A great southern Italian classic: melt-in-your-mouth eggplant slices, a basil-scented tomato sauce, mozzarella, and parmesan, baked until they form a golden crust. Rich, simple, and deeply comforting.
Ingredients
- 4 pieces eggplants
- 700 g plain tomato puree
- 250 g fior di latte mozzarella
- 100 g grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 50 cl olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 bunch fresh basil
- to taste fine salt
- to taste ground black pepper
Method
- Cut the eggplants lengthwise into even slices, salt them lightly, and let them release their water until the surface beads and softens.
- Carefully blot the eggplant slices with paper towels: they must be dry to the touch to fry without soaking up oil.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet, then fry the eggplants in small batches until golden, tender, and pliable. Drain them on paper towels.
- In a saucepan, lightly brown the garlic in a drizzle of olive oil, add the tomato puree, salt, pepper, and torn basil, then simmer until you get a thicker, fragrant sauce.
- Spread a thin layer of tomato sauce on the bottom of a baking dish, then alternate layers of eggplant, sauce, drained mozzarella, and parmesan, lightly pressing down each layer.
- Finish with a layer of sauce, parmesan, and a few pieces of mozzarella, then bake until the top is gratined, bubbling around the edges, and deeply golden.
- Let rest out of the oven before serving, until the layers hold together better and the flavors meld.
- Serve warm rather than piping hot, with a few fresh basil leaves and a grind of black pepper.
Nutrition
Per serving
- Energy
- 480.6 kcal
- Protein
- 20.97 g
- Carbohydrate
- 11.08 g
- Fat
- 39 g
- Fibre
- 3.49 g
- Calcium
- 169.44 mg
- Iron
- 0.3 mg
- Magnesium
- 11.06 mg
