Roasted Eggplant And Tomato Parmigiana

This is not a traditional eggplant parmigiana, I used what I had a ton of tomatoes and one large eggplant. I usually bread the eggplant and fry it but not this time, it’s a little different. Yesterday I oven roasted 3 baking sheets of tomatoes that I got at the farmers market. I bought an eggplant that I thought I would try to spiralize, it was too big and spongy and the spiralizer didn’t work on it. Cleaning out my freezer I found a small bag of bread crumbs (about 1 cup) that I had made from homemade bread that didn’t get eaten. So if you can see where I’m going I used what I had in the refrigerator and freezer and created a delicious casserole. The eggplant was cut into about 1/4 inch thick slices and roasted in the oven with a drizzle of olive oil.  Layer the tomatoes and eggplant with some ricotta and fresh mozzarella and there you have it. This is not really a recipe, I guestimated the amounts, with this type of dish you make it according to taste, it is open to interpretation, if you are watching your fat grams use less cheese or low fat/part skim cheese for example. I made two of them a little individual size for me and a larger one to take to my friends.  You don’t have to make everything at once, the tomatoes were roasted the day before and you can even make the whole thing and refrigerate until ready to bake.

Roasted Eggplant and tomato parmigiana

Made 2 casseroles one larger than the other

Roasted tomatoes (I guess I used about 2 cups of roasted tomatoes approximately)

eggplant (I used one very large eggplant)

1/2 shallot (1 lobe) chopped

1 large clove garlic minced

1 cup breadcrumbs

approximately 1/4 cup grated cheese plus more for the ricotta and casserole

ricotta (about 8 oz)

mozzarella cut into thin slices (I used most of an 8 oz fresh mozzarella)

4-5 basil leaves torn

Heat oven to 375, cut the tomatoes into rounds and place on parchment lined baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and roast in the oven for about 30 minutes just until they start to caramelize but are not dried out. Set aside. I made the tomatoes the day before.

Slice eggplant into rounds or quarters about 1/4 inch thick. Place on parchment (brush some oil on parchment sheet) lined baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Roast for about 40-45 minutes until softened and lightly browned. Set aside.

Heat some olive oil and a little pat of butter in a skillet, mince some garlic and chop 1/2 shallot, cook on medium high heat until softened. Add the bread crumbs and pan toast until golden brown. Spoon into a bowl and cool. Add some (if I had to guess about 2 tbs) grated cheese of your choice, parmigiana, romano, asiago or all of the above and some chopped parsley.

Beat an egg in a mixing bowl, add a little grated cheese and season with salt and pepper, add the ricotta and stir to combine.

Putting it together

I used a small rectangular pyrex and small oval baking dish. Layer some of the roasted tomatoes on the bottom of the pan. Place some of the eggplant on top, sprinkle with a little of the breadcrumbs, spread some of the ricotta on top and then continue to layer adding a few of the torn basil leaves in between each layer. You can make this however you like, my top layer was tomatoes which I sprinkled with a little more bread crumbs, some grated cheese and some mozzarella. Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 40-45 mintues or until bubbly and the cheese on top is lightly browned. Let sit for about 30 minutes to set before serving.