With this week’s family dinner, I felt inspired to create a hearty vegetable dish alongside the meal’s protein. Eggplant stood out as I cruised the aisles of Costco (you’ll soon learn about my Costco addiction).
I don’t claim to be well versed in Italian cooking, however, eggplant parmesan seemed to fit the bill for this meal. After browsing the standard formulas online, I felt confident enough to create my own dish. Give it a try and I can guarantee a crowd-pleasing success!
/A/MY’s Un-Official Eggplant Parmesan
- 4 baby eggplant
- 2 TB salt
- 2 TB pepper
- 2 TB dehydrated onion
- 2 garlic cloves (minced)
- 1 TB chili infused olive oil
- 3 TB olive oil
- 4 C panko breadcrumbs
- 2 C baby spinach
- 1 Jar pasta sauce
- 1 C parmesan
- 1 C grated mozzarella
Preheat oven to 425゜(375゜ for convection)
Slice eggplant into 1/4 inch rounds and place into mixing bowl. Mix together with salt, pepper, onion, garlic and olive oils. Dredge each seasoned eggplant round in panko breadcrumbs to coat. Line a cookie sheet with a cooling rack. As each round is dipped through the breadcumbs place onto the rack.
Oven-Fried Eggplant
Bake the seasoned and breaded eggplant slices for 20-30 minutes. Let stand.
Cover the bottom of a 9×13 glass baking dish with 1/3 C of store-bought pasta sauce. Begin the laying process by placing 1 C of fresh baby spinach atop sauce. Follow with half of the oven fried eggplant. Top with 1/2 C of both parmesan and mozzarella. Repeat with sauce, spinach, eggplant and cheese. Finish with the remaining 1/3 C of sauce.
Eggplant & Spinach Parmesan
Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Bon appétit!
