Ume miso-sauteed summer vegetables (Natsu yasai no ume miso itame)

Recipe courtesy of Psychologies Magazine and taken from Japan: The Vegetarian Cookbook written by Nancy Singleton Hachisu.

Pure, seasonal ingredients and mindful preparation form the basis of this elegant and flavorsome dish. Suggested by Nancy Singleton Hachisu, ‘choose a full-flavoured miso of your choice (not white miso). Miso is a natural match for aubergine and peppers, and these miso stir-fries – colloquially ‘abura miso’ – are served often in the Japanese countryside during the summer.’

Serves: 4

Ingredients:
3 small aubergines
½ medium courgette
1 large red bell pepper
10 slender green beans
1½ tbsp lightly roasted gold sesame oil
½ tbsp fine slivers fresh ginger
5 tbsp sake
4 tbsp miso
1 tbsp gold sesame seeds, warmed in a dry frying pan until fragrant

Method:

Slice off the ends of the aubergines and courgette and discard. Halve them lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1cm pieces. Soak the aubergine in cold water to keep it from discolouring. Core and seed the pepper and cut into 2cm irregular pieces.
Bring a medium saucepan three-quarters full of water and 1 tsp salt to a boil over high heat. Add the green beans and cook until their green colour just brightens, 1-3 minutes, depending on thickness. Trim off the stem ends and cut the beans crosswise into 2cm pieces. Set aside.
Drain the aubergine and blot dry. In a large frying pan, warm 1 tbsp of the oil over low heat. Add the ginger, stir once to coat with oil, then add the aubergine, courgette, and bell pepper. Increase the heat to high, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned in spots, 2-3 minutes.
Stir in the remaining ½ tbsp oil and the sake and toss well. Add the miso and stir-fry to coat evenly. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the vegetables are fully softened, 2-3 minutes longer. Fold in the green beans and sesame seeds and serve hot or at room temperature. Keeps well for 2 or 3 days, if refrigerated.

Aubergine Parmigiana

Recipe courtesy of Psychologies Magazine (Spring 2021) and taken from The Shortcut Cook by Rosie Reynolds.

This easy recipe uses a combination of oil and butter, along with a Parmesan and breadcrumb topping for a quick and delicious meal. Serve with a green salad.

Serves : 4

Ingredients :

4 medium aubergines
Olive oil, for brushing and cooking
Large knob of butter, softened
2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, grated
1 tsp dried oregano
2 x 125g balls mozzarella, cubed
30g Parmesan, finely grated
Large handful fresh breadcrumbs
Handful basil leaves
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 200 C / 180 C fan / gas mark 6. Make deep slits, 1 cm apart, across the aubergines. Don’t cut all the way through. Use a pastry brush to coat the inside of the cuts with oil. Dot the butter over each of the aubergines and season inside and out.
Mix together the tomatoes, garlic, oregano and some seasoning – this can be done in the tomato tins. Pour the mixture into a 20 x 30 cm baking dish and sit the aubergines on top. Cover with foil and cook in the oven for 50 minutes, or until the aubergines start to get soft.
Remove the dish from the oven and remove the foil. Use the back of a spoon to open up the aubergine cuts and stuff with cubes of mozzarella and some of the tomato sauce.
Sprinkle over the Parmesan and breadcrumbs, then return the dish to the oven and cook, uncovered, for a final 10 minutes, or until the breadcrumbs are golden. Leave to stand for 5 minutes, then scatter with basil leaves before serving.

Make ahead : Prepare the whole dish in advance and reheat in a hot oven until piping hot.

The shortcut : This meal has all the textural expectations of parmigiana, with none of the factory line-style crumbing – no salting, no dipping in egg, no frying in oil. This is one-pan, no-hassle cooking.

Aubergine and Lentil Vindaloo

Recipe courtesy of Psychologies Magazine (April 2019) and taken from Cooking on a Bootstrap by Jack Monroe.

If you don’t like aubergine, use mushrooms. Lentils could also be kidney beans, baked beans, black beans, brown or green lentils, or yellow split peas – for protein. The flavour speaks for itself, or rather shouts, sings and dances!

Serves: 2-4

Ingredients:
1 large aubergine or 2 small aubergines, diced
50g dried red lentils
3 onions, finely sliced
Oil, for frying
4 fat garlic cloves
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp cumin, seeds or ground
1/4 star anise, or 1/8 tsp fennel seeds
A good grind of black pepper
1-2 tsp chilli flakes
2 tblsp tomato puree
2 tblsp vinegar or lemon juice, fresh or bottled
A fistful of spinach

Step One : In a bowl, sprinkle the aubergine with a good pinch of salt, then set aside.

