Eggplant Parmesan Soup

While thumbing through a magazine I came across an advertisement from Berolli that contained a recipe for Eggplant Parmesan Soup.  The title and the beautiful photgraph caught my eye and I stopped to read the advertisement.  Some of the most spectaular dishes I have served have come from advertisements so I decided to read on.   Since the recipe was designed to promote Bertolli products it contained a very specific product list in the decsription of the ingredients.  When I read promotional types of recipes a number of thoughts go through my head: did they pick a specific ingredient because it helped create a better dish or because it was on their promotion list, are there substitutes that would taste better, are they trading convenience for flavor, could the idea of this dish be improved.

The concept of Eggplant Parmesan Soup appealed to me.  While I tend to be fairly lazy and have no objection to the  use of prepared ingredients, it tends to be when a fresh item is not available or the pre-packaged is just better than I can readily make.  There didi not appear to be any ingredient in the promotional recipe that could not be changed so I  set off to create my own recipe.

Printable recipe

Eggplant Parmesan Soup

 Ingredients

1 pound eggplant, peeled and diced

1 medium onion, diced

1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes

2 cups vegetable stock

2 teaspoons dry basil

2 teaspoons dry oregano

Salt

Pepper

4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

4 tablespoons Italian seasoned dry breadcrumbs

4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

 Method

1. Heat olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat.  Saute the eggplant, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes.
2. Add onion and continue cooking 7 to 10 minutes.  The eggplant and onions should be soft and golden brown.
3. Stir in tomatoes, stock, seasonings.
4. Bring to a boil over high heat.  Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes.  Stir frequently.
5. To serve:  Pour soup into oven-proof bowls, top with bread crumbs, mozzarella and parmesan.  Place under the broiler for about 2 minutes, till the cheese is melted and golden.