Caponata with Mozzarella Bruschetta
Caponata is found everywhere in Italy and eaten warm or cold as part of an antipasto or a side dish. Here it is served with griddled garlic sour dough and mozzarella. Would be great for a BBQ with a big bowl in the middle of the table for everyone to help themselves. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- extra to drizzle
- 2 aubergines cut into 3.5cm cubes
- 1 onion roughly chopped
- 3 celery stalks sliced
- 50 g of pine nuts
- 3 garlic cloves 2 chopped, 1 whole
- 1 x 400g tin plum tomatoes drained and roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp of capers
- 50 g of pitted green olives
- 3 tbsp of red wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp of caster sugar
- 6 basil leaves plus extra to serve
To serve 4
- 4 large slices of sourdough bread
- 2 buffalo mozzarella
- 4 large spoonfuls of the caponata
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Fry the aubergine in batches, for 5-6 mins until tender. Set aside in a colander to drain until needed.
- Discard almost all of the oil from the frying pan, leaving about 1tbsp. Add the onion, celery and pine nuts to the pan and fry in the reserved oil for 10 mins over a low heat, until the vegetables are softened and lightly golden. Return the aubergine to the pan and stir in the 2 chopped garlic cloves, plum tomatoes, capers, olives, red wine vinegar and sugar. Season with salt and black pepper.
- Increase the heat and, once the mixture starts to simmer, cook for 5 mins. Remove from the heat, stir in the basil leaves, then leave to cool until just warm.
- Just before you’re ready to eat, toast or grill the bread for the bruschetta on both sides until crisp and lightly charred around the edges. Cut the remaining garlic clove in half and rub one side of each slice with the garlic, then lay the bread, garlic-side up, on a platter. Top with the mozzarella, then drizzle with oil, season with salt and pepper and scatter with basil. Serve the caponata alongside or heap it on top.