Eggplant parm-nooch-san

What is eggplant parm-nooch-san? It's eggplant parmesan sans cheese...and it's all about the nutritional yeast. The eggplant in this dish has a nice exterior with a great crunch from the nuts, but was fork tender and got all up in the marinara sauce. This is a great way to shake up my usual routine of pasta with sauteed veggies (although with slightly more prep time)!

Eggplant parm-nooch-san
1 eggplant (cut into rounds 1/3 inch thick)
1/4 C walnuts
3 Tbsp (or more!!!!!!) nooch
2 tsp flax seed meal
1/2 tsp garlic powder
coarse sea salt
fresh ground black pepper
optional: pinch red pepper flakes

0. Preheat the oven to 375 F.
1. This first step is to draw water and some bitter flavor out of the eggplant. Rub the front and back of each piece with the sea salt and set in a colander. Let sit for 15-30 minutes. Lastly, dab off the salt and moisture from the eggplants with a paper towel.
2. In a food processor pulse walnuts, nooch, flax meal, garlic, salt and pepper to taste.
3. My eggplants still had some moisture on the outside and I could dip directly in the dry mix and it stuck pretty well. If the dry mix isn't sticking, dip your eggplants first into some veggie broth or unsweetened soy milk. Shake off the excess "breading" and place rounds onto oiled baking sheet.
4. Bake for 30-40 minutes, flipping at least once.
Optional: When you take out of the oven, pan fry the eggplant in a skillet with EVOO on med-high for 2-3 minutes on a side (this gives a nice texture!)
5. Serve immediately over your favorite pasta with homemade marinara sauce.

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