Roasted or grilled eggplant is an excellent ingredient for a grilled panini sandwich. Add some pesto or garlic aioli, provolone and a slice of tomato on ciabatta and you are good to go! I like leftover grilled eggplant on my burgers ;-)

Or you can try ratatouille, which is like a vegetable stew. Or eggplant hummus, aka babaganoush.

Simply slice them and drizzle with Olive oil, sprinkle with salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, garlic (or whatever kind of seasoning you like) and roast them in the oven or better yet grill them outside. Gardengal, we posted at the same time. But yeah, I forgot about babaganoush, yum. There are also some good Greek and Indian recipes using eggplant.

Just thinking of Ina's Orzo With Roasted Veggies. You can increase the amount of eggplant, if desired. (On a side note, I've often subbed asparagus for the eggplant...also good!)

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/orzo-with-roasted-vegetables-recipe-1951921

ETA - Haven't made this one but remembered it.

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/roasted-eggplant-spread-recipe-1942051

Pretty well the only way I like eggplant is in baba ganoush. That’s yummy!

I love eggplant! Home grown is much better than store bought, as long as you harvest it while fruits are young. Parmigiana is one of my faves, but it is rather labor intensive. Molly Katzen has a recipe in her Moosewood cookbook that calls for baking, rather than frying the breaded slices, and it comes out very yummy.

Sorry, I know that's no help to the OP. Would a saute with sausage and tomatoes over pasta be acceptable?

It is pretty yummy simply brushed with olive oil and grilled as well.

It's good on pizza too; I love thin, breaded pieces of fried eggplant on mine.

I see Baba Ghanoush has already been suggested. Here's another recipe for it:

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/eggplant-dip-baba-ghanoush-51121500

Here's a thread from a couple years ago with a lot of good ideas. https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/4779386/eggplant-please-share-your-favorite-way-to-cook-it#n=38

Grilled along with other vegetables, and used in orzo, in the recipe posted above, Or in a sandwich.

Another great recipe is Caponata. It's divine

OK - that photo did it!! I was talking myself into an eggplant panini when I first responded here. Now I definitely need to make one :-) Just gotta go fetch me an eggplant............

LOL!!!!

My favorite way is to slice the eggplant and salt each slice, then stack them up and put a heavy plate on top and let them weep for an hour. Drain and dip into flour and fry crisp in a mixture of oil and a little butter for flavor!

I'll put in another plug for baba ganoush. Score a couple of eggplants and grill until quite charred. Place a foil pouch or grill box with wood chips on the grill so that it gets smoky. then process the flesh with tahini, fresh or roasted garlic, lemon juice, salt and a bit of olive oil.(recipes online)

A quick snack or side is Persian Turmeric Eggplant: slice the eggplant into coins and put them into a hot skillet. Season the top side with turmeric, salt, pepper, thyme. When the bottom gets nice and crusty, flip and season the other side.

EDIT Oops, forgot to add a drizzle of olive oil along with the seasonings.

Woe is me, who have not any eggplant. Dang.

I grow the asian kinds as they are good for the 2 of us. Also you don't have to prep them (salt, peeling and resting) I'll toss them on the grill(sliced)with some sliced zuk, drizzled in OO and garlic, herbs if you have them.

I also make a ratatoule, stove top with EP, zuk, crookneck, onion, garlic, tomato, maybe some peppers if they're ripe and a little tomato sauce if needed. Takes about 20 minutes tops.

Lightly olive oil, S&P. Grill for 3-4 minutes per side, top with grilled Poblano pepper and a crumbly cheese like Feta.

Help!! I was going to make a twice baked eggplant recipe that I found. The eggplant skins were not as firm as the day picked. The recipe had you split the eggplants and bake them for 15 minutes, then scoop out the shells, make a filling etc. Anyway, when I tried to scoop out the shells there was no scooping. The pulp was stringy and fibrous. It was difficult to even attempt to cut the insides out.

So...did I not bake them long enough, were my eggplants too old or any other hints?

RlNmom, I wasn't sure at all but did a little checking. Are you using the more common "globe" eggplant? If so, I found one link from the Los Angeles Times that said they can be the most fibrous. The following came from Fine Cooking magazine. Focus on the second paragraph. Hopefully someone here can help more. I should add I've never made stuffed eggplant.

Western or globe eggplant is the most common and versatile variety, and you can find it year-round, though in most parts of the country, the peak season is late summer. Though it needs a little preparation, the reward is a succulent, silky treat. Globe eggplant is the most versatile variety, too—its larger size enables you to get slices and chunks. It varies in size from 3/4 pound to 1-1/4 pounds, with dark purple skin. A fresh globe eggplant has pale pulp with a few noticeable seeds, which darken and become bitter as the eggplant matures. Eggplant with parts of dark, hardened pulp with lots of dark seeds will be a disappointment—these parts must be removed; otherwise, the flavor and the texture of the finished dish will suffer.

The one type of dish for which globe eggplant isn’t so good is stuffed eggplant dishes, such as Turkey’s famed imam bayildi (pronounced AH-mahn by-yahl-deh), where you need smaller, individual eggplant for the look of the finished dish. Japanese eggplant is perfect for this; I can always be sure that the pulp will be tender and that the eggplant won’t need peeling or salting.

