RECIPES FOR AUBERGINE

BABA GHANNOUJ

2 medium Organic Aubergines, cut in half
Juice of 1 Organic Lemon – or to taste as organic lemons may be stronger than non-organic
2 cloves Organic Garlic, crushed
3 tblsp Tahini – either texture depending on personal taste
½ tsp ground Cumin
Salt & freshly ground Pepper
1tblsp chopped flat leaved Parsley
Black Olives

Prick skins of halved aubergines and place them flesh down on a greased baking sheet. Place them under a hot grill and grill for about 15 –20 minutes, rearranging, if necessary, until the skins are blackened and blistered and the flesh is soft. Remove from the grill and plunge into cold water, then skin thoroughly. Roughly chop the flesh and put it into a food processor. Add the freshly squeezed lemon juice and process for a few seconds until combined, then add the tahini, cumin and salt and pepper to taste. Process until mixture is smooth. Turn into a bowl, cover and chill slightly. Before serving swirl the top attractively and sprinkle with chopped parsley and a few black olives. Serve with khoubz or pitta bread.

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AUBERGINE MOUSSAKA - VEGETARIAN

1 Organic Aubergine
Large Organic White Onion, chopped
Organic Garlic clove, crushed
2 tbsps cooking oil
2 oz Organic Dairy House Butter
2 Tbsp Organic Plain Flour
3 skinned Organic Toms (or tinned)
1 tbspn Organic Tomato Puree
½ tspn cinnamon
4 tblsps Organic Vegetarian Red Wine
300g tin of Organic Red Kidney Beans/pre-soaked and cooked if dried beans used
¾ pt Organic Milk
3oz grated The Dairy House Mature Cheddar Cheese
1 egg
salt and pepper

Slice aubergine into thin rounds and sprinkle with salt – leave 30 minutes.

Make white sauce - melt butter, add flour and cook for 2-3 mins stirring all the time over a low heat. Then slowly add Organic Milk mixing all the time, season with S&P. Set aside until ready to use.

Rinse aubergine rounds and dry with kitchen paper

Fry onion and garlic for minutes to soften. Add toms, tom puree, pepper, cinnamon and wine and cook gently for 5 mins. Add beans and season if necessary. Beat the egg into the white sauce

Grease a shallow casserole dish. Put half the aubergine slices into the base of dish. Cover with half the tom mixture, then half the white sauce. Repeat ending with the sauce. Sprinkle the grated cheese on top.
Bake at 350F, 180C or Gas mark 4 for about 1 hour

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QUICK AUBERGINE PASTA SAUCE

1 Large Aubergine, chopped
1 Onion, chopped
2 Cloves of Garlic (optional), chopped and/or crushed
(Optional additions – mushrooms/peppers/courgette/toms)
Organic Double Cream or a Tin of Chopped Toms
Fresh Parsley
Olive Oil

Heat a large frying pan and add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, warm and gently cook the onions and garlic until soft and see through. Mix in the Aubergine and raise the heat a little. The aubergine will absorb a lot of oil so be prepared to add a bit more or perhaps some water if you prefer not to use too much oil. When the aubergine is soft add any other vegetables you wish to include and then mix in the amount of double cream or tinned toms required to make either a thick or a runny sauce depending on what you prefer. Allow to simmer for 5-10 mins until all the veg are softening.

Meanwhile cook your pasta and when cooked, drain and mix into the sauce, sprinkle with chopped Parsley and serve.

To make a change from Pasta you can cook the sauce, keeping it thick, and rather than simmering at the end you would place it in a baking dish, make a 4-6 indentations in the mixture, break an egg into each and put into a preheated oven (around 180C) for 10-15 mins depending how you like your eggs.

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