Recipe: Healthy Eggplant Parmesan Casserole
Casserole Recipes, Dinner Recipes, Vegetable Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes
Who doesn’t love eggplant parmesan? But the classic eggplant parm is fried and loaded with tons of fat and calories. So that’s why I created this lightened-up eggplant parmesan casserole.
Eggplant parmesan casserole is an easy way to enjoy eggplant while it’s in season and benefit from this nutrient-dense vegetable!
Why We Love Eggplant
Yes, we love eggplant because it’s purple, but that also means it contains a substance called nasunin, a powerful antioxidant that protects the lipids (fats) in your brain and eats up free radicals in your body that can cause damage connected to aging.
It also provides 10% of your daily value of fiber and 7% daily value of copper and vitamin B1 per 1 cup serving.
Plus, it’s only 132 calories for the entire vegetable. Eggplant is also a good source of manganese, vitamin B6 & B3, vitamin K, potassium, and folate.
How To Make Eggplant Parmesan Casserole
First I recommend your sweat the eggplant. This is optional if you’re in a rush, but it makes a difference by taking out some of the bitterness naturally in eggplant! To do this, lay the sliced eggplant out and sprinkle it with salt. leave to seat for at least an hour.
After this, dredge your slices through a beaten egg and then your breadcrumbs and seasoning.
Bake the eggplant on a sheet pan at 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes flipping over 1/2 way through cooking to make sure each side gets crispy.
After the eggplant has been cooked, assemble your eggplant parmesan casserole. In a baking dish spread a thin layer of red sauce on the bottom of the dish. if you’re using a store-bought pasta sauce, make sure you read the label for hidden sugars that are often added to the sauce.
Then stack 1 piece of eggplant, 1 pinch of shredded mozzarella, another slice of eggplant, 1 tablespoon spaghetti sauce, another pinch of mozzarella. Do this to create towers of 4 and fill your baking dish.
Top your eggplant parmesan casserole with parmesan and fresh basil.
Bake your eggplant parmesan casserole at 450 degrees for 10 minutes or until cheese is bubbling.
Garnish with more fresh basil and serve with this yummy grilled green salad and enjoy!
Total Time: 35 minutes
Yield: 4 serving(s)
Ingredients
- 1 eggplant peeled and sliced into rounds
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat panko bread crumbs (you can use standard breadcrumbs if necessary)
- 1 large 26 ounce jar of spaghetti sauce
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon water
- 4 tablespoons parmesan cheese (get the good stuff if you can)
- 1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese
- coconut oil or cooking spray for baking sheet
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 4-6 fresh basil leaves
Directions
- Spray or oil your baking sheet.
- Mix 2 lightly beaten eggs with 1 tablespoon water.
- Combine breadcrumbs with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
- Dip each piece off eggplant in egg wash and roll into panko mix.
- Bake eggplant at 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes flipping over 1/2 way through cooking to make sure each side gets crispy.
- Remove eggplant from oven once cooked.
- In a baking dish spread a thin layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of the dish. Stack 1 piece of eggplant, 1 tablespoon shredded mozzarella, another piece of eggplant, 1 tablespoon spaghetti sauce, 1 tablespoon mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon parmesan cheese, do this to create 4 stacks or portions of eggplant parmesan or more if you have enough ingredients (depends on the size of your eggplant).
- Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes or until cheese is bubbling, and garnish each eggplant parmesan with a leaf of basil.
- Serve with a large green salad and enjoy!
Nutrition Information Per Serving
Serving Size: 1 stack of eggplant parm (2 pieces of eggplant)
Calories: 310
Protein: 17 gram(s)
Fat: 12 gram(s)
Carbohydrates: 36 gram(s)
Fiber: 7 gram(s)
Sugar: 14 gram(s)
From the kitchen of: Get Healthy U
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(53 votes, average: 3.77 out of 5)
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