mixture and proceed to the almost final step.

Step 5: prepare fan-baked eggplants in the oven.



We check the temperature of the oven and, if it is warmed up, place the still raw dish in it on the middle rack. Bake the stuffed eggplants until fully cooked, medium 30–40, and large ones 40–50 minutes. Then we put oven mitts on our hands, move the mold with fans onto a cutting board previously placed on the countertop, and let the aromatic dish cool slightly. Then, using two kitchen spatulas, place the eggplants in portions on plates and serve them at the table.

Step 6: Serve the oven-baked eggplants in a fan.



Fan-baked eggplants in the oven are cooled slightly after cooking, then distributed in portions onto plates, each garnished with fresh dill, parsley or cilantro, if desired, and served as a second main course for lunch or dinner. As a complement to this yummy, you can offer several types of sauce, for example, sour cream, cream or tomato. Enjoy delicious and simple food!
Bon appetit!

Sometimes, instead of dried basil, fresh leaves are used; a total of 4–5 pieces are needed, but before that they should be washed, finely chopped and ground with ground garlic and oil. Well, if desired, this aromatic plant can perfectly replace dill, parsley or cilantro;

The stuffing products indicated in the recipe are not essential; instead of Mozzarella, you can take any hard or processed cheese; ham is ideally replaced by smoked bacon, chicken, lard, regular pieces of boiled or baked meat of any kind, and an alternative to olive oil is any other vegetable You can also add zucchini or zucchini cut into thin layers, sweet salad pepper rings, or not use meat at all and make this dish completely vegetarian, filling the eggplant fans with only vegetables and cheese;

If the eggplant is too dense, the fan falls apart and the filling falls out of it, assemble it again and tie it in the thickest part with strong baking thread, which can be easily removed after baking using ordinary kitchen scissors;

Don't have a small glass heat-resistant or non-stick baking dish? Let's not be upset! We simply make thick two- or three-layer baskets out of aluminum foil, put stuffed eggplant in each and bake;

Some housewives, in addition to ground black pepper, use any spices suitable for vegetable dishes: hyssop, savory, sage, paprika and others.

Today I want to bring to your attention a delicious and original recipe - baked eggplants. Moreover, now they are in the best season yet. This year the summer is so hot that eggplants have grown in large quantities even in my garden, which has never happened before. Therefore, we will cook from them.

We affectionately call them “little blue ones,” and many housewives love to cook them. Mostly fried in a pan or baked. When fried, they take on a lot of oil, and therefore are not recommended for all people to eat. But baked ones are what you need. They do not bake for very long, which means they retain most of their vitamins and beneficial microelements.

And today we have a recipe. The recipe is delicious! No matter how many eggplants you cook according to this recipe, they are always eaten just once or twice! It’s a pity that only 4 pieces fit on the baking sheet. You always have to make two batches.

Eggplant fan with mozzarella step-by-step recipe with photos

We will need (for 4 servings):

eggplants - 4 pieces

mozzarella cheese - 250 g (or any hard cheese)

tomatoes 8-10 pcs bell pepper - 1 pc garlic - 2 cloves

vegetable oil - 2-3 tbsp. spoons

basil -1-2 sprigs

spices - to taste

salt - to taste

ground black pepper - to taste

Preparation:

1. To prepare the dish, choose medium-sized eggplants. There is no need to take large ones, they already have rough skin. And there is no need to peel them. They will look very beautiful when baked.

In addition, in this form, they will better retain their shape.

2. Wash the “little blue ones”, carefully cut off the “skirt” as soon as it is cut, and part of the stalk. Then, using a very sharp knife, we cut them into 1 cm thick plates, about 1.5 cm short of the very end. That is, we cut them in the form of a fan. A thickness of 1 cm is the most optimal. They will have time to bake and will not overcook. The pulp will remain juicy and tasty.

