These Heirloom Tomato & Grilled Eggplant Stacks are fresh, local, seasonal, and delicious to the last bite.
Aaah, Summertime! Gardens are bursting, Farmers’ Markets are in full swing, and – Glory Be! – tomatoes taste like… tomatoes again. Don’t you just love it!?! This time of year, I aim to create dishes that highlight the bright, fleeting flavors of summer, and these Heirloom Tomato & Grilled Eggplant Stacks are just the ticket. Uncomplicated in every way, they are deeply satisfying, and delicious to the last bite.
Heirloom Tomato & Eggplant Stacks
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 4 stacks
Ingredients
- 3 large tomatoes
- 1 large eggplant
- 1/4 cup olive oil divided
- 3 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
- Fresh basil
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground pepper
Instructions
Prepare Eggplant:
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Peel eggplant (unless yours has a very thin skin).
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Slice into 1/2-inch rounds. You will need two large or four small rounds per stack.
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Brush eggplant with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the eggplant rounds over medium-high on barbecue or in grill pan on stove until tender (about 10 minutes) turning once. Allow to cool completely.
Prepare stacks:
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Slice each tomato into four rounds.
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Alternate tomato and eggplant slices, beginning and ending with a tomato slice. If the eggplant slices are too small, just use two for one layer.
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Sprinkle each completed stack with a teaspoon of olive oil and two teaspoons of balsamic vinegar.
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Season each stack with a pinch of kosher salt and a turn of freshly ground pepper.
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Garnish with feta and fresh basil.
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Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Recipe Notes
Stacks can be prepared as much as a day ahead of time. Do the final prep (olive oil, feta and basil) right before serving.
Rachel says
September 2 atThis is such a cute idea! So summery
kelsey says
September 2 ati absolutely love this! gorgeous photos and i have a TON of tomatoes at home right now that need eating. 😀
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Create/Enjoy says
September 2 atOoh, sounds delicious! I love having new things to do with the amazing fresh tomatoes we get in our CSA and sometimes garden this time of year.
Laetitia - French Fries and Apple Pie says
September 2 atThis dish looks absolutely delicious and very healthy too!
I am not so much into tomatoes but heirloom kind are definitely my favorites and I LOVE eggplants… no matter how they are cooked, just love them! I actually want to try and make baba ganoush recipe. Have you ever had that?
Renée ♥ says
September 3 atI love the heirloom tomatoes – they seem to have so much more flavor than their bio-engineered counterparts, and this time of year they are so sweet and luscious. Just a side note: I made a simple tomato-feta bisque last night with the leftovers from this post, and it was fantastic. As for baba ganoush, I’ve made it many times – it is so easy! I will have to write up a post for it. Thanks for the idea!
Lindsay says
September 3 atThese sound delicious!
Melinda says
September 3 atI don’t think I’ve ever actually eaten eggplant! This looks like a nice recipe to have on hand for when we host some of our vegetarian fans!
Prairie Gal Cookin' says
September 3 atThis is such a great idea! I would love one right now… Thank you for sharing 🙂
Bee says
September 3 atNice recipe! I am always looking for a recipe that really features the heirlooms since they are so pretty–this one does just that! Great work 🙂
Renée ♥ says
September 4 atWe picked all the veggies for these up at the Hollywood Farmers Market [Portland] last Saturday. We’ve never been to that one before, but I know we will be going back – there was such a wide selection of beautiful veggies and fruit.
Marlynn @UrbanBlissLife says
September 4 atI love heirloom tomatoes too! This looks fabulous.
Pech says
September 4 atI am still so into tomatoes, I don’t know if there is an over-saturation part for me. I really like this alternate stack way of enjoying tomatoes rather than traditional caprese