recipes, summer

Eggplant Gratin with Saffron Custard

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Slice of eggplant gratin on a white plate, with a green napkin

Oh my. Oh goodness. Excuse me while I swoon. This unassuming little vegetable gratin is definitely swoon worthy. If you’ve been facing down some eggplant, wondering what to do with it, don’t think for a minute more. This is what you want to do with it.

I made this glorious thing last week when Sean was out of town and was immediately sad that he wasn’t there to enjoy it with me. Of course, there were plenty of leftovers, since this easily serves about six people. And he did enjoy it when he got home. But the night I pulled it out of the oven, with the kitchen smelling of tomatoes and garlic and olive oil, it felt almost magical. It was that good.

Grilled eggplant slices on a baking sheet

Think of smoky, charred eggplant slices melting into tangy, fresh tomato sauce and nutty Gruyere, the whole thing blanketed by rich, fragrant saffron custard. Yeah. That’s what I’m talking about. The smells in my kitchen were intense. But the best thing about this dish is that for all its decadence, it’s not heavy or overbearing. You can eat this without needing to stretch out on the couch afterwards. It has all the freshness you want in a mid-summer meal. It is somehow at once simple, and very, very special.

Heirloom tomatoes, red onion, jar of dried herbs, head of garlic

You start by making a simple tomato sauce, accented with fennel-scented herbes de provence. You grill some thick slices of eggplant until they are soft and charred. You layer it all in a baking dish, and top it with a creamy, saffron-flecked custard, and bake it until you can’t stand how good it smells and you think you might just inhale the whole pan.

As much as I was sad that Sean wasn’t here to enjoy this with me, there was something deeply satisfying about making such an exquisite meal for myself. I sat at the table quietly and savored every bite, and I felt in that moment that I definitely deserved it.

A slice of eggplant gratin on a white plate, with a green napkin

Eggplant Gratin with Saffron Custard
Author: Adapted from Deborah Madison and Edward Espe Brown
Prep time: 40 mins
Cook time: 50 mins
Total time: 1 hour 30 mins
Serves: 6
This recipe is adapted from one in The Greens Cookbook. I chose not to fry the eggplant because I wanted to make it a bit lighter. I used a truly enormous globe eggplant for this dish. You want enough eggplant to cover your baking dish with two layers of eggplant.
Ingredients
  • A few tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small red onion, chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic, thinly sliced
  • 1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence
  • about 3 medium to large tomatoes
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 large eggplant
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup ricotta
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • a pinch of saffron threads
  • about 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
  • a handful of fresh basil leaves, roughly torn
  • 3 ounces Gruyere, grated
Instructions
  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Score the tomatoes on the bottom with a sharp knife, and drop them into the boiling water. When the skins begin to split, remove the tomatoes and run them under cold water, carefully peeling off the skins. Roughly chop the tomatoes and set aside.
  2. In the same large pot (emptied of water), warm a few tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. When it’s hot, add the onion and saute for about five minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the garlic and the Herbes de Provence and saute for another thirty seconds or so. Add the chopped tomatoes, and a pinch of salt. Stir well, and let the tomato sauce cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally and breaking up the tomato chunks with a spoon as well as you can.
  3. While the tomatoes are cooking, heat a grill. Slice the eggplant into half inch thick slices. Discard the end pieces, and if you’d like, cut any especially large pieces in half. Drizzle the eggplant slices with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. When the grill is hot, grill the eggplant for about three or four minutes on each side, until it’s nicely charred and cooked through, but not falling apart. Set the eggplant slices aside.
  4. Beat the eggs well in a medium bowl. Whisk in the ricotta, cream, saffron, and Parmesan cheese. Whisk until the mixture is smooth, and season with a pinch of salt.
  5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Assemble the gratin in a large baking dish: First, spread a little tomato sauce on the bottom of the pan. Spread out a layer of eggplant, then about half of the torn basil leaves. Sprinkle the Gruyere over, then another layer of eggplant and basil, and the remaining tomato sauce. Pour the ricotta mixture evenly over the top, and bake for about 40 to 50 minutes, until the custard is lightly browned. Remove from the oven and let rest for a few minutes before serving.

 

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