Bulgarian-Inspired Stuffed Eggplant (Aubergine)

Attempted from a memory at a restaurant in Veliko Ternovo

I’ve made this for meat eaters, but it’s easily changed to suit the veggie/vegan taste

1 eggplant (aubergine)
Lemon juice

Topping
¼ carton ground (mince) beef / veggie mince (like Quorn, delicious!)
½ can chopped plum tomatoes
5 fresh cherry tomatoes, roughly chopped
½ white cooking onion, small dice
2 tbsp passata (I used the kind with basil in it, just from what I had in my fridge)
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tsp herbs de provence
50ml tap water
1 heaped tbsp fromage frais
Parmesan to suit taste, finely grated
Cheddar (I use Red Leceister, but whatever suits), grated

Preheat oven to 175°C .
Slice the eggplant in half and slightly hollow out each half. Place in oven-safe dish. Pierce with a fork and sprinkle lemon juice over. Let sit.

Fry mince on medium-high heat in a large frying pan, adding onion, tomatoes and passata. When onions are soft, turn heat down to low, add garlic, herbs and water, to loosen sauce. Let simmer for approx 10mins, until sauce has thickened again.

Put eggplant in middle of oven and bake for 10mins.

Meanwhile, add fromage frais to topping and cook through. Turn heat off, add parmesan and mix through.

Remove eggplant from oven and spoon topping into hollowed out halves. Replace in oven and bake for 30mins.
After 30 minutes, check eggplant is soft. Sprinkle with cheddar and put under grill for about 8 minutes, until cheese is crisp.

Enjoy!