Eggplant roll-ups with chicken and tomato butter
Ingredients
- 3 oz. 85 g butter, at room temperature
- ½ tsp ½ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tsp 1 tsp red wine vinegar
- 1 pinch 1 pinch ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp 1 tbsp paprika powder
- ½ tsp ½ tsp onion powder
- 1½ lbs 650 g eggplant
- 8 oz. 230 g cream cheese
- 2 cups (8 oz.) 475 ml (220 g) mozzarella cheese, shredded
- ½ cup (11⁄3 oz.) 120 ml (40 g) shredded Parmesan cheese
- 4 tbsp 4 tbsp fresh basil or fresh parsley
- 1 1 eggeggs
- 1 tsp 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- 1 cup 240 ml tomato sauce, unsweetened
- 2 tbsp 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 lbs 900 g chicken breast, bone-in with skinchicken breasts, bone-in with skin
- 2 tbsp 2 tbsp butter or olive oil, for frying
Per serving
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients for the tomato butter in a small bowl and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Cut the eggplant lengthwise, into 1/2" (about 1 cm) thick slices, and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Salt and let sit for 10 minutes. Dry off excess liquid with a paper towel or a clean kitchen towel.
- Place the eggplant on the middle oven rack, and bake for 20 minutes, or until the eggplant is lightly browned and softened. Remove from the oven and let cool.
- Increase the oven temperature to 400°F (200°C).
- Combine the cream cheese, 2/3 shredded mozzarella cheese, 2/3 parmesan, basil, egg, salt, and pepper in a medium-sized bowl.
- Evenly spread half of the tomato sauce over the base of a 13"x9" (33 x 23 cm) baking dish.
- Spread the cheese mixture over the eggplant slices. Roll up and place the roll-ups seam down, in the baking dish.
- Spread the rest of the tomato sauce over the roll-ups, and sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese on top. Drizzle the olive oil over the entire dish.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown and bubbling.
- Meanwhile, season the chicken with salt and pepper, and fry in olive oil or butter until golden on the outside, and cooked through.
- Serve the chicken topped with the tomato butter and the eggplant roll-ups, on the side.
Tip!
Try adding finely diced cherry tomatoes to the tomato butter in place of the tomato paste. It’s the perfect way to add a touch of garden freshness!
Omitted the mozzarella as we had none in the cupboard, so I just used; cream cheese, cheddar and parmesan.
400g of tinned tomatoes cooked on the stove with some salt & pepper, basil leaves and a few pinches of sweetener was the base of my tomato sauce. I did also grind some star anise, coriander seeds and cloves into the sauce to match the ketchup recipe also on this site, for some extra bang.
Love it!
I had no tomato sauce; I mixed a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste into a sauce my husband made earlier by blending red and green capsicums and fresh basil. I also laid two thinly-sliced large garlic cloves on the bottom layer of sauce before adding the eggplant rolls. Definitely going to make this again.
Merci