Aubergine Parmigiana
... an Italian classic with smashed roast baby potatoes
Parmigiana di melanzane (Aubergine parmigiana) is a beautiful Italian dish made up of layers of homemade tomato sauce, griddled aubergine and parmesan (parmigiana). Topped with crispy bread crumbs and mozzarella cheese, or any cheese you can find at the moment, I used taleggio and it was amazing! I serve this with smashed salty baby potatoes that have been roasted with crispy edges and sprinkled with fresh parsley. I also made a side salad!
I hope you love this incredibly satisfying and easy dish!
Alice x
Ingredients
VEG, Serves 3-4
Aubergine parmigiana
3 Aubergine, sliced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
1-2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh oregano (1 tsp dried)
2 tins of chopped tomatoes
splash of white wine vinegar
a generous handful of fresh basil, chopped
parmesan, grated
bread crumbs (I used panko, but blending slices of stale bread works too)
ball of mozzarella, sliced
Smashed baby potatoes
500g new/baby potatoes, halved
3 tbsp olive oil
pinch sea salt and pepper
handful fresh parsley, chopped
Method
Heat oven to 190. (If making the potatoes heat to 220 and cook the aubergine on a lower shelf and keep an eye on it, using tin foil if needed) I have an aga so I can't choose the temperature so I'm sorry for the confusion here!
Start by griddling the aubergine slices, I use a grooved dish on the top of the aga to char stripes onto the aubergine, but you could do this with a flat pan too. Place these in a bowl and leave on the side.
Making the tomato sauce. Start by heating the oil in a pan then add the onions, garlic and oregano, cooking for 3 mins or until the onion is softened. Now add the chopped tomatoes and leave to simmer for 15 mins. After simmering add a splash of white wine vinegar and the basil, season with salt and pepper to taste.
If making the potatoes, start making them here so they are in the oven before you build the aubergine parmigiana. See below in blue for the details.
Building the dish. Spread some of the tomato sauce on the bottom of an ovenproof dish, followed by a layer of grated parmesan, then lay out the aubergine slices very slightly overlapping each other. Repeat this order: tomato sauce, parmesan, aubergine until you run out of aubergine and sauce but finishing with tomato sauce followed by parmesan at the top. Sprinkle the dish generously with breadcrumbs, covering it well, then top with slices of mozzarella. A final drizzle of olive oil is nice here then bake in the oven for 30 mins. Take out of the oven and serve with some fresh basil, enjoy! x
If making the potatoes, mix them well in a roasting tray with the olive oil, and salt. Place in the oven for 30 mins, until soft and golden. Take out of the oven and crush each potato with the back of a fork and sprinkle again with salt. Place back in the oven for 10 minutes more to crisp up. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with fresh parsley, yum!