This famous Italian classic became also a classic at our home. 🙂 Since we have prepared this wonderful, aromatic dish for the first time in our kitchen, it became one of our favorites. We made this dish also famous among our friend and Parmigiana was often served as a main course at dinner parties. For all aubergine lovers and all lovers of Italian cuisine, we like to introduce: the unique Parmigiana di Melanzane.

 

 

Ingredients

• 1.5 kg eggplants
• 500 g tinned tomatoes, cubed
• 500 g fresh, ripe tomatoes
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 bundle of fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 50 g scamorza (Italian cow’s milk cheese, smoked)
• 100 g ricotta
• 100 g mozzarella
• 50 g Parmesan
• olive oil
• salt, freshly ground pepper

 

Recipe

Wash the aubergines, dry them and cut the stalks. Cut the eggplant into 0.5 mm thin slices, using a long, sharp knife. Prepare two large baking trays lined with baking paper. Spread the eggplant slices. In a small bowl, mix 100 ml of olive oil with a pressed garlic clove, salt and pepper. Use this mixture to marinate aubergine slices. Preheat the oven to 200°C and bake the aubergines for 30 minutes. They should become brownish and soft.

In the meantime, cut the scamorza and the mozzarella into small cubes. Then combine with ricotta and grated Parmesan. Add a pressed garlic clove, season with salt and pepper and mix well.

Put the fresh tomatoes in boiling water and remove from the stove. Let them stand for 30 seconds and then remove the skin of the tomatoes. Cut the tomatoes into small cubes. Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil into a frying pan. Press the last clove of garlic and simmer briefly until the garlic starts to smell (do not burn!). Add the tomatoes along with pelati and mix well. Add a tablespoon of sugar, season with salt and pepper. Finally, cut the basil into fine strips (put a third of it aside) and add to the tomato sauce. Leave to simmer for 15-20 minutes on medium heat.

Now finish the Parmigiana: Cover the ground in a fireproof form with a few spoons of tomato sauce. Then spread a layer of eggplant slices. They should not overlap. Again a spread few spoonfuls of tomato sauce over the eggplant, as well as part of the cheese mixture. Cover with aubergine slices again and repeat the whole process until all the ingredients are used up. Depending on the size of the baking form, divide the ingredients so that the last layer consists only of aubergine slices and tomato sauce. Sprinkle with some Parmesan and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Decorate the baked Parmigiana with the remaining basil strips and leave to cool a little bit before serving.

 

Merium