EPISODE 14

This is my Zeidie’s famous eggplant parmesan. He used to be a doctor of dentistry and he makes this with great precision and care, cooking the eggplant on both sides until it’s perfectly browned.

Ingredients

• Vegetable oil
• 2 large or 3 medium eggplants
• 2-3 eggs beaten
• Italian breadcrumbs
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ½ dried oregano
• ½ dried basil
• Tomato sauce
  
• Grated parmesan

Instructions

Place a large pan over medium heat and put in enough vegetable oil to coat the bottom of the pan by 1/2 inch.

Peel the eggplant and slice into ¼ inch pieces. Dip the both sides of the eggplant into the beaten eggs, then cover both sides in seasoned Italian breadcrumbs.

Place the eggplant slices in the hot oil and sauté until golden brown on both sides. Don’t overcrowd the pan, as it will cause your eggplant to get soggy and oily. You’re after a quick browning just to add flavour and crunch. Once the eggplant is cooked, let it cool on a baking sheet lines with paper towel to absorb the excess oil.

In a 9″x13″ baking dish, place the larger pieces of eggplant, then fill in any gaps with the smaller pieces. Sprinkle garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano, and dried basil over the eggplant. Cover with a thin layer of tomato sauce, then sprinkle with grated parmesan.

Repeat with the remaining eggplant (eggplant, herbs, sauce, cheese). Cover with aluminum foil and bake in a 325F oven for 30-40 minutes. Turn the oven off and let sit for 45 minutes in order to let it set.

Serve with pasta and enjoy immensely!

This is also wonderful frozen and then slowly reheated in a 350F oven for 30ish minutes.