I love eggplant, but get stuck making it the same old way; roasted and then mixed with pasta and lemon, gratin (way too many calories), and grilled then made into ratatouille. Inspiration for this delicious side dish was found on Jenni’s facebook wall and I immediately went to her website for the recipe.
I had an eggplant on hand and this was just what I needed to complete my Friday night meal. Fresh cod baked in parchment, a cabbage salad, and crunchy, crispy eggplant created a better ending to a not so great week.
I warmed the last four up for Saturday’s lunch, topped them with a bit of marinara, and a slice of fresh mozzarella. Baked them in the oven for about 8 minutes. Along with an ice cold glass of green tea and some left over cabbage salad – I could not have been happier. With a little prep, this dish takes no time to make and is happily being filed into my “easy weeknight meals” folder!
Baked Eggplant Crisps
original recipe here
yield: 6 servings
ingredients:
1 large eggplant
5 ounces | 140 grams | 1 cup oat flour
5 ounces | 140 grams | 1 cup gluten free Panko crumbs
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 large eggs
Celtic sea salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
instructions:
• slice eggplant in 1/4″ slices. place eggplant slices on a rimmed baking sheet. liberally, sprinkle with Celtic sea salt on both sides. place a 2nd rimmed baking sheet on top of the salted eggplant. place a heavy cast iron skillet on top of the baking sheets. in doing this, this will draw out the moisture from the eggplant. let rest for 20 – 30 minutes.
• rinse all the salt off of the eggplant and place eggplant slices in a colander to drain.
• lay the slices on a large kitchen towel, single layer. roll up the towel and let dry for 10 minutes.
• preheat oven to 475*. spray a rimmed baking sheet with spray oil.
• place the oat flour, 1 teaspoon of Celtic sea salt, and white pepper in a shallow bowl. in a second bowl, whisk the eggs with 2 tablespoons of water. in a third bowl, mix the panko bread crumbs, and Parmesan cheese.
• dip one slice in in the flour, shake off excess. then dip in egg wash, let the excess drip off. finally, coat in panko/cheese mixture. place on prepared baking sheet. repeat unitl all eggplant is coated.
• drizzle with a bit of olive oil. bake 25 minutes, or until fully golden brown. halfway through flip eggplant slices to brown evenly on both sides.
• these are best served warm, however I was perfectly happy with a room temperature treat before heading off to bed.