Crumbed Zucchini & Mozzarella Bake
Eggplant Parmigiana is the inspiration for this dish, which uses zucchini slices instead. It takes a bit of effort to make, but it is worth it. This was the dish that had my usually zucchini-shy children applauding.
Ingredients
Tomato Sauce Base
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 400 g can chopped tomatoes or 5-6 fresh tomatoes, chopped
- pinch of salt
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
Crumbed Zucchini
- 3-4 zucchini, cut lengthways into 1cm slices
- 1 tbsp flour
- pinch of salt
- 1 egg, beaten
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- 30 g finely grated parmesan
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 200 g fresh mozzarella, sliced, or 1 cup grated cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190°C (170°C fan bake).
- First, make the tomato sauce base. Heat a large frying pan over a moderate heat. Add the oil and garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Add the chopped tomatoes, salt and basil. Simmer gently, stirring often, until the sauce is thick.
- Meanwhile, prepare the zucchini. Arrange three plates in a row on the bench. Combine the flour and salt on the first plate, pour the beaten egg onto the middle one, and mix breadcrumbs and parmesan together on the last. Working in batches, dust the zucchini slices generously with seasoned flour, then dip into the egg and finally generously coat in the breadcrumb mixture.
- Heat the second measure of olive oil in another frying pan over a moderate heat. Cook the zucchini in batches until golden brown on both sides. Nestle the crumbed zucchini in a single layer into the tomato sauce (or layer into a baking dish if you don’t have an ovenproof frying pan). Top the zucchini with sliced mozzarella, or grated cheese. Place into the oven and bake for 20 minutes until the cheese is bubbling. Serve immediately with a green salad.