Aubergine Dumplings

Difficulty: Difficult
Grade: 9,5
Duration: 2 hours
Number of people: 3
Note: A lot of work, but very delicious. And you can eat it with pasta if you want.

• 90 g fresh breadcrumbs, sourdough bread
• 4 aubergines, cut into chunks of roughly 2cm
• 150 ml olive oil
• 100 g ricotta
• 75 g parmesan cheese, grated
• 10 g parsley, chopped
• 1 egg, plus 1 yolk
• 1½ tbsp. flower
• 6 cloves of garlic, pressed
• 15 g basil leaves, torn into fine strips
• 1½ cans of 400 g peeled Roma tomatoes, pureed until smooth (600 g)
• 1½ tsp. tomato paste
• 1½ tsp. fine sugar
• ¼ tsp. chili flakes
• ¾ tsp. paprika powder
• 2 tsp. fresh oregano leaves finely chopped
• 45 g unpitted kalamata olives, halved
• salt & pepper

1. Heat the oven to 160°C. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over a baking tray and bake in the oven for 12 minutes until light brown and dry. Let the crumb cool and increase the oven temperature to 220°C.
2. Mix the eggplant cubes on a large baking tray lined with baking paper 75 ml oil, ½ teaspoon salt and a good grind of black pepper. Spread them out as generously as possible and bake them in the oven for 30 minutes until golden brown; turn everything over halfway through.
3. Chop the aubergines into a coarse puree, place in a large mixing bowl and let cool in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. When the puree is cold, add the ricotta, parmesan, parsley, egg, egg yolk, flour, breadcrumbs and a third of the garlic. Add 10 grams of basil, ½ teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper. Mix everything well and, with oiled hands, form the mixture into 16 dough balls, the size of a golf ball, each weighing approximately 55 grams, pressing them firmly so that they remain compact.
4. Place a large non-stick frying pan with 2 tablespoons of oil over medium to high heat. Fry the dumplings in two batches for 3-4 minutes; turn them regularly until they are golden brown all over. Reduce the heat slightly if they colour too quickly. Add another tablespoon of oil and fry the remaining dumplings in the same way. Place them on a plate and set them aside.
5. Heat the oven to 180°C. Place the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Fry the remaining garlic for 1 minute until fragrant, add the canned tomatoes, tomato puree, sugar, chili flakes, paprika powder, oregano, 1 teaspoon of salt and a generous twist of freshly ground black pepper and simmer the sauce for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce until slightly thickened. Add 400 ml of water, bring to the boil, reduce the heat to medium high and let the sauce simmer for another 10 minutes.
6. Pour the sauce into a medium baking dish, spread the dumplings in it, and bake in the oven for 20 minutes until the sauce is bubbling. Remove the dish from the oven, sprinkle with the olives and the remaining basil, grate some Parmesan

Source: Ottolenghi PLENTY, see https://www.theguardian.com/food/2019/apr/20/yotam-ottolenghi-dumpling-recipes-aubergine-ricotta-gnocchi-rum-currant-speculaas

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