Eggplant Parmesan?

I had a couple of eggplants sitting around. What to do? Make Eggplant Parmesan, if you can call it that.

Preheat oven to 375.

You will need a cookie sheet and one small casserole dish ( I used a 7 1/2 x 9 1/2 inch).

Should serve 4 people.

Bread crumbs if making homemade:

2 cups. bread crumbs -seasoned with:

1 tsp. thyme, dried

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. basil, dried

1 tsp. oregano, dried

1 Tbsp. vegan parma (Eat in the Raw)

3 tbsp. melted earth balance

Mix the above ingredients together, set aside.

Marinara sauce with fresh basil added.

2 eggplants

Slice into 12, 1/2inch thick rounds. Salt the slices if you wish and set in colander for about 30 minutes to take out the bitterness. Then rinse off.

Tofu filling:

1/2 cup pine nuts plus 1 tbsp.

1 7.5 oz extra firm tofu (I used this because it's what I had on hand)

1 Tbsp. Olive oil

1/4 c. soy milk

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. thyme

1 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. basil

1/2 tsp rosemary

t tsp. salt

I got the idea to use the pine nuts in the filling from Veganomican's pine nut cream recipe. In food processor blend 1/2 cup pine nuts, until creamy. Then add olive oil, tofu, soy milk, dried herbs and salt. Next mix mix by hand 1 Tbsp. whole pine nuts.

First take your eggplant slices and you can dip them in water or non-dairy milk, then press the bread crumbs into each slice. You really have to press the breadcrumbs into the eggplant to get it to stick. As you can see in the picture it didn't get all around the edges but that is okay. Put them on cookie sheet and spray them with olive oil, this will help coat the eggplant that is not covered with the breadcrumbs. Bake in oven for about 20 minutes or until soft. Flip carefully after about 10 minutes.

Layering: In your casserole dish coat with marinara sauce then layer one row of eggplant. Next add a light layer of marinara, then all of the tofu ricotta filling, then more marinara. Top off with the rest of the eggplant and cover with the rest of your marinara sauce. Cover with foil and bake for about 40 minutes.

When done serve with your favorite pasta.