June 15, 2023

Eggplant Parmesan

Recipe by Chef Nick Kubitz
Pairing 2018 Barbera – Macotera 09 Vineyard
Serves 8-10
Download Recipe

Ingredients

Eggplant Parmesan
  • 2-3 Large Eggplants (Sliced into 1/4 inch thick rounds)
  • 2 Cups All Purpose Flour
  • 3 Cups Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs
  • 8 Large Eggs (Whisked together for breading)
  • 4 Cups Low Moisture Mozzarella (Shredded)
  • 2 Cups Parmesan (Grated)
  • 1/4 Cup Italian Parsley (Chopped)
  • 1 Quart Canola Oil
  • 1 Tbsp Fresh Cracked Black Pepper
  • 2 Tbsp Kosher Salt
Tomato Sauce Ingredients
  • 1 Cup Yellow Onion (Small Diced)
  • 1/2 Cup Carrot (Small Diced)
  • 1/2 Cup Celery (Small Diced)
  • 3 Cloves Garlic (Thin Sliced)
  • 4 Cans Crushed Tomatoes
  • 1/4 Cup Fresh Basil (Chiffonade Plus Extra For Garnish)
  • 1 Tbsp Fresh Oregano (Chopped)
  • 1 Cup Red Wine
  • 2 Tbsp Tomato Paste
  • 3 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp Porcini Powder
  • 1/2 Tsp Red Chili Flake
  • 1/2 Tsp Fresh Cracked Black Pepper
  • Kosher Salt To Taste

Instructions

  • Tomato Sauce Instructions:
    In a large sauce pot on medium high heat, add the extra virgin olive oil. When oil is hot add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic to the pan. Sauté vegetables until slightly browned and tender. Stir in the porcini powder, red chili flake, black pepper, tomato paste and a large pinch of kosher salt to the sautéed vegetable mixture. Sauté stirring constantly for a few minutes. Add the red wine and let cook down until almost evaporated. Once wine is cooked down, stir in the crushed tomatoes, basil and fresh oregano. Turn heat down to low and simmer. Let simmer for about an hour to thicken and let flavors meld. Add kosher salt if needed then set aside for assembly.

    Eggplant Parmesan Instructions:
    Toss sliced eggplant rounds with a heaping Tbsp of kosher salt and set in a colander in the sink. Let salted eggplant sit for around 45 minutes. Rinse salt off of the eggplant and lay out on a paper towel lined sheet tray to drain. While eggplant is draining, put together your breading station. whisk together the all purpose flour, fresh cracked black pepper and 1 tbsp kosher salt in a small bowl. In a second small bowl, add the eggs and whisk together. In a third bowl, mix the seasoned Italian breadcrumbs and 1 cup of grated parmesan. Bread each piece of drained eggplant. first dip the eggplant piece in flour and knock off any extra. Next dip the floured eggplant into the whisked eggs. Finally dredge in seasoned breadcrumbs and set aside for frying. Line a sheet tray with paper towels for a landing station. Put the 1 quart of canola oil in a large sauté pan and turn onto medium high heat. Once oil reaches 350 degrees, fry breaded eggplant on both sides in batches until golden brown and crispy. Place each piece of fried eggplant on the paper towel lined sheet tray to drain. Once all of the eggplant is fried, set aside for eggplant parmesan assembly.

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

    In a large bowl, mix together the shredded mozzarella, the rest of the grated parmesan and the chopped Italian parsley. Set Aside for assembly.
    To form the eggplant parmesan, take a 13” x 9” casserole dish and spread the bottom with a layer of tomato sauce. Add a layer of fried eggplant. Top eggplant with a sprinkle of the cheese mixture. Put a few dollops tomato sauce on top of the cheese. Repeat process until all of the eggplant is used. Should be 3 layers of eggplant. The final layer being topped with sauce then the rest of the cheese mixture to finish. Put eggplant parmesan in the preheated oven and bake for 45-55 minutes. Cheese should be golden brown and bubbly. Once eggplant parmesan is finish, pull from oven and let rest for at least 30 minutes before slicing. Serve with a garnish of chiffonade basil and enjoy with LangeTwins Macotera 09 Barbera.

Chef Nick Kubitz

Our partnerships with talented chefs always start with the wines. When planning for any event, we consider the wine first before we move on to the challenge of asking our team to develop a meal that reflects a unique synergy. We are grateful to have a homegrown guy as one of our ‘aces’ in the kitchen. He is definitely a man who demonstrates a unique sense of tasting, pairing, and creating food recognizing the efforts made in the vineyard to produce our fabulous varietals.

At first glance, Chef Nick Kubitz looks like he should be a bouncer at your favorite club - big, burly, gritty but with a quiet confidence that owns the room. And actually he has clawed his way to the top with those jobs while earning his culinary management and hospitality degree at the Art Institute of California, San Diego. The past decade has found him trying his hand at a BBQ restaurant, managing a food truck, and working alongside Michelin starred chefs in San Francisco.

Kubitz has developed a passion for the best and freshest ingredients that San Joaquin County has to offer, and his past experience of overseeing a large kitchen in a San Francisco tech company allowed him to harness and integrate the tastes of ingredients from around the world to satisfy the many cultures of that particular employee base.

And he is not one to shy aware from pressure – Kubitz has twice joined us at the world-renowned Aspen Food and Wine show creating a series of private food experiences to tease guests away from the main tent headliner chefs. His knowledge of Lodi wines, the appellation, and terroir all layer into the choices he makes in the kitchen to offer what we would consider a ‘perfect pairing’.

We sit up nights trying to figure out how to shackle Kubitz to our kitchen – we block his calendar every chance we get, but support his dream of owning a unique fine dining company called Range – a place that will showcase the range of his talents and experiences.

You’ll find unique crafted recipes from Kubitz within this blog, give them a try and send us your thoughts and of course, a photo of the final product!

Pairing | 2018 Barbera – Macotera 09 Vineyard

Bright red fruit notes with soft spice.
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