Aunt Rose’s Caponata

by | Dec 12, 2011 | Dinner, Entertaining, Lunch | 7 comments

On top of all the changes going on at lesliedurso.com, the world lost one of my favorite people.  My great Aunt Rosalina passed away last week.  I inherited her passion for learning and her desire to travel the world.  She had visited 80 countries!  She was also an excellent cook and entertainer.  There was always food cooking at my Aunt Rose’s house.  She had many specialties and this week I would love to share some of them with you!  Today I’m going to start with her caponata.  Caponata is a Sicilian eggplant dish that can be served with bread as an appetizer, a side dish or is excellent as a main dish over polenta.  And it happens to be vegan 😉

Aunt Rose’s Caponata

What you’ll need:

3 medium eggplants, diced into 1/2 inch pieces

1 medium onion, chopped

1 cup tomato puree

2 tbsp. sugar

2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

3 stalks celery, diced

1/4 cup sliced black olives

3 tbsp. chopped parsley

2 tbsp. capers

salt and pepper to taste

What you’ll do:

Saute the eggplant in a large frying pan with a little olive oil and salt until it’s soft.  Set aside.

In another large frying pan, saute the onion with a drizzle of olive oil.  Saute 2 minutes.  Add the tomato puree and sugar and simmer for about 5 minutes.  Add the vinegar and saute another 2 minutes.  Add in the eggplant, celery, olives, and capers.  Saute another couple minutes and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Chill in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight.  Serve at room temp.

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7 Comments

  1. Pavel Lihani
    Pavel Lihani on December 12, 2011 at 4:01 pm

    So sorry for your loss.

  3. jenn (way of the wong)
    jenn (way of the wong) on December 12, 2011 at 8:47 pm

    I have a big hug for you when I see you. Thank you for sharing your Aunt Rose’s delicious recipes with us. It is beautiful that she can live through you & your equally passionate lust for life.

  4. Nicole
    Nicole on December 12, 2011 at 10:18 pm

    So sorry for your loss…but what a legacy she has left for you!

  5. Jessica
    Jessica on December 14, 2011 at 4:41 am

    What a lovely way to honor your Aunt Rose’s time one earth. It sounds like she lived a fabulous life! Thank you for sharing her recipe.

    xo

  6. Lovlie
    Lovlie on January 3, 2012 at 3:17 pm

    I love eggplant and have never had it in this way. This is definitely a recipe to try, will work well with bread or even couscous I think! Yummy! Thanks for sharing and thanks to your Aunt Rose! 🙂

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