My grandmother's Eggplant Parmesan is the stuff of dreams. Well, my dreams, anyway. I promise you - this is like no Eggplant Parmesan you have ever had. And once you have it, you may never go back!
Ok, get your slippers on. The dog may need his fleece too-its cold out there!
First, you will need 1 large eggplant, homemade or good quality jarred pasta sauce, 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, and 1/3 cup dried Italian breadcrumbs, table salt.
Now, peel your eggplant, then slice it into 1/4" thick rounds. If they're too thin-they'll just stick & fall apart in your pan.
Pile them up on top of each other on a plate, small on the bottom, large on top. On a dinner plate, you will layer the slices, starting with the large, working to the smallest. You need to sprinkle each layer with table salt, I pour directly out of the box.
When you have them all piled up, take another dinner plate and place it on top of your layers. Use a bag of sugar or something else heavy, like my cast iron pot here, to press them down.
Now here's where Grandma & I disagree. She leaves hers all day, I do not. I don't have that kind of time, plus, I'm impatient. I've made this recipe a hundred times & all day is not necessary, believe me. The bitterness is gone in just about an hour. While you're waiting, make yourself a salad. This happens to be the one I plan on making for Thanksgiving this year. You'll have to wait to see what it is, but oh my, it is So good!
When they're ready, take your plates and squeeze them together & carefully turn them sideways to drain the liquid over your sink full of dishes.
When they're ready, take your plates and squeeze them together & carefully turn them sideways to drain the liquid over your sink full of dishes.
Next, in a skillet, pour in a shallow layer of EVOO. Heat your pan to about medium heat. When the oil is hot, start placing your slices in the pan. You should be sautéeing the smallest rounds. The slices should be cooked through and not too greasy. But as you may or may not know, eggplant sucks up oil like a sponge, so keep your bottle near by & do not be stingy!.
Using your (rinsed off) top dinner plate, stack your sautéed slices smallest to largest again. After all of your slices are finished, in a pie plate, cover the bottom with a thin layer of sauce. Cover the bottom with the largest slices (which should be on top).
Then spread sauce over the top of the slices, sprinkle on a nice covering layer of parmesan cheese, then a thin layer of the bread crumbs.
Repeat this until all the slices are used, topping the last layer with Parmesan & a tiny bit of breadcrumbs.
Cover the dish with tinfoil. Then...this is where its really different-put it in the fridge. Really, that's it. Now let cool for about 4 hours until its chilled all the way through. This gets served up as a sandwich. So get yourself a loaf of authentic Italian bread, sliced of course.
No baking, no spaghetti on the side-this is it. Simple, delicious and comforting. I can put away about 3 sandwiches in a sitting and honestly, maybe 4.
Cover the dish with tinfoil. Then...this is where its really different-put it in the fridge. Really, that's it. Now let cool for about 4 hours until its chilled all the way through. This gets served up as a sandwich. So get yourself a loaf of authentic Italian bread, sliced of course.
No baking, no spaghetti on the side-this is it. Simple, delicious and comforting. I can put away about 3 sandwiches in a sitting and honestly, maybe 4.
I really hope you love this as much as I do-I happen to think its amazing! Sadly my boys do not, but I have won over BabyGirl! More for us. Can't win em all, you know how it goes around here.
