Eggplant Parmesan that’s just as delicious as Grandma used to make but with much less fat & calories?? WHHAAAATTT???
I’m so excited to share this recipe! I had this idea after I made the zucchini sticks in the air fryer. WHY NOT EGGPLANT?? So I did it the exact same way…
Slice the eggplant into thin circles (no need to peel!!)… Add them to a ziplock bag. Dump in the breadcrumbs. Zip the bag & toss gently to coat.
Spray the mesh baskets of the air fryer with cooking spray. Lay the eggplant circles in one even layer. Spray the eggplant with cooking spray. Use the french fry setting & turn the time down to 12 minutes. (For the two eggplants shown above, I used 3 baskets for each eggplant & batch fried them in 2 sessions, 24 minutes total.)
Now it’s time to make the layers of the casserole. Spray a 9 x 13 casserole dish with cooking spray. Add a layer of tomato sauce to the bottom of the dish (approx 1.5 cups). Lay the eggplant circles evenly over the top. Add the mozzarella & a little shredded parmesan. Repeat layers till all eggplant is used (I had 3 layers of eggplant): sauce, eggplant, cheese, sauce, eggplant, cheese, sauce, eggplant, cheese.
Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes or until it’s a nice golden brown & bubbly all over.
Serve with a caesar salad & fresh crusty french bread!
Air Fryer Eggplant Parmesan
Ingredients
- 2 small eggplants, sliced thin not peeled!
- 2/3 cup seasoned breadcrumbs, divided
- cooking spray
- 4-5 cups tomato sauce
- 4-5 cups shredded mozzarella
- 1-2 cups shredded parmesan
Instructions
- Spray the mesh baskets of the air fryer with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Slice the eggplants into thin circles, not more than 1/8 inch thick. Add them to a zip lock bag with some of the breadcrumbs. Zip & gently toss to coat each piece. Do this till all eggplants are coated with breadcrumbs evenly on all sides, adding more breadcrumbs to the bag as necessary.
- Lay the circles evenly on the mesh baskets, then spray with cooking spray. Add the thickest cut pieces to the same basket & make sure it gets set closest to the air vent. This will ensure even cooking.
- Use the french fry setting & turn the time down to 12 minutes. Transfer the cooked eggplant to a plate & repeat with remaining circles until all eggplant has been fried.
- Preheat the oven to 375. Spray a 9″ x 13″ casserole dish with cooking spray. Add approximately 1.5 cups of tomato sauce to the bottom. Lay one layer of eggplant evenly on the top of the sauce. Sprinkle with mozzarella & then a little parmesan.
- Continue layering the ingredients (sauce, eggplant, cheese) till all eggplant has been used & make the cheese the last layer.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown & bubbly all over. Serve with caesar salad & fresh crust french bread.
Notes
a) there are no weird additives when you do it yourself (pre-shredded cheese has things added to make it not clump)
b) freshly shredded cheese tastes great (because it’s FRESH!)
c) you will get a lot more cheese for your money when you shred your own block.
