Eggplant Parmesan


4 cups basic marinara
2 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 red bell pepper, chopped-optional
3 medium eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch slices
olive oil cooking spray
garlic powder and salt
1 1/2 cups (6oz.) grated Frigo Truly Light mozzarella cheese or other reduced fat mozzarella cheese (2gr. fat per 1 oz. serving or less)
1/2 cup (2oz) grated light monterey jack cheese (5gr. fat or less per 1 oz. serving)
1/3 cup (1.5 oz) freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 egg white, lightly beaten


1. Prepare bacic marinara sauce according to recipe directions, adding sliced
mushrooms and pepper along with tomatoes.

2. Preheat oven to 450 F. Lightly spray several large baking sheets with
cooking spray. Arrange eggplant slices in a single layer on baking sheets;
spray top of eggplant lightly with cooking spray and dust with garlic powder
and salt. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned and tender. Remove
from oven and set aside to cool.

3. Mix mozzarella, monterey jack and parmesan cheeses together with beaten egg
white in a medium size bowl. Cover cheese mixture and set aside.

4. Reduce oven to 350 F. Place a single layer of eggplant in a 9×13 inch
baking dish; cover eggplant with 1/3 of sauce and 1/3 of cheese mixture.
Repeat process, finishing with last layer of eggplant and remaining 1/3 of
sauce. Cover remaining 1/3 of cheese mixture and set aside.

5. Cover baking dish with foil and bake for 30-45 minutes or until bubbling.
Remove dish fromoven and top with remaining 1/3 cheese mixture. Allow to sit
5-10 minutes before serving.
Basic Marinara:
1 cup dry white or light bodied red wine
2 6-oz cans tomato paste
1 28-oz can ready cut roma or regular tomatoes or 2lb fresh roma or regular tomatoes, peeled and seeded.
1 medium red or yellow onion chopped
2 large cloves fresh garlic, pressed or minced
2-3 tablespoons fresh basil (1 tablespoon dry)
1 tablespoon fresh oregano ( 1/2 tablespoon dry)
1-2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
6-8 shakes chili powder or cayenne pepper
fresh ground black pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
olive oil cooking spray


1. Lightly spray a 4-quart stock pot with olive oil cooking spray and preheat
on medium. Saute garlic 2-3 minutes or until lightly golden. Add tomatoes and
all remianing ingredients, except fresh basil and olive oil.

2. Simmer sauce for 1-4 hours. Add basil and olive oil to sauce a few minutes
before end of cooking time. If sauce becomes too thick, add a litlle water.

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