canela's kitchen

Eggplant Parmesan

65 minutes

I love eggplant parmesan but I rarely ever make it. I had great plans when I created my meal plan this week, but then, I came down with my grandson's virus. Luckily, the other rescued our family by making his famous eggplant parm so I wouldn't infect the entire house. I had been hearing about his eggplant parm from his ex-girlfriend Wendye, whom I've become friends with. 4 years and lots of meals later, he had never prepared it for me, so this was definitely a treat. Of course, because I can't have gluten, his traditional recipe was modified for my consumption.

The rest of the family had theirs on a hero from the bakery at the market, while I had mine on a Schar Gluten-Free Baguette. Let me tell you, Schar makes the BEST commercial GF baguettes and heros I have had so far. Baked for 7-9 minutes, they are crunchy on the outside, soft in the inside, and simply wonderful. I love them with oil and vinegar, as a sandwich loaf or as garlic bread to serve with pasta.

Even though Jarobi made the parm in my photo, I am going to give you my personal recipe. And as always, this is 100% Gluten-Free.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

2 eggplants, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch slices

1 tablespoon salt

1 cup Schar Gluten-Free Bread Crumbs

1 cup Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free All Purpose Baking Flour

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided

2 eggs, beaten

1 (28 oz,) jar of tomato basil or marinara sauce

1 (16 oz) bag shredded, low-fat, skim milk mozzarella cheese

Olive Oil for Frying

Schar Gluten-Free Baguette, for serving

Directions

Add eggplant to bowl with sea salt and water. Allow to sit for 30 minutes - 1 hour. This will prevent the eggplant from browning.

Place bread crumbs and flour on seperate plates.

Preheat oven to 350.

Remove eggplant from water and pat dry with a paper towel.

Dip eggplant in GF flour.

Dip in egg to coat both sides.

The dip in bread crumbs to coat both sides.

Fry eggplant in olive oil on stove top, 2 - 3 minutes per side.

Remove from oil and set on paper towel to drain.

When all the eggplant is finished, place a layer of eggplant in a baking dish. Start with a layer of sauce, then alternate with layers of cheese, sauce and eggplant.

Last layer should be mozzarella and parmesan.

Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes.

Remove from oven.

Heat hero or baguette in the oven until desired crispness or according to package directions.

Fill baguette or hero with parm.

Serve immediately.