Momsypoo’s Gluten Free Eggplant Parmesan

Momsypoo’s gluten free eggplant parmesan. Is there a dish that warms my heart more than gluten free eggplant parmesan on a cold winter night?  People think that it is so hard and time consuming, but it is one of my favorite dishes to make. I love how I can get my family to eat a vegetable that they otherwise wouldn’t eat.  Every time I make gluten free eggplant parmesan they always ask for second helpings.

Ingredient List

• 2 Large eggplants sliced ½ in thick
•2 – 15 ounce cans tomato sauce
• 1 medium onion chopped
•10 mushrooms sliced
•8 cloves of garlic
• Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling (Why extra virgin?)
•1 ½ pounds grated mozzarella
• 1- 15 ounce container ricotta cheese
• 3 ounces parmesan cheese, grated
• 13×9 glass pan

isn’t a dish that people think of as needing to be gluten free.  Problem is that gluten is snuck into places that it shouldn’t be.  Check the dry parmesan cheese or the pasta sauce.  They are sometimes infused with gluten, and no one questions it. If you follow my very simple recipe then there is never a doubt about the gluten levels.

Please make sure all your ingredients are checked for gluten.  Like I said, “Gluten is in everything.’ Please turn product over and read the allergy warnings before buying.

 

 

Pick two shiny, firm eggplant
Step 1
Wash and be sure to remove the stickers.  Do you know how many times I have to stop in the middle of cutting because I have cut a sticker in ½?

Slice each eggplant crosswise.  Make your slices about ½ in thick.

Drawing the water from your eggplant
STEP 2
Lay your eggplant slices out, flat on a cookie sheet.  Sprinkle each side, fairly heavily, with salt.  The salt draws juices out of the eggplant and makes it so it isn’t bitter.  Set aside.  I’m always checking to see how much liquid is drawn out.  It will look as if your eggplant is sweating.

Simple pasta sauce
STEP 3
While eggplant is setting, we will start our sauce.  I like a simple sauce as I want the flavors to blend with the cheeses and eggplant.

Drizzle a bit of olive oil in a 10 inch frying pan. Add chopped garlic, chopped onions, sliced mushrooms, and cook 5-7 minutes until the smell is so amazing you can’t believe it.  Add 2 cans of tomato sauce and your dried basil.  Simmer just a few minutes but remember it will all be cooked in the oven so it doesn’t need to cook too long now.

Mix your cheeses
STEP 4
Grab a small mixing bowl and mix your ricotta cheese and parmesan.  Make sure they mix will because this is a huge flavor in your eggplant parmesan.

Wash well but still keep eggplant from absorbing water
STEP 5
Now wash your eggplant pieces well.  Be sure to get all the salt off without soaking the eggplant.  They will act like a sponge, and you do not want them to absorb water that you just drew out. Pat the pieces and dry well.

Frying your eggplant only till it’s partially cooked
STEP 6
Take out the largest frying pan you have because this is the step that takes forever. Drizzle a very small amount of olive oil in the pan and turn on low.  If there is too much oil then swirl around or wipe out excess with a paper towel, (keep paper towel to wipe around pan for the next round of eggplant.  You don’t want to have pools of oil, just a wipe around.)

STEP 7
Fry eggplant until it looks slightly fried.  (You just want them to not be raw and hard. It’s like cooking a pizza dough ½ way.  Nothing is “done” just no longer raw.) Flip and do both sides…

5-7 minutes per side

Assemble  and cook your gluten free eggplant parmesan
STEP 8
Assembling your gluten free eggplant is fun.  Smear a bit of sauce on the bottom.  Layer some eggplant on top of the sauce. Use about ½ of your fried stack.  Flop little dabs of cheese all over the eggplant.  You don’t have to smear it around.  It will melt when it cooks.  Now put a layer of mozzarella cheese.  Use about ½ of each ingredient.  You will get two layers out of a 13×9 glass pan. Make another layer.  End layers with mozzarella.  

STEP 9
Cover with foil and toss in a cold oven.  Set the temp to 325 degrees and remove after 45 minutes. (If the wonderful aroma doesn’t get you to remove it before!)

I love making this dish.  It is a great dinner to make when you are having an overloaded brain.  When you just want to be in the kitchen and keep moving and not think about much, this is the dish to make.  It is just doing something repetitive over and over, but you end up with a masterpiece when you are finished.  

Let me know how it turned out!
Send pictures!

Want more? Visit my other post at www.momsypoo.com
-Momsypoo-