Noodle-free lasagna

We had quite a few eggplants in our CSA share this week, along with a bounty of tomatoes.  I wanted to make something a little bit different than grilled veggies and/or sauteed over pasta.  I found a recipe that included some eggplants, tomatoes and a lovely amount of mozzarella.

As much as I say, "bacon makes everything better." I feel the same way about mozzarella cheese.  Cooked, chilled, solo or with tomatoes and basil...mozzarella can do no wrong.

Tonight's recipe included the following:

• 2 eggplant, sliced
• 2 -3 lbs. medium to large tomatoes (red or yellow)
• fresh basil, onions, garlic
• mozzarella (shredded or sliced)
• a shake of nutmeg and garlic powder
• pecorino cheese

I sliced and salted the eggplant in a colander. While that was resting, I began chopping my tomatoes and putting them in a large bowl.  I heated up my Le Creuset pan with olive oil, onions, and garlic.  I gave the eggplant a good shake to remove the excess moisture and added it to the pan.  I gave it a nice grill, until the eggplant developed small amounts of brown on the skin.

I removed the eggplant from the pot, and layered an oiled baking dish with it.  I then tossed the tomatoes and some fresh basil into the pot.  I gave the tomatoes a shake of garlic powder and nutmeg.  I allowed that to simmer, and allowed for some of the liquid to cook off.  The colors were gorgeous!!!
Once the moisture began to cook off, I poured the entire pot of tomatoes into the baking dish (I did make a mistake; I should have spooned the tomatoes into the baking dish...too much liquid was transferred).  I gave a sprinkle of pecorino cheese on top.
I then sliced some mozzarella and covered the entire baking dish and placed in the toaster oven at 425 degrees. The dish hung out for 25 - 30 minutes and then I turned on the broiler to get the cheese browned.

I used a slotted spoon to serve dinner, so as not to overwhelm my dish with whatever tomato liquid did not cook off.  It was pretty darn good.