No-Fry Eggplant Parmesan

This eggplant parm may look like the traditional, layered labour of love, but here things are simplified and the results are, dare we say, even better. Not only does employing your oven for pre-cooking the eggplant save you from standing around, frying at the stovetop, it creates a far less greasy and heavy end result, all without skimping on flavour.

No-Fry Eggplant Parmesan

*The sauce in this recipe makes a double batch, so you can use half to make this Chicken Parmesan. If you do not wish to make that dish, reserve half the sauce for another use, or use half the ingredients.

Ingredients

For the tomato sauce (*double batch, see headnote):

• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• 2 (680 mL) jars tomato passata (tomato puree)
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp balsamic vinegar
• 4 fresh basil leaves, torn

For the eggplant:

• 3 (1 lb) eggplants, sliced lengthwise into ¼-inch slabs
• 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp salt

For assembling:

• ¾ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 (226 g) ball fresh mozzarella, torn or sliced
• Fresh basil leaves, to taste (optional)
• Red pepper flakes, to taste (optional)

Preparation

For the sauce, in a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat and add the garlic. Sauté garlic for 1 to 2 minutes, until fragrant, and then add the tomato passata, salt, balsamic vinegar and basil leaves. Stir to combine, bring to a boil and then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. *As per the headnote, if making the full quantity, set aside half of this batch of sauce at this point before proceeding.

For the eggplant, preheat the oven to 400F degrees. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and coat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil per tray. Lay the eggplant on the prepared baking sheets and brush with the remaining oil, then sprinkle them evenly with salt. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the eggplant is tender and beginning to brown. Remove from the oven, then increase the oven temperature to 450F degrees. 

To assemble, add a ladleful of sauce to the bottom of an 8x11-inch (or thereabouts) baking dish and spread evenly. Add eggplant slices in a single layer, overlapping a bit, then add another ladleful of sauce and one-quarter to one-third of the Parmesan. Repeat with the remaining eggplant and sauce, finishing with the remaining Parmesan. Lay the mozzarella over top evenly, and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tomato sauce is bubbling and the cheese is beginning to brown. Turn on the broiler for a few minutes to get an extra crispy top, if desired. Let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes before garnishing with basil and chili flakes if using, and then slice using a very sharp or serrated knife to serve. 

Yield: Makes 4-6 servings