Aubergine Fritters -- Eggplant Fritters

I visited with my brother and sister-in-law for New Year's Eve, and she'd received a fabulous Italian cookbook for Christmas. So, of course, I had to steal a few recipes. :-)

Italy's 500 Best-Ever Recipes, edited by Jeni Wright, is originally a British publication, so eggplants are called aubergines. Also, they wonderfully include both metric and English conversions of measurements and heating.

While Turks are famous for their eggplant dishes, and truly have some of the best I've ever tasted, the Italians definitely know their way around the eggplant as well. This one is quite delicious. Where noted, (***), I've adapted this recipe to fit with my nutrition guidelines.

A classic antipasto, these simply delicious fritters also make a superb starter or a vegetarian supper dish.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 large aubergine (eggplant), weighing about 675 g / 1 ½ lb, cut into 1 cm / ½ inch thick slices
  
• 30 ml / 2 tbsp olive oil
  
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
  
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  
• 60 ml / 4 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
  
• 130 g / 4 ½ oz / 2 ¼ cups fresh breadcrumbs (***wholegrain)
  
• 90 g / 3 ½ oz / generous 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  
• 90 g / 3 ½ oz / generous 1 cup feta cheese, crumbled
  
• 45 ml / 3 tbsp whole grain spelt flour ***
  
• olive oil, for shallow frying ***
  
• sea salt and ground black pepper

To serve:
natural (plain) yogurt, flavoured with fried red chilies and cumin seeds
lime wedges

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 190ºC / 375ºF / Gas 5. Brush the aubergine slices with the olive oil, then place them on a baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes, until golden and tender.

2) Chop the aubergine slices finely and place them in a bowl with the egg, garlic, parsley, breadcrumbs, Parmesan and feta. Add salt and pepper to taste, and mix well.

3) Leave the mixture to rest for about 20 minutes. If the mixture looks very sloppy, add more breadcrumbs.

4) Divide the mixture into eight balls and flatten them slightly. Place the flour on a plate and season with salt and pepper. Coat the fritters in the flour, shaking off any excess.

5) Shallow fry the fritters in batches for 1 minute on each side, until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper.

6) Serve the fritters warm, accompanied with the flavoured yogurt and lime wedges.

Energy 508 Kcal / 2122 kj; Carbohydrate 38.3 g; Fat 31.4 g / Saturated Fat 10.4 g; Fibre 5.1 g