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Baked-Eggplant Parmesan

Choose firm, smooth eggplants. We bake rather than fry ours for less mess and less fat.
Everyday Food, December 2003
  • Prep Time 20 minutes
  • Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
  • Yield Serves 8
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Ingredients

  • Olive oil, for baking sheets
  • 2 large eggs
  • 3/4 cup plain dry breadcrumbs
  • 3/4 cup finely grated Parmesan, plus 2 tablespoons for topping
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
  • Coarse salt and ground pepper
  • 2 large eggplants (2 1/2 pounds total), peeled and sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
  • 6 cups (48 ounces) store-bought chunky tomato sauce or homemade Chunky Tomato Sauce
  • 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush 2 baking sheets with oil; set aside. In a wide, shallow bowl, whisk together eggs and 2 tablespoons water. In another bowl, combine breadcrumbs, 3/4 cup Parmesan, oregano, and basil; season with salt and pepper.

  2. Dip eggplant slices in egg mixture, letting excess drip off, then dredge in breadcrumb mixture, coating well; place on baking sheets. Bake until golden brown on bottom, 20 to 25 minutes. Turn slices; continue baking until browned on other side, 20 to 25 minutes more. Remove from oven; raise oven heat to 400 degrees.

  3. Spread 2 cups sauce in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Arrange half the eggplant in dish; cover with 2 cups sauce, then 1/2 cup mozzarella. Repeat with remaining eggplant, sauce, and mozzarella; sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Bake until sauce is bubbling and cheese is melted, 15 to 20 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Recipe Reviews

  • noteasilyimpressed
    1 Feb, 2013

    Sooo good! Baking the eggplant is key. And mixing the parm with the bread crumbs makes a nice breading as thick or thin as you like. I made the bread crumbs from my favorite whole wheat bread. I always add to the tomato sauce extra onions, garlic, chopped carrots, bell pepper and mushrooms. For herbs I just use cilantro. Oh yum!

  • mlsseia
    24 Jan, 2013

    Much healthier alternative to the traditional way of frying the eggplant that sometimes come out a little soggy from the oil. A winner with my guests!

  • kcuccia
    17 Jan, 2013

    I added pine nuts and currents. Also used fresh buffalo mozarella and garished with fresh basil after baking. It was very good and my whole family enjoyed it!

  • cami perri
    16 Jan, 2013

    I had ordered egg plant parmesan at restaurant and it was soggy and lacked flavor. I knew I could do better. Eggplant was in season and on sale so I googled a recipe. This recipe stood out - it appeared fool proof. And it was!
    This is a perfect recipe for a vegetarian! Also since I eat Gluten-free, I make my own bread crumbs with gluten free bread in a processor, added a bit more parm. cheese and a lot of italian seasoning. I also make my own (Nigella's recipe) sauce. :) Just delicious.

  • Lovetobake77
    8 Jan, 2013

    I meant to say I used 1/2 cup of bread crumbs instead of 3/4 cup.

  • Lovetobake77
    8 Jan, 2013

    It's very easy and everyone loved it. I used 1/2 of breadcrumbs and low fat mozzarella. Other than that I followed the recipes and it was great.

  • Delia Yeung
    8 Jan, 2013

    nice if you added a metric conversion button
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  • Delia Yeung
    8 Jan, 2013

    nice if you added a metric conversion button
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  • Atluvsrh14
    5 Jan, 2013

    Awesome recipe. I made this for Christmas and my family loved it I also had garlic bread to go with it. I got 2 thumbs up from everyone. I did change a little bit of the ingredients. I used 2 eggs but removed one of the yolk, I didn't add any dried basil and instead of plain crumbs I used seasoned crumbs for more flavor. Also, I used fat free shredded mozzarella and I didn't add any pepper just salt. I've followed 3 recipes from Martha Stewart and it hasn't failed me yet.

  • Bryan M
    17 Nov, 2012

    I made this for dinner the other night and it was fun, easy, and quite tasty. Everyone had seconds, even my meat-loving son. Thank you Martha Stewart!

  • Rachel Whitmire
    3 Oct, 2012

    Looks to be really good and simple to follow.

  • Rachel Whitmire
    3 Oct, 2012

    Looks to be really good and simple to follow.

  • Emily from Rainbow Delicious
    3 Oct, 2012

    My family and I loved this recipe and I have recently included it in my meal planning blog rainbowdelicious com.

  • Melissa Mann
    14 Aug, 2012

    This was good, but a little soggy- I would say 1 eggplant would suffice for a family of 4. Don't double layer and skip the bottom layer of sauce.

  • Sue L
    28 Jul, 2012

    My friend rated this recipe 9.8. I made the Chunky Tomato Sauce and added extra garlic. Also, I used fresh mozzarella cheese. I would even consider making this dish for company.

  • Ladyprincess
    4 May, 2012

    This is a very good and easy receipe. Baking the eggplant first really gets the water out. Freezes well too! I used rice mozzarella cheese so this is a great lactose free dish too.

  • tdevenzio
    28 Aug, 2011

    I used this recipe to prepare eggplant and zucchini. I then used them as the "noodles" in my lasagna recipe. It was declicious!! I will always prepare my eggplant and zucchini this way.

  • tdevenzio
    18 Aug, 2011

    This was delicious! I used half eggplant and half zucchini. I will never fry again! The family loved it.

