Meaty stuffed eggplant

This recipe is very yummy, and in our household heralds the arrival of summer... you can be flexible with what you put in - and it is even good for those on a low carb diets!

Ingredients

½ large	Eggplants, per person (Main)
2 medium	Onions
500 g	Beef mince, or lamb mince (Main)
4 cloves	Garlic
2 cups	Button mushrooms, chopped
2 medium	Courgettes
2 cans	Chopped tomatoes
5 Tbsp	Olive oil
½ cup	Cheese
0 to taste	Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
2. Cut eggplant in half, and using a spoon, hollow out halves, leaving approx. 0.5cm of flesh.
3. Chop flesh of eggplant, along with onions, garlic mushrooms and zucchinis.
4. Put approx 2 tbsp oil in frying pan; fry off onions till begin to go translucent; add in eggplant flesh, add some salt and cook till begins till soften. Then add zucchini (same), then mushroom. Finally garlic. Mix well. Add a little more salt.
5. Add 2 cans tomatoes and mix well. Add ground black pepper.
6. Put approx 2 tbsn oil in baking dish and spread over bottom.Place eggplant halves in baking dish (I use fairly deep pyrex). sprinkle salt lightly over eggplants.
7. Spoon tomato mixture into eggplant halves (be generous), Top with grated cheese (you can also add feta or similar, depending on how rich you like).
8. Bake for approximately 40 minutes. Use a fork to test that the eggplant shell is cooked - it should be quite soft.
9. Other vegetables such as celery can be used if desired. You can also add in olives and/or capers to add a more Mediterranean flavour. Serve hot with green salad and vinaigrette