There are recipes for lasagne, baba ganoush, stuffed eggplants in a coconut dal and a showstopping Palestinian favourite.

It's also notorious for absorbing oil when it's fried, but that's not a problem with this recipe, where the eggplant is steamed ... Buy Chinese or Japanese eggplants that are as thin as possible.

My local grocery store doesn't sell Japanese eggplant, which is typically narrower and slightly sweeter than American eggplant. For this recipe ... made from a country-style bread loaf, were ...