Air Fryer Eggplant Parmesan
Crazy delicious (& healthy!!) 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
Shred your own cheese! Don't use pre-shredded cheeses in this dish. Freshly shredding your own cheese has many benefits:
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.
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.