This week, we’d like to share a recipe for eggplant parmigiana. It makes a nice main dish with pasta and salad, a sandwich, or as a side-dish to chicken or veal cutlets. While we love eggplant, it’s unfortunate that it’s usually fried in oil and turns from an otherwise healthy vegetable* to a high fat, high calorie dish. For this dish, we fixed that problem. Let’s take a look how.

We start with ripe eggplants, and slice them, a bit over 1/4 inch.

Next, dip them in egg (we use fat free eggs, such as egg beaters) and breadcrumbs.

Brown in a non-stick pan sprayed with Pam (a non-stick vegetable oil spray), about 10 minutes each side. You can see that they brown nicely.

A few tablespoons of sauce, and top with shredded mozzarella cheese. Place in a preheated 350F oven for about 20-25 minutes until cheese melts and starts to brown.

If you enjoy eggplant dishes in a restaurant but for whatever reason, just haven’t tried it at home, now’s your chance. Let us know if you enjoyed this healthier version.

Happy Thanksgiving.

* I know – Eggplant is technically a fruit not a vegetable. There’s an old expression; Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit, wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.

written by admin \\ tags: eggplant, italian food, parmigiana, recipe

This recipe comes from my childhood, my grandmother, who passed away over 25 years ago used to make this, and I still remember the recipe.

2 lbs dough (you can buy pizza dough in most supermarkets)
1 lb sausage, sweet or hot
1/2 lb shredded mozzarella or grated cheese
few tablespoons olive oil
pepper to your liking

First, roll the dough out with a rolling pin, pretty thin. Rub the olive oil, leaving just the top edge dry. Cover with raw sausage. In this picture it looks like pepperoni, but this is link sausage squeezed out and spread out over the dough. Sprinkle with cheese and pepper.

Cut into sections, about 4 inches long, and press between your hands (end to end, don’t squeeze out the filling.)

Cook at 350F for about 30 minutes until browned. If you don’t eat sausage for whatever reason, you can substitute ground beef, turkey, or other filling. This is a fun recipe for the kids to help with and to tinker with the filling. Enjoy! Note – when I tried to confirm the spelling of this dish, I couldn’t find anything close. The recipe itself is called ‘bogliolati’ on other recipe sites, but my family never heard of that dish. Different parts of the country I suppose.

written by admin \\ tags: dough, italian food, italian sausage roll, minuloti, recipe