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Eggplant stacks fresh out of the oven.
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No Fry Eggplant Stacks

These No Fry Eggplant Stacks are full of the Italian flavors you love despite cutting out the tedious and unhealthy step of frying. This healthy alternative to eggplant parmigiana will have you believing that you are dining in an Italian restaurant.
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time30 mins
Total Time45 mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: easy
Servings: 5 stacks

Ingredients

  • cooking spray
  • 1 large eggplant
  • 1 tsp salt (optional: only use if you choose to sweat the eggplant)
  • ¾ cup Italian style breadcrumbs
  • ½ cup milk
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • ¼ cup ricotta cheese
  • ¼ cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
  • 1 tsp fresh parsley, finely chopped (set aside some for a garnish if you want)
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella
  • 1 cup of your favorite pasta sauce (mine is Rao's)
  • freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 425 F and grease two baking sheets with cooking spray of choice (the eggplant will cook better if laid directly on the sheet; don’t line the baking tray). Slice eggplant into 12-15 thin pieces (you will use 3 pieces for each stack, making 4-5 stacks total).
  • Optional step (I’ve stopped doing this but go for it if you want!): sprinkle both sides of eggplant slices with salt, place a colander and let rest for 30 minutes. After, blot away the water with a paper towel.
  • Pour the milk into a bowl and season with pepper. Pour the breadcrumbs into a separate bowl. Dip each eggplant slice in the milk, soaking well, and then in the breadcrumbs, coating each side. Place the slices on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 14-16 minutes, flipping halfway, until golden brown. Bake time will depend on the thickness of the slices. Take out of oven and lower temperature to 350 F.
  • Prepare a baking sheet with cooking spray (I just respray one that I already used). In a mixing bowl, combine egg, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, parsley and pepper. Make your eggplant stacks by layering in this order (be sure to use the larger slices of eggplant for the base): eggplant, sauce, eggplant, sauce and ricotta mixture, eggplant, sauce and mozzarella. Optional: if you have extra ricotta mixture at the end, you can put a dollop on top of each stack.
  • Bake for 15 min at 350 F until heat through and cheese is melted. Garnish with parsley.

Notes

Prep time doesn’t include optional step of sweating the eggplant slices.