It's the season to be overloaded with lots of great produce from your garden. In need of a new recipe? Here's how we are using up some of our extra eggplant. It's healthy and it's delicious!
Ingredients
6 long eggplants
1 tablespoon coarse salt
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for deep-frying
2-3 tablespoons of Zucchini Relish
3 eggs
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated, plus extra for sprinkling
6 1/2 cups fresh breadcrumbs
1 3/4 cups tomato sauce
Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Halve the eggplants lengthways, then scoop out the flesh, reserving the empty shells. Place the flesh in a bowl, add the coarse salt and cover with water. Leave to stand for 30 minutes. Drain well, then use your hands to squeeze out any remaining water.
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a saucepan and fry the eggplants flesh for about 5 minutes, until soft and lightly browned. Drain on paper towels, then place in a bowl. Add the relish, eggs, cheese and breadcrumbs to form a soft stuffing. Season to taste. Fill the reserved eggplant shells with the stuffing.
- Heat a 1-inch depth of oil in a frying pan or skillet until very hot. Put the filled shells in the pan, stuffing side down, and fry for about 3 minutes, until browned and heated through. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
- Pour the tomato sauce into an oven dish, arrange the fried eggplants in it, stuffing side up, and bake for 20 minutes. Allow to stand for 5 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan to serve.
Yield: 6 servings
Prep: About an hour (30 minutes + 30 minutes standing time)
Cook: 25 minutes