If you love classic eggplant Parmesan, make it for your whole family or guests. This dish is huge, tastes great, and is best served with a side of whole-wheat pasta. I try to make it a little healthier by using less cheese than restaurants and by baking the eggplant. It is not too complicated to make at all. And most of all, I like to use REAL Pamesan cheese.
Ingredients:
- 1 eggplant
- Salt/pepper to taste
- 1 bag of Kraft shredded part-skim mozzarella
- Kraft Parmesan cheese (the 100% real stuff- not imitation!)
- 2 containers of spaghetti sauce or make your own, whichever
- 4 c of breadcrumbs with Italian seasoning- if you have plain, add garlic powder, dried oregano, dried basil, and a touch of salt
- 4 large eggs
- Parchment paper
- Some basil
- Slice eggplant very thinly and heat the oven to 350. Dip each slice into egg then breadcrumbs, and put on parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Bake these 8-9 minutes, then flip over and cook the other side. Eggplant must be well cooked to be edible and not chewy, so this part is really important. I like to leave mine in for about 9 min. each side to make it a little crispy even. Believe it or not, baking tastes just as great at frying. Set aside cooked eggplant and repeat until all the eggplant has been cooked and cooled.
2. Place a layer of spaghetti sauce in the bottom of your baking dish. I use the biggest Pyrex container I have and usually a small one too. Place a slice of cooked eggplant, then douse with Parmesan, sprinkle some mozzarella, and dab a bit of sauce on top followed by another piece of eggplant. Layer until it reaches the top of the dish, and then begin your next one. On the top of all the eggplant, sprinkle both cheeses and basil (if you have fresh basil- even better). If you like a lot of sauce, you can cover it all in sauce too, though it isn’t a requirement.
3. Bake eggplant on 350 for 35 minutes or until cheese is bubbling. Let cool for a bit then serve with pasta on the side. I like whole-wheat spaghetti personally.
This dish freezes well and makes for great leftovers when left in the fridge too, just microwave later on!