3. Salt the plates on both sides and rub the salt a little into the surface.

4. Place the eggplants on the table or in a flat plate in the form of a fan. We press it on top with a cutting board and place some weight, a jar or a small saucepan with water on top. That is, a certain pressure is formed, thanks to which the “little blue” ones will become softer, and the bitterness will go away from them.

5. Leave them in this form under pressure for 15-20 minutes.

6. Immediately make garlic butter.

7. Chop the garlic as finely as possible and add oil. Add half a teaspoon of ground black pepper and the same amount of spices. I use a mixture of spices, it contains coriander, rosemary, thyme, paprika, a mixture of Provençal herbs. But you can add those that you like more.

8. Mix the contents and leave to infuse.

9. Wash the tomatoes, dry them with a paper towel, and cut them into circles or halves of circles 0.7 cm thick. The size is correlated with the size of the eggplants and the tomatoes themselves.

10. I also like to use bell peppers in this recipe. I love this combination of vegetables. I happened to have red pepper today and I'm using it. But for variety of colors it would be nice to have yellow or green.

We clear it of seeds and cut it into circles, or cut the finished circle into two halves. Again, let’s look at the size of our vegetables.

11. Mozzarella cheese is very good for this recipe. It is now quite accessible and does not cost much more than usual. And the taste with it is significantly different from the taste with ordinary hard cheese. But if for some reason it is difficult to purchase mozzarella, then use regular hard cheese.

12. Cut the mozzarella into pieces 1 cm thick. And then in half again if the pieces turned out to be large.

14. We dealt with all this while the eggplants were under pressure. Now we take them out and lightly squeeze out the excess juice. There is no need to be very zealous; do not squeeze out all the juice.

15. Grease a baking sheet with oil. We put eggplants on it and assemble a beautiful fan right on it.

16. The first thing to do is generously coat the eggplants with garlic oil. We use a silicone brush for this. Spread between the plates along with garlic and spices. We try to distribute the contents evenly so that there is enough for all the pieces.

17. I place tomatoes in plates in a checkerboard pattern. This is so that the fan is not very thick.

You can first remove the skin from the tomatoes. This is in case they are very thick-skinned. To do this, you first need to blanch them for 3-4 minutes. But I don’t do this, I have my own young tomatoes, and in this form they will retain their shape better.

18. We also lay layers of bell pepper in random order.

19. Then we place basil leaves between the layers. They will give a wonderful aroma to our dish.

20. And the final touch will be mozzarella cheese. We lay it out between all the plates. During baking, it will spread beautifully and give a toasted golden brown crust.

21. Place small tomatoes in the baking spaces. And the remaining bell pepper. We will decorate the dish with them when serving.

22. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. And set to bake for 20 minutes.

23. Take out the baking sheet and let it stand for 5 minutes. Then we put it on portioned plates and enjoy the look, taste, color and smell. We definitely eat with pleasure.

The mozzarella cheese spread and gave a wonderful aromatic crust, which covered the tomatoes and peppers. Under a coat of vegetables, garlic butter and cheese, the eggplants retained their softness. Their pulp is tasty and aromatic.

Some people add mayonnaise to this dish. But I think that it is completely inappropriate here. Without it, the dish is both healthy and tasty, and can even be considered dietary. Despite its lightness, it turns out to be quite filling. I prepared chicken for it separately, since my husband simply cannot get enough without meat. But having eaten only one eggplant herself, she already refused chicken because she was full.

I would also like to note that the eggplant fan looks very impressive and original. This dish can be served on any holiday table, and it will certainly become its decoration. Personally, I don’t often meet him when I’m visiting. That is why you will not only feed your guests deliciously, but also surprise them with your skill.

And don't think that it's difficult to prepare. Everything is done simply in one go. And what pleasure you get when you cook such beauty! After all, this is truly the most beautiful culinary creativity!

Bon appetit!

