Baked Eggplant with Red Apple Balsamic Vinegar

We took a day trip to Tampa and what wonderful shops they have! Stopping at a Starbucks, we noticed next door Joe and Son's Olive Press, a store specializing in high-end extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegars, and speciality oils like walnut oil and sesame oil. Even thought the store had been closed an hour, the owner motioned us in and explained in detail the lineup of products that were stored in staineless steel containers. Encouraged to sample the oils, vinegars, and tapenades, we were intrigued especially with the basalmic vinegars, trying whites such as vanilla honey, cinnamon pear, and coconut and reds in berry flavors, like trend-setting blackberry, candy-like blueberry, and the more classic fig. We picked the Red Apple Basalmic, a smooth, tangy, sweet, balsamic that smelled like sweet candied apples. The owner poured, corked, and sealed the bottle using a hair-blower-like gun. For the small bottle at 200 milliliters, it was a moderately priced splurge at $10.99. Back home, we used the vinegar in a baked eggplant foil packet in the following recipe, Baked Eggplant.

Baked Eggplant Packets
1 large eggplant
2-3 Tbsp red apple balsamic vinegar
Cut the eggplant into half-moons and divide into two foil packet sheets. Pour 1.5 Tbsp of balsamic into each packet and close up the packages. Bake an hour at 375. Make sure to use a spoon to scrape out all the caramelized sweet and meaty eggplant. The balsamic is amazing- not acidic but not too sweet.