Eggplants (as our American friends would say) or Aubergines (as our British friends would say) is one of my favourite fruits. Yes you read it correctly, I said a fruit! A berry, to be exact.

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Prepare It

To avoid discoloration, cut just before cooking. In the past, recipes called for eggplants to be sliced and salted before cooking to reduce their bitterness. As modern varieties are much less bitter that’s no longer necessary, unless you’re planning to fry them; eggplants soak up oil like a sponge and salting helps reduce that.

Store It

In the salad drawer of the fridge – they’ll keep for a couple of days.

Cook It

Eggplant is often found baked in a Greek moussaka or Provençale ratatouille; roasted and pureed with garlic, tahini, lemon juice, salt and cumin for the Middle Eastern dip, baba ghanoush or thinly sliced and fried to make aubergine crisps.

Our Top 3 Recipes:

Jamie Oliver’s Aubergine Lasagne

Ingredients

• 3 aubergines
• 3 cloves garlic peeled and sliced
• a few sprigs fresh thyme, leaves picked
• 1 dried red chilli , crumbled
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2×400 g organic tinned plum tomatoes
• 1 splash balsamic vinegar
• 1 bunch fresh basil , leaves picked and stalks chopped
• 150 g Cheddar cheese , grated
• 2 handfuls Parmesan cheese , grated
• 6-8 fresh lasagne sheets

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400ºF/gas 6. Steam the whole aubergines over a pan of simmering water for 30 minutes, then scoop out the flesh and cut it up roughly. Slowly fry the aubergine, garlic, thyme and chilli in the olive oil for around 10 minutes. 
2. Add the tins of tomatoes, chopping them up roughly with a wooden spoon, then add the balsamic vinegar and most of the basil leaves. Bring to the boil and simmer for around 10 minutes until the sauce has reduced and thickened. 
3. Spread a layer of aubergine sauce in a large, shallow dish. Sprinkle over some Cheddar and a handful of Parmesan, then spread over a layer of lasagne sheets. Repeat once or twice more, until your dish is full. Finish with a final sprinkling of Parmesan, a scattering of basil leaves and a drizzle of olive oil.
4. Place in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes until bubbling and golden.

I add in any other veggies left overs!

Food Matters Eggplant And Green Bean Curry

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil
• 6 small eggplants (aubergines), cut into 6 cm (21/2 inch) wedges
• 300 ml (101/2 fl oz) tomato passata (puréed tomatoes)
• 270 ml (91/2 fl oz) additive-free coconut milk
• 300 g (101/2 oz) green beans
• celtic sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper 80 g (23/4 oz/1/2 cup) activated almonds, roughly chopped, to serve
• handful of coriander (cilantro) leaves, chopped, to serve
• juice of 1lime
• lime halves, to serve

Curry paste 

• 1 large brown onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 thumb-sized pieces of ginger, chopped
• 1 large red chilli, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon cardamom
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon curry powder

Instructions

1. Place all the curry paste ingredients in a food processor with 2 tablespoons of filtered water and whizz together for a few seconds.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the coconut oil in a large frying pan over medium–high heat and fry the eggplants until browned. Remove from the pan and set aside on paper towel to drain.
3. Heat the remaining coconut oil in the pan and cook the curry paste ingredients for about 3 minutes. Add the eggplant and stir so it is well covered in the paste. Add the tomato passata and coconut milk and simmer, partially covered, for 10 minutes. Lastly, add the green beans and cook for a further 6 minutes.

Roasted Aubergine And Tahini Bowl By Deliciouslyella

Ingredients

• 2 large aubergines (eggplants)
• one 400g tin of black beans
• one bag of spinach (about 200g)
• a big handful of sunflower and pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 a cup of brown rice
• 4 tablespoons of tahini
• 2 tablespoons of tamari
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 lemon

Instructions

1. Start by placing the brown rice in a saucepan with boiling water and a tablespoon of tamari and allow it to simmer for about forty minute until cooked – make sure that it never runs out of water during this time. When it finishes cooking stir in two tablespoons of tahini, one more tablespoon of tamari and the lemon juice.
2. Once the rice has been cooking for fifteen minutes or so pre-heat the oven to 180C. Then cut the aubergines into thin slices, just a couple of mm’s thick.
3. Grease the bottom of a baking tray with olive oil and place the aubergine slices onto it, drizzle a little more olive oil onto them plus some salt and pepper and then put the tray into the oven for fifteen to twenty minutes until they are starting to go crispy – but not burnt!
4. Next, sauté the spinach – simply place it in a frying pan with a little olive oil, salt, pepper and a heaped tablespoon of tahini. Allow it to wilt for a few minutes.
5. Once the spinach has cooked peel and crush the garlic into a frying pan and add the beans (after draining them). Sauté for a couple of minutes until they are warm and delicious.
6. Finally toast the sunflower seeds for a minute or so in a frying pan.
7. Then place everything together in bowls, drizzling them with extra tahini, before serving and enjoying!

What’s your favorite recipe? Post below!

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