Step Two : Thoroughly rinse the lentils and place them in a pan. Cover with water – no salt or they will take an age to cook – and bring to the boil. When the water is boiling, reduce to a simmer for 12 minutes, until the lentils are soft. Drain, rinse and set aside.

Step Three : Meanwhile, toss the onions into a large pan with a little oil and, over medium heat, soften for 10 minutes. Add the garlic cloves, peeled but whole, and the aubergine, stirring to stop it sticking. Cook for 15 minutes, adding more oil if needed.

Step Four : Add the cinnamon, cumin, star anise, or fennel, and pepper, but only half of your chosen quantity of chilli. (It is easy to add, but difficult to temper down if you misjudge it, so I put in half the chilli to cook, and leave half to garnish.) Stir well to combine, then add 200ml water to the pan, and crank up the heat to medium-high.

Step Five : Add the lentils, tomato puree and vinegar or lemon juice and stir. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover, stirring slowly now and again. It should take around 30 minutes to meld into glossy, orange goodness, and the liquid should thicken to an unctuous sauce. If it is too watery, bring it back to the boil, reduce the heat and cook a little more. Stir through the spinach a few minutes before serving. This vindaloo is delicious with boiled rice, which makes it go further.

Other great cookbooks that help you keep an eye on the pennies:-

Aubergine Fetteh (Fetteh Beitinjaan)

Recipe courtesy of Psychologies Magazine (August 2017) and taken from Syria: Recipes from Home by Itab Azzam and Dina Mousawi.

Layering food on toasted bread with a yogurt sauce is a Syrian speciality. Bread is considered a sacred gift in the Arab world, and it’s a sin to waste it even after it has gone stale. That’s why ‘fetteh’ – literally ‘breadcrumbs’ – is so popular and it can be made with chickpeas, aubergines, chicken or lamb.

Serves 4, as part of Mezze

Ingredients:
3 aubergines
Olive oil, for roasting and drizzling
2 flatbreads or pittas
500g plain yogurt
2 small garlic cloves, crushed
2 tblsp lemon juice
Handful of parsley, roughly chopped, to serve
Handful of pomegranate seeds, to serve
50g pine nuts, toasted, to serve

Step One : Heat the oven to 180oC / 350oF / Gas Mark 4. Cut the aubergines into quarters lengthways, then slice them into 1cm chunks and place in a baking tray. Pour over a generous helping of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt, then roast in the oven for approximately 40 minutes, or until the aubergines are soft.

Step Two : Brush the bread with olive oil and toast in the oven for about 10 minutes, until nice and crispy. Then break it up into pieces. In a bowl, combine the yogurt, garlic and lemon juice.

Step Three : When the aubergines are ready, take them out of the oven and allow to cool. Place them in a shallow bowl, then pour the yogurt mix on top. When ready to serve, sprinkle with the crispy bread, parsley, pomegranate seeds and toasted pine nuts.

Sticky Tomato & Olive Aubergines

Recipe courtesy of Psychologies Magazine and is taken from the book : Salad Feasts: How to assemble the perfect meal by Jessica Elliott Dennison.

The method for this salad is so simple, you can’t go wrong. It pays to take the time to really brown the aubergines, allowing them to pick up a nice colour and go silky soft in the centre.

Sticky Tomato & Olive Aubergines Ingredients (Serves 4):

2 firm aubergines (500g)
90ml olive oil
1red onion
2 garlic cloves
2 tbsp capers, drained
400g tin chopped tomatoes
30g sultanas
1 ½ tbsp red wine vinegar
50g pitted olives (any colour, drained weight)
50g wild rocket
Small bunch (20g) flat-leaf parsley
Small bunch (15g) basil
1/3 lemon
4 slices sourdough bread (300g)

Heat a large frying over a high heat while you cut the aubergines into large chunks (roughly 2.5cm). Add most of the oil to the pan along with the aubergine chucks and cook for 5-6 minutes until golden and beginning to darken on all sides.
Meanwhile, peel and halve the onion then slice into thin half-moons. Peel the garlic and slice into thin slivers. Add the remaining oil to the aubergine pan and reduce the heat to low, then fry the onion for 3 minutes until beginning to soften. Add the garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes, taking care not to burn the garlic.
Add the capers to the pan along with the tomatoes, sultanas, vinegar, olives and a few splashes of water. Increase the heat to high, pop on a lid and cook for 7-10 minutes or until the aubergine is soft in the centre (keep an eye on the pan and add a few more splashes of water if it’s looking too dry). Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Keep in the fridge if you’re making a day or two ahead.
When you’re ready to serve, wash the rocket in a basin of cold water to freshen the leaves, pat dry and place in a large mixing bowl. Tear in the herbs, discarding the stalks, squeeze over the lemon and gently toss. Toast the bread, then divide between four plates or a large serving board, as pictured. Smear over the aubergines then top with the lemony rocket.