Oven Baked Panko Breaded Eggplant Food

BREADED EGGPLANT (OVEN-BAKED)

Steps:

• Start by draining the eggplant: layer sliced eggplant with gentle sprinkle of salt in a colander and place a plate or lid on top). The eggplant will leak out about 2 tbs. of moisture (about a half hour-sometimes I just do set it about 15 minutes and that seems to work, too).
• I lightly wipe excess salt off with damp paper towel.
• Heat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare cookie sheet/jelly roll pan with half the oil and heat in oven while dipping/breading the eggplant.
• Mix together flour and pepper and put in large Zip-lock bag.
• Mix Parmesan and bread crumbs and put in pie plate.
• Dipping process:.
• Place about 10 slices at a time in flour and shake to coat lightly.
• Dip eggplant in beaten egg (I use a cereal bowl to dip).
• Dredge in bread crumb mixture.
• Line, without overlapping, eggplant onto cookie sheet.
• Bake for about 10-15 minutes until bottoms are lightly browned, and flip and finish cooking the other side.
• Repeat with remaining eggplant.
• Remove and cool on a wire rack.

BAKED EGGPLANT PARMESAN

Steps:

• Place eggplant slices in a colander; sprinkle both sides of each slice with salt. Allow to sit for at least 3 hours. Wipe excess moisture from eggplant slices with paper towels.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a baking sheet.
• Mix bread crumbs and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese together in a bowl.
• Dip eggplant slices in beaten egg; coat with bread crumb mixture. Arrange coated eggplant slices in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned and crisp, about 5 minutes per side.
• Cover the bottom of a 9x13-inch casserole dish with a layer of spaghetti sauce; top with a layer of eggplant slices. Sprinkle with about 1 tablespoon of the remaining Parmesan cheese and 1/3 the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers with remaining ingredients, ending with a cheese layer. Sprinkle with basil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is bubbling and golden brown, about 35 minutes.

CRUNCHY EGGPLANT PARMESAN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Spray an 11x13-inch baking dish and 2 baking sheets with cooking spray.
• Place eggplant slices on racks over the sink or paper towels and sprinkle both sides of slices lightly with salt. Let eggplant drain for 30 minutes, rinse, and pat dry with paper towels. Place eggplant slices on prepared baking sheets.
• Bake in the preheated oven until eggplant is soft, about 15 minutes.
• Pour beaten eggs into a shallow bowl; combine panko bread crumbs with Italian seasoning in a separate shallow bowl. Dip eggplant into beaten egg and press into panko crumbs to coat. Place breaded eggplant back on the baking sheets and spray the slices with cooking spray.
• Set oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler.
• Broil eggplant slices until tops are golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes; remove slices, turn, and spray other sides with cooking spray. Broil until golden brown 2 to 3 more minutes. Remove eggplant and turn oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook and stir onion and garlic until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in prepared pasta sauce and remove from heat.
• Spread 1/3 of the pasta sauce into bottom of the prepared baking dish. Top with half the eggplant slices, half the Italian cheese blend, and half the Parmesan cheese. Spread another 1/3 of the sauce over the layers; layer the remaining eggplant, remaining pasta sauce, Italian cheese blend, and Parmesan cheese.
• Bake casserole in the 350 degree oven until cheese is melted and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Let stand about 10 minutes before serving.

BAKED PANKO-BREADED ZUCCHINI FRIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• Season zucchini pieces with salt.
• Mix panko bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and Italian seasoning in a bowl.
• Dip zucchini pieces into the beaten eggs and then press into bread crumbs to coat; gently toss between your hands so any bread crumbs that haven't stuck can fall away. Arrange breaded zucchini onto the prepared baking sheet in a single layer.
• Bake zucchini in preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes.

CRISPY BAKED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F.
• In a small bowl stir together mayonnaise, dried onion, and salt.
• In a shallow dish mix bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and Italian seasoning (or just use Italian breadcrumbs).
• Brush eggplant slices with mayonnaise mixture and then coat in breadcrumb mixture.
• Place eggplant slices on a lightly oiled baking sheet or shallow baking dish.
• Bake in hot oven for about 12 to 15 minutes turning about half way through.
• Enjoy!
• (This is a take-off from a recipe I have on a CD called "One Million of the World's Best Recipes", 2000).

BAKED CHEESE CRUSTED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Peel eggplant and cut into 3/4-inch thick slices.
• Mix the parmesan and panko on a plate.
• Mix the basil, milk, and mayonnaise in a bowl.
• Dredge eggplant in the mayo mix and immediately dredge in cheese mix.
• Grease a baking sheet with spray cooking oil.
• Place the eggplant on the baking sheet and bake at 425°F for 25 minutes.

BAKED 'FRIED' BREADED EGGPLANT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil; coat with about 1 teaspoon olive oil.
• Combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, oregano, basil, salt, and pepper in a shallow dish.
• Combine eggs with a splash of water in a separate shallow dish. Coat both sides of an eggplant slice with the egg mixture. Dip eggplant slice in the bread crumb mixture to coat. Place slice onto the baking sheet. Repeat coating the remaining eggplant slices. Drizzle remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil over the breaded slices.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.