Step 1

Preheat the oven up to 200° C / 390° F and grab a metal (ideally an old-fashioned one rather than non-stick one as I found that the latter one browns them too much) baking tray.

Step 2

Top the aubergines and cut them into 1.25 cm / 0.5" slices lengthwise. You may want to discard skin-covered ends (they would work great in vegan meatballs). With regards to salting eggplants, please see NOTES.

Step 3

Place the aubergine slices on the baking tray (no need to grease them) and into the hot oven for 20-25 minutes, flipping them gently once halfway through the baking time. Bake until they are soft and lightly browned. You'll need to do this in batches or you can bake several trays at once but you will need to bake them a bit longer as increased oven humidity will slow things down a bit.

Step 4

Heat up 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large frying pan.

Step 5

Add the finely diced onion and fry until translucent and slightly browned, stirring from time to time.

Step 6

Add in the garlic and fry for another minute or two, until softened and fragrant.

Step 7

Add in the tomatoes, wine (if using), bay leaf, whole basil stalks, dried herbs and chilli (if using) and 360 ml / 1½ cups of water. Simmer, stirring every 10 minutes, until the tomatoes break down completely and the sauce thickens - about 40 minutes.

Step 8

Season with salt, date nectar (or sugar) and black pepper. Set aside.

Step 9

Place the drained cashews and 120 ml / ½ cup of water in an upright blender. Blend until super creamy and smooth.

Step 10

Add garlic, miso paste, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Step 11

Finally, add in tapioca starch and blend once again.

Step 12

Preheat the oven to 200° C / 390° F (no fan) and grab a large baking dish (see NOTES for dimensions).

Step 13

Spoon a little bit of tomato sauce at the bottom of the dish (remove basil stalks - they've done their job of flavouring the sauce and discard).

Step 14

Follow with a layer of tightly arranged eggplant slices. Season the eggplants with salt, pepper and some extra dried Italian herbs if you wish.

Step 15

Follow with another thin layer of tomato sauce and eggplant. Continue until you've used up all of the sauce and eggplant slices, but remember that the top of the dish also needs a smattering of tomato sauce unless you intend to cover the entire bake with cheesy sauce.

Step 16

Finish off the last layer with dollops of cheesy sauce, drizzle with olive oil (I used 15 ml / 1 tbsp), scatter with pine nuts and breadcrumbs (if using).

Step 17

Bake for 20 minutes then increase the oven temperature to 220° C / 425° F and bake for a further 5-10 minutes, until the top is nicely browned.

Step 18

Allow the bake to set for an hour or so before cutting or else the slices will come out messy. Store the leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days or portion and freeze. Enjoy warm or at room temperature. I like to have this with a big green salad and pan fried potatoes or grilled sourdough bread for a more filling meal.