parmesan cheese | dmarie-dining

A steak, pork chop or chicken might be the star of the show on a plate but all stars need a co-star to be truly successful.

Thinking of new side dishes isn’t always easy. Sometimes it depends on what vegetables are in season or it may be as simple as what is in the refrigerator. On the day I decided to make Eggplant with Crispy Parmesan Cheese I just happened to have an eggplant calling my name and begging to be created into something delicious. I didn’t want to turn it into a casserole or a stew so I settled on baking the eggplant.

I like easy and this recipe is just that… easy. There is not a lot of fuss when all you need to do is slice the eggplant and mix together a cheesy topping. Since my sons are learning how to cook a little more I think I will pass this recipe on to them to impress the women in their lives.

Eggplant with Crispy Parmesan

Ingredients:

1 medium sized eggplant

½ cup shredded fresh Parmesan cheese

½ cup panko bread crumbs

½ tsp dried oregano

¼ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

¼ tsp garlic powder

¼ tsp smoked paprika

salt

cracked black pepper

olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix together Parmesan cheese, panko bread crumbs, oregano, red pepper flakes, smoked paprika and garlic powder in a small bowl. Set aside.

Slice eggplant into ½ inch rings. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt and cracked black pepper. Top each slice of eggplant with the cheese topping and drizzle with a little more olive oil. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes until eggplant is fully cooked and topping is brown and crispy.

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Potatoes. Baking potatoes, sweet potatoes or red potatoes. I love then all no matter how you fix them. I also love cheese so of course the combination of potatoes and cheese is always a winner in my book.

Gooey cheese is good on potatoes but I liked the idea of potatoes with a cheese crusted skin. Parmesan cheese is usually the cheese of choice when creating a crusty cheese coating. At least that is what I have seen when watching cooking shows. I use grated parmesan cheese whenever I make parmesan chicken so why not use it on potatoes.

Besides the nice crusty texture on the potatoes the blend of seasonings gives the potatoes a nice flavor. My family likes the taste of spice so I added red pepper flakes to the cheese topping to give the potatoes extra heat. The next time you want to turn up the flavor on your potatoes add a little parmesan cheese. This is a wonderful side dish I think you will enjoy.

Parmesan Crusted Potato Wedges

Ingredients:
4 baking potatoes (can mix with sweet potatoes)
1 medium onion sliced
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
2 tbsp olive oil
½ tbsp parsley chopped
½ tbsp salt
½ tbsp black pepper
½ tsp seasoned salt
½ tsp thyme
½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
paprika
cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Wash potatoes then cut into wedges. Spray the bottom of a baking dish with cooking spray then line with sliced onions and sprinkle with seasoned salt. Toss potatoes with olive oil in a large bowl. Add potatoes to baking dish then season with salt, black pepper and top with paprika. Mix grated parmesan cheese, thyme, parsley and red pepper flakes in a small bowl. Sprinkle cheese mixture evenly over potatoes. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until potatoes are tender and golden.

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