Sunday, January 11, 2009

A is for aubergine

I have always loved vegetables. I am probably the only person in Britain who has fond memories of school cabbage. I am still following recipes from the wartime and austerity period cookery books on several days each week but I like to cook some of our favourite dishes on the other days and these are usually vegetable dishes of one kind or another. There is always a large pan of vegetable stew on the Aga through the winter and we love stuffed or baked vegetables.

I wonder if I could work my way through the alphabet, starting with A for aubergine? Of course, I could use the same recipe later as E for eggplant! You may note that my food is appreciated for its flavour and not for its appearance - presentation is not my strong point.
Slice the aubergines in half and scoop out the flesh. Place the shells in a roasting pan, brush them with a little oil and bake them in a warm oven while you prepare the filling.

Finely chop a small onion, the aubergine flesh, a few mushrooms and a clove of garlic and sauté
in a little oil. (I prefer chilli infused olive oil)

Fill the baked aubergine shells with the cooked mixture. Top with cheese of your choice (I used slices of low fat mozzarella for this version) and return to the oven for about 15 minutes until the cheese is brown and bubbling.

Serve with a leafy green vegetable.

8 comments:

  1. Thanks for a tasty recipe! I usually avoid stuffed veggies, I'm not in favor of fiddling with the food, but this sounded so good (and my mother did the scooping) and so easy.
    I'll do a B-dish tomorrow - the beets are cooked and will end up in a quiche together with some feta cheese and thyme.
    Margaretha

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  2. Margaretha, I like easy cooking. I will look forward to your recipe for beets. I get a regular supply of them in my veg box but only roast them. It will be good to try something different. Thyme is my favourite herb. I have lots of varieties.

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  3. We eat dinner early, so tomorrow afternoon I'll know if it is good or not. Beets - we mainly get red beets here although the once I bought today was the striped yellow and red kind - are one of our favorite vegetables so I have a few standard dishes that I can share.
    Margaretha

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  4. oooh, yummy. I will try this when I'm on my own sometime - my silly family don't like aubergines, but I love 'em!

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  5. You might like to do the quick version if it is just for one, Juliet. Score the skin of the aubergine with a sharp knife, microwave for a couple of minutes until soft. Cut in half, scoop out the flesh which you then chop and sauté with onion, mushrooms etc. Fill the shell and cook as per recipe but it all takes much less time. The main difference is that the slow method gives a crisp, edible skin.

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  6. Oh, my gosh that looks and sounds wonderful and I'm not even an eggplant - oops, aubergine fan! I think your 'presentation' is superb, inviting, and appealing. I think I'm going to try this, and I know a couple other people might too. I'll call it Monix' alphabet vegetables. :<) (is that okay? Would you rather I not mention you at all?)

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  7. Do please get people involved, Nan. The more the better. I love sharing recipes. I have won great favour with an American friend who tried my choc chip cookies from your recipe. She said they taste just like her Mom's.
    Maureen

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  8. How about you come up with a name??

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I love to read your comments and promise that I will reply as soon as I can leave my garden, sewing room or kitchen!