Recipe of the week
This pepped-up parmigiana is my vegan approximation of that Italian classic puttanesca, says Matt Pritchard, presenter of Dirty Vegan, a new BBC vegan cookery programme. Be careful not to over-season the sauce – the capers and olives bring plenty of salt to the show. Nutritional yeast adds a deep savoury flavour to the crumb
Puttanesca aubergine parmigiana
Serves 4-6 olive oil, for frying 2 red onions, sliced 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 175ml white wine 1 tbsp tomato puree 2 x 400g cans of chopped tomatoes 2 tbsps capers, chopped 100g green olives, sliced 200ml water 4 aubergines, cut lengthways into 1cm-thick slices 20g basil leaves, torn 50g sourdough breadcrumbs 1 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes zest of ½ a lemon pinch of salt 80g vegan mozzarella, torn (optional) pepper
• Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan and cook the onion over a medium-low heat for 10 minutes, until starting to soften.
• Stir in the garlic, wine and tomato puree, then let the mixture bubble away until reduced by half.
• Stir in the chopped tomatoes, capers, olives and measured water. Simmer for 20 minutes, until the sauce is thick and rich. Preheat the oven to 190°C.
• While the sauce cooks, heat some olive oil in a large frying pan and fry the aubergine, turning, over a medium heat until golden and cooked through. (You’ll use more oil than you think as the slices soak it up as they cook.) Set aside.
• When the sauce is ready, mix in the basil leaves. Taste and tweak the seasoning as desired.
• In a food processer, pulse together the breadcrumbs, yeast flakes, lemon zest, a pinch of salt and 1 tablespoon of oil.
• Lay half the aubergines into a large baking dish (about 30cm x 20cm) and top with half the sauce. Repeat the layering process to fill the dish.
• Tear the mozzarella over the top, if using. Top evenly with the breadcrumb mix. Bake for 20-40 minutes, until the top is golden and the aubergine is tender.
Taken from Dirty Vegan by Matt Pritchard, published by Mitchell Beazley at £20. To buy from The Week Bookshop for £15.99, call 020-3176 3835 or visit theweek.co.uk/bookshop. Dirty Vegan is available on BBC iplayer