Nonna knows best

parmigiana

My Neapolitan grandmother always told me that the origin of Parmigiana di melanzane (eggplant parmigiana) there was no doubt, came from  Napoli. Yes, because with this recipe there is a real dispute between two regions  Campania and Sicily. I’m biased because my grandmother from my mother’s side ,was from Naples , if you want to know my grandfather was from Tuscany and  my father’s parents were from Abruzzo. A great mixture, don’t you think? They were all lovers of great cuisine. So there could be no doubt about my passion! Ok back to Parmigiana. This dish is delicious, of course as  in all things there is a lighter version (where the eggplants are grilled) but I think the best one is fried (eggplant are rolled in flour and then fried). I have chosen my family version for today, but normally during the summer (when I use the eggplants from  my vegetable garden), I also do the grilled.  Also, I suggest the grilled version for those who are gluten intolerant, Zeno my nephew 8 years old he loves it , and not because it’s family !

Serves 4
1kg aubergines long
1 bottle of tomato sauce
1 small can of tomato pulp, cut into small pieces
flour
basil leaves
extra virgin olive oil
700 grams of mozzarella cheese
30g grated parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic
Salt ,pepper
How it works:
Wash and slice the eggplants horizontally along their length, not too thin. Place them in a colander with salt. Put on a weight and leave so the bitter juice drains ,for 1 hour. Meanwhile in a pan fry oil and garlic, pour the tomato sauce and pulp ,a pinch of salt and some basil leaves. Cook for 20 minutes.

 Rinse the eggplant and dry with paper towels. Roll in flour the eggplant on both sides and fry in plenty of oil for a couple of minutes. With paper towels wipe off the excess oil and set aside. Cut the mozzarella into slices and set aside. In baking pan, preferably square or rectangular, add a drizzle of olive oil. Pour in a layer of tomato sauce, place a row of eggplant to cover the whole base of the pan. Lay over the top a row of sliced  mozzarella, a couple of handfuls of Parmesan and some basil leaves. A dash of salt and pepper. Now start over again with tomatoes, eggplant, then mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, basil, salt and pepper. Continue until the end of the ingredients .Cover with a handful of Parmesan cheese and then bake at 200 degrees for 20 minutes.