Chocolate eggplant parmigiana. Yes, you read that right: This is a traditional recipe typical of the Amalfi Coast. It’s a mouth-watering dessert featuring a dark chocolate sauce, candied fruit, almonds, and amaretti. The eggplants are fried twice: If you are on a diet, this is not the recipe for you, but we assure you that the combination is explosively delicious!
The origins of chocolate eggplant parmigiana
There are many legends as to the origins of this recipe: Some believe it was created by the monks of either Atrani or Tramonti – who initially combined fried eggplant with a liqueur sauce, that was later replaced with chocolate. Others maintain that it was the Augustinian nuns, already the inventors of other typical sweets, such as struffoli and roccocò.
Although it doesn’t seem like a summer dessert, this dessert is eaten in Maiori during the hottest months of the years – when eggplants are at their best and the occasion of Ferragosto is upon us.
The Recipe: Chocolate Eggplant Parmigiana
Ingredients:
For the sauce and filling:
400 g sugar
250 g dark chocolate
100 g bitter cocoa powder
500 ml water
60 g flour
60 g slivered almonds
100 g amaretti
100 g candied fruit
For the eggplants:
1 kg eggplants
150 g flour
4 eggs
Seed oil
Method:
For the filling:
Cut 200 g dark chocolate into small pieces. Pour 250 ml water into a saucepan over low heat and melt it with 400 g sugar, stirring constantly. Add the dark chocolate in pieces and let it melt.
Separately, sift the bitter cocoa and 60 g of flour. Add another 250 ml cold water and beat with a whisk until the lumps are removed. Pour this mixture into the saucepan and cook until thickened, continuing to stir. Let cool.
Coarsely chop the amaretti, candied fruit, almonds, and the remaining 50 g of dark chocolate.
For the eggplants:
Pour the remaining flour into a dish and beat the eggs in a separate bowl.
Slice the eggplants lengthwise and cover them with coarse salt in a colander. Let them rest for an hour or so – to remove excess water from the vegetable. Rinse the eggplants, dry with paper towels and fry in oil for the first time. Let them drain on paper towels and fry a second time – but first, cover them first in egg followed by flour for breading. You can flavor them as you like once they are fried: Dust them with sugar and cinnamon or grated lemon peel, for example.
Pour a little sauce on the bottom of an oven dish, and make a layer of eggplant followed by a layer of more sauce. Sprinkle with a little bit of the amaretti and dried fruit filling. Continue making layers until you run out of ingredients.
Bake at 215°F (100°C) for 15 minutes. Let cool and decorate with almonds, crumbled amaretti and fresh mint to taste.
An alternative
There is also a variant of this recipe that doesn’t include the final baking in the oven. After having fried the eggplants and creating the layers, just let the parmigiana rest in the fridge for a few hours and then serve.
Another variation has to do with the cream, which can be made even more delicious. In fact, it can also be made with milk instead of water – by melting dark chocolate with bitter cocoa.