This Saturday, October 3, Chinese families all across the world will be celebrating The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival. This holiday celebrates the date that parallels the autumn and spring Equinoxes of the solar calendar, when the moon is supposedly at its fullest and roundest.

Traditionally, Chinese families gather together for a huge feast and eat traditional moon cakes together. Moon cakes are a Chinese pastry, with a thick filling usually made with lotus seed paste and a salted duck yolk. In addition, traditional Chinese dishes such as Shrimp and Vegetable Stir Fry (my mom makes the best!), Boiled Chicken with Ginger Sauce and Pork with Braised Mushrooms are shared between friends and family. I am looking forward to  going home for a great meal!

To celebrate the different and unique flavors that Asian feasts bring, I am featuring a recipe from Anna Olson’s  new book Fresh with Anna Olson in stores in October. Anna takes two of my favorite ingredients, eggplant and scallops and makes a wonderful dish that can be used as an appetizer or an entrée.
Enjoy!

Miso Grilled Eggplant & Scallops

This dish suits fall because of the earthy richness that the miso glaze builds in. This can be served as an entrée or a starter course.
Serves 6 as an appetizer, 4 as an entrée

1/2 cup (125 mL)    light miso paste (found at Asian food stores or health food stores)
2 Tbsp (30 mL)    honey
2 Tbsp (30 mL)    mirin or sake
2    Japanese eggplants
1 lb (500 g)    large sea scallops (dry-pack frozen)
1 Tbsp (15 mL)    lightly toasted sesame seeds

For the glaze, stir together all the ingredients and chill until ready to use.
Preheat the grill to high heat.
Slice the eggplant on the bias into 1/2-inch-thick (1 cm thick) pieces. Grill them until they’re soft and showing grill marks, about 3 minutes, then turn them over. Brush the glaze on the cooked side of the eggplants, then turn over to cook for 1 minute while glazing the second side and turn over once more to cook the glaze. Remove the eggplant from the grill and set it aside on a platter. Use this same method with the scallops.
Serve the eggplant and scallops warm and garnished with sesame seeds.

FRESH TAKE:
•    After a summer of barbecue sauce, this miso glaze is refreshing. It still has all the important elements of a good barbecue sauce—salt, sweet, and tart—but the fermented soybean-based miso gives it a depth that suits cooler weather.
•    I’m a big fan of Japanese eggplant. Its long, slender shape and bright purple hue present beautifully. Its white flesh is milder than an Italian eggplant, and the skin is thinner and more tender.
•    Mirin is a rice wine, just like sake, but with a low alcohol content and added sweetness. If you use regular sake, you may find you need to add a little extra honey to taste.