I first learned this dish for my good friend Lake Bell, a vegetarian I really wanted to have over for dinner. When I don’t have vegetarians at the table, I serve this as a side dish, but even my meat-loving friends like it so much that sometimes they make it their whole dinner with a salad of romaine lettuce and Grey Moss Inn White French Dressing (page 160).
Recipe information
Yield
makes 6 to 8 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly brush or spray a 9 × 13-inch baking dish with vegetable oil.
Step 2
Wash the eggplant, but do not peel it. Cut it crosswise in 1/4-inch-thick slices. In a shallow dish or pie plate, lightly beat the eggs. In another shallow dish or pie plate, combine the bread crumbs with 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, and stir with a fork until well combined.
Step 3
Working with one eggplant slice at a time, coat it on both sides with the egg and allow the excess to drip off. Place it in the bread crumbs, and coat on both sides. Transfer to a platter or baking sheet.
Step 4
Line a baking sheet with paper towels. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat until shimmery and hot but not smoking. Add as many slices of eggplant as can fit in a single layer; do not crowd the pan. Cook until golden brown and crisp on both sides, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer the eggplant slices to the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining slices, adding more oil as needed.
Step 5
Meanwhile, pour the Bolognese in a small saucepan; if using jarred sauce, add a little water to the jar. Close the jar and shake it to loosen the sauce stuck to the sides of the jar. Add the water to the saucepan. Over medium heat bring the sauce just to boiling. Cover, set aside, and keep warm.
Step 6
Arrange half of the eggplant slices along the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top the eggplant with half of the warm sauce. Arrange half of the mozzarella slices on top and sprinkle with half of the remaining Parmesan cheese. Arrange the remaining eggplant slices over the cheese. Cover with the remaining meat sauce, mozzarella, and Parmesan.
Step 7
Bake, uncovered, until the cheese is melted and slightly browned, 25 to 30 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.
from aunt elsa’s kitchen
Step 8
For a pretty presentation, set aside half of the most uniformly sized eggplant slices for the top layer. Use the rest for the bottom layer that no one can see.
