Eggplant Caponata

I so thoroughly enjoy Mario Batali, and I'm still more than a little pissed at the Food Network for taking his shows off, and adding more of that insipid Ray woman. Blargh, bad Food Network! BAD!

A few years back, the Monsters bought Mario's Molto Italiano: 327 Simple Italian Recipes to Cook at Home cookbook for me, and I love it. We decided to do something with the lovely eggplant we picked up from the Farmer's Market, using one of Mario's recipes.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 large Spanish onion, 1/2 inch dice
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
3 tbs. pine nuts
3 tbs. dried currants
1 tbs. dried red pepper flakes
2 medium eggplant, cubed
1 tbs. sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp. fresh or 1/2 tsp. dried Thyme
3/4 cup basic tomato sauce (make your own or cheat with the jarred stuff!)
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 baguette, cut into 3/4 inch rounds and toasted

Yes, this one is a teeny bit fiddly. But so, so good!