Eggplant and Pepperoncini Tomato Sauce.
So the surprise breakout star of my culinary week is a sauce I used to top off a dish last night. It was an Eggplant and Pepperoncini Tomato Sauce that was simple and actually quite delicate.
If you read this blog often you know I have random and strong cravings that need to be satiated immediately. For weeks I have been craving spicy food, and yesterday it was those funky little green peppers. If you don't know what Pepperoncini are, they're those pickley, and a little spicy peppers you find in Italian Antipasto and Greek Salads. You find them near the olives at the grocery store. They look like this-
The gorgeous recording artist Chantae Vetrice was coming over to record with P2, so I needed to make something impressive, but this damn craving was bugging me. I sent Chantae a message and asked what she would like for dinner, and she said she eats everything, so it was on!
I knew a few things going into this meal;
1. I wanted a sauce to top breaded chicken cutlets.
2. I wanted to pair the Pepperoncini with a mellow veg in the sauce.
3. I wanted to try and make mashed Cauliflower and use it as a bed for the chicken. (that was pretty amazing too!)
All of my wished came true!
Everything paired well and the sauce was a success! There was just enough kick to the sauce to relieve my craving, but still left my dining buddies saying; "there is something great about this that I can't quite put my finger on".
Here is what to do to make this sauce;
In a deep saute pan, start to saute half of a diced medium white onion and 3 diced cloves of garlic in olive oil over a medium heat.
Once they are translucent add half of a large Eggplant diced small to the pan (or 1 small Eggplant diced).
Once the Eggplant is cooked, (about 20 mins cooking time so far) add a drained large can of Petite Diced Tomatoes. (I prefer RedPack)
Let that cook down for another 10 to 15 minutes, and season with salt and pepper. If you need to add moisture, feel free to add some water or chicken stock.
Now start adding in the Pepperoncini. I started with 3 which I had sliced into rings. Let it cook a few minutes and taste to see if that added enough kick for you. In all I added 6 or 7. That gave just a little heat and great background flavor.
Once it is cooked and seasoned again with salt and pepper to taste, I added a handful each of chopped flat leaf Parsley and Basil.
That's it! It worked great over the chicken, but you can use it with pasta, fish, or I would imagine it would even go great with beef! It was also perfect for the cold weather!
I hope you make this and love it like we did. I am heading over to eat some leftovers now!
XOXO -P
The gorgeous recording artist Chantae Vetrice was coming over to record with P2, so I needed to make something impressive, but this damn craving was bugging me. I sent Chantae a message and asked what she would like for dinner, and she said she eats everything, so it was on!
I knew a few things going into this meal;
1. I wanted a sauce to top breaded chicken cutlets.
2. I wanted to pair the Pepperoncini with a mellow veg in the sauce.
3. I wanted to try and make mashed Cauliflower and use it as a bed for the chicken. (that was pretty amazing too!)
All of my wished came true!
Here is what to do to make this sauce;
In a deep saute pan, start to saute half of a diced medium white onion and 3 diced cloves of garlic in olive oil over a medium heat.
Once they are translucent add half of a large Eggplant diced small to the pan (or 1 small Eggplant diced).
Once the Eggplant is cooked, (about 20 mins cooking time so far) add a drained large can of Petite Diced Tomatoes. (I prefer RedPack)
Let that cook down for another 10 to 15 minutes, and season with salt and pepper. If you need to add moisture, feel free to add some water or chicken stock.
Now start adding in the Pepperoncini. I started with 3 which I had sliced into rings. Let it cook a few minutes and taste to see if that added enough kick for you. In all I added 6 or 7. That gave just a little heat and great background flavor.
Once it is cooked and seasoned again with salt and pepper to taste, I added a handful each of chopped flat leaf Parsley and Basil.
That's it! It worked great over the chicken, but you can use it with pasta, fish, or I would imagine it would even go great with beef! It was also perfect for the cold weather!
I hope you make this and love it like we did. I am heading over to eat some leftovers now!
XOXO -P
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