This Might Be the Best Reason to Make Eggplant Parm

It had been a couple of years since I last ate eggplant parmigiana. I felt somewhat indifferent about it, to be honest, but after a recent culinary project left our fridge stocked with more eggplants than any drawer or shelf could handle, it felt necessary to revisit the dish. 

When I say we had a lot of eggplants, what I really mean is we had way too many eggplants, so stacking as many as possible into a baking dish to feed a group of new and old friends that we invited over for dinner made sense. I wanted to give each element of the parmigiana a special touch: Precisely-sliced, pre-salted, and carefully-patted-dry eggplant, evenly brushed with good quality olive oil on both sides before roasting. Tomato sauce with onions, garlic, basil, and a small spoonful of crushed Calabrian chili peppers for a hint of heat, simmered for enough time to thicken and amplify flavor. The correct amount of freshly-grated Parmigiano Reggiano (which is, in fact, a rather giant brick), plus fresh mozzarella for a creamy, luscious, and bubbly-golden brown layer. To add to all of that? Well-seasoned and toasted panko (not exactly traditional, no, but so very crunchy and tasty).