Spicy Eggplant Parmigiana
She’s Saucy! She’s Spicy! She’s the Ultimate Southern Italian Comfort Food!….
It’s the Spicy Eggplant Parmesan!
This is a classic eggplant parmesan recipe adapted from the famous Ada Boni Italian chef and food writer specifically from her cookbook- Regional Italian Cooking. This is the ULTIMATE authentic Italian cookbook, and I always reference this vintage cookbook when cooking Italian recipes.
I decided to take the Classic Eggplant Parmesan and SPICE It Up! If you really want to pack on the heat, I recommend using Calabrian chili peppers (aka Southern Italy’s most aphrodisiac ingredient). I used a variety of Italian herbs and spices from Trader Joes.
Here are 3 recommended Trader Joe’s Italian Spices…
Italian Bomba Calabrian Chili Hot Pepper Sauce
Spicy Italian Style Seasing with Fennel
Italian Style Soffritto Seasoning Blend- an aromatic flavorful blend of crispy onions, sun-dried tomatoes, sea salt, garlic, red peppers, parsley, rosemary, and sage
This recipe is great for a romantic dinner for two. It’s decadent, flavorful, cheesy, and with high-quality ingredients can actually be healthy.
The eggplant takes time to prepare but otherwise this dish can be whipped up real quick. Simply layer in this order… Fried Eggplant-Parmesan-Mozzarella- Sauce and Repeat! If you don’t have time to make a sauce or do not have canned or fresh tomatoes on hand, use a jar of already prepared tomato sauce.
It can be stored in the freezer in a tightly sealed container. This dish can be warmed up the next day in the oven or you can even eat it cold.
Ingredients…
1 Large Eggplant
1/2 Lb of Mozzarella
1/2 Cup of Grated Parmasean
2-3 Sprigs of Basil
1 Can of Crushed Tomato
2 TBSP Spicy Italian Spices or Crushed Calabrian Peppers
Olive Oil for frying
Salt & Pepper
Instructions
Prepare your Eggplant…
Peel the whole eggplant.
Use a mandolin slicing tool or the peeler, or just a knife to create longwise thin slices of your eggplant. Thinner slices will prevent the slices from getting too chewy once baked.
Lay on a tray and season with salt on each side. Lay the tray sideways in the sink or set the slices in a colander. This will drain all the juices from the eggplant that would make the eggplant taste bitter. Leave for 1 hour.
Gently pat your eggplant slices of any extra moisture.
Heat a pan of oil to fry the slices. Be careful when turning the slices over. Make sure to not overfry them. Just until they are golden brown.
Let cool on a plate with a napkin to drain excess oil.
Prepare the Sauce…
*If you can also use a jar of tomato pasta sauce
Peel and finely chop garlic.
Heat olive oil in a pot.
Add can of crushed tomatoes, the garlic, and fresh basil to a pot. Heat on med-high until the tomatos get saucy.
Season with salt & pepper.
Add Spicy Italian Seasoning (as much or as little as you like). Keep in mind the spiciness will intensify once baked.
Making the Dish…
Preheat Oven at 375 degrees.
Arrange a layer of fried eggplant slices in a baking dish.
Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
Cover with slices of Mozzarella cheese.
Spread the tomato sauce across.
Repeat all the layers.
I topped my dish with more tomato sauce and parmesan cheese.
Brush the top of the dish with egg (optional)
Bake for 40 minutes.
Let cool and serve immediately. You can also serve this dish cold or room temperature.
