A quick vegetarian dish as tasty as parmigiana, but less work.
Chefs are often inspired by each other and this dish was a holiday invention from Diego, my head chef at Murano. We paired it with some grilled lamb on the lunch menu there, which worked really well, but I also use it as a quick vegetarian dish. It has all the components of an aubergine parmigiana - and is just as tasty - but is half the work.
Serves 2
1 large aubergine
50ml olive oil
salt and pepper
25ml good-quality balsamic vinegar
250g buffalo mozzarella
4 large tomatoes, halved
1 tbsp chopped basil
20g chopped black olives
Peel the aubergine, discard the skin and dice into large cubes.
Toss the diced flesh with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
Roast in an oven preheated to 200C for 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and toss with the balsamic vinegar before mixing with the tomatoes, olives, mozzarella and basil.
Check the seasoning to taste, and return to the oven at 200C for another 5 minutes.
Serve with a green salad.
• Angela Hartnett is chef patron at Murano restaurant and consults at the Whitechapel Gallery and Dining Room, London. Twitter.com/angelahartnett
Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian
