Josephine Caravetta's Pickled Eggplant

Ingredients:

• 6 Eggplants
• Kosher Salt
• White or Cider Vinegar
• 3 - 4 cloves garlic, sliced thin
• One bunch parsley, minced
• Some mint, minced (Optional, but nice)
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/4 green bell pepper, minced

Preparation:

Continuing the tinroduction, Anne says, "Dear Kyle, Here is my grandmother's recipe for pickled eggplant. If I remember right, Nonni would put up dozens of jars at a time -- it takes me a good two hours just to pickle 6 eggplants! I admire her stamina. I'm sure she must have canned them, because the jars sat on shelves in her basement. Being a modern women, this art is lost to me, so I just make two jars at a time and keep them in the refrigerator. Sometimes these last for a year, and as long as I pour some olive oil on top of the eggplant each time we use it, they are fine." And now the recipe:

1. Slice the eggplant thinly, and cut the slices into thin strips
2. Layer the strips in a colander and mix with some Kosher Salt. Place the colander in the sink, put a dish on top of it, and put something heavy on top of the dish to weigh it down. This helps take the bitterness out of the eggplant.
3. After one hour, squeeze the eggplant (Nonni's instructions -- gets the bitter juices out).
4. Take a large pot and put in the eggplant. Cover with a ratio of 2 cups of water to 1 cup of the vinegar. Bring to a boil. As soon as it boils, shut the heat off and allow the eggplant to cool in the water.
5. In a large bowl place the sliced garlic, chopped herbs, red pepper, green pepper. Squeeze as much water out of the eggplant as you can, and place it in the bowl. Pour in some extra virgin olive oil (at least a cup) and a 1/4 cup of vinegar. Stir well. Place the eggplant in a jar (I use Mason jars, as did Nonni), pressing down to remove any air. Leave about an inch at the top, and pour in some olive oil so that all the eggplant is submerged. Cover with a lid, and let marinate for one month in the refrigerator. Mangia!

I think that the green pepper really gives these eggplant a wonderful, subtle taste. I hope this recipe is similar to what your reader is asking for.

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