Buttery Eggplant Parm

Eggplant is one of those things in life that gets an undeserved bad reputation, much like bacon chocolate cupcakes (yum) or sweet little pit bulls (awww). If eggplant is not treated and prepared the right way, it can turn out chewy, bitter and unpleasant; if prepared correctly, however, it becomes buttery, succulent, and extremely delicious. If you think you don't like eggplant (Mom and Dad, I'm looking at you) I dare you to try this recipe. The eggplant is crispy on the outside yet melty on the inside, and it's all encased in a decadent layer of mozzarella and parmesan cheese. I bet you'll be hooked after the first bite!

To start, heat a sauce pan over medium-high heat with a few tablespoons of olive oil. To that, add chopped zucchini, onion, carrot, garlic, salt and pepper.

Once the veggies have softened a bit, add one can of tomato sauce, a dash of crushed red pepper flakes, and one can of sardines in tomato. Let simmer while you prepare the other components of the dish.

A word about sardines: DELICIOUS. Here is another example of a food that people are wary of for no reason. Don't knock it til you try it! They don't taste fishy--they just add an incredible salty, nutty flavor to the background of the sauce. Please don't skip this step because you're scared; the sauce won't be the same without these little guys! I found them at the Asian market near my place :)

While your sauce simmers, prepare your eggplant. First, cut off the ends of the eggplant and cut off the skin, working slowly around the vegetable. The skin is bitter, so make sure it's all off. Next, cut the eggplant into vertical planks and place in a strainer in the sink. Liberally salt each plank and let the eggplant rest for about ten minutes. This helps rid the eggplant of excess moisture.

You'll need some breadcrumbs to batter your eggplant before frying. If you don't have breadcrumbs on hand, they are easy to make. Just use a piece or two of stale bread and crush it up in a baggie. Add the breadcrumbs to a bowl with about a cup of flour, salt and pepper.

Heat a cast iron skillet or any large, flat-bottomed pot with about an inch of oil over high heat. Rinse off the salted eggplant and pat dry. Generously coat each plank with the flour mixture. Place the eggplant in the oil and shallow fry about five minutes on each side. 

Transfer fried eggplant to a tin foil lined baking sheet topped with a cooling rack (the kind you set cookies on) so that the eggplant can drain. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Toss some fresh torn basil into your sauce. I found this gorgeous bunch of basil at my local Asian market for (wait for it).... $1.90!!!  Best deal ever.

Top each fried plank of eggplant with a scoop of sauce, a few leaves of torn basil, and a generous sprinkling of both shredded mozzarella and parmesan cheese.

Bake your eggplant for about 30 minutes. 

While eggplant is baking, place a large pot of salted water on the stove and bring to a boil. Drop spaghetti (or any long cut pasta you like) and cook to al dente. Reserve one cup of starchy cooking water and mix into your sauce before you drain the pasta. Combine pasta and sauce and toss thoroughly. One of my biggest cooking pet peeves is when people top a naked plate of pasta with a small dollop of sauce and don't mix it together properly. You want ALL of the pasta to taste good, don't you?

Plate a generous pile of pasta and top with a plank of eggplant (or two! or three!) and feel all the warm fuzzies happen in your tummy! You'll never speak a bad word about eggplant again...

Enjoy!

Thank you so much for reading, let me know what you think!
xoxo