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Eggplant Parmesan {grain free}

December 13, 2010 by Erica 14 Comments

Eggplant Parmesan

Get ready—this recipe for Eggplant Parmesan is grain free and conventional in method, but somewhat unconventional in its use of ingredients. That’s because I use goat cheese or dripped yogurt instead of other soft cheeses. I do add Parmesan into the mix, but the choice of cheeses is up to you, really.

I use eggplant, but you can use zucchini if you don’t eat this vegetable that is part of the nightshade family (which includes potatoes, tomatoes and chili peppers). Some folks have a noticeable intolerance to nightshades, and historically the nightshade family did contain toxic chemicals as a defense (mainly bitter alkaloids), however many years of selection and breeding have removed most of those chemicals and bitterness.

I actually make half of this recipe because, alas, I’m the only one here who likes eggplant. I doubled it for readers so you can fill a 9 inch x 9 inch baking dish, however if you want less layers (two versus four layers), you can use half of everything in the recipe.

Eggplant Parmesan

Eggplant Parmesan

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Eggplant Parmesan {grain free}

This recipe makes 4 layers in a 9x9 inch (23x23 cm) baking dish.
The salted eggplant slices drip in a strainer for 15 minutes or so to remove excess moisture and collapse the eggplant down so it does not absorb a lot of oil when I fry it. If you don't want to salt it, you can microwave or roast the slices of eggplant to get this desired effect.
If you don't want to batter and fry the eggplant, you can lightly brush each eggplant slice with oil and roast the slices at 400 F for about 15 minutes, and then layer them in the dish.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 469kcal

Ingredients

  • 2 medium Italian eggplants
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt to remove moisture from eggplant sliced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt for the flour mixture
  • 2 cups blanched almond flour
  • 1 large egg lightly beaten
  • 1/4 cup olive oil for frying
  • 2 cups tomato sauce
  • 2 cups goat cheese or dripped yogurt with about 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup Parmesan cheese grated
  • fresh basil leaves for top optional
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Peel the skin off the eggplants, and slice them length-wise so you have thin slices for layering, casserole-style.
  • Sprinkle the slices with sea salt (on both sides), and let them sit in a strainer or colander to drain moisture. Let this magic happen for about 15 minutes. Sometimes I leave it in the fridge to drain for a few hours, or until I'm ready to bake this dish.
  • Combine the sea salt and flour and blend together with a fork. Pat dry the eggplant slices with a paper towel.
  • On medium to low heat, warm a frying pan with oil. Create a thin layer of an oil puddle so the eggplant slices don't stick to the pan surface.
  • Lightly coat (dip) the eggplant slices in the egg and then in the flour/salt mixture, and then place in the heated frying pan.
  • Fry the eggplant slices on both sides for a few minutes on each side, until they start to brown a bit, and then place on a paper to absorb the excess oil.
  • In a baking dish, place a layer of tomato sauce, then a layer of eggplant slices, then a sprinkling of goat cheese, and finally some Parmesan sprinkled on top of the goat cheese. Repeat this process until you've used up all the eggplant and your final, top layer is goat and Parmesan cheese. Optionally, place some basil on the top.
  • Bake at 400 degrees F for about 10 minutes.
  • Cool and then cut. Enjoy! Goes great with a salad and glass of red wine (or grape juice). And you can reheat at 400 degrees F for about 8 minutes. It cuts really well when cold (which is how I got that nice square picture of a slice).

Nutrition

Calories: 469kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 37g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 58mg | Sodium: 1032mg | Potassium: 500mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 1009IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 308mg | Iron: 3mg
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Filed Under: Gluten-Free, Low Carb | Keto, Low Sugar, Paleo, Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD), Vegetarian Tagged With: eggplant, goat cheese, Parmesan, Parmesan cheese, yogurt

Previous Post: « Zucchini Pancakes
Next Post: Gingerbread Cookies {almond flour} »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jean Allen

    May 27, 2020 at 8:55 am

    Just a suggestion, even though most will know what you mean. When you list ” large egg lightly scrambled” in the ingredients, you might want to say “lightly beaten” so readers will know right away that you mean the egg is not cooked.

