The Recipe Room

This baked aubergine parmesan with tofu pesto has got to be one of my all-time favourite comfort foods.  Filled with lots of cheese and literally dripping with sauce, it makes my mouth water just thinking about it.  If you’re not a fan of aubergine (like my son) you could substitute it for courgette, wild mushrooms or even a mix of vegetables.

You Need:

For the baked aubergine:

• 1kg aubergines
• 3tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 750ml tomato sauce
• 300g mozzarella cheese, grated
• 250g Parmesan cheese, grated
• 4tsp fresh oregano, finely chopped
• Salt to taste
• Pepper, to taste

For the tofu pesto:

• 125g firm tofu
• 2 tablespoons vegetable broth
• 500g fresh basil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 125g fresh parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 175ºC.
2. Peel the aubergine and slice into 1cm thick pieces.
3. Sprinkle salt on each side and drain on kitchen towels for about 20 minutes.
4. Turn the pieces over and drain on the other side for 20 minutes. Rinse and pat dry.
5. Drizzle the oil on the aubergine and then grill for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until lightly browned.
6. Combine the oregano and tomato sauce and season to taste with salt and pepper.  Pour a small amount on the bottom of a 23cm x 30cm pan.
7. Arrange a layer of aubergine along the bottom of the pan, cover with some sauce and the shredded mozzarella cheese and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Continue layering until you have used all the aubergine, sauce and cheese, ending with the cheese.
8. Bake for about 30 minutes on the middle shelf of the oven, or until the cheese is bubbly.
9. Remove from the oven and let it sit for 5 minutes.
10. While the aubergine is baking, prepare the pesto topping.  Combine all the ingredients in a blender, starting with the liquid ingredients at the bottom to facilitate blending.  Process on medium speed until the pesto is very smooth. (Click here for another pesto sauce recipe.)
11. Pour the pesto sauce over the baked aubergine and serve immediately.

Note: Some people like pesto more than others, and so I often put the pest in a bowl on the side so that my guests can serve themselves according to personal preference.

Ready In:  75 minutes

Serves:  6

Difficulty:   2 out of 5

Tags: aubergine, Baked Aubergine Parmesan with Tofu Pesto, firm tofu, fresh basil, fresh oregano, fresh parsley, gluten-free, lemon juice, mozzarella, olive oil, parmesan, pepper, salt, tomato sauce, vegetable broth

This entry was posted on Thursday, 19 April, 2012 at 1:40 pm by Jack Williams and is filed under Less than 90 mins, Main Courses, Meal for 6 people. You can follow any responses to this entry through the feed RSS 2.0. You can leave a comment, or make a trackback from your own blog.