Eggplant Parmesan and Quinoa Risotto

Some people grew up eating Eggplant Parmesan, I however, did not.  My only interaction with eggplant as a child was my grandmother dropping it off at the house for my mother, and me being disgusted by the fact that it was a purple plant.  My husband, when I brought up eggplant as a dinner food, was also turned off.  But, we powered on through, and in doing so, both fell in love with the version of Eggplant Parmesan.  

This recipe was taken from The Best of Clean Eating, and was so simple and yet, with the homemade tomato sauce, and baked panko crusted eggplant, it tasted so much better than a baked vegetable should be.  Where's the fry oil?!? Sorry people. You've got the wrong eggplant recipe here.

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.  Put 3 large egg whites in a dipping container and beat them.  In a separate container mix together 3/4 c. of Whole Wheat Panko ( I use the Emeril's brand because, after much label reading in my grocery store, this was the healthiest version I could find), 6 tbs. of grated low-fat Parmesan cheese, 1 1/2 tsp. of dried oregano, 1 tsp. of garlic powder and a dash of salt.  

Cut your ends off the eggplant, cut crosswise into 3/4 in. slices, dip your eggplant in the egg white wash, then into the Panko mixture and place on a large non-stick sprayed cooking sheet.  Bake until golden brown, or around 25 minutes.  

While that's baking, take to medium tomatoes cut into chunks, 1 tbsp. of tomato paste, 2 garlic cloves, and 12 large basil leaved and throw them into your food processor and pulse to make a chunky sauce.  Throw this into a pan heated on a medium burner and reduce down for about ten minutes.  

When your eggplant is done, take it out, and turn your oven to broil. On your baking sheet layer eggplant, tomato sauce, and part-skim mozzarella cheese.  Put another slice on top and repeat.  When all are layered, throw it back in the oven for about 3 minutes or until cheese melts.  

Quinoa Risotto

I love Quinoa.  There I said it.  I like it more than white or brown rice, and I like it more than cous cous.  Judge me, I don't care.  I like Quinoa for so many reasons, I can't even begin to tell you.  One, it's a complete protein, meaning you don't need to add anything else to the dish for it to acquire all the amino acids which make a protein complete.  But, beyond that, it cooks and fifteen minutes.  And, I LOVE that!

Risotto is often thought of as being prepared with Arborio rice, and nice thick cheese, and everything else that I don't want to eat.  The reality is, you can make risotto with any type of grain, you just need to prepare it low and slow.  

I start by sauteing onions and mushrooms until soft.  I take soaked quinoa (soak it to activate the germ, as well as remove any of the dirt and residue that is on the grain) and add it to the pan.  I then take already heated chicken or vegetable stock (make sure it's already heated, but not boiling) and add it VERY SLOWLY, A VERY SMALL AMOUNT AT A TIME!  You want to make sure that the grain takes in the liquid slowly and reduced down to almost no liquid before adding more liquid.  

How much Quinoa to stock depends on the serving size you plan on making.  Look at the package and decide what serving size you would like and prepare enough stock for whatever amount of grain you choose.   

When it's all done (you'll know when the ring around the grain separates), I put SOME freshly grated Parmesan and Part-skim Mozzarella cheese into the risotto and mix.  Yes, I am human people, and I do like cheese.  I just don't eat entire blocks of it to myself!