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| Recipe of the week... ... Aubergine Parmigiana & Pesto Bruschetta |
Ingredients: 1 tin of chopped tomatoes, 3 garlic cloves, 125g
mozzarella, 1 red onion, 20g fresh basil leaves, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1
teaspoon dried oregano, 1 aubergine, 1 vegetable stock cube, 2 ciabatta rolls, 35g Italian hard cheese, olive
oil, sugar, salt & pepper
Dietary: Vegetarian
Serves: 2
Time taken: 1 hour max
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Hi readers,
Hope you’re all well and having lovely weekends... enjoying the
sunshine! We’ve been out in the sun maybe a little too much, according to the
Vegan Mr’s sunburn, but it has to be done eh?? Brits and all that.
My attempt at a Dry July has crashed after 2 weeks, with a
delicious glass of red wine last night (… no regrets), and I also crashed my car
into a metal pole this week – in an early morning attempt to reverse. Never reverse
before coffee, readers, if your skills behind the wheel are as sketchy as mine.
Luckily, neither myself nor the pole were harmed on this occasion.
And I’ve made it through the week, this week, without killing any goldfish.
Thank god. But how about you, readers?? Have you crashed through the week with
untold destruction along the way? Or has it been a peaceable week in the
history of you? How have things been?
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Food for thought -
This week, readers, I have some stuff to recommend for you which
has popped up on my ChefBeHere-ing
radar. Over the past week I’ve been…
Listening
To
my new running playlist
Having spent weeks trying to skip songs with sweaty hands, while
on the go on a run, I finally sat down and fixed a fresh running playlist. The
old one had swelled to over seven hours long and some tracks I hadn’t liked
since uni. My new playlist is up-to-date and gone are the old dance anthems
from the Toon – it’s keeping my spirits up on hot summer runs. When was the
last time you threw together a playlist?
Watching
A really random independent film! My book club love going to see
books which have been turned into films, or films about book clubs, or films
about books in general! This one is set in 1950s England, Bill Nighy stars, and
there’s a scene on a beach with a VERY intense hand kiss scene. I warn you – it’s
hot stuff for a film about books. Go see, if you’re a book lover.
Reading
About
President Trump’s visit to the UK
Do you think he got the message?? That we sort of don’t like him?
Probably not, it was subtle. But high five to the guy who paraglided over his
private golf course to shout rude things down from the sky. And high five to
Sadiq Khan for approving the giant inflatable Baby Trump! I’d have loved to see
it floating over London.
Enjoying
The
rain
I’m sorry if this is gloating and you were somewhere on Friday
that missed the rain… but god was it good. Just a few hours of a refreshing
cool breeze, steely grey skies, and light drizzle. Over practically before it
started, but a lovely throwback to the usual weather before this heatwave. I
put on a knitted cardy and listened to rain pattering on the window.
Wondering
Will
there be something good on TV now the World Cup is over?
I’m humming a merry tune and waving the World Cup on its way,
readers. Not a fan! We’ve endured weeks of packed pubs, road rage in the hour
leading up to every kick off, and conference calls taken over with blow-by-blow
accounts of matches between teams of literally no sporting merit. It’s been
BORING. And I’m excited for some good TV that has no link to football – for at
least two weeks before the next footy season starts.
--
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Feeding a friend -
My recipe this week, readers, is one that I prepared not long ago,
for myself and the Vegan Mr on a Friday night. We were celebrating the hotshot
and a big job offer he’s had – toasting to a successful career ahead for him. Any
excuse for good food!
I’d gone all out and bought fancy olives to start, and limoncello
desserts for our pudding! We lit a vanilla tealight and cracked the windows
open for a summer breeze. We sipped squash out of wine glasses and talked
excitedly about everything the Mr could buy if his pay check goes up… blackout
blinds? Cocktails? Unicorns??
This week’s recipe, readers, for Aubergine Parmigiana & Pesto Bruschetta, comes from my Gousto
recipe file. It’s one I’ve tried before. A great dish to cook if you have
company and can eat it all in one go, as I don’t find that mozzarella reheats
very well. I chose this recipe because the Mr wasn’t feeling very vegan on this
night, hence a recipe including dairy, and I don’t cook enough with aubergine!
In the words of Gousto…
In
this simple, warming Italian bake, tender aubergine is layered up with rich
tomato sauce and then topped with two types of cheese: mozzarella for melting
gooeyness and grated Italian hard for flavour. Once that's in the oven, you'll
make a simple pesto to spoon over ciabatta slices – perfect for scooping!
