I used to love the color purple when I was a kid. So much so that one night, when I was sleeping at a friend’s house, my mom and sister painted my bedroom two shades of purple on alternating walls as a surprise. I was completely over-the-moon excited to walk into my bedroom the next day and find it painted lavender and plum. It’s one of those incredibly special moments I’ll never forget.
So, now that you know about my fondness for purple, you can imagine how excited I was to run into some gorgeous purple basil AND purple eggplants at the farmer’s market a couple of weeks ago!
Purple basil tastes very similar to green basil. I’ve been using it in a lot of herb mixtures for marinades and even made some delicious raspberry jam with purple basil. I wanted to keep things simple for the eggplant since it is so pretty. I also had some gorgeous baby tomatoes on the vine I wanted to use.
- 2 tbl olive oil plus extra for drizzling
- 1 Tbl Garden Gourmet Garlic*
- 1 Tbl Garden Gourmet Italian Seasoning Blend*
- 1 onion, sliced
- 1 large potato, sliced thin
- 2-3 baby eggplants, sliced thin
- 1 yellow squash, sliced thin
- 1 green squash, sliced thin
- ¼ cup of baby or cherry tomatoes
- salt and pepper to taste
- ¼ cup shredded asiago cheese (or parmesan)
- basil, torn for garnish
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Heat saute pan on medium and add olive oil
- Add gourmet garden garlic and italian seasoning and mash into oil, allowing it to become flavorful and aromatic (about 15 seconds).
- Add onions and sautee until translucent
- Spread onion mixture on the bottom of a baking dish
- Layer sliced vegetables tightly on top of the onion mixture, in a pattern, starting at the outside of the dish and circling your way into the center
- Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, sprinkle shredded cheese on top, add tomatoes and torn basil
- Cover with foil and bake for 35-40 minutes (until potatoes are tender)
- Uncover and bake for another 10-15 minutes
