soooooo I am on a total eggplant thing. I've been eating it about 4-5 times a week.
Tonight I made Eggplant Parmigiana for the first time. I am eating it now!!
Here's what you need:
1 lg eggplant, sliced somewhat thin (think thinner than your pinky nail is long)
2 eggs, scrambled
~ 2 c Italian-style bread crumbs*
2 c pasta sauce
~1 c ricotta cheese
~12 oz (by weight) shredded mozzarella
salt the eggplant slices and place in a colander for 15 min or more. rinse them off, let sit till mostly dry.
Preheat oven to 350.
dip each slice of eggplant in egg, then coat completely in bread crumbs. spray cookie sheet with pam, then place each slice on baking sheet. spray the tops of the slices with pam as well. bake for about 10 min on each side, until bread crumbs are slightly crispy.
pour some marinara in the bottom of a baking dish. should be about 1/4 c. layer eggplant slices on the bottom, as many as can be fit. spread a thin layer of ricotta over each slice, then sprinkle mozzarella. add another layer of pasta sauce then repeat with eggplant and cheeses.
one dish ended up with 2 layers, one with 3. add some sauce around the edges, cover the dish with foil, then bake 30-45 min, until eggplant is tender and cheese is melted. let rest for 15 min after removing from the oven.
enjoy!! super yummy!
*bread crumbs: because Gma is gluten free, I made some eggplant so she could eat it. because I could not find gluten-free bread crumbs (and who needs nasty hydrogenated oils anyway?), I made my own. For a half recipe, I used 4 slices of gluten free bread, sprayed with pam, and baked at 250 until dried out (about 15 min each side). Then I threw em in the food processor with dried chopped onion, basil, oregano, garlic powder, and black pepper. Would definitely recommend this method even if you are not gluten free. It's just a little time-consuming. :D
Here's what you need:
1 lg eggplant, sliced somewhat thin (think thinner than your pinky nail is long)
2 eggs, scrambled
~ 2 c Italian-style bread crumbs*
2 c pasta sauce
~1 c ricotta cheese
~12 oz (by weight) shredded mozzarella
salt the eggplant slices and place in a colander for 15 min or more. rinse them off, let sit till mostly dry.
Preheat oven to 350.
dip each slice of eggplant in egg, then coat completely in bread crumbs. spray cookie sheet with pam, then place each slice on baking sheet. spray the tops of the slices with pam as well. bake for about 10 min on each side, until bread crumbs are slightly crispy.
pour some marinara in the bottom of a baking dish. should be about 1/4 c. layer eggplant slices on the bottom, as many as can be fit. spread a thin layer of ricotta over each slice, then sprinkle mozzarella. add another layer of pasta sauce then repeat with eggplant and cheeses.
one dish ended up with 2 layers, one with 3. add some sauce around the edges, cover the dish with foil, then bake 30-45 min, until eggplant is tender and cheese is melted. let rest for 15 min after removing from the oven.
enjoy!! super yummy!
*bread crumbs: because Gma is gluten free, I made some eggplant so she could eat it. because I could not find gluten-free bread crumbs (and who needs nasty hydrogenated oils anyway?), I made my own. For a half recipe, I used 4 slices of gluten free bread, sprayed with pam, and baked at 250 until dried out (about 15 min each side). Then I threw em in the food processor with dried chopped onion, basil, oregano, garlic powder, and black pepper. Would definitely recommend this method even if you are not gluten free. It's just a little time-consuming. :D