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With the onset of the eggplant harvest season, every housewife tries to find the best ways to prepare them, especially if the year turned out to be particularly fruitful for these vegetables. Eggplant caviar, various salads and appetizers of fried eggplant with garlic and tomatoes are rightfully considered traditional recipes. Are you bored with these dishes that you cook year after year? There is a solution. In this article we will offer you a recipe for cooking baked eggplant. This dish can easily replace a full meal. And thanks to the beautiful presentation, fan-baked eggplants can become an excellent element of the festive table.

There are several options for preparing this dish. Let's look at the process and features of preparing the best eggplant fan recipe - baked with cheese and tomatoes. This option will require the simplest ingredients, a minimum of culinary skills and very little time.

Fan-baked eggplant with tomatoes and cheese: list of ingredients

This dish is also called “peacock tail” and “firebird”, which is not surprising. After all, the appearance of the finished snack really resembles the tail of a fairy-tale bird.

As we said above, this recipe is quite simple, and its components can easily be found in any refrigerator. So, to prepare fanned eggplants with cheese and tomatoes, prepare (the number of ingredients is given for one serving):

  • eggplants (calculate 1 vegetable per person);
  • fresh medium-sized tomato;
  • 40 grams of mayonnaise (preferably olive or quail);
  • a teaspoon of vegetable oil (or 10 grams of butter);
  • 30 grams of cheese of any kind;
  • clove of garlic;
  • salt, spices and herbs to taste.

Preparation of starting products

Eggplants and tomatoes are thoroughly washed and excess moisture is removed. The stems are removed from the eggplants, after which the fruits are cut lengthwise into two equal parts. Each half is cut to form an eggplant fan. That is, the slits should not reach the base of the vegetable. The thickness of the slices should be kept in the range of 5-7 millimeters. The prepared eggplant fan is well salted and left for half an hour - this will relieve the vegetable of excessive bitterness. After this time, the eggplant is washed to remove excess salt.

At this time, cut the tomatoes into thin slices. Do the same with cheese. Garlic is crushed and mixed with mayonnaise.

Shaping the dish

Cover the prepared baking sheet with foil or baking paper, grease with vegetable (or melted butter) oil. Then an eggplant fan is laid out on the foil. The main task is to carefully stuff the eggplant with tomatoes and cheese to give the dish the most attractive appearance. To do this, each slice of vegetable is coated with a thin layer of garlic mayonnaise, and then sandwiched with thin slices of tomatoes and cheese. Don't forget to lightly add salt and pepper to each layer. And to get an appetizing golden brown crust, you can cover the top of the fan with the thinnest layer of mayonnaise.

Baking process

Prepare a preheated oven in advance - this will greatly speed up the cooking process. A baking sheet with eggplant fans goes into the oven for forty minutes. It is very important to maintain the correct temperature conditions so as not to dry out the eggplants. To bake eggplants with a fan of cheese in the oven, the temperature should not exceed 190 degrees. Sometimes forty minutes is not enough to fully bake a vegetable. Therefore, before removing the dish from the oven, check its readiness using a wooden skewer. It should pass through the eggplant slice very easily - this is what indicates its complete readiness. But try not to overcook the dish in the oven - this will cause it to lose its moderate juiciness and pleasant garlic aroma.

Serving on the festive table

The finished hot eggplant fan is immediately placed on a serving plate, decorated with a lettuce leaf and sprinkled with finely chopped fresh herbs. You can serve it with a toasted slice of bread or toast.

Very often housewives use this dish as a complete side dish for meat. This is understandable, because baked vegetables go perfectly with poultry, beef or lamb. What’s important is that this combination is also incredibly useful.

Another option for serving this dish is with pickled or fried mushrooms.

Important! Do not let the dish cool completely before serving! Eggplant and tomatoes produce a considerable amount of juice, which will simply make the dish watery and tasteless.

