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Melanzane di Scarponcino
One of my favorite spots on the Amalfi coast is the charming, serene coastal town of Sorrento. It is a wonderful place to stroll; the town straddles the cliffs that overlook the water toward Naples and Mt. Vesuvius. It was there that I learned this recipe for this dish, a pride of that Campania region. It is eggplant filled with all bright Italian ingredients. Scarponcino is Italian for “shoes.” The traditional preparation calls for splitting the eggplant lengthwise to make 2 halves that look like children’s shoes. As a side dish, I like the size of the rounds better.
Author: Susie Fishbein
Recipe type: Sides
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
- peanut or canola oil
- extra-virgin olive oil
- 1-2 medium purple eggplants, sliced into ¾-inch slices
- salt
- 3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
- ¹∕³ cup salt capers or capers
- ½ cup green olives, pitted and roughly chopped
- ½ cup Kalamata olives, drained, pitted, roughly chopped
- 12 medium-large cherry tomatoes, chopped
- 5 leaves fresh basil, chopped
- 1 cup warm marinara sauce
- dried oregano
Instructions
- Pour equal amounts of peanut oil and olive oil into a large skillet to come up ½ inch on the pan. Heat over medium heat until very hot but not smoking. Panfry the eggplant slices for 2-3 minutes per side, until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Season the eggplants with a small sprinkling of salt.
- If using salt capers, they need to be soaked in water to remove the salt. If using regular capers, rinse them very well to remove the acidic taste. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the garlic; cook for 1 minute until fragrant, do not allow to brown. Add the capers, green olives, and Kalamata olives. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes; cook for 1 minute. Sprinkle in the fresh basil; add marinara sauce. Season with oregano to taste.
- Remove the mixture from heat; spread over each of the eggplant slices. Can be made in advance and reheated.
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