Sunday, August 28, 2011

Eggplant Parmesan Recipe

As promised yesterday, here is the recipe for the Eggplant Parm that I made for dinner last night.  I cannot stress enough how important it is to make your own sauce.  It is simple, inexpensive and will taste 1000xs better than anything that you can find in a jar.  I also recommend buying fresh mozzarella instead of the shredded stuff.  It will make for a creamier, cheesier taste.  I prefer my sauce chunky and tomatoey but if you prefer a smoother sauce, just run through a food processor before assembling the dish.
This recipe served two for dinner.

Sauce
1 28oz can San Marzano crushed tomatoes
1 28oz can San Marzano diced tomatoes
1 sweet yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
10 basil leaves, torn
honey to taste

Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in dutch oven over medium high heat.  Add onion and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.  Add garlic and crushed red pepper.  Cook for 1 minute.  Add both cans of tomatoes and bring to a boil.  Turn down heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the basil and honey to taste.

Eggplant

  • 1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs
  • Butter, for greasing the dish
  • 1 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano leaves
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 large eggs, beaten
  • 1 tablespoons water
  • 1-2 medium eggplants, cut into 1/2-inch-thick round slices (need about 12 slices)
  • One fresh medium sized mozzarella ball.
  • 2 cups freshly grated Parmesan
  • Flour for dredging
  • Canola oil for frying
Raise the temperature of the oven up to 400 degrees F. Lightly butter the bottom and sides of a baking dish.
Place the bread crumbs into a large shallow bowl. Add the herbs,salt and pepper. In another medium shallow bowl, whisk the eggs and 1 tablespoon of water together.
Season each eggplant slice on both sides with salt and pepper. Dredge each eggplant slice in the flour, tapping off excess, then dip it in the egg, and finally dredge it in the bread crumb mixture. Shake off any excess breading and transfer the egg plant to a baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining eggplant.
Heat 1/2-inch of oil in a large straight-sided saute pan over medium heat until the oil reaches a temperature of 385 degrees F. Working in small batches, fry a few of the eggplant slices, turning once, until golden brown, about 3 minutes per batch. Using tongs, transfer to a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining eggplant.
Cover the bottom of the prepared baking dish with some of the tomato sauce and arrange 1/2 of the eggplant over the sauce. Cover the eggplant with some of the sauce, a slice of the mozzarella and some Parmesan. Repeat.
Place in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes and until the top is golden brown and bubbly.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

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