I have been craving eggplant parmesan for weeks. With this quarantine I decided to make it as it’s a little more time consuming, and hey nothing but time on my hands right now. So, I made this into roll ups. It came out super yummy. Feel free to do this and just cut the eggplant in discs and stack in the pan with the sauce, sheet and ricotta. Literally you can’t go wrong with however you decided to put it together.
Eggplant Parmesan Roll Ups
Ingredients:
1 large Eggplant, thinly sliced lengthwise (skin removed or left on)
1.5 cups Italian bread crumbs
1 cup flour
1 T garlic powder
1 T onion powder
1/2 T Italian seasoning
2 t salt
2 t pepper
3 eggs, beaten
3 T olive oil
Filling:
2 cups riccotta
1 T garlic powder
1 T onion powder
2 t salt
2 t pepper
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 cup mozzarella, shredded
3 garlic cloves, finely grated
4 basil leaves, chiffonade
1-2 cups marinara (more or less to taste)
1 cup mozzarella
Directions: Pre-heat oven 400. Slice eggplant lengthwise into 1/4 inch slices. Place slices on paper towel and sprinkle with salt and let slices drain 30-45 minutes. After the time is up rinse eggplant and pat dry. (This step will help draw out some moisture in the eggplant.
Next, get 3 shallow bowls for the breading station. Add flour to one, breadcrumbs and seasoning to another, and eggs to the last bowl. Season the flour mixture with salt and pepper as well.
Start the breading process, dip the eggplant slices in the egg, then the flour mixture and in the breadcrumbs, making sure to completely coat the eggplant slice. Coat a large baking sheet with olive oil and add eggplant. Continue with remaining slices. (Note: Add extra breadcrumbs if needed)
Once you have completed all your eggplant, drizzle with olive oil and bake in the oven for 15 minutes and then flip and bake for another 10 minutes. You want the breadcrumbs to be crispy. (Note: once this is baked it will soften up anyway)
Remove from the oven once done.
While the eggplant is cooking you can make the ricotta mixture. To a medium mixing bowl add in ricotta, seasoning, cheeses, garlic an basil and mix well. Set aside until ready to use.
Cover the bottom of a baking dish with sauce. To assemble add a spoonful of the ricotta mixture to the eggplant slice and roll up, place in in the baking dish. Do this with all the eggplant slices. Once completed top the eggplant rolls with sauce and mozzarella cheese. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes. Let sit a few minutes and serve with a nice chunk of bread or garlic bread.
Notes: Use as much or as little of the marina as you like. Personally for me I prefer less sauce. You can also make this dish without breading the eggplant. I prefer the taste of it breaded so this time I breaded it. Also, you can fry the eggplant in a pan on the stove if if you wish. I was trying to make it easier and trying to keep it slightly healthier.
