A staple of an Italian vegetable garden is eggplant/aubergines or melanzane - so of course we grow plenty! The plant and flowers are gorgeous, the only problem is, we're not huge fans of the veg. itself. I do like them stuffed like a little quiche or thinly cut & fried is always good. But I must say the recipe below of grilled eggplant with mozzarella topped with peppers & capers is my new favorite! Ok, now don't be turned off by the capers - they impart an amazing saltiness to the yellow peppers!
Grilled Eggplant, Mozzarella, Yellow Peppers & Capers
Melanzane di Caroline
1-2 eggplants (the fat short kind)
1 ball of fresh mozzarella
1 yellow pepper
couple of tablespoons capers under salt
handful of clean parsley leaves, washed (keep the leaves whole)
olive oil
sea salt
Thickly slice the eggplant into 1inch or 2.5cm slices and place on a wire rack with a sheet pan underneath. Generously salt both sides and let sit for an hour to drain.
While you're waiting: Rinse capers. Cut peppers into 1 inch/medium sized squares and combine with capers in a bowl, let sit.
Back to the eggplant: Rinse and pat dry. Brush a little olive oil on the eggplant. Grill on medium heat or broil for 3-4 minutes on each side until soft. Make sure they don’t burn.
Now put it all together: Drain mozzarella and cut them into nice thick slices - about the same thickness as the eggplant. On a plate alternate between the eggplant and cheese creating a cir
Add parsley into the peppers & capers. Place the pepper & caper mix into the center/on top of the eggplant/mozzarella circle. Top with a generous drizzle of olive oil. Allow to sit before you serve to let everything to incorporate.
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