Best Eggplant Parmigiana Recipe

Ingredients

2 large eggplants, semi peeled for a striped effect.
¾ cup plain flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups fine breadcrumbs
350mls olive oil for frying
4 anchovy fillets, chopped finely
250gms mascarpone cheese
100mls of double cream
1 x 410g tomato puree
1 x 400g tin Ardmona crushed tomatoes
100mls extra virgin olive oil
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
4 sprigs fresh oregano – leaves
2 sprigs fresh basil – leaves torn
15 slices fontina or mozzarella cheese
salt and fresh black pepper

Method

1. Pre heat oven 170ºc

2. Slice eggplant lengths ways, ½ cm wide. Place eggs, flour and breadcrumbs in 3 separate, shallow bowls. Lightly dust eggplant slices with flour, dip in egg and coat with breadcrumbs. Heat a fry pan with 200mls oil over medium heat. Fry the eggplant until golden 3-4mins. Drain on absorbent paper. Add more oil as needed.

3. In a separate bowl, mix cream, mascarpone, anchovies and half the parmesan.

4. In a baking dish approx. 33cm round, cover the bottom with a little tomato puree and Ardmona crushed tomatoes. Add a touch of oil and a sprinkle of parmesan. Place a single layer of eggplant on the bottom of the dish. Cover with more puree. Then layer slices of fontina cheese, a few dollops of anchovy cream and scatter some fresh herbs. Repeat the layers until all ingredients are used. Finish with a layer of fontina, cream mixture and herbs. Drizzle with oil. Season to taste.

5. Cover with foil and bake 20 min. Uncover, increase oven temp to 220°, bake a further 15min. Serve straight from the oven with a green salad.