A light and delicate take on eggplant parmesan for summer suppers.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds eggplant
- olive oil
- tomato sauce (I like to use Marcella Hazan’s sauce, but feel free to use another fresh tomato sauce recipe)
- basil leaves
- 4 ounces fresh mozzarella (I have also had good results with goat cheese)
- grated parmesan
Instructions
- I usually start the assembly by starting to simmer the tomato sauce.
- If you are using baby eggplants, trim the stems and slice the baby eggplants in half lengthwise. Sprinkle with salt and let stand 30 minutes. Then blot dry with a paper towel. Fry the halves in a skillet on each side until golden and soft when poked with a fork. If you are using globe eggplants, slice them into rounds 1/3 inch thick. Salt and blot them, as described above. Brush each with olive oil, and broil in the oven. Let them broil 5-6 minutes per side, until golden brown and soft.
- Season the eggplant lightly with salt and pepper.
- At this point, I finish my tomato sauce, removing the onions, whirring it with a stick blender. For this dish, I also add a handful of torn basil leaves to the sauce at the very end.
- For assembly, coat the bottom of your baking dish with tomato sauce. Arrange the eggplant. Top with a sliced fresh mozzarella, basil leaves, then another layer of eggplant to create a sort of sandwich.
- Gently top each “eggplant-sandwich” with tomato sauce to lightly cover, then about a teaspoon each of grated Parmesan.
- Bake in a 375F oven for 25-35 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling.