"New" Eggplant Parmesan
Author: Nicole
Ingredients
  • 3 large eggplants, about 3 pounds total
  • ¼ to ⅓ cup olive oil (maybe a bit more)
  • Fine sea salt and freshly ground white pepper (see Notes)
  • About 4 cups of marinara sauce (see Notes)
  • 3 cups grated Pecorino-Romano cheese
  • 8 ounces fresh mozzarella
  • Garnish with freshly chopped basil and a sprinkle of dried oregano
Instructions
  1. You’ll need about 4-½ to 5 hours (most unattended) to make the sauce and eggplant parmesan from start to finish. If you’re making marinara sauce now, start that and the move on to the eggplant.
  2. Preheat an oven to 350°F. Line two large cookie sheets (17”x11”) with parchment paper. Spray a large baking dish (15”x9”x3” or thereabouts) with olive oil.
  3. For each eggplant, peel alternating vertical strips with a vegetable peeler. Cut off both ends. Cut eggplant into ½-inch slices.
  4. Toss eggplant slices in a large mixing bowl with olive oil, fine sea salt and generously freshly ground white pepper. (You may want to do this in batches.) Place eggplant slices in a single layer on parchment paper lined baking sheets. It’s okay if slices are touching (but not overlapping) as they will shrink slightly while baking.
  5. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Halfway through baking, flip eggplant slices and rearrange baking sheets if on two racks. Bake until eggplant is browned in spots and lightly colored in others and just beginning to shrink away from the skin. Remove from oven and leave oven on.
  6. Spread about 1-1/4 cups of marinara on the bottom of the baking dish, add a layer of eggplant slices (1/3 of slices), generously sprinkle freshly ground white pepper on eggplant and sprinkle 1 cup of Pecorino-Romano cheese. Repeat two more times (sauce, eggplant, pepper, cheese). Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake for 3-1/2 hours.
  7. Remove from oven and turn on broiler.
  8. Thinly slice mozzarella and place on top of baked eggplant. Broil for about 4 to 5 minutes or until cheese melts.
  9. Serve hot or warm. Sprinkle with freshly chopped basil and dried oregano.
Notes
* Don’t be tempted to use black pepper – this recipe is best with freshly ground white pepper. Be generous with the white pepper.
* Please take the time to make your own sauce. Try Josephine’s Marinara Sauce (Red Sauce) which only takes an hour to make (mostly unattended). You’ll need about two cans of sauce (a third of this recipe) so feel free to make a smaller batch or make the whole thing and freeze some.
* Leftovers freeze well. Place in an oven-proof dish and freeze. Remove from freezer (no need to thaw) and bake at 350°F for about 40 minutes.
Recipe by Riegl Palate at https://www.rieglpalate.com/new-eggplant-parmesan/