As we head into the winter, I am all about comfort foods. This Eggplant Parmesan is exactly that. It’s no Whole30 or diet-friendly dish, but it’s packed with love and lots of flavor. This recipe is a crowd favorite. It’s one of my favorites to make for others because you can do a lot of the prep in advance. Then just put it all in the oven when you want to eat it.

eggplant parm prep

By the way, I’m using my Made In Sheet pans here for both the prep and the baking! With their size and rim, they are great for breading the eggplant. Then I love using another one to actually bake them on in the oven! In my last post, I talked all about why I love these pans so much.

With the holidays looking a little different this year, this Eggplant Parmesan would be perfect for a small gathering. It’s absolutely delicious and easy to make. Trust me, you’re going to want to make extra because people will definitely want seconds!

eggplant parmesan on molly plates

To help with portion control at nocrumbsleft, we served them on Molly Plates, which are our new appetizer plates! They are perfect for snacks, desserts, small meals, or portion control if you’re like us and want to eat the whole thing!

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finished eggplant parm

Eggplant Parmesan (Gluten-free)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 4 reviews
  • Author: nocrumbsleft
  • Prep Time: 25 minutes
  • Cook Time: 40 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings
  • Category: Dinner
  • Method: Oven
  • Diet: Gluten Free
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Description

The perfect comfort food dinner that everyone in the family will enjoy!

Ingredients

2 pounds eggplants, (about 2 medium-sized eggplant), cut into 1-inch slices

4 eggs, beaten

½ cup gluten free flour blend or all-purpose flour

1½ cup + 4 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

½ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more if needed

1 pound whole milk mozzarella, slices or grated

4 cups or 32 oz tomato sauce (recipe below) or store-bought 

 

For the Tomato Sauce:
4, 28-ounce cans whole tomatoes cans

2 cups onion, diced into ¼-inch pieces

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons pressed garlic, about garlic cloves

2 tablespoons smoked paprika

½ teaspoon freshly grated black pepper

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 cup fresh basil

Instructions

For the Tomato Sauce:
Reserving the juice of 2 cans, and discarding the remaining juice, drain the tomatoes. Set aside.

 

In a large bowl, add the tomatoes, and using your hands, or a potato masher, crush the tomatoes to break them in small pieces. Set aside.

 

In a large Dutch oven, heat up the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent, about 4 to 5 minutes. Stirring constantly, add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the crushed tomatoes and smoked paprika, stirring to combine and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the reserved tomato liquid, salt and pepper, and stir to combine, bring to a simmer for 30 minutes. Turn of heat.

 

Transfer half of the tomato sauce to a blender and blend until smooth. Once blended, transfer the blended sauce back to the sauce in the Dutch oven. Add the fresh basil and stir. Serve.

 

Freeze any for leftovers.

 

For the Eggplant Parmesan:

Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

 

Place your whisked eggs into a shallow low container.

 

In an Everything Bowl (or bowl similar in size), combine the flour and 1 ½ cup parmesan cheese and toss to combine. Transfer the flour and parmesan mixture into a separate low container.

 

One by one, dredge each eggplant slice in the egg, then remove it, letting any excess egg drip off, and gently drop into the flour/parmesan mixture, coating it completely (see tip below). Handling the breaded eggplant as minimally as possible, set it on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat until all remaining eggplants slices are breaded.

 

In a large non-stick skillet, over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Cooking in batches, add the breaded eggplant slices and cook until golden brown, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Set aside.

 

Using a medium saucepan, warm the tomato sauce.

 

In a 9 x 13 glass baking dish (you can also use two smaller ovenproof baking dishes), add the eggplant slices to the pan in a single layer. (Think of this as a little like a puzzle, to see how many eggplant slices you can fit.) Place the mozzarella slices on top of the eggplant.


Place in the oven and cook until cheese is melted about 10 minutes.


Once the mozzarella has melted, quickly remove from the oven, top with 4 tablespoons of parmesan cheese, then return to the oven and cook until cheese the cheese has melted and is starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven. Top about 2 tablespoons to ¼ cup tomato sauce on top of each eggplant. Serve garnished with fresh basil and enjoy!

Notes

This tomato sauce is great to freeze, wonderful for leftovers, to give as a gift, or cut the recipe in half for less.

We used Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour.

Teri’s Tip: When dredging in wet and dry ingredients, I use my right hand for the egg and my left hand for the flour/parmesan flour, so I never accidentally mix the two.

UPDATE: You can also do this recipe in two layers in your dish. To do so, place a first layer of eggplant, then half the mozzarella cheese. Add a small scoop of warm tomato sauce on top of each eggplant. Then do a second layer of the same exact process. Place in the oven until the cheese is melted and the eggplant is cooked. Add a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and place in the oven for a few extra minutes until golden brown.