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Eggplant Parmesan

Mornin’! 😀

Saturday was fun & productive…hope yours was some of the same. It all started at 6:37am when I thought I was up for the day but I somehow tricked myself into falling back asleep til 8:15 😀 That never happens. I got up, cleaned up the kitchen some, and got to work on making my student’s final exam. Three hours later, done!

Mr. Prevention and I ventured out to an Amish market, but not before we fought over who got to eat the last of the Eggplant Parmesan leftovers. It got ugly. I won.

If you or your loved one is on the fence about vegetarian meals, here’s the key to success: CHEESE! And the more, the merrier. All while being calorie-conscious, of course. As it ends up, my fussy gallbladder doesn’t care for cheese. I get these muted dagger-like pains after eating cheese. But see, life just isn’t worth living without cheese…so gallbladder, do me a solid and keep your fits to a minimum. And if I’m going to risk gallbladder pain, it would be on this dish.

Of course the mention of eggplant got an immediate look of disapproval from the peanut gallery. Paying him no attention, he politely asked for one piece of Eggplant Parmesan to humor me.

Humor me he did…he wants this again next week. But I’m going to make him wait for it. 😉

 

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Eggplant Parmesan adapted from Cooking Light, as seen on Bite This!

Eggplant:
1/4 cup egg substitute
2 tsp water
1 cup panko
1.5 oz (1/4 cup) Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, finely grated
1 eggplant (1 1/4 lb), cut crosswise into 14-16 1/2-inch-thick slices
Cooking spray

Filling:
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped (or 2 tsp dried basil)
1.5 oz (1/4 cup) Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, finely grated
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz. part-skim ricotta cheese
2 Tbsp egg substitute

Remaining ingredients:
15 oz. marinara sauce
4 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced into 14-16 slices
1.5 oz. (~1/3 cup) fontina cheese, finely grated

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 F.

To make the eggplant, line a baking sheet with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Combine egg substitute and water in a shallow dish. Combine panko and 1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano in a second shallow dish. Dip eggplant in egg mixture; dredge in panko mixture, pressing gently to adhere and shaking off excess. Place eggplant in a single layer on the baking sheet and spray lightly with non-stick spray. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

To make filling, combine basil and next 6 ingredients (through egg substitute).

To assemble, spoon 1/2 cup pasta sauce in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch glass baking dish coated with cooking spray. Layer half of eggplant slices (7-8 slices) over pasta sauce. Top with about 1/3-1/2 cup pasta sauce; spread half of ricotta mixture over sauce, and top with a half of mozzarella and 3 tablespoons fontina. Repeat layers once, ending with about 3/4 cup pasta sauce. Bake at 375 F for 25-30 minutes. Allow to cool for several minutes before serving. Yield: 4 servings (2 stacks per serving).

Nutrition Information (per serving): 382 calories; 17.3 g. fat; 60 mg. cholesterol; 889 mg. sodium; 30.5 g. carbohydrate; 5.8 g. fiber; 28 g. protein

Result: Vegetarian heaven! Fight-over-the-leftovers worthy! Stacks of cheesy, eggplant heaven! Fresh basil, garlic, panko…do you need any more convincing? Enjoy!

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Yesterday I also purchased my starter garden supplies and seeds! Guess who requested eggplant? Mhmmm. I was only too happy to oblige.

Weekly Menu: March 13th-17th

Question: Eggplant — love it or hate it?

Happy Selection Sunday….fingers crossed for my Illini!

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23 Comments

  1. Holly
    March 13, 2011 / 7:20 am

    Okay, so I’ve actually never had eggplant before……I know! I’m bookmarking this now, because this looks absolutely delicious.

    Good luck to your Illini! I love this time of year!

  2. Matt
    March 13, 2011 / 7:22 am

    I’ve never had eggplant parm before, but I totally want to make this.

  3. Morgan @ Healthy Happy Place
    March 13, 2011 / 7:35 am

    looks amazing! I made your crock pot chicken tortilla soup last night and it was a big hit!

