Eggplant Fries

There are several interactions with my mom that have happened during my lifetime that I'm not proud of. One, which makes me hang my head in shame, is the time that she needed her appendix out, and I took her to the hospital and dropped her off at the front door of the emergency department! It was only two years ago now that we (the boy and I) had our appendix(es) out the same weekend (yes, we did), and I know now that it's not very nice to leave someone you care about alone to fend for themselves at the hospital. She worked at the same hospital at the time. But still! I can't believe I did that.

The other one that sticks firmly in my mind is the night, when I was probably about 10 years old, when my mom prepared eggplant parmesan for dinner. Now that I'm older, and have a thing for food made in the parmesan/parmigiana style, I understand how much work she put into it. Now, 10 year olds are not known for either their tact, or their unending grace in the face of trying new foods. I was a pretty typical kid. I remember arguing that there didn't seem to be eggs in the dish she served, nor did there appear to be any plants in it. I was so confused by what she was saying about this eggplant thing, and then I just threw her explanation out the window when she said it was purple! I remember eating the pasta sauce and melted cheese and liking it well enough, but being so utterly confused that mom was insisting the dish contained "eggplant."

She never made it again. I think we little ruffians were hard on her. And it can take some effort to prepare a meal like that. She stuck to spaghetti after that.

I've apologized for both of my grevious errors, and my mom just laughs now. She understands that we're friends, but that I'm still a few years behind her in the life experience department. She's such a woman of charm and wit, but with plenty of wisdom twinkling out of her laughing eyes.

We got an eggplant from the food co-op, and of course your typical parmesan came to mind. But, I also had another thought spark into my head. Fries.

Fortunately, I mark them up as a huge success. They may just convince me to buy an eggplant next time I'm at the store, rather than wait for one to come to me via food co-op or otherwise. If you need a go-to recipe for eggplant, this could be your one.

Eggplant Fries

1 medium eggplant, sliced into 1/4 inch x 4 inch slices
salt
1 egg
1/4 cup milk or non-dairy milk
1/3 cup cornmeal
1/3 cup sorghum/sweet rice flour (combine the two)
1/2 teaspoon salt
dash of smoked paprika
dash of Italian seasoning
dash of garlic powder
dash of black pepper

Peel and slice the eggplant, and set it in a colander in the sink. There will be little seeds inside, but you don't need to worry about them. Sprinkle the slices with salt, and toss around, and then leave for 30 minutes to sweat. "Sweating" is important when preparing eggplant. The salt helps to extract the water.

After 30 minutes, rinse the eggplant sticks off with water, and then spread on a paper-towel covered plate. Pat them dry with paper towels.

In one bowl, beat the egg into the milk. In another bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour and seasonings. Heat oil in a shallow pan on high heat. Dredge the eggplant slices in the egg mixture, then in the flour mixture.

Carefully fry the eggplant slices for 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and crispy. Serve hot.

Check out other gluten free appetizers.