Baked Eggplant Parmesan

When I was a kid, I loathed eggplant.

The only think I hated more than eggplant, was the combination of eggplant and green peppers. My mom had this eggplant casserole dish that she made every so often that contained both, and I always hated it when she made it. I would always try to pick out just the meat and cheese, and when my mom finally made me eat the vegetables, I would hold my nose and eat them as fast as possible before taking a huge drink of water.

Yeah… sorry about that Mom.

Now, I love eggplant, especially with green peppers! I would probably love my mom’s eggplant casserole if I had it now. Life’s funny like that…

One eggplant dish I really like is baked eggplant parmesan. It’s eggplant parmesan, but it’s baked instead of fried, then it’s layered with pasta sauce and cheese, and baked again.

I cannot for the life of me remember where I got this recipe, so I don’t know who to give credit to. Sorry!

I forgot to take pictures of all the step for this, so there’s just pictures of the main steps.

First things first, make your pasta sauce! I usually make marinara sauce for this, but I decided to make meat sauce this time around. Naturally, if you want this to be a vegetarian dish, leave the meat out. :)

In one bowl, beat some eggs together. In another bowl, combine bread crumbs, grated parmesan, 1 tsp. dried oregano, 1/2 tsp. dried basil, and a dash of salt and pepper. Dip your eggplant slices in the egg mixture, then the bread crumb mixture, and place them on a greased baking sheet or baking paper lined baking sheet. Bake in a 375 degree F (190 degree C) oven for 20 minutes. Then turn over the eggplant slices and bake for an additional 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

In a deep baking dish, layer a little bit of sauce, half the eggplant slices, shredded cheese, and grated parmesan. Repeat with sauce, the last of the eggplant slices, shredded cheese, parmesan cheese, and top of with the last of the sauce and cheese. I had leftover bread crumb mixture, so I put that on top and then added some cheese during the last 10 minutes of baking.

Bake in a 400 degree F (200 degree C) oven for 15 – 20 minutes, or until bubbly. Let cool five minutes and serve.

Warm eggplant and cheesy goodness.

Baked Eggplant Parmesan (serves 4 – 5)

• 2 eggs
• 3/4 c. bread crumbs
• 3/4 c. grated parmesan
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp. dried basil
• dash of salt & pepper
• 2 large eggplants (or about 6 Japanese eggplants), sliced into 1/2″ rounds
• 6 c. marinara sauce
• 1 1/2 c. shredded mozzarella
• 1 c. grated parmesan

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C). Brush 2 baking sheets with oil (or line with parchment paper) and set aside.
2. In a wide, shallow bowl, mix eggs and 2 Tbsp. cold water. In a seperate bowl, combine bread crumbs, grated parmesan, oregano, basil, and salt and pepper.
3. Dip eggplant slices in the egg mixture, then the bread crumb mixture, coating well, and place on baking sheets.
4. Bake eggplant slices until golden brown, about 20 minutes, then flip the slices over and bake for an additional 20 minutes. Remove from oven and raise oven heat to 400 degrees F (200 C)
5. Spread 2 c. of marinara sauce in a 9 x 13 in. baking dish. Arrange half the eggplant slices in dish. Cover with 2 c. of sauce, then 1/2 c. of mozzarella, then 1/3 c. parmesan. Repeat with the remaining eggplant, sauce, mozzarella, and parmesan.
6. Baking about 15 – 20 minutes, or until bubbling. Let stand five minutes before serving.