Eggplant Parmigiana
"This recipe comes form The Canberra Times Sunday Magazine and LeggyPeggy says it is 'divine'. It's very easy and yummy. I didn't have any fresh herbs when I made the sauce, so used dried ones. I just shook them into the sauce until I thought that it smelled nice and looked like a nice consistency. Not very scientific, I know. Although it is very yummy as is, next time I make it I intend to grill, rather than fry, the eggplant just so's I don't ingest quite so much olive oil. The introduction to the recipe mentions eggplant's propensity to absorb all available oil and although I squeezed the slices between paper towel to remove some of the oil, there still seemed to be a fair bit. And I used parmesan cheese rather than the grana padano. I think grilling the eggplant will give it a slightly different, but still very yummy, flavour. And I didn't peel the eggplant. I like my food to be visually pleasing as well as yummy and I think the glossy, dark skin is very nice to look at. Happy eating!"
photo by Leggy Peggy
- Ready In:
- 1hr 55mins
- Ingredients:
- 15
- Serves:
-
4-6
ingredients
- 2 -3 large eggplants, peeled and cut into long, thick slices
- salt
- seasoned flour
- olive oil
- 8 -10 fresh mozzarella balls, sliced into rounds
- 1⁄2 cup freshly grated grana padano or 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
-
For the sauce
- 1 (400 g) can Italian-style diced tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh thyme
- 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
- black pepper
- 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch sugar
directions
- Sprinkle the eggplant slices lightly with the salt and let the juices disgorge for about half-an-hour. Pat the slices dry. Dust lightly with seasoned plain flour and then brown in olive oil in a non-stick frypan. You will need to do this in batches.
-
For the tomato sauce:
- Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a medium saucepan. Add a finely chopped onion and saute until the onion is transparent. Add 2 finely chopped cloves garlic and saute for a minute. Add 1 400g can Italian diced tomatoes, 2 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped and 1 tbsp parsley, chopped. Grind in black pepper, add half a teaspoon of salt and a pinch of sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes, covered.
-
To assemble:
- Preheat oven to 180°C Lightly grease a baking dish with olive oil. Place a layer of eggplant over the bottom. Top with some tomato sauce and then dot with mozzarella slices. Continue layering until all the eggplant is used up. The last layer should be tomato sauce and mozzarella. Sprinkle with the grated grana padano or parmesan. Drizzle the top lightly with olive oil and bake for about 25 minutes.
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Reviews
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Gorgeous, I have finally found a way to enjoy eating aubergine, thank you very much. It tasted somewhat like pizza, but with a healthy twist. -
We loved this wonderful an delightful recipe. It was yummy too. Thank you for sharing Chef#220151 -
About 10 days ago, Russian Black was going out of town. She cleaned out her fridge and brought me the leftovers of this amazing dish. Since then, I've managed to bully her into posting the recipe, so you all can enjoy it, too. It's a wonderful, decadent eggplant dish and I thoroughly enjoyed every mouthful. Just wish I'd taken a photo. Will do next time. Yummo!
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
I am an editor and writer and like to cook. I also love cats and have two—Ebony and Zoe. Ebony is a Russian Black, hence my public name; and Zoe is a Korat. This isn't a common breed and even cat lovers are often not familiar with it. She's a little blue ball of muscle, sinew, energy and personality and she's always in a hurry. My other interests are going to the theatre, ballet and opera and reading. I am proud and delighted to be able to call LeggyPeggy, one of this site's moderators, my very good friend and it was she, in fact, who introduced me to this site.