  4. Joy
    March 13, 2011 / 7:40 am

    Eggplant = love! If I was only given 3 foods (plus salt and pepper) for the rest of my life eggplant would probably be one (along with kabocha squash and probably celery)

  5. Lucia
    March 13, 2011 / 8:59 am

    Love Eggplant!
    Being raised Italian, Eggplant parm sandwiches were the norm.
    Now fast forward a lot of years and my favorite eggplant recipe is Baba Ganoush. Just love it! Oh and can’t forget Pasta alla Norma!

  6. dfhgjhj
    March 13, 2011 / 8:16 am

    Cograts on battling through the cheese pain, I would do the same. Aubergine (or eggplant if you prefer) is tasty, but you have to do it right. It needs plenty of time to soak up flavour.

  7. J3nn (Jenn's Menu and Lifestyle Blog)
    March 13, 2011 / 8:33 am

    Panko is amazing with eggplant parm. That looks delish!! And I agree: Eggplant parm is a gateway veggie meal. ๐Ÿ™‚

  8. Meredith (Pursuing Balance)
    March 13, 2011 / 8:35 am

    i love eggplant!!! for another italian style meal with eggplant, you can slice it really thin and add it to layers of lasagna.

  9. Joanne
    March 13, 2011 / 8:55 am

    First of all. Hello there gorgeous. Eggplant parm is the key to my heart. And my bed. If you get my drift. ๐Ÿ˜›

    Second of all. You have no idea HOW EXCITED it made me to see that I was right about the gallbladder! Or at least that a real physician agrees with me. Although I’m NOT excited for you because pain on eating cheese sucks. I hope it gets taken care of soon and that you get some real answers!

  10. Kierstan @ Life {and running} in Iowa
    March 13, 2011 / 9:04 am

    YUM!

    I thought about making eggplant parm last night for our friends….I LOVE eggplant!

  11. Kristen (swanky dietitian)
    March 13, 2011 / 11:07 am

    Being italian, eggplant is made often at my parents. It is one of my favorite dishes. My mom has also started baking the eggplant versus frying.
    I agree that cheese is worth pain! I couldn’t do without it!
    Love the meals you have planned for the week!

  12. FoodFitnessFreshair
    March 13, 2011 / 1:54 pm

    I love eggplant parm. My roommate used to make it all the time before she went off to Paris for the semester…I’m going to have to steal her recipe. Or snag this one.

  13. Astra Libris
    March 13, 2011 / 4:20 pm

    YAY!!! You’re planting eggplant!!! ๐Ÿ™‚ *happy dance* ๐Ÿ™‚

    I saw your gorgeous photo, and did a little swoon… I totally wanted to do a bigger swoon, complete with gasps and sighs and moans of appreciation, but I’m in a coffee shop and didn’t want to scare people who might not understand… ๐Ÿ™‚ However, I did want to describe my true inner reaction to your gorgeous eggplant parm! ๐Ÿ˜‰

  14. Christina @ Food.Fun.Fabulous.
    March 13, 2011 / 5:44 pm

    I love eggplant parm! My bf hates it though ๐Ÿ™ but he’ll usually eat it if i make it, just with a really grumpy look on his face haha

  15. Lee
    March 13, 2011 / 6:05 pm

    Though it always looks really good, I’m in the eggplant hate side. I just don’t like the texture or something. If it’s cut really thin or mushed up, I can eat it.

  16. Heather
    March 13, 2011 / 6:57 pm

    I love eggplant parm – so cheesy and delicious!

    I also love panko bread crumbs – I feel they make the dish taste like you fried it.

  17. Ellie@fitforthesoul
    March 14, 2011 / 2:28 am

    Heyyy! wowwwie that looks good! I love eggplant parm. <3

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  19. Dana @ Budget RD
    March 14, 2011 / 8:15 am

    Asian chicken pizza? Yum!

    I loved the stacked look of the Eggplant! ๐Ÿ™‚

  20. Jenn
    March 14, 2011 / 11:31 am

    Love it! This looks delicious! I’ll have to put it on my list of recipes to try. Thanks!

  21. Sarah Schwoppe
    March 29, 2011 / 9:34 pm

    This looks absolutely delicious! I love eggplant ๐Ÿ™‚ I’m going to have to make this ASAP!

    • Nicole
      Author
      March 29, 2011 / 10:02 pm

      It was amazing! Do make…best recipe I’ve made in awhile ๐Ÿ™‚

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