I absolutely adore eggplant. For the second year, we are growing it in our garden. So far, we’ve had a pretty good crop despite the incessant drought. I like this recipe for it’s simplicity. Using canned tomato sauce from last year’s garden, Jon created a healthy, well-balanced, garden-centric meal.

Ingredients:

• 2 medium eggplants, sliced
• 1 jar garden fresh tomatoes and veggies (you can use chunky tomato sauce from the store)
• 3 cups panko bread crumbs
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups flour
• vegetable oil
• 1 package thin spaghetti
• Parmesan cheese to taste

Preparation:

In a large pan, heat the vegetable oil. The oil needs to be deep enough that eggplant slices will be submerged when added to the pan. In the meantime, prepare eggplant: dip slice in egg, dredge through flour and then panko bread crumbs. Repeat for each slice. When oil is hot enough, place eggplant slices in oil, turning a few times, until brown on each side. Remove from oil and place on plate lined with paper towel to remove excess oil.

Prepare spaghetti per package instructions- we always add olive oil to the water. Heat tomatoes in a separate pan.

Divide spaghetti among plates, layer with tomatoes and top with eggplant. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.