Hebe Jebes Issue Sep to Oct 2013 Sep 2013 | Page 58

Wine & dine

REAL BOAT FOOD
Something nice to throw on the BBQ for your
non-meat-eating friends
Words Cathy Delany Hobbs

Having an onboard BBQ—eek—one of your
friends does not eat meat, what to do?
This recipe comes from an old BBQ book, I think. The actual
stuffing ingredients are continuously modified by me and
my family and it depends on what is in season and what the
vegetarian visitor or family member likes. The base is a nice ripe
small aubergine—we call them eggplants at home. I prefer the
fatter European ones for this recipe. The recipe still works well
with the longer Chinese types, whose cooking times are a bit
shor ter, the stuffing a little more tricky to do, and the long parcel
a bit more of a challenge to handle when hot.

Ingredients
• One aubergine per person
• Small amount of nice oil—I like Spanish green olive oil
Filling
• 1 x medium-sized finely-chopped onion
• 2 x cloves of crushed garlic
• 2 x tablespoons of tomato puree/sauce
• 6 x baby plum tomatoes or a ripe but firm medium-sized
tomato
• Chopped parsley/chives and whatever other herbs you wish
(you can give it a twist with different spices/chilli/chutneys)
• Juice of about ½ a lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste
Method
1. Clean then rub oil all over the aubergine. Prick it in a few
places with a fork—especially near the ends—as otherwise
it might pop as it is cooking. BBQ for about 10 minutes
in a cool area, turning occasionally until a bit crinkly and
browned i.e. about half-cooked.
2. Take it off the heat and cool it a bit so you can handle it as
it settles.
3. While it is cooling—or in advance if you wish—cook the
onions and garlic in a little oil (I like to use a good olive oil,
yet know some are not so keen to cook with olive oil, so
you can substitute with an alternative).
4. Add tomatoes and tomato puree/sauce and cook
vigorously until almost done.
5. Add the spices, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.
6. Make a deep cut down the middle of one lengthwise side
of the aubergine and spoon in the homemade filling (if
really juicy leave some of the juice).
7. Place the stuffed aubergine on a piece of thick tin foil, or
thin foil folded over double, seal up at the top and the
ends to make an attractive parcel and put back on the
BBQ for up to 15 minutes until tender—push gently with
your finger to test.
8. Take the parcel off the BBQ, unwrap and then leave plain
or sprinkle on a topping and dress. A topping might be a
crumbly cheese, feta, crème fraîche, yoghur t, a full-bodied
chutney or any other naughty-but-nice yummy topping.
Meat lovers might like bacon bits. If your BBQ has a lid or
you have a grill—it’s nice to give a couple more minutes to
melt the topping a bit.
9. Serve—yummy!
Tips
The variations that can be tried out in the filling are almost
endless, as are the toppings. Some may be pre-prepared, in which
case be careful to heat the whole parcel through thoroughly on a
gentle heat to avoid burning the outside of the aubergine parcel.

56 Hebe jebes