At a recent cocktail party where I served Eggplant Caponata (recipe below), several people were puzzled as to what it was they were eating and some were downright shocked when I explained what was in it. The funniest comment was  “This is soooo good but I HATE eggplant.” Hey, try it, you just might like it!

Thomas Jefferson is credited with bringing the first eggplants to the United States, and they have since become one of our 22 principal vegetable crops. Eggplant is not all that popular with Americans (no kidding) and most of our crop is exported to the Near East, the Middle East, the Far East and all throughout Europe and South America.

Nutritionally eggplants have a little bit of everything, but not a significant amount of anything. (How’s that for a quantitative analysis?) They have a rather subtle, somewhat nutty flavor and with their sponge-like texture, soak up flavors of other ingredients.

When purchasing eggplant, choose those that feel heavy for their size and have a taut, wrinkle-free skin, a fresh green cap and stem, and no soft spots or bruises. The skin should be a deep purple color (unless you find pure white eggplants which are quite pricey) and choose small to medium size. Store eggplant in the vegetable drawer of your refrigerator and use within a couple of days. Longer storage often yields a bitter flavor.

Caponata is an Italian ratatouille with the basic ingredient list including some or all of the following: tomato, eggplant, onion, garlic, black olives, green olives, red bell peppers and artichoke hearts. Typically, each of these vegetables is individually roasted in olive oil to bring out their optimum flavor, then seasoned with herbs and then combined. However, my recipe is a bit easier without quite so many steps and the result still showcases the individual flavors of the veggies.

Caponata is best served warm or at room temperature and is delicious served on flatbread, crostini, or a sturdy, plain crackers (think Carr’s™ Water Crackers). It can also be used as a bed for poached eggs and it’s a wonderful accompaniment to spicy Italian sausages. I’ve been known to warm up a bit and toss with some hot pasta for a quick and easy light dinner.

And just in case you are still leery about trying this versatile vegetable, a bit of trivia might “egg” you on to give it a go:  until the 1800’s, the main culinary use of eggplant in Europe was an edible love potion.

CAPONATA
2 cups peeled and cubed eggplant (about 1 inch size)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided use
1 cup diced red onion
½ cup diced green bell pepper
½ cup diced red bell pepper
⅔ cup diced celery
2 cups drained canned plum tomatoes, diced (reserve juices)
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon fresh oregano, chopped OR ½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon fresh basil, chopped OR ½ teaspoon dried basil
3 large cloves garlic, peeled and minced
½ cup Calamata olives, pitted, chopped
¼ cup green olives, chopped

Place eggplant cubes in a colander and sprinkle with the salt. Drain 1 hour. Meanwhile, heat 2 Tablespoons of the olive oil in a large ovenproof casserole or Dutch oven. Remove eggplant from colander and spread out on a layer of paper towel and pat dry.

Add eggplant to oil and sauté over medium heat for 8 or 9 minutes or until soft and lightly browned. Using a slotted spoon, remove eggplant from pan and set aside. Add remaining 2 Tbsp. of olive oil to pan and sauté onion, peppers and celery over medium heat until vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes.

Return eggplant to the pan. Add tomatoes, ground pepper, oregano, basil, garlic, and olives. Simmer uncovered, for 30-40 minutes, adding reserved juice from tomatoes to achieve desired consistency.

Yields about 4 cups.

Paula Anderson is a contributing writer to Maine Food & Lifestyle magazine, as well as a columnist for 3 Maine Newspapers with a focus on food, nutrition, and entertaining.