Recipe: Eggplant Caponata Sandwiches with Mozzarella

This is one of those versatile recipes that can serve more than one purpose — dip, sandwich filling, pasta sauce — and it makes use of all those beautiful eggplants that are in season...

Credit goes to our dad for creating this caponata, which he calls "the eggplant dip," although we've tweaked and fiddled with it over time. It's a traditional, stewy mix of eggplant, pepper, onions, and tomato with some salty olives and a dash of vinegar. In the batch pictured, we even threw in some summer squash that needed to be used.

This isn't a particularly quick dish, but the time involved is mostly hands-off once you finish chopping all of the ingredients. Then it just needs to simmer until everything is soft and the flavors are well-mingled.

P.S. You might want to have some napkins handy.

Eggplant Caponata Sandwiches
makes 5 cups of caponata, enough for about 10 sandwiches

1/3 cup olive oil
1 medium eggplant, peeled and cut into small cubes (you should have about 4 cups of cubed eggplant)
1/2 of a green bell pepper, diced
1 small onion (or 1/2 of a large one), diced
4 ounces mushrooms (about 5 medium), chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup pitted, black olives, chopped
1 6-ounce can of tomato paste
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon oregano
salt and pepper
baguette or ciabatta bread
fresh mozzarella (2 thick slices per sandwich)
fresh basil leaves (optional)

Heat oil over medium heat and add eggplant, bell pepper, onion, mushrooms, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 10 minutes, until vegetables are soft.

Add the olives, tomato paste, vinegar, sugar, and oregano. Season again with salt and pepper. Lower heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for 30 minutes. Stir a few times during cooking, and add a tablespoon or two of water (or olive brine) if the mixture is too thick and sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Allow caponata to cool. Spoon on bread, top with mozzarella and basil, and serve. Or, serve warm as a dip.

(Images: Elizabeth Passarella)

Comments (2)

i adore caponata but have never made it myself. i cant wait to try this one out. thanks AT!

I made this for a cookout this weekend. It was very tasty. Very dense, almost too dense. My brother called it surprisingly beefy. I might add a can of diced tomatoes next time to thin it out a little.