It was nearly noon on Sunday. I wanted to make a nice lunch for the three of us, but I also thought it would be more fun to play in the pool with Julia than to run to the market and work in the kitchen. (She agreed.)
This recipe is a late summer favorite of ours, and it’s perfect for this sort of dilemma. You can put it together literally in five minutes, and it cooks to dark, caramelized perfection completely unattended. There’s no peeling, precision slicing or tricky sauce making, and only minimal chopping and grating. And it’s magic. Somehow, while you’re splashing in the pool, working in the garden or napping under a tree, the flavors marry and deepen into a rich and satisfying dish. Nobody would know that it happened almost completely without you.
This gratin makes a delicious light lunch. (We ate it all in one sitting.) And, as a side dish, it transforms a simple piece of grilled meat or fish into a very special summer dinner. In the unlikely event of leftovers, they’re delicious with a fried egg for breakfast.
Recipe
Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
About a pound (450g) of eggplants, preferably 3 or 4 small ones, stems cut off
4 tablespoons finely minced fresh herbs, such as rosemary, sage, thyme and basil (You needn’t use all four, but I would use at least two.)
About 1/2 cup (2 oz, 60g) of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
About 2 pounds (1 kg) of fresh tomatoes, cored and halved crosswise
Salt to taste
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 450F (230C).
2. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil over the bottom of a shallow 2-quart (2-l) gratin dish.
3. Slice the eggplants in half lengthwise. (If you’re using large eggplants, cut them in four lengthwise slices of roughly even thickness.) Place them in a single layer in the dish, skin side down. Score their flesh lightly with a sharp knife.
4. Sprinkle the eggplants with two or three generous pinches of salt, all of the herbs and about half of the cheese.
5. Place the tomatoes on top of the eggplants, skin side up. Brush with the other 1 tablespoon of oil and sprinkle on the rest of the cheese.
6. Place the gratin dish in the center of the oven and bake until the tomatoes and eggplants are soft and almost falling apart, about 70-90 minutes. The tops of the tomatoes should be a very dark brown, and the juices in the dish should be thick.
Slice into individual portions with a sharp knife and lift them out with a spatula. Serve warm or at room temperature.
