La aubergine it is immediately summer: grilled, fried, parmigiana, are one of the vegetables most present on the table in July and, more generally, in summer.
What are the main features? Eggplants are very rich in minerals, especially potassium, phosphorus and magnesium and therefore help us to replenish those we lose through sweating, which increases in summer. They also contain a good amount of vitamins, especially vitamin A, B vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin K and vitamin J.
The eggplants they are very rich in water, low in calories and a real mine of dietary fiber. They stimulate the production of bile and help control cholesterol. Finally, like all purple-colored vegetables, they are rich in antioxidants.
There are several types of eggplant that are distinguished by their shape, which can be round and oval, and for the color, ranging from light lilac to very dark purple.
How to treat eggplant
To best enjoy aubergines, two of their characteristics must be kept in mind:
- They have a bitter taste which, however, can be eliminated by pre-treating them with coarse salt. Before cooking them, they should be cut into slices (or according to the cut that the recipe requires) and covered with coarse salt. You can put them in a colander with a weight on it, in order to favor the elimination of the liquids responsible for the bitter taste, keep them like that for a while. Usually half an hour is enough, but for safety it is better to keep them for an hour.
- The eggplants they absorb a lot of oil, therefore pay attention to how the dressing is used otherwise you risk transforming a low-calorie vegetable into a dish that is anything but light.
How to cook eggplant
Le eggplant they are also excellent cooked in a simple way, for example grilled or cut into slices and cooked on the dripping pan of the oven with salt, oregano and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. A couple of recipes?
Eggplant stuffed with cheese
Ingredients for people 4:
> 4 eggplants,
> 200 grams of scamorza or other stringy cheese,
> two slices of stale bread,
> chives,
> basil, salt, extra virgin olive oil.
Method: split the aubergines in half and pre-treat them with coarse salt. In this case, to eliminate the bitterness, it is advisable to cut the pulp by making horizontal and vertical cuts and leave them in very cold water with coarse salt for at least half an hour; squeeze and rinse them.
Then put them to cook in the oven at 180 degrees for about 15 minutes. At this point, empty the pulp and prepare the filling with the inside of the aubergine, the cheese, the breadcrumbs and the finely chopped aromatic herbs.
Fill the aubergines, season with a drop of oil and cook in the oven, again at 180 degrees, for another 20/25 minutes. If the aubergines tend to burn on top, without being cooked, cover with parchment paper and cook.
Macaroni messed with aubergines
Ingredients for people 4:
> 2 rather large aubergines,
> a can of chopped tomatoes,
> basil, extra virgin olive oil, a clove of garlic, salt,
> breadcrumbs,
> cacioricotta,
> 320 grams of macaroni.
Preparation: wash the aubergines, cut them into cubes and pre-treat them with salt. Fry a clove of garlic in a little extra virgin olive oil, remove the garlic, remove the pan from the heat, and add the aubergines. Let them sauté in a pan for one or two minutes and add the tomato pulp. Season with salt and cook for about 30/40 minutes.
When almost cooked, cook the pasta, which must remain very al dente. Drain the pasta and dress it with the aubergine sauce. Grease a baking dish with extra virgin olive oil and cover the bottom with breadcrumbs, add the macaroni seasoned with the aubergine sauce, finish with a good sprinkling of breadcrumbs and cacioricotta and bake in the oven at 180 degrees for about 15 minutes. Garnish with fresh basil leaves and serve.
July diet: discover the recipes with seasonal fruit and vegetables
