After refining my kabob recipe, it was time to delve blindly into a Persian dish I have never had, little less even seen a picture for. But the ingredients are good as well as the prescribed cooking method, so I figured I would try…

It all started with eggplant from my garden.

Add in tomatoes from my garden and eggs from farmer Kim. Then, while making this I also made a whole wheat version of taftoon, a Persian flatbread.

It was intense to do both, and as the Mirza Qasemi took shape I had to ask my husband, “does this look right?” “Does this taste right?” The answer to both was “yes” so here it is Mirza Qasemi a la Andrea’s kitchen.

It was even better than I had hoped – especially since I had no idea what I was shooting for, I just used my instincts and aimed for – tasting really good. Phew! It worked!

Mirza Qasemi

5-6 small eggplants (from the garden)

4 cloves of garlic, minced

3 eggs (from Farmer Kim)

2 medium tomatoes (from the garden), cut a small “x” into the bottom of each tomato

3 Tbsp canola oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions

Heat the oven to 400F.  Bake the eggplant until they are soft, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.

Remove the peel and cut off the stems. Chop.

Meanwhile, bring a small pot of water to boil and blanch the tomatoes for 2 minutes.  Drain and let cool slightly.  Peel the tomatoes and chop.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat,  cook the garlic for 1 minute.  Add eggplant and cook for 3 – 4 minutes. Add tomatoes,salt and pepper and cook until the excess water cooks off, about 5 – 10 minutes.

Beat the eggs well with a fork and add to the eggplants.  Mix and fry for 5 minutes.

Serve with rice or flatbread. Enjoy!

Serves 4