What's a boy to do with an aubergine?

Baked mediterranean aubergine. 
There are times when a vegetable slips into a rut.  I look at something like a butternut squash and think soup or puree.  With the aubergine it has tended to inspire nothing better than ratatouille. However, unless I can slow cook it for ages with some nice olive oil, and very very fresh ingredients it never really delivers the tase that it promises.  So here I am looking at 4 shiney deep purple aubergines and wondering what to do with them. 

My way of wilting them and making them give up their yummy flesh is not to salt and fry them, but to prick them like sausages and pop them in the microwave for 10-12 minutes. They come out looking like they have aged.  Their skins no longer taught and siney is now wrinkled.  If I want to  use then straight away, I cool them in a sink of cold water for 5 mins. If not, I let them cool down.  For this dish, I just removed the stalk end and diced them up.  In a large tight lidded oven proof buffet pan, I sauteed some chopped onions in veggie stock and then added some dried basil, the chopped aubergine, a tin of tomato puree and lots lazy garlic in oil, along with seasoning especially lots of black pepper.  I deliberately eaporated a lot of the stock and added a good slug of red wine vinegar, (balsamic would be good too).  I added two tins of flageolet beans (drained) and put in a med oven 150/160c for 45 mins to an hour,  

You could add other veggies to this, peppers, celery etc.,  

I served it around a tower of griddled butternut squash topped with steamed spinach.  (see below for griddled butternut squash.