Name: Eggplant, Oyster, and Tasso Gratin
Yield: Makes 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients: 1 pint shucked oysters with their liquor; 2 tablespoons butter; 2 tablespoons flour; 1/2 cup chicken stock or milk; 1/2 cup cream; Salt and ground black pepper; Hot sauce; Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg; 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil; 1 small eggplant, peeled and diced (about 2 cups); 1 medium onion, chopped; 2 ounces finely chopped tasso (about 3 tablespoons); 1 garlic clove, minced; 1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage; 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary; 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs; 2 tablespoons chopped parsley; 1 tablespoon butter, melted; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 2 ounces Grana Padano or Parmesan cheese, grated (1⁄4 cup)

You are, no doubt, familiar with the so-called trinity of Louisiana cookery: onions, celery, and bell pepper. Susan Spicer of New Orleans, a self-described eggplant freak who cooks in an internationally inflected Creole style, has honed a new sort of trinity: eggplant, oysters, and tasso.
Here, tasso, an intensely flavored smoked pork of Cajun origin, serves as a seasoning, in the same way that a smoked pig trotter flavors a pot of greens. Although Spicer recommends that you serve scoops of this gratin as an appetizer, consider yourself warned: We have done the same. And no matter what we served to follow, it paled in comparison. Your guests might be happier with a large helping of this Creolized casserole and a salad.

Recipe notes

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