Easy Cheesy Eggplant Parmesan

this one requires a little bit of prep work, but none of it is too complicated, so dont worry! and if you're willing to do the small amount of extra work, it can be completely free with your WIC benefits!


ingredients:
bread crumbs*
tomato sauce*
mozarella cheese*
eggplant*
italian herbs such as oregano, thyme, or an all purpose blend

this recipe requires 1. bread crumbs and 2. sauce. make your own breadcrumbs with your WIC bread and it will have the added benefits of being whole grain, AND FREE :) make your own breadcrumbs by allowing the bread to become COMPLETELY STALE....leave it out overnight if you have to. the harder it is, the better. then either hand-crumble or if you have access to a food processor, that makes it super easy - just put the bread in and crumble it by pulsing the blade. you can store extra crumbs in the freezer.

make your own sauce by boiling veggies such as tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, squash, and bell pepper, or steaming them until they're soft. then puree them in your blender or food processor, add in some green onions, garlic or garlic powder, oregano, thyme, parsley, or an all purpose blend. just season to taste. it's easy :)


i make my eggplant parmesan by baking it, so that's the instructions i will give, but you can also pan fry.

slice your eggplant by preference - i like thicker slices, but some people like thinner, and thats okay. bread it in the breadcrumbs just by laying it in a plate of crumbs and coating both sides fairly thoroughly, then lay them on a pan, sprinkle with a bit of oregano, parsley, and thyme and bake at 400F for about 30 min or until they are starting to crisp, flipping each slice about halfway through.

after your eggplant is cooked, you can layer it in a casserole dish with your sauce and some shredded mozarella and pop it back into the oven until the cheese melts - or, you can just serve it with sauce and cheese and let your diners do the rest.

this recipe is pretty easy to do, and hard to mess up (as long as you dont burn the eggplant!)