Tuesday 3 June 2008

Taking it Slow

I love cooking, I also love sleeping, reading and being slothful. I have no problem doing nothing, if there is nothing to do.

Sometimes I get in the mood to make something special, that doesn't necessarily take 5 minutes to throw together. Last night I got out my Silver Spoon and paged through the 2000 recipes, looking for a good vegetarian dish. My eyes fell to this...Parmigiana di melanzane.

For those who can't speak Italian, it is s a layered, baked dish of aubergines (brinjal) in a rich tomato sauce with parmesan and mozzarella.

I have made alterations to original, so I don't need to give the full credit.


Parmigiana di melanzane.

2 onions sliced
3 tins of peeled tomatoes
15ml Balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic
3 bay leaf
Jenny Morris Italiano Spice
Black Pepper and Salt
10ml Sugar
3 large brinjals, sliced into 1cm slices
100g Parmesan
250g mozzarella
2 eggs beaten

Pre-heat the oven to 180C.
Fry the onions until caramelized.
Add the balsamic vinegar, tomatoes, bay leaf, garlic, Italiano spice (about 15ml), black pepper, sugar and salt.
Cook the tomatoes uncovered until thick and reduced.
Meanwhile, fry the brinjals.
Once the tomatoes are cooked and thick, spoon a layer of the sauce at the bottom of an oven proof dish. (I used my very large pyrex).
Cover with a layer of brinjal slices and sprinkle with half the parmesan and mozzarella.
Pour over half the egg.
Repeat with another layer of brinjal and tomato sauce.
End with cheese and some egg.
Grind some more Italiano spice over the top.
Bake in a pre-heated oven for 25 - 30 minutes.

If your dish is deeper rather than wider, you can make as many layers as to use the ingredients.

This is a great autumn dish, can very easily be served as a main dish for vegetarians and as a side for carnivores! We had it with grilled fish and salad.

4 comments:

Kit said...

This is one of my favourite dishes to make when I have vegetarians to Sunday lunch. It's great as a main dish for them but also works brilliantly as a side dish with the Sunday roast for the carnivores. I don't make it often enough though, as frying all the aubergine slices takes so much oil and time.

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

I must confess that I had to Google the word brinjal from your last feta stuffed brinjal. Yumm. It did look like eggplant but I had to be sure. See I learn something new every day from blogging:D

Jeanne said...

This is also one of my favourites too - a bit of a fiddle to make but oh so woth it :) Yours looks delicious.

Marisa said...

"I love cooking, I also love sleeping, reading and being slothful. I have no problem doing nothing, if there is nothing to do."

Hahaha - that sounds like me!

Jeremiah 17: 7-8

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. He will be like a tree planted by the water."

It is not your business to succeed, but to do what is right : when you have done so, the rest lies with God.
C.S. Lewis

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