This is one of my favourite dishes to have in one of my favourite restaurants (Il Bacio) where I am going tonight - birthday weekend starts here! Yes I promised a write up and you will get one, prepare to drool

In the mean time here is my variation on their dish, basically a rich tomato sauce covering griddled aubergine layered with mozarella and parmesan cheese. Ooof!

Not a quick dish but worth every minute.

Ingredients

2 medium aubergines
200g mozarella
50g parmesan
1 med-large onion
1 tin tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 capful balsamic vinegar
1 big/2 medium clove(s) garlic
fresh basil, dried oregano, S&P, olive oil

Serves 2

1 Chop onions finely, fry gently for 10 minutes
2 Add tom paste and balsamic and dried oregano, fry gently for a further 2 minutes, add chopped toms, S&P
3 Simmer gently with lid off. Put oven on to heat 170 degrees
4 Slice aubergines lengthwise, brush with oil and start griddling in batches, they are ready when nicely scorched and slightly transclucent - about 3 minutes each side (you may want to open the windows, it gets a little smoky, that’s normal - black and billowing is a step to far…)
5 In a deep oven dish put in a layer of aubergine, dot with ripped bits of mozarella, chopped/torn basil, a wooden spoon dollop of the tomato sauce and a little parmesan - repeat until you run out of aubergine
6 Smother with remaining sauce (there should be quite a lot) and parmesan and pop in the hot oven for 30-40 minutes until golden and bubbling
7 Give it 5 minutes out of the oven (molten cheese is no friend to the tongue). Serve with bread (French or Italian), a green salad and a nice Chianti