Eggplant Parmesan

This is usually Jason's go to dish whenever we go out for Italian food so he was very excited when he came home tonight and found out we were having it for dinner. Typically eggplant Parmesan is breaded and fried before baking but this is my version of an authentic italian dish without the guilt. I chose to lightly bread the eggplant using whole wheat panko breadcrumbs and skipped the frying part.

Ingredients:

• 2 Eggplants
• 2 egg whites
• 1 1/2 Cups of whole wheat panko breadcrumbs
• 1 jar of pasta sauce (I used Traditional Ragu)
• 2 cups of Low fat mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup of Parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp. garlic salt
• 1 tsp. basil
• salt and pepper

Directions:

• Begin by thinly slicing the eggplant. Sprinkle with salt and allow it to sit for 30 minutes to get rid of any extra moisture. Pat with a paper towel before dipping them in the egg whites.

• Prepare 2 bowls: one with the egg whites and the other with the breadcrumbs. Dip each eggplant slice into the egg whites then in the breadcrumbs and place on a sprayed cookie sheet. Once each slice has been lightly breaded spray the tops with cooking spray and bake on 425 for 15-20 minutes.

• In another bowl mix together mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, garlic salt, basil, salt and pepper.
• Coat the bottom of a baking dish with pasta sauce then add a layer of eggplant on top. Add 1/3 of the cheese mixture and more pasta sauce. Repeat layers until all of the ingredients have been used up, ending with the remaing cheese mixture. Sprinkle additional basil on top.
• Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.
• Allow the Eggplant Parmesan to sit for 10 minutes before serving