My husband absolutely loves veal as well as chicken Parmesan. He looks for Italian restaurants everywhere we go, hoping to find it on their menus. I can’t believe it’s taken me over 36 years to realize that if I hide eggplant under the disguise of chicken or veal Parmesan, he’d eat it! You have to make this recipe! Using marinara sauce and eggplant saves on so many calories!
Create towers of deliciousness with this gluten free eggplant Parmesan recipe. Tender breaded cutlets are layered with mozzarella, Parmesan, and marinara sauce.
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds eggplant
- 3/4 ounce salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 6-1/2 ounces Carla's Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Blend
- 3 large eggs
- 6 tablespoons milk or water
- 8 ounces seasoned gluten free breadcrumbs (homemade or 4C brand)
- 24 ounces olive oil, for frying
- 20 - 30 ounces gluten free marinara sauce (store-bought or homemade
- 8 to 16 ounces thinly sliced mozzarella cheese
- 5 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese (or Kraft canister in the U.S.)
Instructions:
- Peel the eggplant and cut it into 1/2-inch (or 1/4-inch) circles. (You'll save on breading, cheese, and sauce when you use 1/2-inch slices as you will only use 2 slices per tower. This also saves on calories and sodium.) Line a baking pan with parchment paper. Lay the slices on top of the parchment. Salt both sides of the eggplant. (This draws the liquid from them.) Set aside for at least 30 minutes.
- Transfer the slices of eggplant to paper towels and pat them dry.
- Add flour blend to a shallow bowl or plate. Dredge the eggplant slices in the flour on all sides.
- In a separate shallow bowl of plate, whisk together the eggs and milk.
- Combine the breadcrumbs and pepper in a shallow plate. Coat all sides of the eggplant slices with the breadcrumb mixture.
- Preheat the oil in a deep skillet (or Dutch oven prevents a lot of splattering) over medium-high heat. Working in batches, fry the eggplant on each side until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Remove from oil and transfer to paper-towel-lined plates to drain. Once you can easily handle them, transfer to a wire rack.
- Preheat the oven to 350ªF.
- In a large baking dish or roasting pan, spread about five areas with 1/4 cup marinara sauce. Lay one slice of breaded eggplant on each sauce area. Top with a 2 tablespoons sauce and a slice of mozzarella cheese. Repeat this process once if using 1/2-inch rounds or three more times if using 1/4-inch rounds.
- Bake for 20 - 30 minutes or until the cheese melts and is golden brown in a few areas.
- Garnish with Parmesan cheese and allow to cool 5 - 10 minutes prior to serving.
Tips
If using 1/4-inch slices, you may need additional egg wash. To make additional egg wash, combine each large egg with 2 tablespoons liquid.
You can save additional calories by using egg whites instead of whole eggs. Each whole egg contains about 3 tablespoon of liquid. Each large egg white contains about 2 tablespoon of liquid.