Eggplant

Parmesan

My Aunt Margie made an herbed marinara sauce for her eggplant Parmesan, my first encounter and where I began my fondness for the dish. Unfortunately, her actual recipe for the marinara has been lost. For a quick, basic eggplant Parmesan, the recipe calls for plain tomato sauce with a shake or two of Italian spice. For better results, you can use your favorite marinara or spaghetti sauce with excellent results, and meat sauce adds so much to the flavor and texture of the dish.
Preparation: 1 hour 30 minutes Heirloom Recipe
Serves 4 to 6 persons Margie Gilliland
Ingredients:
  • 1 medium to large eggplant
  • 2 cups tomato sauce
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
  • Italian seasoning
  • Salt
  • Italiam herb-mix seasoning
  • 1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
  • Fresh ground black pepper

  1. Peel and slice eggplant in ½-inch thick slices. Lay a double ply of paper towels on a cookie sheet. Arrange the eggplant slices so they all can lay fat on the paper towels. Give the slices a liberal sprinkling of salt. Turn the slices over so the salted side is down. Now sprinkle again with salt. Lay a double ply of paper towels over the slices and cover with an additional cookie sheet. Add a bit of weight, perhaps a 5-pound bag of sugar, to the top cookie sheet and set aside for about an hour.
  2. The moisture on the paper towels is water that the salt has pulled from the eggplant. When the eggplant is cooked in the flavored sauce, it will draw back much of it lost moisture from the flavored sauce. Rinse the eggplant slices under cold running water and pat dry.
  3. Coat the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish with a thin layer of tomato sauce. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning. Sprinkle with ½ cup of shredded Parmesan cheese.
  4. Arrange the eggplant slices on the bottom of the baking dish. Season with fresh ground black pepper and Italian seasoning, to taste. Cover the slices with the remaining tomato sauce. Cover baking dish with foil.
  5. Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 250°F and bake for an additional 40 minutes, or until eggplant slices are tender. Remove from oven, sprinkle with remaining shredded Parmesan cheese and the shredded Mozzarella cheese. Recover with the foil and return to the oven for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is hot and melted. Remove form oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
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Latest revision done January 2014
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