Oven "Fried Eggplant

There was a time I'd stand over a hot skillet and fry slice after breaded slice of eggplant. Summer meant a bumper crop of these plump aubergine beauties, which meant lots of fried eggplant for me. I'd even sneak a piece or two (or three!) However, these days I'm eating less fried foods, and standing over a hot stove on an even hotter day is no fun.

I found this recipe that's quick, easy, and not fried. The end result are soft, tasty treats that have the crisp outside texture of fried but at a fraction of the calories. Nice for a party table or an everyday side dish. The ingredient list is simple, and you don't have to pre-salt your eggplant prior to breading.

Please note this recipe does not provide approximate yield or number of servings. I discovered it's dependent on the the vegetable's size and how many people you're feeding. Go ahead and buy extra eggplants and increase the the other ingredients if preparing for a crowd.

Ingredients

Preheat oven 450°F. Get out a large baking sheet. Do Not Grease!

Cut up your eggplant. Set aside. Put mayonnaise in a separate small bowl; stir lightly to smooth. In shallow pie pan or other dish, mix together bread crumbs, cheese, Italian seasoning.

Brush each eggplant piece with mayonnaise then roll in crumbs. Place slices on un-greased baking sheet.. Bake in hot oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Flip slices over then bake for another 10 minutes, but check after 6 minutes. Serve hot.

*Cook's Note:
Do not slice too thinly! Slices less than 1/4" thickness may burn before end of first cooking time. Also, please feel free to "gild the lily" by experimenting with different herbs/spices. Sometimes I'll sub 1/4 tsp basil for the Italian seasoning, adding 1/4 Cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes to the crumb-cheese mixture. Also, try swapping the Parmesan for Asiago or Romano.


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