This is a recipe that I found in Cook Vegetarian Magazine, April 2013 and wanted to give it a go. It was a bit of an experiment in the end as I found that the balls wouldn’t keep shape and ended up looking rather ‘rustic’ (yes, a perfect excuse for them looking VERY weird but incredibly tasty!) I will be giving these another go in order to perfect them, so keep an eye on the blog for developments with the experiments!
Aubergine No-Meat Balls
2 tbsp Olive Oil
2 medium aubergines cut into small cubes
1 smallish onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
A handful of pitted black olives
1 red chilli, finely chopped
a large handful of fresh basil
1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
1 mug of breadcrumbs
Method:
Place a large frying pan on a medium heat and sizzle the aubergines and onion in a little oil
When they have picked up a bit of colour, add the garlic, generous squeeze of lemon juice and most of the grated zest
Tip into a food processor along with the olives, chili, herbs, balsamic vinegar, breadcrumbs and whiz everything together
Add more olive oil if the mix is too dry and more breadcrumbs if it is too wet
Make the mixture into balls (approximately 12)
Fry the balls in oil, browning them all over
Meanwhile boil some rice and heat up some tinned tomatoes with herbs and garlic in a saucepan (adding some tomato puree to give it a richer taste)
Add the heated tomato mixture to the balls in the frying pan, then serve on the rice