Main course
Cold Sicilian vegetable “caponata” with bufala stracciata cheese and Chilli pepper-flavoured extra virgin olive oil.
serves 6
people
30 min
(cooking time)
1 hour and 45 min
(total time)
Difficulty
Easy
Ingredients
Instructions
Wash the aubergines and cut them into small pieces. If you have time, place them in a colander and sprinkle them with salt, then leave them to sweat for about an hour.
Place the sultanas to soak and rinse the capers thoroughly in running water. Roast the pine kernels until golden brown in a small non-stick frying pan, without adding fats. Slice the onion and celery. Fry the onion and celery gently for a few minutes in the extra virgin olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the rinsed capers, the squeezed-dry sultanas, the pine kernels and the olives. Stir and after two minutes add the tomato purée, the vinegar and the sugar. Season with the hand-torn basil leaves and add salt to taste. While the sauce starts to cook, prepare the bell peppers by removing the cores, seeds and internal filaments, then cut them into strips and add them to the vegetables. Slice the courgettes into rounds and and add them to the frying pan, continuing to cook over low heat.
In the meantime rinse the aubergines and dry them thoroughly. Coat them in flour and fry them in groundnut oil until golden. Drain on a sheet of kitchen roll to remove the excess oil then add them to the other vegetables. Stir thoroughly and continue cooking to absorb the flavours for another 5 minutes, checking that all the vegetables are cooked. Add salt and pepper to taste if necessary and leave to cool.
Transfer the caponata to the individual plates, add 2 spoonfuls of bufala stracciata cheese and complete with a dribble of chilli pepper-flavoured extra virgin olive oil, then serve with fresh bread.
Place the sultanas to soak and rinse the capers thoroughly in running water. Roast the pine kernels until golden brown in a small non-stick frying pan, without adding fats. Slice the onion and celery. Fry the onion and celery gently for a few minutes in the extra virgin olive oil in a large frying pan. Add the rinsed capers, the squeezed-dry sultanas, the pine kernels and the olives. Stir and after two minutes add the tomato purée, the vinegar and the sugar. Season with the hand-torn basil leaves and add salt to taste. While the sauce starts to cook, prepare the bell peppers by removing the cores, seeds and internal filaments, then cut them into strips and add them to the vegetables. Slice the courgettes into rounds and and add them to the frying pan, continuing to cook over low heat.
In the meantime rinse the aubergines and dry them thoroughly. Coat them in flour and fry them in groundnut oil until golden. Drain on a sheet of kitchen roll to remove the excess oil then add them to the other vegetables. Stir thoroughly and continue cooking to absorb the flavours for another 5 minutes, checking that all the vegetables are cooked. Add salt and pepper to taste if necessary and leave to cool.
Transfer the caponata to the individual plates, add 2 spoonfuls of bufala stracciata cheese and complete with a dribble of chilli pepper-flavoured extra virgin olive oil, then serve with fresh bread.
