Candied Aiubergines in Honey syrup with ginger.
Following on from where we left off on day 2, the process is the same for two more days. Remove the aubergines in the morning, add 500 gr. of sugar to the syrup, bring to the boil, replace the aubergines in the thickened syrup and bring back up to the boil once more. Switch of heat and allow to cool. Do this once more in the late evening, adding a further 500 gr of sugar.
Repeat this sequence on day 4. By the end you should have added around 3 Kgs of sugar and have a dense ginger-flavoured syrup. The aubergines will gradually continue to absorb the sugar, becoming quite translucent.
Day 5. Remover the eggplant, and the ginger; throw away the ginger root. Add 1kg. of runny honey, and bring back to a simmer. Replace the aubergines and allow to simmer for 15 minutes.
In the meantime warm several 1Kg or 2Kg preserving jars in the oven to a temperature of 100ºC. Turn the heat off under the syruppan, and allow the syrup and the fruit to settle until the liquid is still.
Bottle carefully with a ladle. The syrup is very hot! Tighten the lid of the jar when full, making sure the aubergines are covered by plenty of the liquid. It's best not to overfill the jar with fruit. It does not matter if there is a lot of syrup on top. Allow to cool all day before storing in a cool cellar or larder.
To Serve
We place one or two whole aubergines on a shallow dish with knife and fork, and serve it with strong manchego cheese, or fresh goat's cheese. Just cut a slice and place it on top of a slice of cheese. Eat!
Home made vanilla ice cream goes well with these; dice them intotranslucent cubes, and pour some of the extra syrup over the ice cream.