Eggplant Parmesan
*not the sliced deep fried sort...this comes out more like a casserole or noodle-less lasagne*
Eggplant Parmesan
Ingredients:
2 medium/large eggplants
1-1/2 cups Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (use the real thing)
1 large can tomato sauce
1 TBSP tomato paste
Olive oil
One small onion
Minced garlic
Basil to taste
Parsley to taste
Oregano to taste
a dash of red pepper flakes
1-1/2 cup breadcrumbs
6-8 slices of a really good, melty cheese. Any kind you like.
Salt
Directions:
Put 1 TBSP of olive oil in a saucepan on low heat. Add the onion and garlic and stir until it starts to brown a bit. Take off of the heat and add basil, parsley and oregano, and the red pepper flakes. Add the tomato sauce and tomato paste. Add a small dash of salt.
Return to low heat.
Add about 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese and stir it in. Once the cheese has melted, adjust seasonings to taste.
Once the sauce is to your liking, turn off the heat.
Put a big pot (with a lid) of water on to boil.
Slice the eggplant as thick or as thin as you like. (I like it sliced medium-thin.)
When the water boils, shut off the burner and remove the pot from the heat. Put your sliced eggplant in the water for five minutes. Remove the slices of eggplant and press the water out between sheets of paper towel or a kitchen towel.
Put a spoonful or two of the sauce on the bottom of the baking dish.
Put a layer of eggplant on top, then add some sauce and a slice of cheese (torn up and spread over the layer), then sprinkle a bit of the Parmesan and the breadcrumbs over it.
Repeat until you run out of eggplant.
Put all the remaining sauce (if any) on the top layer of eggplant, a final slice or two of cheese, then the rest of the Parmesan cheese and another good sprinkling of breadcrumbs on the top.
Bake in the oven at 350F for about 40 minutes or so. Keep an eye on it, and when the liquid is bubbling and the cheese on top has browned a tiny bit, it's done.
Turn off the oven and let it set, if you like, or put it on top of the stove until the bubbling settles a bit.