Kids Dish

I know I just posted a recipe for Eggplant Parmesan last month, but I made it again the other night and now I’ve got a picture to go with it so I thought I’d refresh your memory and urge you to make it again. Seriously, this is the best recipe I’ve ever made and I’ve Eggplant Parmesan dozens of times.

When I made it I had a few eggplant rounds that didn’t fit into the pan. I decided to leave them out and serve them plain for Sam because he’s rejected eggplant several times now and I thought that perhaps he’d give them a shot if he ate them crispy and breaded. In retrospect that idea was foolish. Sam’s never eaten anything crispy and breaded, not even chicken fingers, which I’ve heard are every child’s favorite meal after chicken nuggets. Anyway, I gave him the eggplant and some sauce in which to dip it, because everyone knows kids love to dip, and he took a bite and shook his head no.

When given a bite of my Eggplant Parmesan he eyed it warily, took a bite, made a face, chewed swallowed and signed and said more. He ate half of mine, half of Bob’s then half of Bob’s second portion.

This time I had about 1000 fresh tomatoes, and didn’t feel like making a proper sauce. Instead I used Lidia’s Marinara recipe, which is quick, easy and delicious. The Eggplant Parmesan calls for the sauce to be pureed smooth, so I gave it a spin in the blender and it nearly exploded all over my kitchen. When a recipe tells you to wait for something to cool before pureeing you should listen. Aside from that near catastrophe, it worked well in the recipe.

Here’s Lidia’s Marinara recipe to go with the Eggplant Parmesan.

Marinara

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
8 garlic cloves, peeled
3 pounds ripe fresh plum tomatoes, peeled and seeded, or one 35 ounce can Italian plum tomatoes (preferably San Marzano), seeded and lightly crushed, with their liquid
Salt
Crushed red pepper
10 fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces

Procedure
1. Heat the oil in a 2- to 3-quart nonreactive saucepan over medium heat. Whack the garlic with the flat side of a knife, add it to the oil, and cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes.
2. Carefully slide tomatoes and their liquid into the oil. Bring to a boil, and season lightly with salt and crushed red pepper. Lower the heat so sauce is at a lively simmer, and cook, breaking up tomatoes with a whisk or spoon, until sauce is chunky and thick, about 20 minutes.
3. Stir in the basil about 5 minutes before sauce is finished. Taste sauce, and season with salt and red pepper if necessary.