Curried Eggplant (aubergine) Strudel

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1 large eggplant, peeled, diced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 cup chopped canned tomato
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon powdered saffron
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 1/2 cup roasted peanuts, chopped
• 1 lb frozen phyllo dough
• 3/4 lb unsalted butter, clarified
• 1 cup plain yogurt

Recipe

• 1 toss the eggplant with the salt and set aside for 30 minutes.
• 2 wrap in a towel and squeeze out any excess moisture.
• 3 set aside.
• 4 in a skillet, saute the onion in the olive oil over medium heat until soft, about 2 minutes.
• 5 add the garlic, curry powder, cumin and chili powder, and cook 2 more minutes.
• 6 add the reserved eggplant, tomatoes and sugar.
• 7 mix the saffron into the vinegar and add to mixture.
• 8 simmer for 15 minutes, until the eggplant is soft.
• 9 add a bit of water if the mixture should become too dry.
• 10 add the peanuts and cool completely.
• 11 preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• 12 place a sheet of phyllo on a clean work surface and drizzle lightly with clarified butter.
• 13 layer five more sheets, drizzling a bit more butter atop each layer.
• 14 brush the top layer with butter.
• 15 place a quarter of the filling over the sheets, mounding more of it along one of the longer sides.
• 16 roll the sheets up jelly roll-style, starting at the edge with the mounded filling.
• 17 place seam-side down on a greased sheet pan and brush with more clarified butter.
• 18 make three more strudels using the rest of the phyllo and the remaining filling and butter.
• 19 on sheet pans, bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 25 to 30 minutes, moving the pans front to back and top to bottom halfway through.
• 20 let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
• 21 cut the strudel in 1-inch-thick slices and top with yogurt.