Eggplant Parmesan

Eggplant parmesan is one of the few Italian dishes I cook that I actually learned to make in Italy. I lived for about nine months with a woman who had worked as a chef's assistant. She loved to cook. I loved to watch her cook (and sometimes even help). She made this for my birthday dinner in 1983, and I used to make it regularly when I returned to the US.

I've been under the impression for the past several years that my kids didn't care for this meal. Truth be told, I've only made it for them once. When I served it last week, several of them actually remembered it from a few years before and were glad to see it was back.

I've ordered eggplant at a variety of Italian restaurants, including Olive Garden and Macaroni Grill. It's very good at both of those places, but is somewhat different from the way I learned to make it. The restaurant variety is usually a breaded piece of eggplant (or more accurately several pieces of breaded eggplant) topped with red sauce and cheese. This recipe is more like an eggplant lasagna.

You'll need about one and a  half eggplants. Slice them about 1/4 inch thinck. Dip the eggplant slices in a pie plate with 2-3 beaten eggs in it, then dip it in a plate with about 2 cups of breadcrumbs on it. Pan fry the eggplant slices in a large skillet until they are golden brown on both sides. Then layer the eggplant in a 9 x 13-inch pan like this:

This is the first of three eggplant layers. Pour 3-4 ladels of sauce over the eggplant (I confess that while I have traditionally made sauce from scratch for use with this recipe, this time I used a bottle of spaghetti sauce from the store. I added a can of tomato sauce and a can of diced tomatoes to it to make sure there was enough to amply cover the eggplant, and also added 1/2 pound of cooked sausage to give it a little more flavor). On top of the layer of sauce, sprinkle grated mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Repeat this process two more times, ending with the sauce and cheese layer. I usually put a little extra cheese on the top layer for the sake of appearances.

Bake the eggplant at 350 degrees until the cheese is melted and slightly browned. Then serve it as you would lasagna.

Eggplant Parmesan

2 large eggplants, cleaned, trimmed, and sliced in quarter inch slices

3 eggs, beaten and placed in a pie plate

2 cups breadcrumbs (I use the kind with Italian seasoning in them)

2-3 tablespoons oil

1 large bottle of spaghetti sauce

1 8-ounce can of tomato sauce

1 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes

1/2 pound bulk sausage, browned and drained

1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella cheese

1 cup grated parmesan cheese

Dip the eggplant slices eggs, then dip it in a plate with the breadcrumbs on it. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and fry the eggplant slices until they are golden brown on both sides. Then layer the eggplant in a 9 x 13-inch pan so that the bottom of the pan is completely covered. This is the first of three eggplant layers.

In the meantime, brown and drain the sausage and combine the bottled spaghetti sauce and other tomato products in a large sauce pan. Cook until warmed through.

Pour 3-4 ladels of sauce over the eggplant On top of each layer of sauce, sprinkle grated mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Repeat this process two more times, ending with the sauce and cheese layer. I usually put a little extra cheese on the top layer for the sake of appearances.


Bake the eggplant at 350 degrees until the cheese is melted and slightly browned. Then serve it as you would lasagna.