Melanzane Alla Parmigiana (Eggplant Bake)

1. For the vegan Parmigiana, start by washing the eggplants. Cut them into 1cm-thick slices, then place them in a sieve, salt them and place a pan of water on top of them as a weight to remove the bitterness.

2. While you’re waiting, prepare the tomato sauce: sweat a clove of garlic in some olive oil, add the passata and basil leaves, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook the tomato sauce over a low heat for 20 minutes.

3. Dry the eggplant slices and sear them in hot rapeseed oil. If you want your vegan Parmigiana to be lower in fat, grill the eggplants or roast them in the oven. You could also cook them in an airfryer.

4. If you’ve fried them, use kitchen roll to soak up some of the oil they’ve absorbed.

5. Spread 2 tbsp of the tomato sauce in a baking dish, and spread a layer of eggplant slices on top. Cover with a thin layer of tomato sauce, then another layer of eggplants, and keep adding layers like this until you’ve used all the ingredients. Top the last layer with grated Granvegano, then bake the Parmigiana in the oven at 355 degrees Fahrenheit/180 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes until slightly golden brown on top. Take the Parmigiana out of the oven, and leave to cool for a few minutes before serving.