Making Eggplant Timbale

The other night I made Eggplant Timbale, going off a recipe from Giada (of Everyday Italian on the Food Network). Like most people I’m very wary of all TV chefs and their recipes, but this one looked so good I just had to try it. And surprise, it turned out GREAT. Everyone loved it! My dad had two huge servings, my mom had a large plate of it, and even my sister ate all of hers and has since finished off all the leftovers, which only lasted one day (something that doesn’t happen very often since I usually cook enough for a small army). Of course to make it I did not follow the recipe exactly, and do have a few comments I would add to anyone trying out this recipe for the first time.

First of all, I did not use smoked mozzarella. I just used the plain old mozzarella since in my family smoked is not a big favorite, but if you love the taste of smoked mozzarella then go for it otherwise you don’t lose or add much flavor if you opt not to. And I added more Pecorino Romano cheese, close to 1 1/4 cup of it because you can never have too much cheese, right? Also, I didn’t use Marsala wine, it was easier to use the Merlot we had sitting in the fridge.

When making the Timbale, I would strongly recommend you make sure your eggplant slices are thick (you want to aim for a quarter of an inch or thicker, don’t start make really thin slices) and don’t over grill them otherwise they will be too soft and might fall apart. But if that does happen, don’t worry because it still does turn out like the photo, it’s just harder to lay out the eggplant in the dish before baking.

Also, if you’re using just a store bought marinara, like I did, than I would taste it before you add it to your mixture. I tend to find store bought marinara a bit on the bland side, so I added some Italian seasoning and oregano to it in order to spice it up. And talking about spicing it up, if you want heat use spicy Italian sausage instead of mild. And if that’s not enough just pour some chili flakes into the mixture before baking.

Following Giada’s recipe you should create a beautiful dish like the photo. I was shocked when it I took it out, and flipped it onto a pizza pan (yes, that was the only thing large enough to hold it). It looked beautiful, you couldn’t tell that some of my eggplant had wholes or were torn apart by the time it came out. But the reason I stress making thick slices is that it did make it a very fragile dish, and juices were leaking out creating a bit of mess (another reason the pizza pan worked out). But otherwise, this was a stunning dish that actually tasted delicious!

The next time I make this dish, I plan to make a few more changes. Such as using a lean turkey meat instead of ground beef. Also, I want to try adding more veggies, I just haven't decided what would work and taste the best yet and it depands on the season. And I plan on adding some garlic. Gotta have garlic!