Other fan filling options

Even if you get bored with this recipe over time, feel free to experiment with the filling! Replace the tomatoes with thin slices of zucchini or zucchini, add some fried carrots and onions. And mayonnaise can be replaced with sour cream sauce.

Some housewives do not want to complicate recipes - they do not cook meat and eggplant side dish separately, and therefore simply combine these dishes. In this case, you can use any minced meat - be it pork, beef or poultry. The remaining ingredients can be left as in the main recipe, with cheese and tomatoes. The only difference will be a slightly thicker layer of mayonnaise, which must be used to cover the prepared fan. This is required so as not to dry out the minced meat excessively during the baking process. Such a dish will certainly turn out to be very tasty and satisfying, but it can be called dietary.

If you follow a special diet that does not allow you to consume excessive amounts of calories, and you need to prepare the most dietary dish possible, exclude mayonnaise and cheese from the recipe. Just add slices of bell pepper and carrots to the tomatoes. And serve the finished dish with matsoni sauce with herbs and garlic.

The dish will be amazingly tasty if you replace regular cheese with feta cheese or mozzarella. In this case, you can also exclude mayonnaise from the recipe and reduce the amount of garlic, which can overpower the taste of the cheese.

Conclusion

Today we introduced you to an unusually beautiful and interesting dish made from the simplest vegetables - eggplant. In combination with garlic, tomato and cheese, this is simply a fantastically tasty dish with which you will pleasantly surprise your guests. This recipe will definitely become a lifesaver when you can’t spend a lot of time preparing holiday appetizers and side dishes. And thanks to the versatility of this recipe, you can always diversify your home menu and delight your household with a new dish every day. After all, there is simply an unimaginable number of fillings that can be combined with eggplants. All you have to do is choose your ideal option. We wish you inspiration for creating new recipes and bon appetit!

Fan-shaped eggplant baked in the oven with tomatoes and cheese is a very beautiful appetizer. And how delicious it is! No words! All the colors of summer, piquancy, juiciness and originality in one dish. Intrigued? Then try it and praise the recipe.

Ingredients:

- medium-sized eggplants – 2 pcs.;
- red, ripe and fleshy tomatoes – 2 pcs. not very large;
- hard or semi-hard cheese – 50-70 g;
- mayonnaise or sour cream – 2-4 tbsp. l.;
- fresh garlic – 1-2 small cloves (to taste);
- table salt - to taste.

Recipe with photos step by step:





1. To prepare this impressive snack in all respects, it is better to use young “blue” ones. Overripe vegetables have skin that is too rough. Wash the eggplants well and cut off the green tail. Cut each eggplant in half lengthwise. And then each half will also be divided into thin (moderately) longitudinal plates, without cutting to the end. As a result, you should end up with a “fan” like the one in the photo. Sprinkle the prepared eggplants with salt. Place in a bowl and wait until the juice starts to release.




2. You will have to wait 10-15 minutes, so I suggest using this time usefully and preparing other ingredients. Wash and pat the tomatoes dry with a towel. Cut into circles. If the tomatoes are large, cut each circle in half.




3. Cut a piece of hard or semi-hard cheese into thin slices. If it is more convenient, you can grate it on a coarse grater.




4. Prepare a flavorful sauce. To do this, mix mayonnaise and chopped garlic. You can pass the garlic through a press or finely chop it with a knife. Add a pinch of salt and stir. The sauce is ready.

And you will probably like our photo recipe.







5. Drain the juice from the eggplants. Rinse the vegetables from salt. Gently squeeze out any moisture. Spread mayonnaise-garlic sauce between the slices. Place on a baking sheet greased with vegetable oil.




6. Place tomatoes between the eggplant slices, as shown in the photo.




7. Place cheese on top.




8. Bake in a preheated oven for 25-35 minutes until done. Baking temperature – 180-200 degrees.
When serving, you can sprinkle the eggplant fan with fresh herbs.
This is how the eggplants turn out like a fan. The recipe is very simple, but you can always add something of your own to it.

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