Aubergine Parmigiana

I've eaten several versions of Aubergine Parmigiana here and in Italy and they have all been amazing.  I am an aubergine/eggplant fan, anytime it is on a menu I will order it, Indians and Japanese also do incredible dishes with this versatile and 'to die for' vegetable. Tonight, start of the week I usually cook something simple, that may give us some leftovers for Al's lunch tomorrow, something gluten free of course and it is cold so we are looking for warming nourishing meals. My favourite classical Italian cookbooks are "Jamie's Italy" and Marcella Hazan's "Classical Italian Cooking" (for details see my page on "Great Recipe Books"). The version I cooked tonight is a cross over with the classic and a version that an Italian girl Nadia shared with me. Her mother slices the aubergine paper thin and then drops it into a cheesy eggy batter to fry up and then layer upon layer with tomato salsa and cheese on top.  Mine is a combination of these recipes I hope you like it!

AUBERGINE PARMIGIANA

2 large Aubergines (make sure they are high quality glossy black)
cooking salt
3/4 cup grated Cheese (use Mozzarella, Parmesan or Cheddar, your choice)
Batter
3 Eggs
3 tabs Water
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan
2 tabs Rice crumbs/Bread crumbs
Olive Oil
Tomato Salsa
2 Onions finely chopped
2 cloves Garlic finely chopped
2 tins chopped Tomatoes
1 sm tub Tomato Paste
ground Black Pepper
chopped Fresh Herbs

1. Slice the Aubergine thickly, layer into a colander with a generous sprinkle of salt, leave for 30 mins
2. Rinse Aubergine well and pat dry
3. Break eggs into a medium bowl, whisk and stir in other batter ingredients, mix well
4. Heat heavy based frying pan, add a good cover of oil and when hot, but not smoking add pieces of  Aubergine that has been dredged through the batter, coat well before adding to hot oil

5. Fry all of the pieces, keeping the pan topped up with oil. So that they don't get too greasy keep the oil pretty hot, without letting it burn.
6. Meanwhile make the Tomato Salsa by cooking Onions and Garlic in a little oil until soft and golden
7. Add Tomato paste and stir over heat for 2 mins and then add Tomatoes and Herbs and Spices, cook gently 10 minutes
8. Layer fried Aubergine slices, Tomato Salsa and grated Cheeses, ending with Salsa and Cheese.
9. Bake in moderate oven 180˚C

Serve as a side dish, or with a simple green salad.