Are you sold?? If you’re preparing one for yourself, readers, here’s
the recipe in just ten simple steps…
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Aubergine Parmigiana & Pesto
Bruschetta -
Ingredients: 1 tin of chopped tomatoes, 3 garlic cloves, 125g
mozzarella, 1 red onion, 20g fresh basil leaves, 2 tablespoons tomato paste, 1
teaspoon dried oregano, 1 aubergine, 1 vegetable stock cube, 2 ciabatta rolls,
35g Italian hard cheese, olive oil, sugar, salt & pepper
1.
Try and clear your mind. Now is the time for
good food and not for worrying. Please reframe from multitasking, over
stretching yourself, or fretting about concerns that go beyond the kitchen. Heat
your oven to 200°C.
2.
Begin by slicing the aubergine lengthways as
thinly as you can. Heat a large frying pan with a drizzle of olive oil on a high heat and,
once hot, add the sliced aubergine
and cook for a few minutes on each side, until it’s beginning to brown.
ChefBeHere Top Tip: Unless
your pan is colossal in size, you may have to do this in batches.
3.
Once the aubergine is cooked set it aside for
now. Keep the pan and wipe clean ready to reuse. Boil a kettle and dissolve the stock cube in 50ml boiled water.
4.
Time for some veg prep! Peel and dice
the red onion. Peel and finely chop (or grate)
the garlic. Chop the basil finely, including the
stalks. Cut the mozzarella into
chunks.
5.
Then, return the pan to a medium heat with a
drizzle of olive oil. Once
hot, add the diced onion with
a generous pinch of salt and
cook for 5 minutes or until softening. Add ¾ of the chopped garlic and cook for
another minute.
6.
Next, add the tomato paste, dried oregano and 1 teaspoon sugar to the pan, stir in, and
cook for 30 seconds. Add the chopped
tomatoes, vegetable stock and ½ of the chopped basil. Cook for 3 more minutes until the contents of
your pan resemble a thick Bolognese sauce consistency.
7.
Time to put this all together – add half of
the aubergine to
an oven-proof dish in
a single layer. Spoon over half of the tomato sauce and repeat so there are two layers of aubergine
and sauce. Top with all of the mozzarella chunks and half of the grated Italian hard cheese.
8.
Carefully transport the dish in the oven to
bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese has browned – this is your aubergine parmigiana. Meanwhile, grind
the remaining chopped basil, chopped garlic, and grated Italian hard cheese along
with a pinch of salt in
a pestle & mortar to
form a smooth paste.
ChefBeHere Top Tip: If
you don't have a pestle and mortar, chop everything very finely!
9.
Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon cold water and
mix well – this is your pesto. Slice
each ciabatta into 4 lengthways
and pop onto a baking tray, then divide the pesto between the ciabatta slices and spread it
about evenly.
10. Get the tray
in the oven for 5 min until the ciabatta is warmed through and crispy – this is
your pesto bruschetta. Once
the aubergine parmigiana has
cooked and the bruschetta are looking beautiful and golden, safely take
everything out of the oven and turn this off. You can plate up! Spoon your
parmigiana between two dinner plates and serve the pesto bruschetta alongside… enjoy.
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Recipe round up -
What do you reckon, readers, might you be tempted to give this
recipe a go?
I would very much recommend! We both enjoyed our food – fans of
hearty Italian grub. Everything came off well in the kitchen and both the parmigiana
and bruschetta came out of the oven looking golden and smelling like a storm of
garlic.
Crunchy bread and a cheesy tomatoey dish to dunk it in… exactly
what you need on a Friday at the end of a long week. Plus, layering with
aubergine instead of pasta makes this dish a little lighter than a traditional
lasagne – so you definitely have room for your pudding! Readers, if you’re in
the mood for some simple Italian food with strong flavours and stretchy stringy
cheese then I definitely would recommend. Light a candle and fill your boots.
Until next week, I’m wishing you all a glorious week in the sun.
Stay cool and take care when around metal poles, readers. Eat well and have a
lovely time!
Bake safely,
Hayley
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Closing thoughts -
If you’ve been inspired to give this recipe a try, readers,
whether I’m speaking to you on the day of this post or you’re reading some far
out time in the future... please drop me a line to let me know whether it went
okay. I’d love to hear how you got on in the kitchen and your thoughts on this
dish. Plus, it’d be fab if you’re able to share any tips you have for success,
or your suggestions to improve the recipe? Please send your wisdom my way.
Thank you for reading!
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