Meaty eggplant slices are layered with sauce to create a rich and flavor-packed dish that is easy to make and only uses one skillet. 
Yesterday, we had our pranks and ate our chocolate bunnies too. For the first time in over 60 years, Easter and April Fool’s fell on the same day.
Pranksters filled my Twitter feed with Easter-style tricks that were quite amusing. Parents sent kids out to search for eggs they didn’t hide. And one mom covered her brussel sprouts in chocolate to try to disguise them as cake pops. Pretty clever.
In my own house, my MC replaced the cream filling in an Oreo with toothpaste. Bill was not amused when he popped that cookie in his mouth.
The ultimate over-the-top prank though has got to be this!
We spent the weekend savoring the sunshine, walking the puppy without hats and gloves, packing away the snow gear and donning pretty spring colors, but Mother Nature has tricked us.
School is cancelled and the kids are home for the 4th day in a row. This morning I braced myself for sibling bickering, boredom, and hungry bellies.
It’s a good day to enjoy some comfort food. I have a craving for my Eggplant Gratin and I just happen to have a kitchen full of fresh herbs ready to be chopped.
Tomato sauce and creme fraiche smothered eggplant gets baked to golden-brown perfection. The best part? This dreamy recipe uses just one skillet, is easy to throw together and will warm us up on this snowy day.
Olive oil brushed eggplant slices are quickly fried in small batches in my hot cast iron skillet. 
I make 2-3 layers of eggplant and our favorite jar of sauce, Rao’s. Finally, I ladle the creme fraich that has been simmering away with thyme, chives, parsley and grated parmesan all over the top.
After a final sprinkling of parmesan, I bake this for about 20-25 minutes in the oven until a bubbly layer forms leaving me with a rich and flavorful crust on top.
Who wouldn’t want to dig into this?
The eggplant would pair nicely with a protein, but we enjoy this meaty vegetable as our main dish with just a fresh salad on the side.
The herbs enhance the flavor of the eggplant and tomato sauce, making this an impressive tasting, flavor-packed dinner without any carbs.
A one-pan clean-up and satisfied tummies might mean the snow outside my window on this spring day isn’t quite so bad.
For more weeknight skillet dinner ideas, check these out!
Weeknight Skillet Herb Pork Chops with Roasted Grapes
Weeknight Skillet Chicken Thighs with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Herb and White Wine Chicken Thighs
Do you have a favorite eggplant dish?
- 2-3 medium to large eggplants sliced 1/2″ thick
- salt & pepper
- olive oil
- 1 32 ounce jar of tomato sauce like Rao's marinara
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme finely chopped
- 3 tbsp fresh chives finely sliced
- 3 tbsp fresh parsley finely chopped
- 12 ounce container of creme fraiche
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
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Brush eggplant slices with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
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Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.
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Working in small batches, fry eggplant slices until golden on both sides.
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In a small saucepan, bring creme fraiche to a simmer over medium heat. Stir often and reduce to about 1 cup.
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Stir in half of the parmesan and all of the herbs.
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Place your first layer of eggplant slices in the skillet and pour tomato sauce over the top. Sprinkle on a little parmesan.
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Make two more layers of eggplant, sauce and parmesan.
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Ladle the creme fraiche mixture over the top and sprinkle with any remaining parmesan.
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Bake uncovered until golden brown and bubbling, about 20-25 minutes.
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Let rest before slicing and serving.
This dish is tasty at room temperature too.
If you don't have a cast iron skillet, make your layers in a casserole dish.
I have made this. It is AMAZING! Kind of like eggplant Parm without all the extra oil/fat. It is YUM, Y’all should try it! A bit time consuming, but fun on a day when you don’t have much else happening. Like while we’re in COVID semi-lockdown…
Thanks, Sue! I just made this last week and I agree with all your comments. Glad you enjoyed it too!
Oh man that looks so good! We just found out my husband is allergic to eggplant though, *womp womp* otherwise I’d be adding this to my meal plan!
Oh, bummer! Maybe you could try squash or zucchini here?
Make it with Summer Squash and/or zucchini. It should come out GREAT!
I have not used eggplant since the movie Ratatouille came out. When it did, we made Ratatouille. Yum. This looks like a great dish, and I love that it is one pan.
This looks delicious! I love eggplant and trying new ways to use it.
This looks so cozy and delicious!
Definitely! Thanks!
We usually grow eggplant in our garden. I will definitely have to try this next time we have some, it looks amazing!
Lucky you having it on hand! Hope you enjoy this recipe!
This looks so good! I love eggplant. I’m going to have to try it add it to my recipe notebook. Thanks for sharing!
Kiersten
Thank you!
I like how versatile this dish can be. I can make it for a main meal easily or serve it up as a side dish along side everything else. Perfect.
I love that too. Thanks for checking it out!
I never know what to do with eggplant, but this looks delicious! I’m super excited to try this recipe!!
Yay! I hope you enjoy it!
I started reading your post, saw the picture and thought “Oh please let this have Rao’s”. Yes!! This dish looks amazing and I can’t wait to try it out.
So very sorry about the snow again. Dreadful tease too with such nice weather right before! Enjoy your well-deserved Spring weather when it finally arrives.
Rao’s forever! Just love it! Today looks to be a lovely spring day. Go figure!