Stuffed eggplants from the oven

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 800 g eggplant(s)
• 1 onion(s)
• 1 garlic clove(s)
• 4 sprigs of parsley
• 1 tsp oregano, shredded
• 1 can tomato(s), chopped, approx. 400 g
• n. B. Salt
• n. B. pepper, black
• 50 g capers
• 50 g black pitted olives
• 125g mozzarella
• 4 tbsp breadcrumbs
• 1 egg(s)
• 50 g cheese (Pecorino or Parmesan), grated
• n. B. Olive oil, extra virgin, cold squeezed

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 50 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 20 minutes

Oven-baked eggplant. Suitable as a starter, main course, or antipasto.

Cut the stalks off the eggplants and halve them lengthwise. Boil the eggplant halves vigorously in a large pot of boiling salted water for 5 minutes. Drain and rinse the eggplants with cold water. Finely chop the onion, garlic cloves, and parsley. In the same pot, sauté the onion, garlic, parsley, and oregano in 3 tablespoons of olive oil until translucent. Add the chopped tomatoes and simmer gently with the lid on for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, hollow out the eggplants using a sharp knife and a tablespoon, leaving about 1/2 cm of flesh. Cut the hollowed-out eggplant flesh lengthwise into 5 mm wide strips, then cut these strips into 5 mm cubes. After 10 minutes of cooking, add this eggplant flesh to the tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and braise for another 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Briefly soak the capers and olives, then chop them finely. Cut the mozzarella into approximately 1 cm cubes. After 10 minutes, remove the pan from the heat, stir in 4 tablespoons of breadcrumbs, capers, olives, 50 g of Pecorino (Parmesan), mozzarella, and 1 egg. Season with salt and pepper. Fill the eggplant halves with the filling and place the eggplants in a lightly oiled baking dish. Drizzle with a little olive oil, if desired, and bake in a preheated oven at 200°C for 20 minutes. Variation: Mix 1 can of chopped tomatoes with 1 glass of white wine and spread evenly in a baking dish. Place the eggplants on top and bake as above. In classic recipes, Caciocavallo cheese is used instead of mozzarella.