Grazie Winner Recipe: Eggplant Parmesan
All good things must come to an end, including Grazie. That doesn’t mean our love of Italian food is over though, and to prove it we’ve got a new recipe to share! This recipe was provided by the winner of our Grazie giveaway contest.
Ingredients:
Olive or avocado oil
4 large Eggs
2 large Eggplants
2 Cups Breadcrumbs
1 ¼ Cups Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Oregano to taste
Basil to taste
Salt & Pepper to taste
Shredded Mozzarella to taste
Sliced Mozzarella
Tomato sauce (either 2 cans store-bought or homemade, see recipe below)
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Cut eggplant into slices about a quarter inch thick to half inch thick.
Brush eggplant with olive oil or avocado oil. Be sure to brush both sides.
In a mixing bowl, whisk 4 large eggs. In another mixing bowl, mix 2 cups of breadcrumbs, 1 cup of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, fresh basil, salt and ground pepper.
Dip the eggplant slices and cover completely with the whisked egg mixture. Then dip the slices and cover completely with the breadcrumb mix.
Put eggplant slices on a well-oiled baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Turn the eggplant slices over and bake for another 20 minutes. Remove from oven. Let them cool and then it’s time to add the sauce and cheese!
After cooling down for 5 minutes, move eggplant slices from the baking sheet to a baking pan/baking dish.
Put one slice of mozzarella (thinly sliced) on each of the eggplant slices. Cover the slices with tomato sauce. You can use a homemade sauce (below) or a canned tomato sauce (2 cans) if you do not want to make one.
Add another tablespoon of sauce over each eggplant slice and sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese. Top with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.
Bake for 20 minutes at 375 degrees. Serve with noodles if desired.
Instructions for Homemade Tomato Sauce:
In a saucepan, add olive oil. Saute ½ onion , carrots, diced celery and diced garlic (4 cloves). Saute until golden brown and continue stirring.
Add 2 cans of diced canned tomatoes. Keep stirring. Add salt, pepper, crushed red pepper to taste.
Add 1 cup of chicken stock and 2 tablespoons of butter.
Simmer 30 minutes-1 hour