There is nothing more sexy (food wise, that is) than taking a traditional dish and putting a modern spin on it. In my opinion. Take this southern Italian classic, for example. It is totally elevated to a new level simply by changing up the preparation and presentation. The familiar elements of an eggplant parmigiana are re-imagined when the eggplant gets grilled instead of fried and then stacked into eye-pleasing and tummy-satisfying portions. Paired with a new twist on garlic bread–the garlic croute, this meal is elegant, easy and so not your nonna’s casserole.
Grilled Eggplant Parmigiana Stacks with Garlic Croutes
This dish comes together easily when you start by preparing the components and then assemble everything together. Begin by making a simple tomato sauce: in a blender, whiz a can of whole tomatoes for 10 seconds until just puréed.
Heat a large saute pan over medium-low heat. Add olive oil, a few thinly sliced cloves of garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Cook until garlic turns translucent. Pour tomatoes into pan, being careful not to splash yourself. Sprinkle in a large pinch of sugar, dried thyme and oregano, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bring to a bubble, reduce heat, cover the pan, and simmer for about 20 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning, if needed.
Thickly slice 2 large eggplants. Brush slices with olive oil and season with kosher salt and black pepper on both sides. Brush a large grill pan with olive oil and heat over a medium flame. Lay slices of eggplant in the pan and cook, until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Flip over slices and cook until golden, another 3 to 4 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Gather all of your ingredients–the tomato sauce (I pour mine in a large Pyrex measuring cup), grilled eggplant slices, sliced fresh mozzarella, freshly grated Parmesan cheese, and julienned fresh basil leaves–and set up an assembling station.
In a 12″ x 9″ casserole dish, begin creating the stacks by first laying out eggplant slices, and then top them with tomato sauce, a slice of mozzarella, grated parmesan and the basil. Be careful not to pour on too much of the sauce or the stacks will be soggy.
Repeat the layers, finishing with basil. Reserve extra tomato sauce for plating. Cover the casserole with foil and place in the hot oven for 20 minutes. Remove the foil to uncover the dish and continue to bake for 1o minutes, until the mozzarella on top of the stacks is bubbly and lightly browned. If necessary, turn oven to broil to get that browning–just be sure to watch that dish closely because it doesn’t take long to go from browned to burnt!
To make the Garlic Croutes: slice a rustic, crusty loaf of bread lengthwise into thin slices. Lay the slices out on a baking sheet and brush with extra virgin olive oil. Place in the 400 degree oven and bake, turning over midway, for 5 minutes, until golden brown. As soon as you remove the croutes from the oven, rub each slice with the cut side of a garlic clove.
Presentation is key to making this dish wow. Make a pool of sauce on the bottom of each plate. Top each with an eggplant stack, garnishing with more grated Parmesan and fresh basil leaves. Serve with a garlic croute alongside. Light the candles and go old school with a bottle of Chianti….
Serves 6 to 8:
olive oil
2 to 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
pinch of red pepper flakes
1 28 ounce can of whole peeled tomatoes
pinch of sugar
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggplants, sliced into 1/2″ thick slices
olive oil
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 large ball of fresh mozzarella, sliced
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup basil leaves, julienned
Garlic Croutes:
loaf of rustic bread
extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, halved lengthwise
Your Eggplant Parmigiana recipe takes me back to Rome and the your recipe is very much like the one I used to enjoy at a great roman restaurant Ranieri now sadly under a different name and chef.
The garlic croutes are a perfect blending and add the crunch that make diving to the bottom of the dish rewarding.
This is making me hungry! I LOVE eggplant parmigiana! I like the presentation in your recipe – will try it next time.