Roasted Sweet Eggplant

This recipe is from one of my older, trusted cookbooks, "The New Basics" by Julee Rosso & Sheila Lukins. I've been making it for years and love the sweet and sour marination. It's a great appetizer, snack or side dish especially in the summer.

1 large eggplant

1 tsp (or so) kosher salt

3/4 cup olive oil

3/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 TB sugar

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 TB (or so) chopped fresh parsley

[I often skip this salting step.] Cut the eggplant lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Lay the slices on paper towels or a wood cutting board, sprinkle with the coarse salt, and set aside for at least 1 hour. Preheat the broiler.

Wipe the liquid and salt off the slices. Brush them on both sides with olive oil. Place them on a baking sheet lined with foil (or oiled). Broil the eggplant as close as possible to the heat for 2-5 minutes on each side until a somewhat browned. Transfer to a platter.

Combine the vinegar and sugar in a saucepan and heat until the sugar has dissolved, about 1 minute.

Drizzle with, or dip the eggplant slices in the the vinegar mixture. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste (not much if it was salted before). Sprinkle with parsley. Serve or layer slices in ball jar and cover with olive oil.

4 portions.