Baked stuffed aubergines (melanzane al forno)

(Serves 4)

Ingredients

2 large or 4 small aubergines weighing about 750 g total
150 g minced beef
60 g pecorino or parmesan cheese
30 g black olives
100 g sliced bread from a crusty dense loaf
3 vine-ripened tomatoes
2 garlic cloves
1 tbsp concentrated tomato paste
2tsp dried oregano
2 eggs
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

Note: for the cooking time, adjust the time downwards if you are using 4 small aubergines rather than 2 large ones.

Method

1. preheat the oven to 200C and bake the whole aubergines for 12-20 minutes according to size, till softened.
2. When you take out the aubergines, put your sliced bread in the oven and leave to toast till quite dry, about 5-7 minutes.
3. Remove - but leave the oven on - and break into smaller pieces then place in the food processor. Whiz till you have fine breadcrumbs.
4. Once the aubergines are cool, cut each in half horizontally, also through the stalks if possible. With a small sharp knife scoop out the flesh, leaving a shell about 5mm thick. Chop the aubergine flesh scooped from the centre into very small dice (see tips).
5. Cut the garlic in half and remove the green shoot if any. Crush one of the cloves lightly and chop the other very fine. Peel and de-seed the tomato then chop the flesh into small dice. Slice the flesh from the olives in slivers (see tips).
6. Place the crushed garlic clove in a frying pan with the cold olive oil and colour till palest gold on low heat. Discard the garlic clove, add the beef mince, turn up the heat and brown well. Add the tomatoes, aubergine, oregano, tomato concentrate and the minced garlic clove, season and simmer uncovered for 10-12 minutes or till well-reduced.
7. Add a little water if needed to keep the mixture simmering rather than drying out. While it simmers, grate the cheese and mix with the breadcrumbs. Slice the olives into very small slivers.
8. Separate the two eggs, reserve the egg whites, and mix the two yolks into the meat aubergine mixture after it has been left to cool a little, making sure they are very well amalgamated.
9. Tip about 2/3 of the breadcrumb/cheese mix into the aubergine mixture with the sliced olives. The mix should be a little wet but not sloppy or runny - if it is, add more breadcrumbs and/or cheese, if too dry add a little water.
10. Fill the aubergine shells with the mixture and flatten the top. Whisk up the egg whites on a plate using a knife or fork, till they are a little frothy, then take each filled aubergine in your hand and press filling-side down into the egg whites.
11. Sprinkle with the remaining breadcrumb mixture, pressing down so it sticks well, place in a lightly-oiled baking dish and bake for 30-40 minutes. Flash under a hot grill for 3 minutes until the topping is brown and crisp. Leave to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving (see tips).

Tips

Dry peeling tomatoes: if the tomatoes have ripened on the plant in strong sun, they have a thick peel that is easily removed without blanching. Just rub all over the tomato with the back of a knife to loosen the skin from the flesh, then use the pointed tip to lift off the skin.

Removing the aubergine flesh you may prefer to use a spoon to scoop out the flesh, a grapefruit spoon is ideal. The smaller you chop the dice, the better amalgamated your filling will be.