Parmigiana di Melanzane - Eggplant Parmesan

Ahhhh, the eggplant, it's a wonderful vegetable that is related to the potato and the tomato.  It is used in a lot of ethnic dishes, Moussaka and Ratatouille are just a couple that come to mind. Italians use it a lot of different ways, Caponata is one dish served as an appetizer, and Eggplant Parmesan is another. Eggplants come in a few different colors, purple, lavender, white and striped.  When you are buying an eggplant, make sure your stem is green, it is heavy for it's size, has a smooth shiny skin and no blemishes.  I bought a small eggplant from Wegman's, because I am the only one in my house that will eat it, and made myself Eggplant Parmesan.  You could also make this a sandwich, just put on a long or round crusty roll.  Recipe below.

The makings of a great dish!.  The peeled eggplant.

 Slice on the diagonal if your eggplant is on the smaller side, the pieces will be bigger than slicing in circles.

Breadcrumbs mixed with cheese, the cheese makes it crispier.  Fried up and layering in the baking dish.

 Topped off with sauce, baked and ready to eat.  I WILL eat the whole pan, breakfast, lunch, dinner or a snack, it's mine ALL mine!

Eggplant Parmesan

1 egg

1 Tbsp water

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1 1/2 cups seasoned Italian breadcrumbs

1/4 cup grated Asiago or Parmesan Cheese

1 - 15 oz container of Part Skim Ricotta Cheese

1/2 cup of shredded Mozzarella Cheese

2 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

2 Tbsp parsley
1 medium size fresh eggplant

1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil for frying

1- 24 oz jar of your favorite tomato sauce, I used Barilla Traditional Sauce

In a medium size bowl, scramble the egg with the water, salt and pepper, set aside.  On a flat plate, mix the breadcrumbs with the 1/4 cup of Asiago or Parmesan cheese, set aside.  In a medium bowl mix the ricotta cheese with the mozzarella, eggs, salt, pepper and parsley, set aside.  Cut the stem and the stub off the eggplant then peel it.  Slice in 1" pieces on the diagonal, if it is on the smaller side to give you bigger pieces, or slice it down in circles. Dip into the egg and then breadcrumbs, patting the crumbs on so they stick.  Put on to a plate until you are done breading all the pieces. 

Heat the olive oil on medium high heat in a large skillet. Start dropping the eggplant into the oil a few at a time. Brown on one side, flip them over and brown the other side.  Drain on paper towels and continue until all the eggplant is fried.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Use a shallow baking dish, if you have one, if not an 8 x 8 baking dish will be fine. Spread about 1 cup of sauce in the bottom of the baking dish and start layering the eggplant.  Top the eggplant with the ricotta cheese mixture and spread to the edges.  Top the cheese with sauce (you may not need the whole jar) and bake for 40 - 45 minutes until the cheese sets.  Makes 6 servings.