2 years ago at Christmas, my sister’s partner, who is from Sicily, brought over his homemade Caponata and I instantly fell in love. Francesco served it with toasted bread and I just remember thinking I need the recipe! I have been searching for the exact recipe but none of the ones I found used exactly his ingredients, there seem to be so many variants! So, after making it myself for a couple of years now, and after confirming the list of ingredients with Francesco, I recorded my latest batch so that I can share the recipe with you all.

As mentioned above, I love Caponata as a ‘chunky dip’ served with bruschetta style toasted bread, but it can also be used as a pasta sauce or served with fish. And to preserve it, I simply sterilise glass jars and lids by filling them with boiling water and leaving for few minutes. Then fill with hot Caponata, put lids on and turn upside down. They are ready to store in a cupboard after 24 hours and will keep for months.

Now, let’s quickly talk about the method. Please allow up to 2 hours to make this. You will need a pan to fry the aubergine (eggplant) and another to make the tomato sauce, and a pot of boiling water for the celery. When it all comes together, I like to stew the mixture on low heat for about an hour (hence why it takes up to 2 hours to make). Make sure to keep the celery water in case your mixture gets to dry.

Ingredients:

• 2 aubergines (eggplants), diced into small bitesize cubes

• 100ml of olive oil, plus extra for frying the aubergine

• 1 red or white onion, finely chopped

• 150g olives (choose your favourite), halved

• 2 tbsp capers (in brine)

• 3 cloves of garlic, sliced

• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar

• 1 tbsp sugar

• 2 cans of chopped/crushed tomatoes

• 1 tbsp tomato paste

• 10 basil leaves, chopped up

• 1 bay leaf

• 1 tsp cocoa

• 70g blanched and toasted almonds, halved

• 2 celery stalks, sliced

Method:

1. Start by preparing the aubergine. Soak the aubergine chunks in some cold water for about 5 minutes, then drain (this is meant to prevent it from absorbing too much oil), then sprinkle with salt and let it rest for another 5 minutes. Drain the excess liquid. Add 100ml oil into your first frying pan, add the aubergine and fry for about 10 minutes on medium heat, or until it’s soft. (Fry in batches if needed).

2. To make the tomato sauce, in a larger pan, fry the onion until translucent and soft, add 3 chopped garlic cloves, halved olives, 2 tbsp capers and fry for another minute. Then add 1tbsp red wine vinegar and 1tbsp sugar and lastly add 2 tins of chopped/crushed tomatoes, 1tbsp tomato paste, 10 chopped basil leaves, 1 bay leaf and 1tsp cocoa. Let it simmer.

3. Boil 2 sliced celery stalks for 7 minutes, reserving the water. Toast 70g blanched almonds (3 minutes in air fryer or on hob or about 8 minutes in oven at 180oC).

4. Add both toasted almonds and boiled celery to your tomato sauce, season to your liking with salt and pepper, cover with lid and simmer on low for about 45 minutes, using the celery water as needed to loosen the sauce.

5. Serve straight away or preserve in jars (as mentioned above). This mix will fit into about 5 small/medium jars (I reuse my jam jars).