Eggplant Casserole with Pepper, Olives and Anchovies

There are several cooking steps in preparing this delicious eggplant casserole from the Catalan region of Spain, but it comes together easily when using the tools of your Convection oven. 

Begin by slicing the eggplant, sprinkling the slices with salt then setting them aside for an hour or so.  

Now heat the oven in the Broil mode and broil the peppers, set them aside to cool before removing the skins. Then you can prepare the remaining ingredients and rinse the eggplant slices and bake them. 

Once the eggplant slices have been baked, then the ingredients are layered into a baking dish and baked for about 20 minutes.

INGREDIENTS

2 medium eggplant, cut into ¼” thick slices

4 peppers, red, yellow, and orange, halved and seeded

¾ cup olive oil

3 tbsp pine nuts

¾ cup fresh breadcrumbs made from a rustic or sourdough loaf

¼ tsp dried oregano

2 tbsp chopped Italian parsley

6 anchovies

½ cup pitted black olives

PREPARATION

Slice the eggplant, arrange on a large rimmed baking sheet, sprinkle with Kosher salt, and set aside for an hour.

Heat the oven in the Broil mode, at 475 degrees, the oven will come to temperature quickly in this mode. Cut the peppers in half lengthwise, remove the seeds and stem and flatten the peppers with the heel of your palm. Place the peppers on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet and broil until the skins blacken. 

Remove the pan from the oven and set aside to cool.  Drape a paper towel over the peppers to help sweat off the skins.  When the peppers are completely cooled, removed the blackened skin and cut the peppers into thick strips.

Meanwhile, heat a medium-sized skillet and add 2 tbsp of olive oil. Add the pine nuts to the pan and cook until gently browned then stir in the breadcrumbs and cook for a few minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, season with salt and pepper, and stir in the oregano and parsley.

Heat the oven in the Convection Bake mode at 350 degrees.

Rinse the eggplant slices and pat dry with paper towels. Spread the eggplant slices onto a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with some olive oil, bake for 15 - 20 minutes until softened.

Now you are ready to assemble the casserole.

Lightly oil the casserole dish and begin with a layer of eggplant, top with a layer of peppers, then a layer of the breadcrumb mixture and a scattering of olives.  Add the anchovies in a criss-cross pattern over the tops of the casserole and drizzle the remaining olive over the top.

Bake for 15 - 20 minutes in the Convection Bake mode at 350 degrees.

Serves 4 - 6