Master Chef Australia 2022 | Aldo's Melanzane a Scarpone Recipe

This weeks Master Chef Australia 2022 recipe we recreated is from the mystery box challenge that Maggie Beer put together. Aldo made a dish from Naples, which highlights eggplant and made his own ricotta!

Ingredients (4 portions)

Ricotta
1 L full cream milk
2 Tbsp white vinegar
2 Tbsp thickened cream

Eggplant
2 small eggplant
2 tbsp vincotto (we used dark balsamic vinegar)
1 tbsp verjuice (we used aceto bianco vinegar)
2 sprigs thyme

Eggplant Filling

1 L vegetable oil
1 eggplant
3 Tbsp capers
4 sprigs parsley
½ tsp smoked paprika
6 prunes, pitted
100 g toasted pistachios

Salsa Verde
¼ bunch parsley
100 ml extra virgin olive oil
100 ml verjuice (we used aceto bianco vinegar)
salt and pepper, to taste

Method

  1. If you are using ab oven, preheat to 180°C fan forced. We used our smoker grill to cook the eggplant.

  2. For the Ricotta, place the milk into a small saucepan over medium heat. When just below boiling point, add vinegar and stir gently for 20 seconds. Remove from the heat, cover with a lid and set aside for 15 minutes.

  3. Pour through a lined sieve and discard the whey. Place the sieve over a deep bowl and place in the fridge to further strain and cool for at least 30 minutes.

  4. Gently squeeze the ricotta to remove liquid then place into a small food processor and process until smooth. Add 1 tablespoon of the cream at a time and process until well combined.

  5. Season with salt then transfer to a piping bag or bowl. Set aside in the fridge.

  6. For the 2 eggplants that will be filled, bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil then remove from the heat. Cut each eggplant in half lengthwise and scoop out the centres.

  7. Immediately place eggplants and flesh into the salted water for 3-4 seconds then remove from the water and drain on paper towel. Pat with extra paper towel to ensure eggplants and flesh are dry.

  8. Combine the vincotto (or dark vinegar) and verjuice (or white vinegar) in a small bowl. Brush the eggplant with the mixture and sprinkle with thyme leaves and season well with salt.

  9. Bake or grill for 20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes, until eggplant is tender and browned. Remove from the oven or grill and set aside to cool while preparing the filling.

  10. For the eggplant filling, heat oil in a deep saucepan or deep fryer to 170°C.

  11. Trim the stem and base from the third eggplant. Cut away the skin and dice the flesh into 4mm cubes. Also use the flesh from the other two eggplants.

  12. Add to the oil and fry until golden and soft. Remove from the oil and place onto paper towel until cool.

  13. Now add the capers and fry until crispy, about 1 minute. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towel.

  14. Add chopped fried eggplant centres, parsley, fried capers, paprika and salt to a bowl.

  15. Dice prunes to the same size as the fried eggplant and roughly chop the pistachios. Combine with the eggplant by hand. Season with salt to taste and set aside.

  16. For the Salsa Verde, using a mortar and pestle, pound the parsley then add half of the olive oil and verjuice (or white vinegar). Continue to mix until emulsified. You can also use a stick blender to make it quicker.

  17. Add remaining verjuice (or white vinegar) and salt then add remaining olive oil, a little at a time, until combined to the consistency of pouring cream. Transfer to a small serving bowl.

  18. To serve, pipe or spread a 1cm thick layer of ricotta into the cavity of each eggplant shell. Spoon in the filling in a generous pile. Place onto a serving plate and serve with the salsa verde on the side.

  19. ENJOY!