Eggplant parmesan is a great hearty and healthy meal. It is true Italian comfort food, with layers of eggplant, tomato sauce, and cheese, delicious! The drying of the eggplant is absolutely worth it! While it does take a bit extra time to do this step, the result is a non-soggy and perfect eggplant. You won't regret making this recipe, and everyone that has it will be asking for more!
Pull together:
2 eggplants sliced into 1/2 inch circles
Salt
2 cups panko bread crumbs
1 cup parmesan shredded
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
½ cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups of marinara sauce (homemade or store-bought)
2 cups of mozzarella cheese shredded
Steps:
1. Salt the top side of your eggplant slices and place them on a wire rack on a baking sheet. Let the liquid pull out for 45 minutes to 1 hour.
2. When your eggplant slices have finished draining liquid, brush off the excess salt with a damp paper towel, as you don't want it to be too salty!
3. In 2 shallow plates, add breadcrumbs and parmesan to one and whisk eggs and milk in the other. Dip both sides of eggplant slice into milk/egg mixture then cover with breadcrumb mixture, shaking off the excess. Place on a plate or large baking sheet and repeat until all eggplant slices have been coated. Alternatively, you can bake the eggplant in the oven rather than frying at 400 F for 30-40 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add 1 tbsp. of vegetable oil into the skillet. Once the skillet is hot, add two eggplant slices at a time to the skillet and cook on both sides until golden brown, remove and set on a large plate lined with paper towels. Repeat until you've pan-fried them all.
5. In a large casserole dish, add 1 cup of marinara sauce to the bottom of the casserole dish. Add a layer of eggplant slices (I was only able to fit about 3 a layer) then using a 1/4 cup, dollop marinara sauce on top of the eggplant slices. The idea isn't to smother the layers with sauce. On top of the eggplant slices, sprinkle a generous amount of mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese. Repeat the layers until you run out of eggplants slices. Top the casserole with more cheese before you place it in the oven :)
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and brown on top. I used the broiler for 5 minutes to get the cheese nice and brown - you don't have to, but if you do, watch it carefully!
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