You Will Never Miss the Meat

My nephew T has inspired me to try more vegetarian meals.  He does not eat meat or seafood, as you may have guessed when I snuck the shrimp into some fried rice I was doing for his mother to follow.  He is a boy with conviction and compassion.  And I am very proud of him for that.  So after talking it over with UD, we decided that we would have at least one meat-free dinner a week.

I often see recipes for vegetarian meals that sound fantastic, and recently I even heard one on the radio.  I was driving to the supermarket for just a few items.  On the way there I heard a radio program whose subject was food and food related topics.  The host was commenting that people often ask for recipes, and that is not really what the show is about.  But for some reason, on this day, he decided to share a recipe.  It was for Eggplant Parmesan.  As I sat in the supermarket parking lot taking notes, I realized I was going to do whatever had to be done to have it that night.  It just sounded that good.

Then the reality hit.  I had never worked with eggplant and I was seriously intimidated.  At the end of this process I realized there were things I would probably do differently.  I will mention what they are as I go along.

You will need:
Eggplant (1st change: I used two large eggplants, but in the future I would use 2 small Japanese eggplants.  I learned that they are tastier and have fewer seeds.)
Flour
Eggs
Panko Breadcrumbs, Italian Style
Jarred or Homemade Tomato Sauce
A wedge of Pecorino Romano cheese (Side note: I thought I had some, but I only had Parmesan Reggiano, so I used that.  I honestly think either is fine, so use your fav.)
Fresh Mozzarella cheese
Fresh Basil

Peel and slice the eggplant about 1/2 inch thick.  (2nd change: I would slice the eggplant in the other direction to get round discs.)

I  have heard that with the Japanese eggplants you do not need to salt them to remove excess moisture.  These I salted and let sit for about 30 minutes.  Then I blotted them with paper towels.

So basically you are going to coat these the way you do for any breading process.  Flour, eggs and breadcrumbs.  But here is a part of the recipe that I thought was a great idea.  Once you have beaten the eggs, add some freshly grated cheese and some ribbons of fresh basil.

That is really adding some great flavor to the egg step, nes cafe?

Then lay out your assembly line.  Flour that has been seasoned with salt and pepper first.  Then the egg mixture, and finish with the Panko breadcrumbs.

Then lay them on a dish or a rack while you finish the rest.

Heat some Extra Virgin Olive Oil over medium high heat.

Brown the eggplant on both sides.  Add more oil as needed.

When you are finished, remove the eggplant from the pan and set aside.  Lightly coat the bottom of a casserole dish with tomato sauce.

Then add some more tomato sauce over the eggplant.

Sprinkle generously with freshly grated cheese and repeat with another layer of eggplant.  (Third change: I would do just one layer of eggplant, in order to make it a lighter serving size.)

Top it all with fresh mozzarella.

Bake it at 350 degrees for about an hour.  If it were just one layer I would probably take it out after 45 minutes.

You can serve it right from the casserole dish, or transfer it into a serving dish.  Sprinkle it with chopped fresh parsley or basil.

Add more sauce on top if desired, and serve it with a side salad, or pasta.  And my promise to you - you will never miss the meat!

A bientot!  See you soon.