The Best (Healthier) Baked Eggplant Parmesan (2024)

A healthier twist on chicken Parmesan, this is the best baked Eggplant Parmesan recipe! It’s a melty, cheesy, wonderland of Italian flavor with the added bonus of nutritious veggies!

Eggplant is…a truly ugly vegetable to cook with.

I mean, I cut three separate pieces of this Baked Eggplant Parmesan to take photos of, and this is the best I could capture, pretty much straight from the oven.

But you know what? Ugly or not…eggplant is absolutely flippin’ delicious.

Sometimes, you just need to be vegetarian for a day or two. If you’re feeling the itch (like I was), this recipe does not disappoint!

This page includes step by step instructions, as well as tips and notes. If you’d like to skip all that, feel free to scroll down to the full, printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

I really can’t remember what made me decide to make Eggplant Parmesan for the first time.

I want to say I was really craving lasagna, but this was back when I was a gym regular, so I was trying to avoid unnecessary carbs and starch from the pasta.

Riiiight. Because bread crumbs have no carbs. Yep. Makes total sense.

Either way,there was cheese involved, so I had faith that it would be tasty, even if it was odd.

I picked up a couple of big, lovely eggplants at the farmer’s market, found a recipe online for a baked version (usually if I can bake something versus frying it, it’s on,) and set about stepping right out of my comfort zone and into the wide world of vegetarian cuisine.

While I can’t say that I never looked back (because, to me, there’s nothing like abig fatburger or juicy chicken breast,) Icansay that I’ll never doubt weird vegetables again.

Eggplant is awesome,and I understandwhy vegetarians use it as a meat substitute.

What is Eggplant?

Low in calories and packed with vitamins and minerals, eggplant is a tender, spongy vegetable of the nightshade family. With only 20 calories per cup, eggplant makes a great substitute for higher calorie ingredients in traditional dishes.

I know quite a few dietitians, and they all have a saying – eat the rainbow! There aren’t too many nutritious purple veggies to use in our diets, so eggplant is a wonderful one to sneak in when we can!

Don’t let its funny, bulbous shape and purple color fool you though. Eggplant is a rather mild food that can be used in dishes with bold flavors, as it tends to take on other flavors easily.

What is Eggplant Parmesan?

Eggplant Parm is the vegetarian twin of chicken Parmesan, with the substitution of a “meaty” vegetable – the eggplant.

Thebasic ingredientsof this recipe are simple and few:

• Slices of salted, drainedeggplant, coated in seasoned breadcrumbs,
• Marinara sauce,
• Lots ofcheese.

I can hear you asking – with all that cheese, how is baked eggplant parmesan healthy? Well, this lower-fat no fry version melts in your mouth with delicious Italian flavors you crave while sneaking in some extra veggies, as well.

Baking the eggplant instead of frying allows you to indulge in the calories in the cheese without worrying about the ones that frying oil would add. It makes a great meatless Monday meal – any day of the week!

What does it taste like?

Since eggplant is a very mild flavor when cooked, it tends to take on the bolder flavors of the other ingredients it is cooked with. With this in mind, you can expect your veggie eggplant parmesan to encompass rich, tomatoey, cheesy, Italian flavors similar to those in Chicken Parmesan.

HOW TO MAKE BAKED EGGPLANT PARMESAN

1. Layer paper towels on your countertop and set the sliced eggplant on top of them. Salt the eggplant liberally, and allow it to sit for at least 30 minutes, up to 2 hours. This step helps draw out the excess moisture in the eggplant, meaning no sogginess!
2. Pat the slices dry with paper towels, then season them with pepper to taste.

3. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Spray two baking sheets with cooking spray or compressed oil and set them aside.
4. In a shallow bowl, whisk together eggs and a bit of water. In a second bowl, mix together breadcrumbs, 1 cup of Parmesan cheese, and Italian seasoning.
5. Dip the eggplant slices into egg mixture Allow excess egg to drip off, then press both sides into breadcrumb mixture, coating them well. Place the slices in a single layer on the baking sheets.

6. Bake the eggplant for 20-25 minutes, until it’s golden brown on them. Flip each slice and bake for an additional 20-25 minutes until the other side is nicely browned. Remove the eggplant from the oven and increase the temperature to 400 degrees F.
7. Spread ½ cup of marinara sauce in a 9×13-inch casserole or baking dish. Arrange half of the eggplant slices in a single layer over the sauce, shingling the slices if they’re extra large or if you have a lot.

8. Cover the slices with 1 cup of sauce, then 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Layer on mushrooms if you’re using them, then cover the layer with ½ cup of sauce. Repeat the same layering with the remaining eggplant, sauce, and mozzarella, then sprinkle on some grated Parmesan.
9. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted, then broil on high for 2 minutes to brown the cheese a bit. Remove the dish from the oven and sprinkle it with additional Italian seasoning, or fresh basil and parsley.

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