Better than Mom's: Eggplant Parmesan

      Believe it or not, I'm not actually a vegetarian- I love meat. However, If you're trying to make a meal that is tasty without a huge price tag, spicing up veges is a great way to go. Eggplant gets a bad rap, but it's actually a great meat substitute because it is hearty and can be very flavorful if you prepare it correctly. Many people don't like eggplant because they've never had it cooked properly. It is basically a huge sponge, so if you cut it up and fry or saute it in oil (which most people do) it soaks up all the oil and becomes soggy and disgusting. This isn't how eggplant should be... it should be tender, but not soggy or greasy. It's also really good roasted and paired with cheese. But more on that later. The trick to making good eggplant is to know how to avoid turning it into a sponge. If you're deep-frying it, cut up the eggplant and submerge it in an ice-water bath prior to cooking. The eggplant will soak up the water and it will cool off the meat- when you drop it into the hot oil, it will form a crust on the outside and keep the inside from being greasy. If you're roasting it (I tend to do this more, because it's less mess and healthier) or sauteing it, cut up the eggplant, and sprinkle a generous about of salt and allow it to drain in a collander for about 30 minutes (or dab it with a clean towel). The salt draws out some of the liquid from the eggplant and keeps it from being mushy when cooked. If you're roasting, grilling or broiling it, brush it with a tiny bit of olive oil before you pop it in the oven or on the grill- it will absorb it, but a little is ok.
    In addition to the butternut squash, we had a plethora of eggplant this season from the garden. So, I had to come up with some creative uses for it to prevent us from getting bored. First, I roasted it in the oven (as described above), layered it with fresh basil leaves, smoked gouda (smoked mozzarella works well too) and roasted zucchini (you can pop it back in the oven for 10 minutes or so to melt the cheese). My dad made this when I was visiting, and it makes a really delicious side dish. Then I made eggplant baba ghanoush (I'll post my recipe for this later). I even roasted it and added it to a spicy marinara sauce and put it over pasta. Last week, I was feeling kind of uninspired and overloaded with eggplants, so I decided to make some eggplant parmesan. It sounds intimidating, but it was actually surprisingly easy. I used panko instead of the traditional bread crumbs because they are more crisp and you can add any flavoring you like to them (I added some dried basil, oregano and thyme prior to breading). I also had the benefit of having a ton of tomatoes, so I made the marinara myself. I would post the recipe, but I never use one- I just throw stuff into the pot and adjust it based on how it tastes. I'll describe how I made it and I'm sure you can find a good recipe online somewhere. Because I was able to get the eggplant and tomatoes for free, this cost about $5 to make, and it serves 4-6 people (depending on how big of an eggplant you use and how hungry your guests are!). This time of year, eggplants are easy to get and aren't very expensive, even if you have to get them at the grocery store.

Eggplant Parmesan

-1 large eggplant, sliced into ~1/3" rounds
-fine sea salt
-2 large eggs, beaten
-all-purpose flour
-panko (I used 1-2 cups)
-dried oregano
-dried basil
-dried thyme
-grated parmesan cheese
-fresh or dried pasta (preferably linguine or spaghetti), cooked
-marinara sauce

-Place the eggplant in a collander and toss with a generous amount of sea salt (about 1 Tbs) and allow to drain for 30 minutes.
-Mix 1-2 cups of panko with 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp basil, 1 tsp oregano and 1 tsp thyme. Even it you have fresh herbs, dried herbs are easier to use here.
-Set up 3 pie pans (this shape makes it easy for dredging): one with the eggs, one with flour and one with the panko mixture
-After the eggplant it done draining, dredge it in flour, egg and panko (in that order).
-Heat about 1 Tbs of olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Make sure the oil is hot before you add the eggplant- sitting in cold oil will make it soggy. I usually put a little water on my (clean) fingers and flick some in the pan. If the oil sizzles when the water hits it, it's good enough.
-Saute the eggplant until golden brown, place on a plate covered with paper towels to drain. You may need to add a little more oil to the pan as you cook. Then, transfer to a baking sheet.

-Sprinkle the tops of the eggplant with parmesan and place in a 375 F oven. Bake until the Parmesan is golden brown, about 15 minutes (you can also top with mozzarella cheese if you like).
-Place a piece or two on top of the pasta with marinara.