    Thank you so much for a grain-free eggplant parmesan recipe!!! One of my fav dishes, but only one restaurant here did a delicious job of a gluten-free version, and they’ve since closed. Now I can feel confident to try it at home!

    Reply
    • Erica

      May 27, 2020 at 8:58 am

      Great suggestion! thank you!

      Reply
  2. Alexis

    June 3, 2015 at 8:13 am

    If I’m using zucchini, how many pounds should I buy for this recipe? Thanks!

    Reply
  3. Cat

    December 15, 2013 at 6:26 pm

    How thin do you cut your eggplant slices?

    Reply
    • Erica

      December 15, 2013 at 7:29 pm

      about 1/4 inch thick

      Reply
  4. Andrea

    August 9, 2012 at 4:51 pm

    Instead of frying I greased a jelly roll pan and placed my floured eggplant slices on it. I let it bake at 400 for about 20-30 minutes, flipping once in the middle. This way they still came out fried but I didn’t have to sit over the frying pan waiting to complete the whole batch! Great recipe…thanks!!!!

    Reply
  5. Christine

    March 17, 2012 at 4:27 am

    This was really yummy. I used a vegetarian bolognese sauce and swapped the goats cheese for a low fat mozzarella. Tasted way too indulgent for this to be low carb and healthy. Very filling too.

    Thanks for sharing this recipe!

    Reply
  6. Luana

    December 19, 2010 at 8:03 pm

    I made this today and it was really good. I loved the goat cheese, something I would not have thought to use that really works well with the eggplant; it has a bit of sharpness and it’s creamy, which is a great combination in this dish.

    However, I had a problem with browning the eggplant. I did not have it heavily coated in almond flour, yet a lot of it came off in the pan and turned into a dark mess. Had to wipe out the pan twice to continue browning. I’ve had the same problem before doing this with almond flour, so it’s no fault of your recipe. Seems if the pan is not hot enough, the eggplant does not cook quickly and if too hot, too much falls off. I may not have found the happy medium of getting the pan at the right heat.

    Next time, I’ll either run them under the broiler to brown, or skip the almond flour and brush sliced eggplant with a bit of olive oil and run under the broiler. Either way, the recipe is definitely a keeper!

    Reply
    • Erica

      December 19, 2010 at 9:16 pm

      Luana – thanks for the low-down. Yes, the almond flour can brown on a higher heat. I kind of like it sometimes (like on the chicken fingers), but not burnt. You can try lowering the flame/heat, but it sounds like you would much prefer no almond flour coating – just roasting or pre-heating. I’ve done it both ways and it tastes great either way. Glad you gave it a try!

      Reply
  7. Elise (Healing Cuisine)

    December 15, 2010 at 1:52 pm

    Yuuummmmmm. I’m going to serve this to my 3 brothers as “lasagna” 😉 They don’t like my new direction of cooking, but I have a feeling they’ll enjoy this one if marketed in just the right way to them.

    Reply
  8. Sarah

    December 13, 2010 at 9:51 pm

    Looks delicious! If I used zucchini, should I also salt it to draw the moisture out? Not a big eggplant person. 🙂

    Reply
    • Erica

      December 13, 2010 at 10:00 pm

      Good question on the zucchini – no need to salt the zucchini.

      Reply
  9. Tracee

    December 13, 2010 at 9:32 pm

    Beautiful job. This looks so fancy. I always have trouble picking out a good eggplant.

    Reply
    • Erica

      December 13, 2010 at 10:01 pm

      Hmm. I don’t know the “rules” on picking out eggplant, but for me, if it’s firm and had a shiny skin, it’s good to go.

      Reply

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Measurement equivalents

1 tablespoon 3 teaspoons
1/4 cup 4 tablespoons
1 cup 8 ounces
1 teaspoon 5 ml
1 tablespoon 15 ml

Temperature conversions

Gas Mark Fahrenheit Celsius
  1/4  225  110
  1/2  250  130
    1  275  140
    2  300  150
    3  325  170
    4  350  180
    5  375  190
    6  400  200
    7  425  220
    8  450  230
    9  475  240

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I create recipes using simple, nutrient-dense ingredients, staying as close to the earth as possible.

One of my boys was diagnosed with Crohn’s, which inspired me to start Comfy Belly, and create recipes to share my love of good, healthy food. Read More →

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