crispy eggplant parmesan

i finally made successful eggplant parmesan.  the recipe is based on the one from the america's test kitchen family cookbook.  i had tried it before.  the results were good, but not perfect.  the key was oven frying.  this makes the crust really crunchy, which is my favorite part.  but then when i layered it with the sauce, the crunch got kind of lost.  also i cut the eggplant too thick, so it didn't cook well.

so a few nights ago, i rolled up my sleeves and tried again.  here is my adaptation of the test kitchen recipe

crispy eggplant parmesan

adapted from americas test kitchen family cookbook

1 globe eggplant, sliced into 1/4 inch thick slices

salt

1/2 cup flour

2 eggs

2 cups bread crumbs (either fresh made or panko.  matzo meal and other fine ground commercial            bread crumbs wont make a crunchy crust.  big crumbs are key)

3/4 c grated parmesan

olive oil

1- 2 cups marinara sauce

one large ball of fresh mozzarella (also called ovoline) sliced thin

a few leaves of basil (if possible, one per slice of eggplant)

salt each slice of eggplant liberally and let sit for about 30 to 40 minutes.

while it sits, preheat the oven to 425 with the baking sheets already in place.  the key to oven frying is to start with a hot pan.  pour the flour into a large zip lock bag with a few grinds of pepper. mix eggs  in a shallow bowl and in another toss together the bread crumbs and parmesan.  

rinse the salt off the eggplant and press out the water, remove as much liquid as possible.  next place all the slices in the zip lock bag, seal, and shake to evenly coat.  remove the eggplant, shaking off excess flour and dunk into the egg. again shake off excess and move to the bread crumbs.  press the crumbs in to make sure they stick well.  set to the side. 

once you are ready to put the eggplant in the oven, remove the baking sheets and oil liberally before placing on the eggplant.  they will sizzle a little.  bake for 20 minutes, flip and bake 10 minutes more.

remove the trays from the oven.  now this is where i changed the most.  place one spoonful of sauce in the middle of each slice and top with a slice of mozzarella. move the oven rack up and turn on the broiler.  place the eggplant under the broiler until the cheese bubbles and browns a little.

there are two ways to serve this.  one is to just sprinkle some basil on and dig into the little medallions.  the other is to stack them in threes, one leaf of basil sandwiched between.

i hope you try this and enjoy.