I made this for the first time last night and it was EPIC! It was so good that I had to share it with everyone.


Ingredients

* 1 eggplant, cut into 1 inch cubes
* 1/4 cup olive oil
* 1 cup chopped onion
* 5 cloves garlic, chopped
* 1/2 cup Basmati rice
* 1 zucchini, cut into large chunks
* 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
* 3 fresh tomatoes, diced
* 1 cup Marsala wine
* 1 1/2 cups water
* 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
* 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
* 1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped

Directions

1. Place eggplant in a colander and sprinkle with salt.
2. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven or large pot. Rinse eggplant and pat dry. Saute until slightly browned. Stir in onion and saute until transparent. Stir in garlic and saute for 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Stir in rice, zucchini, red bell pepper, tomatoes, wine, water, salt and red pepper flakes. Cook over medium-high heat until mixture reaches a low boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.
4. Remove from heat and stir in basil, parsley and rosemary.


Changes I made:
I substituted a dry white wine (2 buck Chuck Sauvignon Blanc) for the Marsala, added celery, and sauteed the eggplant separately. I added the eggplant with 15 minutes cooking time left because i was worried it would be too soggy if I added it at the beginning. I also used dried herbs instead of fresh and it turned out great! I just cut down on the amounts.

In the future, I will plan on adding some beans and serving with some fresh bread!

My DH is a meat and potatoes guy and he LOVED this recipe so much that he took the leftovers for lunch today!