  • humus
    23 Jan, 2011

    We love this recipe and I make it quite often. So much better baking the eggplant vs frying. Thanks Martha

  • mc2176
    22 Nov, 2010

    Great recipe- I use it often. Can make ahead- arrange in baking dish and keep overnight in refrigerator, bring to room temp and then bake. Thanks Martha!!

  • delilah514
    29 Sep, 2010

    I have had this recipe for years

  • capekate
    7 Aug, 2010

    This recipe is a staple in my house. I can't count the number of times I have made this since it was in Everyday Food. Fabulous...and the eggplant rounds are a great snack, all by themselves!!!

  • BreeLeeD
    6 Oct, 2009

    Delicious! Will definitely make again!

  • ChillyWilly521
    3 Feb, 2009

    For those on WW just use the receipt builder online and it will tell you how many points. I did it and it was 5 pts per serviing with the skim Mozarella, but with Fat Free Mozarella it was 4 pts per serving.

  • oberta
    18 Jan, 2009

    I have tried your baking method, it works well, however I use flour instead of breadcrumbs and it brings out the flavor of the eggplant this a great dish.

  • MBS4174
    2 Nov, 2008

    this was delicious. took a while to make but worth it. will definitely be making this again.

  • dolmansaxlil
    2 Nov, 2008

    Delicious! I salted the eggplant and put it between paper towels with a heavy plate on top for about an hour before making, just to draw some of the liquid out. Definitely will make this again!

  • coastmom
    31 Oct, 2008

    I can not wait to try this! It already sounds healthy, but to kick it up a health notch...use olive oil spray, egg whites instead of egg yolks, and add wheat germ and/or ground flax seed to the bread crumbs. Also, leave the skin on organic eggplants, although you may have to cook it a tad longer, since there are so many nutrients in it.

  • geralynlan
    26 Oct, 2008

    If you purchase a Master Cook CD rom cookbook (about $10.00) you type in your own recipes it calculates all the nutritional info for you ... easy

  • KowgirlCook
    5 Aug, 2008

    This is so delicious! It is much lighter tasting (and healthier) than a similar dish I used to make with fried

  • mauiclaire
    13 May, 2008

    I would love to see the nutritional elements to this ....I am on Weight Watchers and most times do not use your recipes as there is no calorie, fat, etc. lising.....some of your recipes make my mouth water, but.....can't take a chance...thanks..........

  • seiva
    11 May, 2008

    I've just mage it for mother's day and it was a success. It's easy, very tasty and vegetarian-friendly. I'll definetely do this again!

  • angelpersson
    31 Dec, 2007

    The recipe is wonderfull...I got rave reviews from people at work who "Don't like eggplant". However; I agree with DAPHNEATCORNELL and Shrinkette that it would be REALLY nice to have the nutrition info for the recipes on the web-site. This info is listed in the Everyday Food magazine - it can't be that difficult to add it to the web-site. Most of us are watching what we eat and having this information makes it so much easier to "live to 100"!

  • angelpersson
    31 Dec, 2007

    The recipe is wonderfull...I got rave reviews from people at work who "Don't like eggplant". However; I agree with DAPHNEATCORNELL and Shrinkette that it would be REALLY nice to have the nutrition info for the recipes on the web-site. This info is listed in the Everyday Food magazine - it can't be that difficult to add it to the web-site. Most of us are watching what we eat and having this information makes it so much easier to "live to 100"!

  • jeanjaujou
    27 Dec, 2007

    This is one of the best eggplant parmesans I've ever had and my family loves it too! Fixing the eggplant takes a little time but the assembly is quick and easy. Add some bread or a salad and it's a perfect meal for anyone. I got this recipe out of everyday food several years ago and we've been eating it ever since and I think it's already very healthy!

  • lollykupec
    27 Dec, 2007

    a healthful alternative: fry 1/4 inch eggplant slices in DRY pan on low heat on both sides until brown, no egg, no oil, no breadcrumbs -- use 2 cups fat free mozzarella, fat free cottage cheese mixture -- add 1/4 cup vegetable protein and 1/4 cup ITALIAN bread crumbs when adding parmesean to layers -- make three or four layers when assembling -- add THIN-sliced mushrooms and/or zucchini for variation -- also can add cooked seasoned ground turkey -- same herbs / sauce, but add garlic!

  • Shrinkette
    27 Dec, 2007

    i AGREE WITH "DAPHNEATCORNELL" THAT IT WOULD NOT ONLY BE "NICE" TO GET NUTRITIONAL CONTENT FOR THIS RECIPE AND OTHERS, BUT MY HUSBAND AND I NEED THE INFORMATION DUE TO DIETARY AND HEALTH CONCERNS. iF POSSIBLE, SEND ME THE INFO. ON THIS EGGPLANT RECIPE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. WE LOVE EGGPLANT AND WOULD LIKE TO COOK THIS IF IT FITS INTO OUR DIETARY REQUIREMENTS AND LIMITATIONS. THANK YOU...

  • dottieacary
    26 Dec, 2007

    This sounds wonderful and easy enough for a novice cook. this along with a nice green salad and perhaps a nice bottle of wine...Perfecto.

  • daphneatcornell
    26 Dec, 2007

    It would be nice to be able to get nutritional information for recipes like this.