As I posted on Instagram the other day when I was home for the holidays, I had some delicious eggplant parmesan gratin at DiVino Ristorante Italiano in North Augusta, SC with my dad. I know North Augusta is a weird place to have eggplant parmesan but I promise it was so good!!!! The owner/head chef of the restaurant moved to North Augusta from Italy so it’s actually authentic Italian in South Carolina, which is very hard to come by. His wife, who runs the front of the restaurant, is from France and she’s the kind of beautiful classic French woman that all of us mere Americans aspire to be. You can tell she has impeccable taste and really turned the restaurant into a chic Italian eatery. She certainly provides an air of elegance to the place…I’m a little obsessed with this couple incase you couldn’t tell. I’m also however just as obsessed with the food, and my dad also loved the eggplant parmesan so much that we decided we had to recreate the recipe at home. Another fun fact about my dad is that he is an engineer but I’m convinced he may have been a chef in another life because he is not only a great cook, but also enjoys food more than anyone I know. He is the OG foodie.

   DiVinos Eggplant Parmesan Gratin

Before I start telling you how to make our version of eggplant parmesan, let me just start by saying yes this was in fact a successful recipe recreation so I’m not wasting your time, I swear!! I even received one of the highest praises from my toughest food critic- the “OG foodie”- that this was one of the best versions of eggplant parmesan he’s ever had, and trust me he’s had a lot of eggplant parm.

So getting into the recipe, the one we had at DiVinos was a fairly traditional breaded eggplant parmesan but we decided to change it a little and add a few more things to make it healthier, in theory. Not sure if it actually was healthier but we didn’t using breadcrumbs and we added a few more vegetables so basically healthy, right?? The original eggplant parmesan gratin for reference.

First you need to begin by slicing the eggplant. I sliced mine horizontally to get long thin strips. Cut the strips fairly thin because that will make it more tender once it is cooked.

After you slice all of your eggplants (I used 3 large ones), lay the slices out flat in a single layer to dry. Sprinkle them with a layer of salt to draw out the moisture then cover them with paper towels and place a flat object on them, like a baking sheet. Then add a heavy object (I used a can of soup) on top of that to add pressure to get the moisture out and leave it this way for about an hour. It is very important to get rid of as much water as possible during this step otherwise the eggplant will not cook properly. It is also the water in them that causes the oil to pop when frying so, if you can get rid of the water, that means no popping oil!! Your hands will thank you later.

While the eggplant is drying out you can start sautéing the mushrooms and onions. I know traditional eggplant doesn’t typically have mushrooms and onions in it, but I really think it complements the eggplant well in this dish. I used a sweet onion for this and diced it in to fairly small pieces. Add your onion to a hot pan with a little olive oil in it. While those are sautéing, start cutting your mushrooms. I used 5 medium mushrooms, sliced them pretty thin, then add the mushrooms to the onions. Sauté them until the onions become translucent and the mushrooms have decreased in sizes. When you are almost done sautéing, add in a drizzle of aged balsamic vinegar and stir it in well. This will really intensify the flavor.

Once you’re done sautéing, its time for the fun part…frying. Growing up with a mother who hasn’t eaten fried foods since her 20s (and I really think she doesn’t believe in fried food), getting to fry anything in our home was a rare occurrence. So getting to bring out the fryer for this while I was home for the holidays felt like a small act of rebellion. Is my teen angst coming out in my 20s…possibly?? Look below for my parents’ fryer that is on the verge of possibly being considered an antique. You may be wondering why I’m using a fryer if I’m not breading the eggplant. Well the answer is that frying the eggplant before baking it is the secret to getting the desired texture- tender but not mushy. So what you’re going to do is heat canola oil to 375 degrees in your fryer. Depending on the size of your fryer, use the recommended amount for your fryer (this can typically be found in your fryer’s directions). Also if you do not have a fryer, you can use a deep pan and heat your oil on the stove to 375 degrees. Once your oil is heated, coat your eggplant strip in a light layer of flour. If you want to make this gluten free, I’d assume that using gluten free flour will also work. Once it is lightly coated in flour, place your eggplant strip in the fryer for about 2 minutes and 30 seconds, flip it half way through the cook time. I was using a fairly small fryer so I only cooked one piece at a time. Repeat this process with all of your eggplant slices.

Next it’s time to prepare your other ingredients. I like to make a little herb and garlic mixture to sprinkle in-between the eggplant layers. I finely chopped basil and minced 3 garlic cloves then combined them in a small bowl.

Next grate your parmesan cheese. I grated about a 1 1/4 cups of fresh parmesan. I know you can buy it already grated but I swear it tastes so much better freshly grated.

Finally its time to layer! I used a 13×9 inch pan. Start by greasing the pan with olive oil then spread a thin layer of your sauce on the bottom. I used Zia’s pasta sauce, which is my all time favorite premade pasta sauce. You can buy it in grocery stores in the St. Louis’ area or order it online from the Zia’s restaurant website. Feel free to just use your favorite red sauce.

The layering process after that goes:

1. eggplant
2. mushroom and onions
3. herb mixture
4. sauce
5. cheese (on the first cheese layer I used a shredded Italian cheese blend and fresh mozzarella slices)
6. Then repeat the process until you are out of eggplant. On all layers except the bottom layer use a mixture of grated parmesan and fresh mozzarella.
7. When you are done layering drizzle balsamic on top in a zigzag pattern.

When you are done creating the layers, place the dish in a preheated 350 degree oven and cook it for 30 minutes.

Ingredients

3 large eggplants

1 sweet yellow onion

5 medium sized mushrooms

3 table spoons of olive oil

1 tablespoon of butter

1 tablespoon of salt

3 teaspoons of aged balsamic vinegar

6 basil leaves

3 cloves of garlic

1/4 cup of flour

1 1/4 cups of freshly grated parmesan

2  8oz fresh mozzarella balls

1/2 cup Italian blend shredded cheese

1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce

Canola oil

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Thinly slice three eggplants horizontally. Lay the slices flat and sprinkle salt over them. Cover the slices with a paper towel and weighted object to release the moisture. Let them sit for one hour.
2. Dice the onion and begin to sauté it in one tablespoon of olive oil in a medium sized skillet. Slice the mushrooms and add them to the onions in the skillet. Add the butter and 2 teaspoons of balsamic to the skillet. When the onions are translucent have become translucent remove the skillet from the heat and set aside.
3. Heat the canola oil in your fryer to 375 degrees. Wipe the salt off the eggplant and dust it lightly with flour then cook it in the oil for 2 minutes and 30 seconds, flip the eggplant half way through.
4. Mince the basil and garlic and combine it.
5. Grease a 9 x13 baking dish with olive oil and put a light layer of red sauce on the bottom. Layer the ingredients in the order of eggplant, mushroom and onions, herb mixture, sauce, cheese, repeat. On top of the dish drizzle balsamic in a zigzag pattern
6. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.