A Tasty, but not "Purty" Eggplant Custard

In a Tuscan meal that I prepared for friends last night, I tried one new dish - Eggplant Custard with Tomato and Basil Sauce (Sformatino di Melanzane con Pomodoro e Basilico). The recipe is from a book called, "A Culinary Traveller in Tuscany," by Beth Elon. She found the dish at an eatery called Il Conte Matto, in the town of Trequanda, which is located a few miles northwest of Montepulciano, Tuscany.


I highly recommend Ms. Elon's book to anyone who enjoys Tuscan cuisine and travel. in Tuscany. Ms. Elon has laid out a number of interesting day trips to different parts of Tuscany. In each trip, she identifies nice little eateries and provides recipes from those establishments.


The dish was really tasty, but the eggplant gave the dish a color that was a bit gray. The recipe has two components - a custard and a sauce.


Use either a baking dish or 4 large individual ramekins for the custard. The custard from the ramekins can be emptied onto the sauce, or as I did, I emptied the ramekins onto a plate and covered the custard with the sauce.


Ingredients:


1. For the Custard
1 pound eggplant peeled and coarsely chopped
Extra virgin olive oil
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 egg plus 1 yolk
3 heaping tablespoons grated Parmesan, plus additional at table


2. For the Sauce
1.5 pouns (about 4 large) ripe tomatoes, peeled and seeded
3 sprigs casil, chopped, and some additional leaves for garnish
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
salt and freshly ground pepper


Preheat oven to 300 degrees.


Put the eggplant into a colander, mix some salt through it, and leave it to rest for at least half an hour in order to rid it of any bitter juices. Squeeze it dry in a towel, then sauté gently in 2 tbsp olive oil until soft. If need be, add a bit of boiling water and allow it to cook out. Place the eggplant, cream, egg, egg yolk, and Parmesan into a food processor and blend until amalgamated.


Put the mixture into individual ramekins or a baking dish, and place in a bain marie of boiling water. Bake for half n hour if in ramekins, or 45 minutes if using a baking dish. Test for doneness by sticking a sharp knife. If it comes out clean, the custard is done. Cool well.


Blend the tomatoes and basil together, and pour into a bowl. Mix in the vinegar and add salt and pepper to taste. (I used a hand blending stick for this part.) Serve the custard with the sauce, garnished with fresh basil leaves. Serve with more sauce and Parmesan at table.