Lighter take on a classic heavy eggplant parmesan
I've always been a big fan of eggplant parmesan. There are a bunch of ways to make this classic Italian dish, but I'm partial to what you might call the full-fat version: thick slices of breaded eggplant that are sauteed, then baked until creamy, and finally topped with tomato sauce and melted cheese.
A vegetarian delight, eggplant parmesan nonetheless can be very heavy. You gobble it down with gusto for dinner, but discover it still sitting in your gut like a brick the next day. So I wanted to concoct a lighter recipe that still retained all of the ingredients that make my favorite version so wonderful.
Eggplant tends to soak up oil like a sponge, so the first thing I did here was to take a cue from my mom. She used to make an easy but inventive side dish with eggplant, cutting each one into 1/2-inch slices, brushing every slice with her homemade vinaigrette, then baking them all until they were tender and golden. This limits how much oil they can absorb. For simplicity, I sprayed each slice with a modest amount of oil before baking them.
Unfortunately, this clever strategy created a new problem. The eggplant in my favorite version is breaded. Here it isn't. I was happy to lose the oil, but I didn't want to lose the bread, particularly in a saucy dish like this. So I literally turned the recipe inside out, placing the bread — in the form of croutons — inside the rolled-up slices of eggplant.
The croutons do get tender during baking, but they also absorb and marry the other flavors in the filling: parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese and roasted red pepper. Full disclosure: I'm well aware that roasted red peppers are not typical of traditional eggplant parmesan recipes. I added them because they contribute bulk and good nutrition. And because I love the tang they lend the dish.
Even though this recipe uses less than the usual amount of cheese, my crack team of testers didn't seem to miss it.
My secret? The speedy marinara sauce. Loaded with garlic, a bit of oil and a healthy pinch of red pepper flakes, this sauce radiates so much robust flavor that folks forget the missing cheese. And I encourage you to make this marinara at home rather than use store-bought; it is simple, fast and quite tasty.
A few notes about buying eggplant. I recommend the biggest you can find for this recipe. You'll know they're fresh if the skin is smooth and the flesh is firm to the touch. If you can't find large eggplants, use the smaller ones and just overlap the slices slightly to make substantial roll-ups.
I believe that this eggplant parmesan is an excellent candidate for the centerpiece of a meatless meal. Just round it out with some steamed broccoli and a tossed green salad, and you're good to go.
• Sara Moulton was executive chef at Gourmet magazine for nearly 25 years, and spent a decade hosting several Food Network shows. She currently stars in public television's “Sara's Weeknight Meals” and has written three cookbooks, including “Sara Moulton's Everyday Family Dinners.”