Love + Eggplant Parmigiana
This post was written over 10 years ago for my first food blog, Tina’s Nom Noms. It appears here today because of love, memories of my mom and dad and how they all live alongside reflections in food. And this may just be the best eggplant parmigiana recipe you’ve ever come across.
I normally chat with my mom every other night. Chats we have while I make my dinner, or after I've already assumed the position on my couch. Talking to my mom is like comfort food, and as I was lying across my chaise lounge, outfitted in my classic Valentine's Day pajama bottoms and a wife beater, I asked my mom, “What were you doing when you were 32?” At the age of 32, Evelyn Grace Corrado had already had 3 children and, in full disclosure, I go numb from the waist down every time I think about this. I was born five days after my mother's 30th birthday and that same year my oldest brother, Tommy, was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. Her whole life changed. All of our lives changed.
Needless to say my mothers life experiences far exceed mine at the age of 32. Her mother passed when she was 10, lost her father when she was 23, married at 24, had her first child at 25. Somehow she managed to work, cook a homemade dinner every single night and walked my brother back and forth to the hospital while I complained about it. I still remember cold mornings walking to Brookdale Hospital, holding my mom's hand and begging her to leave me at home or buy me hot chocolate if she insisted I walk the mile to the hospital. I also repeatedly asked her, “Why can't you just learn how to drive?” I was mouthy, even at age 5 and, to date, my mother doesn't drive and neither do I.
At age 30 I was kissing men, making bad decisions and living life on my own terms. Five days from my 32nd birthday my bad decisions are less frequent and more controlled because making out with handsome chefs was so 2 years ago. Today, my Evelyn Grace turns 62 and she's as fabulous, kind, generous, strong and caring as ever. I don't know anyone with such a pure heart. I don't know anyone who has endured what she has. We have our things, she and I, but at the core there is love in arguments, disagreements and, almost always, more reasons to grow and come together.
That night, our conversation took a lot of turns. How's Lou? How's Tom? Did Daddy go back to the crazy dentist? What'd you eat for dinner? What's your work schedule this week? Have you been walking Josie? If I see that dog and she's chubby, I'm not going to be happy about it ! Then, I asked my mom where she was the first time she met my father. The question didn't come out of nowhere; I was expressing my recent need to come home from work, shut down and snuggle with myself on the chaise lounge. I love love, and I was hungry for a story I already knew had a happy ending.
I could hear the smile in her voice, “The first time I saw your father was at Arthur Murray Dance Studio when he was training to be an instructor. He was dancing. I met him through Regina, we used to work together.” So, I knew my dad took lessons to become a dance instructor, but had no idea when she first set eyes on Jerry Corrado that he was dancing. The image in my mind of my dad in a ruffled pink button down, lamb chop sideburns, brown Italo-fro, cha-cha-cha-ing without a care in the world brought an instant feeling of warmth to my heart. On their first date they went to see The Godfather. My mom and dad's wedding song - The Godfather theme of Speak Softly Love. So Italian. So awesome.
My dad still draws giant hearts on all of holiday cards he gives to my mom (and me), birthday's and anniversary's included. My old neighbor, Neal, used to call my him Barry White, and I think of my dad as being similar to the man I'd like to meet and call my own someday.
I asked about food and family meals she had when she dated my dad. What did grandma serve? Nothing other than five star peasant food was served in a Brooklyn basement with mismatched plates. Growing up, moms father owned a deli, but I got the feeling that dinner with the Corrado's was a whole new world of language, entertainment, family and food. She continued, “I didn't cook much until I met your father and met grandma.” Typical. Italian mother in law teaches daughter in law to cook.
We talked about grandma's meatballs with the surprises. Fried balls of pork, veal and beef speckled with raisins and pignoli nuts. I loved the meatballs filled with the surprises. My cousin Maria, not so much. Me, fried balls with crunch and sweet stuffed in, well, I couldn’t get enough.
I mentioned to her that I had an eggplant haunting the bottom shelf of my refrigerator from a Fresh Direct overload. I meant to grill it, then I mean to roast it, and then I thought I might pickle, jar and store it. None of it happened. But my mom went on about my grandma's eggplant parmigiana, and I hadn't made it in years. Neither had my mom. Grandma lightly fried the eggplant slices that were dipped flour and then quickly soaked in an egg bath. She and I talked about eggplant for a half hour. How light it was, how she used so little cheese, but it was still perfectly gooey. How she'd mash basil and garlic together to form a paste and put that in between every layer of fried eggplant, sauce and cheese. It was decided, that eggplant was getting fried and made into parmigiana in service of my grandma and a love story.
Eggplant Parmigiana
makes an 8x8 pyrex dish
Extra virgin olive oil
1 large eggplant
1 1/2c. of homemade tomato sauce
5-6 cloves garlic
10-12 large basil leaves
8-12 oz fresh mozzarella (very thinly sliced)
4 eggs
1 1/4 c. flour (season with salt and pepper to taste)
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees
-Slice eggplant (skin on) in 1/2-3/4 inch round slices, sprinkle with salt and place on a baking sheet so water releases from the eggplant
-After 15-20 minutes, using a paper towel, pat the eggplant dry
-Add garlic and basil to a food processor, pulse until a paste is formed, and put aside
-Add flour to a shallow dish and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper
-In a separate shallow dish, beat eggs and put aside
-Place about 1/4 c. olive oil in a frying pan and heat over a medium low flame
-Begin lightly coating eggplant in flour, so each side is covered but not packed with flour
-Dip eggplant in egg and transfer to frying pan -Fry eggplant until golden and turn (repeat)
-As eggplant is done frying, place on a dish covered with a paper towel so excess oil can be absorbed
-Arrange 1 layer of eggplant (each piece should slightly overlap) in an 8x8 pyrex dish -Sprinkle with garlic/bail paste, layer with thinly sliced mozzarella and spoon sauce over top (repeat) -For this recipe you should have 2 layers of eggplant -Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, until heated through and cheese is melted -Serve as a side to pasta of your choice