Making homemade Marinara
-Peel tomatoes and remove the seeds so that only the meat of the tomato is left. Chop them up and place them in a saucepan or soup pot (depending on how much you're making).
-Bring the pan to a simmer over medium heat and stir occasionally.
-Mince a clove (or two if you're making a large amount) of garlic and saute it in about a Tbs of olive oil until it is golden. Throw the garlic and olive oil into the mix.
-Chop up a small handful of fresh basil and toss it in the pot. At this point, I add 1 tsp- 1 Tbs of sea salt and some dried oregano, thyme and basil (yes, I use both dried and fresh basil if it's available).
-Continue to simmer ~1 hour, stirring occasionally. Use an immersion blender or food processor to break up the tomato chunks and make the texture more like a typical marinara sauce. If you want the sauce to be chunky, process it less.
-Continue to simmer until it reaches the desired texture. I usually simmer about 2 hours.
-If you don't like the taste of the sauce, usually it needs to simmer longer or needs more salt.
-Saving for later: If you're not planning on using the sauce right away, you can freeze it or can it (as I have). To can it, fill a sterilized, pint Mason jar with sauce, add one Tbs of lemon juice and replace the the lid. Boil in a hot water bath for 30 minutes. Allow to cool at room temperature on a clean dishcloth before storing.

Home-Grown Heaven: Butternut Squash Lasagna

    The easiest way to ensure that you're able to get beautiful, fresh produce and stay within your grocery budget is to grow it yourself. If you don't have your own yard, many areas have "community plots" where you can rent a piece of land to grow your own food... or, if you're lucky, you may have a friend who does have a yard and is willing to let you plant on their land (in exchange for a share of your crop, of course) This year, we planted beans, snow peas, herbs (cilantro, basil, sage, parsley and mint), potatoes, zucchini, tomatoes, butternut squash, carrots and tons of peppers (pepperoncini, poblano, jalepeno and bell peppers). I'll share more recipes we've used for our veges and some ways to preserve them so you can eat them throughout the winter later.

    I was able to make some butternut squash lasagna this week with some squash from the farmer's market. The mixture of earthy sage, sweet butternut squash and rich ricotta is divine, and it's one of my favorite ways to use butternut squash (my other favorite is butternut squash ravioli- I'll make that next time :-) ). It's also relatively inexpensive and easy to make- it cost under $10 (not including the squash, which was free) and it could probably serve ~10-15 people. It's cheap to make even if you don't have squash growing at home. Although the recipe I used has chicken stock, you can easily make it vegetarian by substituting vegetable stock. As a meat eater, I prefer it with the chicken stock, but it's good both ways.

Butternut Squash Lasagna (adapted from Martha Stewart)

• -3 1/2 pounds of butternut squash (this will be approximately 1 large butternut squash or 2 small ones- I needed 2 to get the correct amount)
• -Extra-virgin olive oil
• -Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• -1 pound whole-milk ricotta cheese
• -1/2 cup heavy cream or milk
• -2 large egg yolks
• -1/2 pound mozzarella cheese, grated (2 c)
• -ground nutmeg
• -2 Tb unsalted butter
• -1/3- 1/2 c fresh sage leaves, coarsely chopped
• -1 1/4 c chicken stock
• - 1 box of Lasagna Noodles, cooked
• - 1 1/4 c grated Parmesan and Mozzarella cheese mix (to sprinkle over the top)

-Start by preheating the oven to 425 F. 

-Peel and chop the butternut squash. I think the easiest way to do this is to cut it in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and cut each half again, just above the bulge at the bottom. Then, you can peel it with a sharp knife or potato peeler. Make sure you peel down to the bright orange flesh and that no green parts are left behind (these parts will be tough, even after cooking). Then, you can cut it up into chunks about 1" by 1".

-Toss the squash in olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper on a large baking sheet (or two if necessary). Try to spread it out into a single layer of chunks.

-Bake until it is golden brown and tender, about 25 minutes. 

-After the squash is done, reduce the oven temperature to 375 F.

-Mix the ricotta, mozzarella, egg yolks, cream and a pinch of nutmeg in a large bowl.

-Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, add the sage leaves. Fry them until they are golden and crisp, then remove from heat. 

-Place the cooked squash in a large bowl and smash about 1/2 of it with the back of a wooden spoon, then add the butter and sage mixture and the chicken stock. You may season the mixture with salt and pepper, but stock generally has a lot of salt, so I didn't add any additional salt. 

-Spread a thin layer of the ricotta mixture in the bottom of a 9x12 baking pan (I use glass). Then add a layer of pasta and then a layer of the butternut squash mixture. I generally spread it think to allow 3 layers of ricotta and 2 layers of butternut squash mixture. I end with the ricotta layer (don't put pasta on top of this one) and then sprinkle a mixture of about 1/2 mozzarella, 1/2 parmesan over the top.

-Bake the lasagna 30-35 minutes until the top is golden brown and the juices are bubbling. I let it stand at least 10 minutes before cutting to make it easier to remove pieces without them falling apart.

-Enjoy!