Aubergine with Miso from Comfort & Spice by Niamh Shields

Niamh Shields writes the well known blog eatlikeagirl.com and Comfort and Spice is her new book. I have been reading through a lot of the chapters but until today not actually cooking from it.

The recipe for Aubergine with Miso is in the speedy suppers chapter and today it was my speedy lunch.

I was not starting with the best aubergine, it had sat around a little, so it needed some strong flavours to pep it up and that is just what this recipe provided.

 I have a love hate relationship with aubergines which is perhaps my main problem. I always prefer them when someone else has done the cooking; when someone else has cooked them with love rather than the indifference I find in myself and I am still not unconditionally won over but the miso topping from this recipes was just perfect. This is made from 1tbs mirin, 1tbs sake, 1tbs sugar, 3 tbs miso paste. The mirin, sake and sugar are heated in a pan to take off the alcohol and then the miso is added and cooked a little more. The aubergine is sliced in half and scored on the flesh side if thick fleshed. The halves are then cooked on both sides in a few tablespoons of olive oil until soft/tender to touch. You then heat the grill, spread the aubergine with the miso sauce and sprinkle with sesame seeds, I like sesame seeds a lot so I used more than the 1 tablespoon specified. Grill until bubbling and serve.

My picture does not do justice to the recipe but you get the idea. It was very fast to put together and although the recipe suggests you serve this with rice I just ate it without and really enjoyed it.

Now I have the miso paste in the larder I think the next recipe from this book will be the miso marinated bavette steak, just need to locate the bavette steak in the freezer, I know you're in there somewhere!