Stuffed Eggplant Roundels

Last evening, I got late at work; really late. To top it off, there were no left overs for dinner. Now, I am not big on eating out. So I had to come up with a plan. Dal - roti is always an option, albeit a boring one. So, I go through the fridge and come up with a single smallish white baingan (eggplant / aubergine). Growing up, I never ate this veggie, purple or white. Not be cause of any prejudices on my part, but just because the Jain community in India shuns it for religious reasons and does't even buy it. I've heard explanations range from it being absolutely nutition-less, to that it is filled with worms inside. My Naani (grandma) was actually convinced that worms grow out of nothing inside this oblong object! But here in US, eggplants herald arrival of summer. And I had actually bought this little guy from an organic produce shop. Now the only problem was, I didn't know what to do with my only fair one! I've learnt how to make baingan-bharta, but for that I had to have the purple kind. I have never eaten a white eggplant before so squishing off its taste in a pureed, over spiced dish like bharta didn't appeal. As I mulled over my dilemma, I sort of remembered a stuffed lauki recipe that I'd read about here . So, the recipe was born. I didnot have the original recipe printed out, so I worked by memory. And I am glad to inform you, that it turned out pretty well!

Stuffed Eggplant Roundels

White eggplant 1 
Smallish Potato 1 medium, boiled and mashed 
 Ginger 1tbsp grated 
Onion 1/4 cup, chopped fine 
Amchoor powder 1/2 tsp 
Turmeric powder 1/4 tsp 
  Salt 1/2 tsp/ to taste  
Red chilli powder 1/2 tsp / to taste
Cumin seeds 1/4 tsp  

Garnish (Optional)
  Onion 1/4 cup chopped  
Tomato 1 small, chopped 
Cilanthro  

1. First thing I did was to cut the eggplant into thick round slices (about 1/2 inch thick). Scoop out the flesh, making little bowl like indentations. I used a spoon for this. 
2. Soak the slices in a cup of water with 1 tbsp salt for about 5 min. 
3. Now chop up the scooped out eggplant and mix with mashed potatoes.
4. In a heavy bottomed pan, add 1tsp oil, and cumin seeds to splutter. Then add, your potato, eggplant mixture and all the powdered spices. Saute for 2 minutes or so and allow to cool slightly.  
5. Drain the eggplant roundels, and pat dry with a kitchen towel. 
6. Fill the stuffing inside your eggplant roundels. You will get something looking like the pic on your left. 
7. Now, the next step can either be inside an oven at 375 degrees or the traditional stove top way like I did. I heated 1tbsp oil in a kadai and cooked these roundels on low heat. Insert a tooth pick to check when the eggplant is done. This takes about 15-20 min. You don't need to flip them over. 
8. Finally, in a separate pan, saute some onions and tomatoes in a dash of oil. Sprinkle this garnish on top of the eggplant roundels for that extra texture. Add a cilantro leaves on top for color. And I was happy. I had an accompaniment to my dal-roti-dahi dinner!