Eggplant and Tomato Gratin

Looking for a meatless summer dish? This one’s for you.

I found a simple eggplant gratin recipe by Ina Garten (whom I’m somewhat obsessed with). It sounded yummy, but since I don’t do individual serving dishes like Ina (too much work) and since I love fresh tomatoes, I tweaked her recipe a bit. And of course, I’m sharing it with you. Aren’t I nice?

Here’s what you’ll need:
Two large eggplants
Three medium tomatoes
2/3 cup ricotta cheese
2/3 cup half-and-half
3 large eggs
1 ¼ cups grated Parmesan cheese
1 ½ cups marinara sauce
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Eggplant is such a pretty vegetable, don’t you think?

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No need to peel the eggplant, just slice them up.

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Then slice up the tomatoes. I’m one lucky girl when it comes to tomatoes, because I get these delicious Italian heirloom tomatoes from J Diddy. They may not be pretty, but I’ve learned a valuable lesson from my dad – do not judge a book by its cover when it comes to fruits and veggies. These tomatoes are sweet with hardly any seeds and a lot of flesh. In other words, perfect for cooking!

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Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a frying pan.

Once the oil is hot, fry a few slices of eggplant at a time. Do not overcrowd the pan with too many slices. It’s important to keep the pan hot, so that the eggplant slices don’t become too soggy with oil.

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Brown each side of the eggplant slices, flipping once. This takes about 5 minutes.

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Keep frying the slices until they are all nicely browned and cooked, adding more oil to the pan as needed. Set aside the cooked eggplant.

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Now mix together the gratin custard topping! Put the ricotta in a medium bowl.

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Pour in the half-and-half.

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Then add half of the Parmesan cheese.

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And the eggs too.

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Don’t forget to season with salt and pepper. Then mix everything together.

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Time to layer! In a 9×13 pan, place a layer of eggplant slices.

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Put a layer of tomato slices on top of the eggplant. Already looks good, right?

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Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

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Cover the layers with the marinara sauce. Make sure you resist the urge to use a cheap bottled sauce…buy something good! Or if you’re really adventurous, make your own.

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Then add a second layer of eggplant and tomatoes on top of the marinara sauce.

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Pour and spread the custard mixture over the eggplant and tomatoes.

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And sprinkle even more Parmesan cheese on top. This is a gratin dish after all…lots of cheese is a must!

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Pop the pan in the oven and bake for about 30-40 minutes, until the custard topping is browned and set.

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Yum. Summer comfort food. What a great substitute for lasagna.

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Thank you, Ina, for the inspiration!

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