Eggplant Au Gratin

I found this recipe in a french cookbook. Since I've been searching for more veggie dishes I thought this one sounded good. Now, I know not everyone is a fan of eggplant and honestly, I wasn't either for a long time. My mom made me an eggplant sandwich once though and I realized that I really do like it just not the skin. So, now I love it but it has to be peeled. =0) If you are vegetarian or on a diet, eggplant can come in handy! It's a great meat substitute because it's thick and filling. I'll post the eggplant sandwich on here as well but first, the Eggplant Au Gratin (minus the cheese). =0)

Cut off the ends and peel one egg plant.

Slice the eggplant in at least 3/4 of an inch sized slices (it shrinks down significantly)

Drizzle olive oil in the bottom of a shallow pan or glass 9x13 till the bottom is well coated.

Sprinkle with about 1/2 tsp of Italian seasonings

Layer the eggplant in the pan overlapping each other

Mix together Italian bread crumbs and olive oil and sprinkle on top (the recipe called for grated Parmesan mixed in as well but I omitted it)

You can drizzle a little more olive oil on top if you'd like to

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 min or until tender, bubbly, and bread crumbs are crunchy.

Variations:

-you can use plain bread crumbs mixed with about 1/2 tsp Italian herb seasonings instead.

-you can add about 1/4 cup grated Parmesan to the bread crumb mixture.

-you can add other veggies and layer them overlapping each other in rows...such as sliced zucchini and sliced tomatoes. Tomatoes go really well with eggplant. So lay a piece of eggplant and then a row of zucchini and then a row of tomatoes and repeat.

-in the pictures I used half an eggplant and a pan that was half the size of a 9x13.