Aubergine parmigiana

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Dear 2013,

how you smell like fresh linnen & unpooped babies.

You're just so young and new and all different kinds of innocent...

Boy, how I have the highest expectations of you!

You and I, we're going to be besties.

Not sure? To much pressure?
Let me give you 5 reasons why you'll be the awesomest of years: 

 1° We'll travel the world together. 

Or at least some countries... We'll visit Poland, Moroc and the Greatest of Britain.
All of this surrounded by some of my dearest friends.
{I'll introduce you, don't worry.. I think you'll like one another}

2° We'll graduate and start looking for a job.

That's right; no more studying, no more impossible deadlines, no more papers, no more group assignments,  {Oh how I dispise those...}

To be fair, I will miss; drinking on weeknights, sleeping until ten in the morning, not having to pay my own bills, ..

 3° We'll move into a {real} house.

A house with a small garden and living room and kitchen...
I'm actually krumping while writing this down, that's how I excited I am!

4° We'll drink this, eat this and bake this several times.

 5° We'll grow and laugh together; 

we'll make mistakes and learn from them,
we'll learn to tell a good joke, 

we'll pet Lisa's cat, 

we will dance until our feet hurt, 

we'll stop nagging abour the weather and wear the prettiest of coats, 

we will love until our hearts explode, 

You see?

I'm already looking forward to all of our upcoming adventures!

Sincere greetings,

Eva

Ps. I made you the most scrumptious vegetable dish, I hope you like it; 

Aubergine Parmigiana

adapted from: The River Cottage Cookbook - Veg Every day

Serves: 6

4 large aubergines

1 T olive oil

2 onion, peeled and finely chopped

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced

3 x 400g tinned plum tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 bay leaf

1 heaped teaspoon dried oregano

a pinch of sugar

250 g mozzarella

50 g parmesan

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

one: preheat your oven to 180°C/ 350°F.

two: remove the stalks from the aubergines, slice them lengthways up into 3 to 5mm thick slices, and put to one side. whether you're using a griddle pan or a simple frying pan, get it really hot. 

three: meanwhile make the tomato sauce by heating the oil in a large wide pan over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and fry gently for ten minutes, stirring occasionally until soft.

four: add the tinned tomatoes, the sugar, the bay leaf and half of the oregano to the onion and garlic. Give the mixture a good stir, then put a lid on the pan and simmer slowly for about 30 minutes

five: grill the aubergines on both sides until golden and tender – you may have to do them in batches, as they probably won't all fit into your griddle pan in one go.
six: now we'll start to layer it in an oven proof dish {at least 25x20cm}. Lay a third of the aubergine slices over the bottom of the dish and season to taste. Cover with a layer of tomato sauce, then a third of the mozzarella torn into pieces and scattered over it, and repeat!
seven: repeat these layers until you've used all the ingredients up, finishing with a layer of aubergine with the last torn pieces of mozzarella on top of it and a good sprinkle of parmesan to top things of.
eight: place the dish in the oven and bake for half an hour until golden, crisp and bubbly. 

suggestion: serve with fresh green salad and bread if you like.

Song to make your day: Moomin - Opening Theme

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