Flourless and Eggless Eggplant Parmesan

tomato sauce meets eggplant

I eat eggplant just about any time and any  way I can get it. I like eggplant parmesan but wanted it without the flour and egg so I jumped right in and developed this recipe in the Fast and Furious Test Kitchen. I hope you like it.

Flourless Eggless Eggplant Parmesan

1 medium sized eggplant

1 1/4 cups diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1/3 cup minced onion

1 clove garlic minced

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon Italian herbs, I used an  Italian Seasoning blend

1/2 teaspoon salt

ground black pepper to taste

6 oz shredded mozzerela

1 cup shaved or shredded Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

In a saute pan cook onion and garlic on medium low heat in 1 tablespoon of oil until soft, about 5 minutes. Add canned tomatoes, and Italian Seasoning. Cook for 10 minutes stirring occasionally.

While tomato sauce is cooking peel eggplant and cut into slices no smaller than 1/4 inch and no bigger than 1/2 inch. Try to get them all the same size. If you can grill these outside that is great. If not use either an indoor grill pan or just a saute pan.

Add tomato paste to sauce and salt. continue to cook on low until ready to add to casserole dish.

Brush each slice of eggplant on both sides with the 2 tablespoons of remaining oil and cook on medium to medium high heat until just a bit browned or marked with grill lines. About 3 minutes per side. Don’t burn! Place one layer of eggplant in a casserole dish or 9×9 dish that has been lightly sprayed with cooking oil. Spoon half of the sauce over the eggplant.

Add half the mozzerella and parmigiano cheeses. Repeat. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes covered. Uncover and bake another 10-20 minutes until eggplant is soft but not mushy.

Top with chopped fresh parsley if you like and serve with steamed broccoli for a great vegetarian meal. Serves four

Ready to eat!

Note:

Depending on how thick you cut your eggplant and how much you cook it when browning it you might need 35 minutes or 45 minutes to cook the eggplant. Even if it is a bit under done or over done this dish can handle it so don’t worry.

If you want meat in this add cooked sliced Italian sausage after the tomato sauce layer.