Caponata, Eggplant Relish

Prep time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Yield: Serves 8-10 as an appetizer.

INGREDIENTS
1 globe eggplant - about 1 lb, diced
Salt
4 Tbsp olive oil, divided
1 small onion, minced
1 celery stalk, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
4-6 plum tomatoes, finely chopped
1/2 cup pitted green olives, finely chopped
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
2 to 3 Tbsp small capers, drained
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 to 3 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1/4 cup chopped basil

METHOD
1 Toss the diced eggplant with about 2 tablespoons salt
and put into a large bowl. Cover the bowl with a plate
that just about fits the bowl and weigh it down with a
heavy can. Let this sit for 1 hour. Drain the eggplant,
rinse with fresh water and pat dry with paper towels.

2 Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high
heat. Add onion and celery, season with salt. Cook, stirring
occasionally until the onion begins to soften - about 5
minutes. Add the garlic. Cook 1-2 minutes more. Remove
from the skillet and set aside.

3 Wipe the pan with a paper towel, turn the heat to high
and add the remaining olive oil. Let this heat until the
oil is nearly smoking. Add the eggplant and spread it out
in as thin a layer as you can in the skillet. Let this
sizzle for 1-2 minutes before stirring, then let it sit
for a full minute before stirring again. Cook like this
for 5-6 minutes.

4 Add the onion-celery mixture, the tomatoes, olives,
pine nuts, capers and red pepper flakes. Stir well.
Add the vinegar, sugar and tomato paste and stir once
more. Cook, stirring occasionally until eggplant is
very soft, about 8 minutes.

5 Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
Mix in the basil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Caponata can be refrigerated, covered, up to 5 days.