Eggplant Parmesan!
Last night I made Eggplant Parmesan for Michael and myself, and invited Justin and Brian over, too. It was AWESOME. Well, they liked it at least, and I love it, thus = awesome.
I haven't made EPP (as Michael calls it) in a while - since my sophomore year of college, and I've been craving it something fierce, so I looked up some recipes, and got the ingredients last weekend. As it turns out... I must have used the ingredients list from multiple recipes, because I didn't have the right stuff/right proportions. So, I improvised! Without further ado, here is my awesomely tweaked EPP recipe.
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Makes: 9 servings
(all ingredients are -ish. Nothing needs to be perfect)
2 pounds of eggplant
3 eggs
2 - 4 cups of Italian bread crumbs
24 oz of tomato sauce
1 jar of salsa
16 oz sliced mozzarella
16 oz of shredded parmesan
sliced mushrooms / other veggies (however much you want)
- any other herbs or veggies you like -
(1) Preheat your oven to 350. Cut the eggplant in 1/4 inch rounds. If they aren't perfect, it doesn't matter! Do NOT peel the eggplant. Lay the eggplant on a cookie sheet, with paper towels under them, and more paper towels on top. Then use plates or something to weigh it down (I used a heavy cutting board). This is to get excess moisture out of the eggplant, and can be skipped if you're rushed for time - do this for about an hour. Eggplant is very spongy, so there is a lot of moisture in there, and that can cause the dish to be runny.
(2) Crack 2 or 3 eggs in a bowl and blend. Pour some bread crumbs on a plate. Dip the eggplant in the egg (don't be afraid to be generous) and then in the bread crumbs. You can pack the crumbs on as tightly or as lightly as you like. Place then on a cookie sheet and bake them at 350 for 5 minutes on each side. Do this for all of the eggplant rounds.
(3) While the eggplant is in the oven, mix your tomato sauce and salsa together in a big bowl - add any other herbs you like. In a 13X9 baking pan, put down a thin layer of sauce. Then, add a layer of the roasted and breaded eggplant. You can squish the eggplant together, and even overlap - no worries. Then add a layer of mozzarella slices, and sprinkle lots of parmesan, then add a layer of mushrooms, or whatever other veggie you like. Just be sure not to add too many layers, because then your dish will be too tall for the pan, and will boil over. Repeat this process, but use more of your sauce, and on the very top layer (I had 3 layers of eggplant, but 4 layers of everything else) put lots of extra parmesan and basil/oregano/whatever.
(4) Cook for 35 - 40 minutes at 350, and then let it cool for 5 - 10 minutes. It should be tender and delicous, and the parmesan on top should be golden brown.
I hope you enjoy!
I haven't made EPP (as Michael calls it) in a while - since my sophomore year of college, and I've been craving it something fierce, so I looked up some recipes, and got the ingredients last weekend. As it turns out... I must have used the ingredients list from multiple recipes, because I didn't have the right stuff/right proportions. So, I improvised! Without further ado, here is my awesomely tweaked EPP recipe.
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Makes: 9 servings
(all ingredients are -ish. Nothing needs to be perfect)
2 pounds of eggplant
3 eggs
2 - 4 cups of Italian bread crumbs
24 oz of tomato sauce
1 jar of salsa
16 oz sliced mozzarella
16 oz of shredded parmesan
sliced mushrooms / other veggies (however much you want)
- any other herbs or veggies you like -
(1) Preheat your oven to 350. Cut the eggplant in 1/4 inch rounds. If they aren't perfect, it doesn't matter! Do NOT peel the eggplant. Lay the eggplant on a cookie sheet, with paper towels under them, and more paper towels on top. Then use plates or something to weigh it down (I used a heavy cutting board). This is to get excess moisture out of the eggplant, and can be skipped if you're rushed for time - do this for about an hour. Eggplant is very spongy, so there is a lot of moisture in there, and that can cause the dish to be runny.
(2) Crack 2 or 3 eggs in a bowl and blend. Pour some bread crumbs on a plate. Dip the eggplant in the egg (don't be afraid to be generous) and then in the bread crumbs. You can pack the crumbs on as tightly or as lightly as you like. Place then on a cookie sheet and bake them at 350 for 5 minutes on each side. Do this for all of the eggplant rounds.
(3) While the eggplant is in the oven, mix your tomato sauce and salsa together in a big bowl - add any other herbs you like. In a 13X9 baking pan, put down a thin layer of sauce. Then, add a layer of the roasted and breaded eggplant. You can squish the eggplant together, and even overlap - no worries. Then add a layer of mozzarella slices, and sprinkle lots of parmesan, then add a layer of mushrooms, or whatever other veggie you like. Just be sure not to add too many layers, because then your dish will be too tall for the pan, and will boil over. Repeat this process, but use more of your sauce, and on the very top layer (I had 3 layers of eggplant, but 4 layers of everything else) put lots of extra parmesan and basil/oregano/whatever.
(4) Cook for 35 - 40 minutes at 350, and then let it cool for 5 - 10 minutes. It should be tender and delicous, and the parmesan on top should be golden brown.
I hope you enjoy!