Despite it pouring down outside, I’m must be in denial that the summer is over. Today’s recipe for aubergine bake is inspired by summers of living on a Greek island and the fact that we are still in the middle of the aubergine season even though I am starting to see pumpkins too.

This aubergine bake takes me back to long, hot summers we remember from Greece and an endless supply of local aubergines (eggplants). This bake is really quite simple but like most dishes of this type it doesn’t come together in 20 minutes unfortunately. It’s so cosy and comforting yet summery at the same time that I think the effort is well worth it and I hope that you’ll agree.

As this aubergine bake is Greek inspired it features some Greek staples – tomatoes and aubergines being two of them. I used good quality peeled plum tomatoes to make the sauce, but if you are lucky enough to have a glut of fresh, even better!

Apart from the two main ingredients, the sauce also features Greek overtones as I spiced gently it with cinnamon, oregano and just a pinch of cloves. It may seem like an unusual combo but it’s typical of Greek tomato sauces and I think it’s delicious. I topped the bake with olive crumb, which is made from breadcrumbs and finely chopped Kalamata olives moistened with olive oil. I also scattered some olive slices on top mainly because they look pretty.

The most time consuming element of a dish like this is preparing the aubergines as they need to be cooked before going into the bake. Typically, a Greek cook would fry them in a liberal amount of olive oil to render the aubergines meltingly soft or you could also grill them on a hot griddle pan or a barbeque. The trouble with both methods is that they are quite time consuming – you’ll end up standing over the stove for a long time to get through this many aubergines, plus frying tends to use A LOT of olive oil as they are quite thirsty. I am personally not keen on that much oil.

My method – which I used in many of my previous dishes including moussaka, vegan parm or even a stir-fry – is simply to slice them and arrange on a couple of oven trays – I don’t use a single drop of oil although you can if you are feeling indulgent or making this dish for a special occasion and therefore want it to be as rich as possible. I whack them all in the oven and let the oven do it’s thing while I make the sauce. This way I can double my throughput and make the dish a bit healthier than it would be otherwise, but still indulgent and delicious.

MORE ABOUT THE INGREDIENTS

AUBERGINES / EGGPLANTS: Look for aubergines (eggplants) that are shiny and firm to touch – it’s a sign of their freshness. Slice them and bake them in a hot oven until soft – no need for any oil if you do that – or you can also grill them or fry in oil if you are feeling more indulgent.

CANNED TOMATOES: I used quality peeled plum tomatoes to make a delicious tomato sauce. If I lived in Southern Europe (or even in my native Poland where this summer was exceptionally hot), I would use fresh. If using canned tomatoes, I recommend squashing them in a big bowl, with a potato masher (or clean hands!!), before adding to the pan as otherwise you may end up with tomato juice on your walls.

AROMATICS: I used a yellow onion and a few cloves of garlic as a base for the sauce and these are non-negotiables in my opinion.

SPICES & HERBS: This dish is inspired by Greece and so the tomato sauce is spiced accordingly, I used a bit of cinnamon and dried oregano in the sauce and a good pinch of cloves. I also added a touch of nutmeg to the bechamel as it’s a tried and tested combination so why not.

CASHEWS: I used raw cashews soaked in boiling water for 30 minutes to make a creamy bechamel layer, which goes on top of my bake but also in between layers of tomato sauce and baked aubergine. It’s really simple to make – it needs 60 seconds in a blender, that’s it. If you are allergic to cashews, use soaked sunflower seeds but be aware that depending on your seeds the colour may not be as appealing.

NUTRITIONAL YEAST: I added a bit of nutritional yeast to the cashew bechamel as this staple vegan ingredient adds a lot of depth of flavour and a hit of cheesiness. If you don’t have it, you could add some (about 3 tsp) white miso but go easy on salt and miso is very salty.

LEMON: You may or you may not want to add a dash of lemon juice (1-2 tbsp but use your tastebuds) to the bechamel. Although lemon typically doesn’t belong in a bechamel, this cashew bechamel is a bit of a cross between a bechamel and a cheesy sauce so sometimes I add a bit for the tang. Sometimes – when my tomatoes are particularly acidic – I don’t. You taste your tomato sauce and decide.

BREADCRUMBS: I used store-bought breadcrumb mix that contains some herbs, garlic and lemon zest. You can do that or you can use plain breadcrumbs too and season them with a touch of salt (and maybe some garlic powder but not necessary).

OLIVES: I added some chopped black Kalamata olives to the topping for extra flavour and as a nod to this dish being inspired by Greece. If you are not keen on olives, you could use capers or you could also skip them altogether.

OLIVE OIL: I used cooking olive oil to sautee onion and garlic and some more to moisten the olive crumb topping.

HOW TO MAKE IT?

1) BAKE AUBERGINE SLICES

First things first, what your oven on and prepare aubergines for baking – no need to grease them, simply arrange on lined trays. You could grill them or even fry them too but that’s more hands on and especially the second method uses a lot of oil. Oh and before you put the tomato sauce on, cover cashews with boiling water and leave them to soak – mentioning it here just in case you decided to skip my instructions in the method (at your peril 😉 ).

2) PUT TOMATO SAUCE ON

While a good tomato sauce takes a while to make, it it’s fairly hands off once you add tomatoes to the pan – all it wants from you is an occasional stir and maybe a splash of water. Set your tomato sauce on after you prepped the aubergines, don’t forget about it completely but once it’s bubbling away you can get on with the remaining two components.

3) MAKE OLIVE CRUMB

Olive crumb is dead easy to make! Chop your olives really finely and add them to a mixing bowl with breadcrumbs and olive oil. I used shop-bought herb and garlic breadcrumbs for ease, if yours are plain, you may want to season them a little.

4) WHIZZ UP CASHEW BECHAMEL

This simple cashew bechamel requires no cooking at all so don’t fret if classic bechamel makes you break out in cold sweat. Simply put all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth – that is literally it.

5) ASSEMBLE and BAKE

Once all four components are ready, grab an oven proof casserole dish. Spoon a generous amount of tomato sauce to the bottom of the dish, follow up by a layer of tightly packed aubergine slices. Season them lightly.

Next, you want to pour some of the cashew mixture (about half) on top for a lovely creamy surprise layer in the middle of your aubergine bake. Follow that up with another layer of aubergine slices (again season) and another layer of tomato sauce. Carry on layering aubergine and tomato sauce – keep the rest of the bechamel for the topping – until you use up either of them (you may have some tomato sauce left over).

Finally pour cashew bechamel on top and top with a generous layer of olive crumb and bake until bubbly and golden.

QUESTION YOU MAY HAVE

1) DOES IT STORE WELL?

Yes, in fact, this aubergine dish is one of those dishes that tastes even better the day or two after it has been made. It keeps for 5 days in the fridge and freezes well too.

2) WHAT CAN I USE INSTEAD OF CASHEWS

Hulled sunflower seeds soaked overnight or for at least 30 minutes in boiling water work just as well. Since sunflower seeds tend to be a little grey in comparison to cashews, the end result may look a little less visually appealing but it will be just as tasty.