Meat and eggplant Ingredients For the meat; 1lb ground beef 1 medium onion, grated 2oz stale bread, soaked in water and squeezed dry 1 egg, beaten 1 small bunch parsley 1/2 tsp cumin 1 tsp allepo pepper 1 tsp salt Fresh ground pepper 5-6 long eggplants 2 tomatoes, thinly sliced 3 tbsp olive oil Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste For the sauce: 3 garlic cloves, crushed 2 tbsp tomato paste 2tbsp olive oil 7fl oz warm water Salt, allepo & freshly ground black pepper to taste Instructions 1. Preheat oven to 400F prepare your meatball mixture. 2. Discard the crusts of the bread, soak in the water and squeeze dry. 3. To a bowl add all the ingredients for the meat mixture and knead well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. 4. Slice the eggplants into about 1.5 to 2 cm circles and spread over a large tray. Sprinkle some salt over them and leave for about 10 minutes. Gently squeeze out their excess moisture with paper towel. Place them back on a clean large tray. 5. Drizzle oil over the eggplant slices. Season with salt and pepper and rub. 6. Take a piece of meat and roll into a round meatball, as large as the eggplant slices, and slightly flatten. Place them on large baking dish or a tray in an upright position and layer it alongside the eggplants and repeat 7. Place the tomato slices in between the layers. 8. For the sauce; combine the garlic, 7fl oz warm water, 2tbsp tomato paste and 2tbsp oil in a bowl. Season with salt, pepper and Aleppo pepper 9. Pour the sauce, cover with aluminum foil and bake in the preheated oven for about 40-45 minutes. 10. Remove the cover and spoon the mixture over the meat and veggies and bake for 20 – 25 minutes, until the meatballs and vegetables cooked and slightly charred. #eggplant #baked #food #foodies #foodtiktok #beef #armenian