I'm calling this Speggplant, stuffed eggplant. LOL, cheesy, I know.
I wasn't a meat and three veg fan growing up and while my mum was a chef she also had to cook for my dad who was just happy with the basics so I would make this for myself. It's a really hearty meal, so depending on how hungry you are, you can eat both halves, share half or eat and re-heat each half. It won't freeze that well but it re-heats fine.
I suppose it's like an eggplant parmigiana but I think that's normally sliced eggplant with tomato sauce and cheese on top.
Ingredients
1 eggplant (aubergine)
1/4 courgette, diced
1/2 red pepper or mix it up with 1/4 red and yellow, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
75g cheese (I used a mix of parmesan and cheddar)
75g breadcrumbs
100ml passata
1 sachet tomato paste
1/2 tsp. chilli flakes
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 sprig thyme, leaves removed and chopped
2 tbsp. olive oil
Salt & pepper
Method
Heat an oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
Cut the eggplant in half, down the middle from top to bottom. With a spoon or ice cream scoop, scoop out the majority of the eggplant pulp. Leaving about 2cm thickness remaining. Smear 1 tbsp. of oil on the eggplant and place on a tray in the oven. Chop up the eggplant pulp and set aside.
Heat a frying pan on a medium heat and add the oil. Heat the remaining oil and add the courgette, peppers & onions. Sauté until softened.
Add in the chopped eggplant and cook for another 4-5 minutes.
Stir in the garlic, chilli flakes & seasoning. Cook for a minute until fragrant.
Add the tomato paste and stir through. Cook for another minute or so.
Stir in the passata. Cook for 5 minutes or until reduced. Season with salt and pepper.
Mix the cheese, breadcrumbs & thyme in a bowl. Set aside.
Remove the eggplant from the oven. Add the filling into the centre of the eggplant. Top with the cheesy breadcrumb mix.
Place back in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the breadcrumbs are golden on top.