Eggplant Parmesan

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This has to have been the best Eggplant Parmesan I have ever had.  It is from Cooking Light's September 2010 magazine and is only 319 calories per serving.  There are several steps involved in making this dish, but it is worth the effort.  As always, I made a few changes to my dinner.  I cut the recipe in half because the original recipe makes 10 servings.  I am the only one eating it, and will turn into an eggplant if I try to eat it all.  I also used shredded mozzarella cheese instead of sliced, and omitted the fontina cheese because I didn't have it on hand.  For the pasta sauce, I used Classico's Mushroom and Olive flavor.  The mushroom's and olives added extra texture to each bite to give each bite a meaty and full feeling despite the lack of meat.  

Ingredients

Eggplant:
2 large eggs, lightly beaten 

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1 tablespoon water
2 cups whole-wheat panko (I couldn't find whole wheat panko, so I just used seasoned whole wheat)
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (I added a little extra to make up for the fontina)
2 (1-pound) eggplants, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices
Cooking spray 


Filling:
1/2 cup torn fresh basil
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (16-ounce) container part-skim ricotta cheese 
1 large egg, lightly beaten 

Remaining ingredients:
1 (24-ounce) jar premium pasta sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 ounces thinly sliced mozzarella cheese
3/4 cup (3 ounces) finely grated fontina cheese

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375°.

2. To make eggplant, combine 2 eggs and 1 tablespoon water in a shallow dish. Combine panko and 1/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano in a second shallow dish. Dip eggplant in egg mixture; dredge in panko mixture, pressing gently to adhere and shaking off excess. Place eggplant 1 inch apart on baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes or until golden, turning once and rotating baking sheets after 15 minutes.

3. To make filling, combine basil and next 6 ingredients (through egg).

4. To assemble, spoon 1/2 cup pasta sauce in bottom of a 13 x 9-inch glass baking dish coated with cooking spray. Layer half of eggplant slices over pasta sauce. Sprinkle eggplant with 1/8 teaspoon salt. Top with about 3/4 cup pasta sauce; spread half of ricotta mixture over sauce, and top with a third of mozzarella and 1/4 cup fontina. Repeat layers once, ending with about 1 cup pasta sauce. Cover tightly with aluminum foil coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 35 minutes. Remove foil; top with remaining third of mozzarella and 1/4 cup fontina. Bake at 375° for 10 minutes or until sauce is bubbly and cheese melts; cool 10 minutes.

Notes:
I lined my pan with foil to help with clean up.  Good thinking on my part.

An egg is difficult to cut in half, so when a recipe calls for a whole egg and you only want half, mix it up and only use half of the mixture.  

I added a little flour to my bread crumbs to help mixture to adhere to the eggplant pieces.  

Spaghetti with Two-Cheese Sauce

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This was dinner tonight, though mine didn't look this photogenic.  I used this recipe from Cooking Light's July 2011 magazine.  I made a few changes (as always) based on the ingredients I had on hand.  I used regular thin spaghetti for the pasta opposed to the linguine called for in the recipe.  I also substituted low-fat ricotta cheese for the mascarpone cheese.  With this substitution, I not only get to save on calories, but I also get to save a few dollars.  Some other suggestions would be to add some cubed, precooked chicken breast, substitute regular pasta for whole grain, or add some cooked zucchini or summer squash.  The recipe was very simple and quick, just like advertised in the magazine.  

8 ounces uncooked linguine (or thin spaghetti)

1 cup 1% milk

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil divided

1/2 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. black pepper

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/2 cup shaved fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided

1 1/2 tablespoons mascarpone cheese (or ricotta cheese)

1.  Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.  Drain; keep warm.

2.  While pasta cooks, combine milk, 2 teaspoons basil, salt, and pepper in a bowl; stir milk mixture with a whisk.

3.  Heat a small saucepan over medium heat.  Add oil to pan, swirl to coat.  Add flour to pan, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.  (It may not take all of 2 minutes, but cook the flour until it begins to change color) Add milk mixture; cook for 3 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring frequently.  (The basil likes to stick to the whisk)

4.  Remove from the heat, and add some of the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, reserving some for sprinkling on top of each plate, and the mascarpone cheese to the milk mixture.  Add cheese mixture to pasta; toss to combine.  Sprinkle with remaining basil.  

Yield: 4 servings (1 cup pasta mixture)