Saturday, May 13, 2006
Aubergine Mille-Feuilles with Warm Potato Salad
Our starter tonight was quite heavy and filling, so the main course had to be something light and refreshing. There was an aubergine in the fridge
that looked perfect for the job. I don't normally buy aubergines anymore. When I lived at home, I used to make a lot of Italian antipasti for my mum's dinner parties and they always featured grilled aubergine in garlic oil. But Lofty is not a big fan and I must admit I've gone off them a bit. I don't know why I got one last week, but somehow I felt compelled to try them again. I think after the extended Irish winter I'm just desperate for a bit of summer food. Stuffed aubergines were my first idea, but I really don't like them. Too much aubergine in that. So I decided on mille-feuilles, thin slices of aubergine with the stuffing between them. At first I was going to make it completely vegetarian, but I just didn't have the right vegetables. The outcome was a chicken and mushroom stuffing and a side salad of warm potatoes, young cauliflower leaves and Schwarzwälder Schinken, German dry cured ham.For the mille feuilles:
1 aubergine, cut into 6 slices lengthways
4 tbsp olive oil
½ onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 large handfuls mushrooms, finely chopped
4 small chicken sausages, meat only (alternatively, if you cannot get uncooked sausages, use minced meat)
1 tbsp fresh chives, chopped
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 tsp fresh basil, chopped
1 tbsp pine nuts, roughly chopped (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
Freshly grated Parmesan to serve
For the potato salad:
8 to 10 baby potatoes
2 handfuls of shredded young cauliflower leaves (including the softer stalks; alternatively use Savoy cabbage or even baby gem lettuce)
1½ tbsp butter
2 tbsp cubed Schwarzwälder Schinken (alternatively Speck Alto Adige or one of the many kinds of dry cured ham from Austria or Germany; if you have to, use pancetta or bacon, but that really needs to be fried, which changes the texture of the whole dish)
salt, pepper and white wine vinegar to taste
freshly chopped chives to serve
Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Heat a griddle pan over medium heat. Brush the 4 inner slices of aubergine (the ones that do not have a layer of skin on them) with half of the oil and place them in the griddle pan. Griddle until they're beginning to brown and soften. In the meantime, chop the outer two slices into small cubes. Turn the slices of aubergine to griddle the other side. Remove from the heat.
For the salad, boil the potatoes until just tender, about 10 to 12 minutes. Do not overcook them, you don't want them to fall apart. Drain and set aside until cooled completely. Melt the butter in a deep frying pan over medium heat. Add the cauliflower and gently fry, stirring occasionally, until beginning to go tender, 4 to 5 minutes. If you are using a different vegetable, adjust to cooking time. Baby gems for example literally need only a few seconds, so do not cook them yet. Cut the cold potatoes in half and add to the cauliflower. Continue frying, without disturbing them, until lightly browned, about 5 more minutes.
Heat the remaining oil in a shallow frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and fry until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cubed aubergine and mushrooms and fry until the mushrooms have released all liquid. Stir in the sausage meat and herbs and continue frying until the meat is just cooked. Add the pine nuts and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Place 2 slices of aubergine on a baking tray lined with baking paper and top each with half of the filling mixture. Place another slice on top and bake in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes until the aubergines are golden brown and soft.
When the potatoes are lightly browned, remove the salad from the heat add the ham and season to taste with salt, pepper and vinegar. Remove the mille-feuilles from the oven. Place them on two plates and top with freshly grated Parmesan. Add a few spoonfuls of potato salad to the plates and scatter with freshly chopped chives before serving.
Christine at 9:38 pm
