Copy Cat Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana

 

Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana

There are some meals that take you back to special memories or places in your life and this Copy Cat Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana just so happens to be one of those meals for me.

Since I was a teenager, Olive Garden has been my favorite chain restaurant, probably because I loved Italian food and my little hometown in Oklahoma didn’t have an Olive Garden or anything comparable so I didn’t get to eat there very often.

I don’t remember at what point I discovered their Eggplant Parmigiana, but from that moment forward, I fell in love with the dish and ordered it nearly every time we ate at Olive Garden.

It was also at Olive Garden that I discovered my love for eggplant since I had never even tried one (I’m not sure I even knew what an eggplant looked like!) before discovering it on their menu.

(Side note, if you want to kick this recipe up a few notches, make my Homemade Marinara Sauce and use it for the topping on this Copy Cat Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana!)

 

 

 

Easy Eggplant Parmigiana

Every birthday I celebrated since the age of probably 13-14 was always at my favorite restaurant, (Olive Garden) so as you can probably imagine, I have many wonderful memories spent in one Olive Garden or another.

Maybe that’s why I associate warm, comforting memories with Italian food and this Copy Cat Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana in particular, but whatever the case, I can assure you that you will love this Eggplant Parmigiana just as much as we do.

I created this recipe with my favorite Eggplant Parmigiana dish from Olive Garden in mind, but I also suspect they fry their eggplant and I wanted a healthier alternative.

For my Copy Cat Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana, we will be baking it and also making our own Homemade Marinara Sauce to top it with which is low carb, Keto friendly, and completely sugar and sweetener free!

 

 

 

 

Eggplant Parmigiana is perfect for a dinner party

I invited my parents over for dinner the day I made this Eggplant Parmigiana so I was cooking for four of us instead of two so I used two large eggplants which ended up creating six servings.

My eggplants were VERY large so if you’re cooking for less adults, I would suggest using just one large eggplant instead of two, but hey, if you end up having leftovers that’s always a good thing, right?! 😉

 

 

 

 

How to cook an eggplant

Cut off both ends of the eggplant (the stem and the bottom) and then use a sharp knife to carefully peel the eggplant.

The peeling on eggplants are very tough so be careful while peeling it that your knife doesn’t slip and get your finger!

 

 

 

 

Preparing Eggplant for Parmigiana

Once your eggplants are completely peeled, place them on a cutting board and begin slicing them into rounds.

 

 

 

 

I sliced my eggplant into about 1/4 inch thick rounds and set them aside.

 

 

 

 

How to remove the bitterness from eggplant

Lightly salt both sides of all of your eggplant slices.

Salting your eggplant not only gives it a little extra flavor but it also helps to draw some of the moisture out of the eggplant, which in turn draws some of the bitterness out of it.

I have personally never tasted eggplant when I thought it tasted bitter but some people experience a bitter taste when eating it (just depending on how your taste buds operate!) so salting it beforehand will take care of that.

 

 

 

 

Key ingredients to Healthy Eggplant Parmigiana

After the eggplant is salted and ready to go, grab two small bowls and fill one with 2 cups of Italian Panko Breadcrumbs and the other with 3 eggs that have been beaten.

When your dipping bowls are ready, grab a 9×13 inch casserole pan or a large baking sheet (baking sheet preferred if you have one) and spray it with nonstick cooking spray, placing it right in front of the bowls for easy access.

Just a little side note, depending on how large your eggplant is, you may need a little more or less breadcrumbs and eggs, so keep that in mind when preparing this Eggplant Parmigiana.

 

 

 

 

How to get the Best Eggplant Parmigiana

Let’s go ahead right here and preheat our oven at 375F.

Start off my dipping one slice of eggplant at a time into the egg bath first.

When dipping the eggplant into the beaten egg, make sure that both sides of the eggplant are completely coated in the egg.

 

 

 

The Perfect, Crispy, Baked Eggplant

After dipping the eggplant into the egg wash, dip it into the Panko breadcrumbs and roll it so that both sides are completely covered in the breadcrumbs.

Just a word to the wise, I highly suggest using Panko breadcrumbs because they will be crispy after being cooked, giving the eggplant a crispy, fried texture even though this Eggplant Parmigiana is baked.

 

 

 

 

Cooking tips for Perfect Eggplant Parmesan

Repeat the egg bath and breadcrumb process until all of your eggplant has been coated in egg and rolled in breadcrumbs, then place the slices into your casserole dish or on your large baking sheet.

Depending on how many eggplant slices you have, you may have to cook it in two separate batches or use two different pans because you don’t want to stack or overlap the eggplant slices.

If you do stack or overlap the slices, the part that isn’t exposed will not get brown and crispy like it should.

 

 

 

 

Healthy Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Place the Copy Cat Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana into the preheated oven and bake at 375F for 20 minutes or until the eggplant slices are golden brown, crispy, and the eggplant is fork tender.

 

 

 

Now that the eggplant is cooked, remove it from the oven and sprinkle lightly with mozzarella cheese and freshly grated Parmesan cheese, then place it back into the oven for 2-3 minutes or just long enough for the cheese to melt.

 

 

 

 

Once the cheese is melted on the Copy Cat Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana, serve it up with my Homemade Marinara Sauce over the top and an Olive Garden salad on the side.

 

 

 

 

Just to give you guys a little behind the scenes sneak peek when I was photographing this Copy Cat Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana, my little man came out to watch the process and was completely fascinated by it all.

Yes, I do take the majority of my photos on my front porch due to lighting being unfavorable for photos in our house (we don’t have many windows).

 

 

 

 

Hopefully you all have enjoyed your time in my kitchen learning how to make this Copy Cat Olive Garden Eggplant Parmigiana and Homemade Marinara Sauce.

Come back soon for more wonderful recipes!

Happy end of summer!

-Amy

 

 

Shared at Full Plate Thursday

Shared at Weekend Potluck

Shared at Meal Plan Monday

Shared at Foodie Friday Link Party

Also shared at What’s for Dinner