Grilled Eggplant with Tomato Sauce

Grilled Eggplant with Tomato Sauce

Spring has arrived in the Wegmans' produce section! Finally! It may still be snowing--in late March--but there are berries and tomatoes that actually taste like tomatoes and . . . Eggplant. I walked past a display of beautiful purple eggplant and knew I had to have one. They're super imported (Holland eggplant from Holland, the sticker said), but I bought one anyway because I am weak and it was lovely. Look:

I had originally planned on stacking slices of eggplant and tomato, but decided I wanted something saucier (literally, and perhaps figuratively as well). So I decided to make a simple tomato sauce to layer with slices of grilled eggplant. Topped with parmesan, it was kind of like eggplant parm-light (omit the parm and it's vegan). Recipe after the jump:

Simple Grilled Eggplant and Tomato Sauce

1 eggplant
1 can diced tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, chopped
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
basil
oregano
salt & pepper
parmesan cheese

Step One: Prepare the eggplant by cutting off the top, peeling, and cutting into 1/4 to 1/2" thick slices (the thicker they are, the longer they take to cook). You can skip the peeling, but the skin can be tough. Be sure to "sweat" the eggplant before cooking it, otherwise it will taste bitter. This is accomplished by generously salting both sides of the slices and letting them sit in a colander for 15-20 min. The eggplant will release moisture, making it appear to be sweating. Wipe off excess salt before cooking.

Step Two: Start the sauce while the eggplant is sweating. Saute the garlic in a tbl or so of olive oil for a few minutes until it starts to brown. Add can of tomatoes, salt, pepper, basil, and oregano--all to taste. Simmer sauce on med-low heat while cooking the eggplant.

Step Three: Wipe excess salt from eggplant slices and brush both sides with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Grill for 3-4 min. a side until tender. I use a grill pan, which works well but releases a ton of smoke. Having learned from the asparagus incident, I opened the windows and lodged a fan in one for exhaust. My smoke detector stayed silent, but my kitchen got pretty cold.

Step Four: Layer tomato sauce with eggplant slices and top with parmesan cheese. Leftover grilled eggplant makes a good sandwich.

This was light and tasty. The acidity of the tomatoes pairs perfectly with the flavor of the eggplant (which is why they're paired together so often, but still). A nice spring dinner for a decidedly un-springlike day.