What ci_lantro posted works nicely. Just thinking...however I've prepared eggplant, I either slice or chop it before going further. Years ago I worked close to a restaurant that served the best eggplant dish. It was breaded and fried, then layered with bacon and a cheese sauce. I might be leaving something out but it was tasty.

Do you like Greek food? There are a lot of Greek dishes using eggplant. One of our favorites is Moussaka, which you can make with a bechamel sauce instead of a tomato sauce.

I had egg plant in a Thai green curry the other day and it was a nice addition.... just the ordinary globe kind cut into strips.

"One of our favorites is Moussaka, which you can make with a bechamel sauce instead of a tomato sauce."

It might be pretty rich with just the bechamel. I was going to suggest moussaka but wondered if the OP would be okay with the tomato part based on her original post. When I make moussaka it has tomatoes mixed with the lamb. Maybe the OP would be okay with that...? I add the bechamel sauce on top.

A side note...I know it's traditional with moussaka and other Middle Eastern dishes, but one thing I do always omit is the cinnamon. Just can't handle it with anything savory.

I grew up eating eggplant prepared like ci-lantro, but then it was served with a béchamel sauce that had catsup added to the sauce. I'm not sure why we didn't just use a tomato based sauce.

One of the best eggplant dishes I ever had was made by an Italian friend.....she sliced eggplant length wise , floured and fried in oil, spread with her "tomato gravy" and sprinkled with parmesan cheese and rolled it up....stand the rolls up in an 9 by 12 casserole, and when it's full of rolls, cover with more sauce and more parmesan cheese and bake. Oh My....but I suppose it was her wonderful gravy that made the dish!

FWIW, received this link to a 30 page slideshow in my email today from Martha Stewart Living. I like her recipes and use many, they're generally dependably good. Perhaps there might be one or two in this list that appeal:

Our Favorite Eggplant Recipes Try these eggplant recipes as a delicious way to enjoy the vegetable.

We like Wyatt's baked eggplant casserole -- in fact I wouldn't eat eggplant until I tried this recipe -- which follows.

But probably my favorite way to do it now is Ina's Eggplant Gratin -- https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/eggplant-gratin-recipe-1948026  WYATT'S (CAFETERIA) BAKED
EGGPLANT

1 lb. eggplant
1/2 lb. dry bread crumbs
1 sm. can evaporated milk
1/4 c. whole milk
1/4 c. each finely chopped green peppers, onion & celery
1/2 stick butter
2 beaten eggs
Salt & pepper to taste
Dash each of sage & monosodium glutamate
1 tsp. chopped pimento
2 oz. grated cheese

Peel a 1 pound eggplant. Soak it in salted water in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight. Soak a 1/2 pound dry bread crumbs in 1 small can of evaporated milk plus a 1/4 cup of whole milk. Saute green peppers, onion and celery in butter until tender. Boil the soaked eggplant until nearly tender; drain well.

Mix the bread crumbs, eggplant and sauteed vegetables. Add slightly beaten eggs, salt, pepper, sage, monosodium glutamate and chopped pimento. Blend well. Place in a greased casserole, top with grated cheese and bake in a 350 degree oven until golden brown.

The secret, the Wyatt's experts say, is in soaking the eggplant in the salted water before hand. Don't skip it.

I forgot. Here's an eggplant curry I sometimes make, no tomatoes. BBC says it's the oldest known curry recipe:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-36415079

But if you allow tomatoes, then imam bayildi, involtini, and baingan bharta are all well worthwhile.

CarolB, thanks for the link. Several looked interesting. I'm trying again today as we have a few ripe on the vine. Hopefully better luck than the other day! Will post results.......if it turns out good!

"But probably my favorite way to do it now is Ina's Eggplant Gratin --"

Another good one, Martha. Most of Ina's gratins are. :-)

sausage stuffed eggplant ...

I made the Grilled Ratatouille Muffaletta from the Martha Stewart Living collection linked above. I got a Rosemary Olive Oil loaf of bread from Target. They did not have anything round. DH really liked it, it was very flavorful but boy was it messy to eat! The layers slid everywhere.

He said I could make it again in a day or two. He has plans later tonight for the leftovers.

Baba Ganoush or Pasta alla Norma.

Pasta alla Norma (the recipe in the first comment is very good)

Hey, guys, i came across this interesting video of how to make a delicious baked eggplant parmesan https://dausel.co/ntqlk3

Jerzeegirl, hit a paywall with your recipe.

Is this video close?

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I found this recipe today and may try it.

Smoky Baba Ganouj with Pomegranate Drizzle

Last time I made EP parm (I know you don't like the tomato sauce, but it might work for another type of dish), I did the flour, egg, panko, then sprayed with PAM and air fried the EP! Turned out crispy and yummy!

I thought of this thread yesterday because I had a wonderful salad that just said it had eggplant in it, but what they did was to slice it super thin, cut into small pieces, bread and fry it. It was like really excellent croutons. I thought they probably used a mandoline, but my nephew the chef looked at the eggplant and very thin red onion and said they had been sliced on the big meat slicer.

Chloebud, I’m going to try the orzo with roasted vegetables recipe. Thanks.

Here’s another old thread with a group of eggplant recipes. Eggplant Cookalong