Ichiban Eggplant: It's What's for Dinner

The first Japanese eggplant 'Ichiban' were harvested from the garden this week.  I picked the eggplant when they were about six to eight inches long.  Often, it is difficult to gauge how much to plant  when it comes to vegetables because you definitely want enough to harvest at one time for dinner and more is always good too.  However, I have limited space, so I would prefer to not have an over abundance so that I can grow a larger variety of vegetables.  Of course, I don't want too little either. Nobody wants to split four green beans for dinner, ya know what I mean?

After I picked the four eggplant, I went to the computer and looked up Japanese eggplant recipes. The beauty of the internet is that it gives us instant access to what we need.  The recipe I decided to use was a Bobby Flay recipe from the Food Network website which can be found here.  I marinated the eggplant for an hour like the recipe called for and it added a lot of flavor.  Then you grill it for three minutes on each side and it's done. 

My family critics were mixed on the recipe.  I love eggplant, so I loved the recipe.  Others in our family that don't love eggplant so much didn't change their mind on the vegetable.  Next round of eggplant that I harvest, I'm going to try a diced and sautéed recipe.  Stay tuned!