Chef John's Baked Eggplant Sandwiches

By ernie70

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, or more as needed
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper, or more to taste
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1 large eggplant, cut into 16 slices
• 2 slices provolone cheese
• 12 slices salami
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoons finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided

Details

Preparation time 30mins
Cooking time 38mins

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and drizzle foil with 1 teaspoon olive oil.
Beat eggs in a small, shallow bowl. Mix flour, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper in a large shallow dish. Sprinkle bread crumbs in another large shallow dish.
Top one slice of eggplant with 1/4 slice cheese, 3 slices salami, and 1/4 slice cheese. Place an equally-sized slice of eggplant on top. Repeat with remaining eggplant slices, cheese, and salami.
Gently press each eggplant sandwich into the flour to coat; shake off excess. Dip into the beaten egg, then press into bread crumbs. Place on the prepared baking sheet while you repeat with remaining eggplant sandwiches.
Drizzle 1 teaspoon olive oil and sprinkle 1 teaspoon Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese equally over the sandwiches.
Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Flip sandwiches and sprinkle 1 teaspoon Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Bake until browned and a paring knife inserts easily into the eggplant, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

Chef's Note:
Some people salt the slices of eggplant to draw off liquid, which they say is bitter. I've done this for other eggplant recipes, but not for these sandwiches. With the breading and filling, I actually think the slight bitterness is an advantage.