The humble aubergine seems to be a vegetable that a lot of people don’t turn to, but they’re so versatile.
This dish is something I had growing up, my mum used to serve up these meltingly soft stuffed aubergines and they’re something I still enjoy making all these years later.
Stuffed with just enough parmesan cheese to compliment and flavour but not enough to expand the waistline.
What’s not to love?
his is one of the many lean recipes that I’ve created where flavour and simplicity are key. There are hundreds of lean recipes in my app The Lean Cook with adjustable calories and macros.
Ingredients for 1 serving
| 130 g | chicken thighs, boneless and skinless | 200 g | aubergine (one whole) | 3 | garlic cloves | 15 g | olive oil | 1/2 tsp | dried oregano | 1/2 tbsp | balsamic vinegar | 20 g | parmigiano reggiano | 70 g | cauliflower, cut into florets | salt and pepper |
Method
- Pre heat your oven to 190°C fan/400°F and line a baking sheet and a shallow baking tray.
- Peel the aubergine and cut 3 slits equal distance from each other length ways.
- Pour the olive oil into the shallow baking tray (this is for the chicken) and using your hands, massage some of the oil onto the surface of the aubergine.
- Take 2 cloves of garlic, peel and slice them ready to stuff the aubergine. You’ll need 2-3 slices of garlic to each of the 3 sections.
- Cut the parmesan cheese into thin slices and stuff them along side the garlic.
- Place the aubergine onto the baking sheet, season with salt and pepper and place into your oven for 40 minutes.
- Take the shallow baking tray and add a little seasoning along with the dried oregano and the remaining garlic which should be chopped or crushed.
- Coat the chicken with the seasonings and place the tray into the oven when the aubergines have been baking for 40 minutes.
- The chicken should take around 15 to 20 minutes to bake and the aubergine should remain in the oven to finish cooking.
- At the same time as adding the chicken to the oven, add the cauliflower florets to the baking sheet with the aubergine on.
- There’s enough water in the cauliflower so there’s no need to add any oil.
- At the end of the cooking time, check that the chicken is cooked to your liking and remove everything from the oven.
- Arrange everything onto your plate and drizzle the chicken with the balsamic vinegar and there you have it!
Recipe Notes
- Make sure your aubergine is lovely and firm, this is a sign that it’s fresh.
- I only use Parmigiano Reggiano because it’s full of flavour. A little goes a long way!
- The balsamic vinegar should be thick and syrupy.
Find me on: Web
