Roasted aubergine boats with tomato butter beans
myAudience · AI-generated food illustration · Original AI-generated illustration; no third-party photograph
The aubergine is the plate as well as part of the meal. Score its flesh shallowly, roast it until yielding and spoon the beans into the centre rather than balancing them on a hard vegetable. A bright tomato sauce gives the creamy beans somewhere to settle.
For 2 main portions, use 2 medium aubergines; 2 tablespoons olive oil; ¼ teaspoon fine salt; 1 sliced garlic clove; 1 × 400g tin chopped tomatoes; 1 × 400g tin butter beans, drained and rinsed; ½ teaspoon dried oregano; 50ml water; parsley; and zest of ½ lemon.
Heat the oven to 220°C conventional/200°C fan. Halve the washed aubergines lengthways. Score their flesh in a shallow criss-cross without cutting through the skins. Brush with 1½ tablespoons oil, season with the salt and roast cut sides up for 35–45 minutes, until very tender when pierced.
Meanwhile, warm the remaining oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook the garlic for 30 seconds, add tomatoes, oregano and water, then simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Stir in the beans and simmer for 7–10 minutes more, until piping hot. If the sauce is too dry, add a splash of water; taste for seasoning.
Press a shallow hollow into each roasted aubergine with the back of a spoon. Fill with beans and finish with parsley and lemon zest. Allow about 55 minutes. Serve with bread to catch the sauce. Cool spare portions promptly, refrigerate within 2 hours and use within 48 hours, reheating once until steaming hot throughout.