In all honesty- I have never ever cooked with eggplant- and after trying this recipe I really am wondering why- I've watched many eggplant parmesans be made on the food network- very simple- but specific in order to have a good result- the way you cut your eggplant could potentially make or break the final result- and that was a bit scary to me.
So I will admit- week 3 was a bit more involved than the last two- however I didn't have a recipe to follow and was going off of what I've seen in past cooking shows- and tidbits that I read from recipes i liked- but I didn't like all of the recipe.
I started with two eggplant, cut off the ends, and cut them lengthwise into about 5-6, 1/4 inch pieces. Then- stealing a tip from Giada- I sprinkled the peices with salt and let them sit for 10 minutes- to remove bitterness and excess moisture. After ten minutes I took a paper towel and wiped the moisture that had gathered on top and was ready to start the "breading process". One recipe told me to deep fry the eggplant- and thats really not healthy- so my alternative was to bake them at a high temperature with a bit of breading and heart healthy olive oil. I brushed both sides with olive oil and working quickly- because eggplant is literally like a sponge that soaks up everything you put on it- I dipped this into a breading mixture I made out of- 1 c panko bread crumbs (Japanese style bread crumbs- If you don't have this use regular bread crumbs!), some Italien seasoning, garlic powder (of course), salt, pepper, and some chili flakes- one of my new favorite things.
I know that Panko isn't the healhtiest of choices- however when you actually "bread the eggplant" not a lot stays on because you aren't using the traditional breading liquid- being eggs- which means a lot less of the breading will end up sticking. They do however give great flavor, texture, and crisp up nicely. After all my eggplant peices were breaded, I arranged them on a rack on top of a baking sheet so they could crisp rather than risk steaming them if I just put them directly on the baking sheet minus the rack- at 460 degrees for 15 minutes on one side and about 10 on the other.
While those were baking I was busy making a homemade marinara- PACKED full of veggies. I used any vegetables I had including: 1 medium onion, 1 medium carrot, 1 red pepper, 3 cloves of garlic, 3 sun dried tomatoes, about 1/2 c of frozen mixed veggies, and about a cup of sweet potato I had baked and left over from lunch, basil, parsley, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and some chili flakes again. Use anything you have- you really cant go wrong! To this I added 2- 28 ounce cans of diced tomatoes, warmed it through in a pot- and threw it all into the food processor. What was really nice about this sauce is because I made it so chunky- it almost felt meaty. I don't like using a lot of meat as of late in my recipes- unless it's chicken- so this was an added bonus for me! (This will make a lot of sauce- I just freeze the rest in washed yogurt containers I keep around for moments such as these and freeze them after the sauce is completely cool- ready to go when next time your in a rush!)
Once my sauce was ready and eggplant was cool to the touch I was ready to assemble: I sprayed a 9x13 glass pan really well with cooking spray. Then arranged about 5 pieces of eggplant on the bottom. I topped these with about 1 cup of my chunky and very healthy sauce- and topped that with a special surprise ingredient: 4 ounces (half of a brick) of lite cream cheese. I had mentioned this in an earlier blog- that cream cheese adds such creaminess and loveliness to lasagna's and it did the same but better to this dish as well. Then topped this with 1 c of light mozzarella. I repeated this process again- minus the cream cheese for the top layer. (You could also use ricotta or light ricotta for this as well!)
I put this into a 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes. When it was bubbling and brown on top I pulled it out and let it stand for 10-15 minutes before cutting into it. I know we're all tempted to cut into it and eat right away- but all this work took time- arranging the layers- making it appealing- why ruin it and risk eating a pile of mush, just because of a lack of patience? Trust me and wait- its worth it.
I was a bit nervous at first- but after trying it I was blown away. One thing that is true- is that when you cook a meal you don't enjoy it as much as the people around you. I have heard so many people say the same thing- and this is true for myself about 90 percent of the time. But this meal- I fully enjoyed- and was pleasantly surprised. I didn't miss the lasagna noodles, or ground beef, or even the mound of cheese I used to put on my regular lasagna (so good but so not worth the guilt!)
Give this one a try! You will definitely not regret it! I served this with a mixture of spinach and arugula on the side with a lemon and olive oil dressing.
On another note- due to my healthier choices and resolutions I have made it a huge effort to eat well- this upcoming week will be one of exciting meals- and I thought I would share the menu with you:
Today was eggplant parmesan.
Tomorrow will be lemon and roasted chicken soup.
The other five meals we will be enjoying include: Artichoke chicken with roast potatoes, Korean beef bowl packed with raw veggies and rice, Steak and smashed lemon and parsley potatoes, tilapia (a mild fish)- mango-avocado-and arugula salad, and glazed chicken and apple salad. I occasionally do beef to keep Kev happy but as much as I can I go for chicken and meatless dishes nowadays. Planning this menu- of healthy and exciting new dishes keeps me on track and makes me look forward to cooking supper every day. I'm not tempted to go out to a restaurant or stop by a fast food place- at all.
Wednesday this past week I happened to wake up late- and not have a lunch. Because of a long day and a staff meeting after school I didn't have much choice about what I was eating because I couldn't leave. I ended up eating some food that wasn't my first choice and felt incredibly sick the entire night. My body reacted to the junk- and was basically telling me "I don't like this stuff"- which reminds me- It may taste good but is it really worth it? and to wake up on time- so I'm not stuck in a position like that again. Lesson definitely learned!
Happy cooking! :)
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