Grilled Eggplant and Greek Grilling Cheese Tower with a Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Summer is a time for grilling and how appropriate to grill vegetables and cheese. Yes, cheese too! And it is not a grilled cheese sandwich! (However a Greek Grilled Cheese Sandwich might be next on the agenda.) The tower is constructed of ingredients that complement each other perfectly. This recipe can be made regardless of the season or if Mother Nature is not cooperating by using a grill pan.

There are various Greek grilling cheeses and our favorites are Halloumi® and kessari you will see many dishes throughout our site featuring these types of Greek grilling cheeses. Greek grilling cheese is unique in that it maintains its shape during the grilling process. Yes, we are saying slice it and place it directly on the grill! You will be amazed at the flavor! Tower amounts will make one tower as shown, however you will have remaining ingredients to make 4 towers. The sauce will yield enough for all 4 towers.

Ingredients

Eggplant and Cheese
2 slices of Halloumi® Greek grilling cheese (about 1/4 of an inch thick) or your favorite Greek or other grilling cheese
2 slices of an eggplant peeled and sliced (about 1/2 inch thick)
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
A sprinkle of kosher salt
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
1 – 7 oz. jar of roasted red peppers unseasoned in water and drained
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt

Technique

Make sauce by adding all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside. Sauce will yield about 1 cup.

Prepare eggplant and add olive oil and salt. Cut cheese into slices. Preheat a grill or grill pan to medium low heat. Grill eggplant on each side for about 2 1/2 minutes for a total of about 5 minutes. Grill cheese for about 1 minute on each side for a total of 2 minutes. Remove eggplant from grill and remove cheese and place directly onto eggplant slices. If you are using kessari cheese it will take about 1 minute total time over low heat. Watch very carefully, because it cooks much faster. Plate by placing 1 tablespoon of sauce on the bottom of a plate, add 1 slice of eggplant with the cheese and the remaining slice with the cheese and top with 1 tablespoon of sauce. Add more sauce if desired.

Suggested Beverage

Try Bogle Vineyards Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley), Straccali Chianti or Gabbiano Chianti (Italy), Peroni beer or try a seasonal one by Samuel Adams®.

Chatty Advice

When making any of our gluten-free recipes take care in reading the labels of any packaged or canned products. If there is a label on anything you are using, read it or ask to make sure that it is indeed gluten-free. Many products vary in ingredients from brand to brand. Some examples of this can be found when looking at the labels of soy sauce, mustard, distilled vinegar, and even chicken broth.

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