Eggplant Parmigiana
This recipe is vegetarian and gluten free. It’s lovely and filling – real comfort food. And totally reminiscent of Italy.
As always: if any of these ingredients are flare foods for you, please omit them or replace them with an alternative item.
Ingredients
- 3 large eggplants
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 220g fontina cheese (I use mozzarella if you cant find fontina)
- 3 tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 85g ricotta cheese, crumbled
- Handful basil leaves
For the Tomato Sauce- 600g tinned tomatoes
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Prep Time
10-15 minutes
Cooking Time
65-75 minutes
Serves
4
Method
- Preheat oven to 200 degrees
- To make the tomato sauce, simmer the tomatoes in a saucepan over medium heat for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the garlic and olive oil. Season with salt and set aside.
- Heat the grill to medium.
- Place the eggplant onto lightly greased baking trays, drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Grill for 2-3 minutes on each side, on until golden and softening.
- Loosely cover with cling film and leave to cool on the trays.
- To assemble the parmigiana, ladle a spoonful of the tomato sauce into the base of a 30cm round of ovenproof dish.
- Layer one-third of the eggplant on top, add half the fontina and a light covering of parmesan. Repeat.
- Top with the remaining tomato sauce and eggplant, and finish with the ricotta, basil and a generous sprinkling of parmesan.
- Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for a further 30 minutes, or until golden and bubbling.
- Leave to stand for a few minutes before serving.
As always: if any of these ingredients are flare foods for you, please omit them or replace them with an alternative item.