Eggplant Parmesan

Ingredients:

1 medium eggplant
3 egg whites
1 ½ oz freshly grated Parmesan cheese
¾ c whole wheat panko crumbs
½ t garlic powder
½ t dried basil flakes
½ t oregano
1 c tomato basil pasta sauce (I used Francesco Rinaldi To Be Healthy Tomato & Basil sauce)
¾ c shredded reduced fat 2% mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly mist 2 baking sheets with olive oil cooking spray and set aside.
2. Slice eggplant horizontally into ¼” thin rounds. In a small bowl, whisk the egg whites until the slightest bit bubbly. In a separate bowl or Ziploc bag, combine panko crumbs, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, basil and oregano and stir or shake to thoroughly mix. Transfer mixture to a shallow dish. Dip each eggplant round with egg whites, allowing excess to drip off, and then place flat onto crumb mixture, pressing down a few times with your fingers. Flip eggplant and do the same on the other side to coat, then transfer to baking sheet. Repeat with remaining pieces. When all eggplant pieces are on the sheets, lightly mist the tops with olive oil cooking spray.
3. Bake for 12-15 minutes (until bottoms start to turn golden brown), remove from oven and flip pieces and then continue baking for another 12-15 minutes. Remove eggplant from oven and spoon some of the pasta sauce onto the center of each round, then top each with mozzarella cheese. Return to oven and bake another 5 minute until cheese is melted.
Yields 6 servings. Weight Watchers Points Plus: 4 per serving, 153 calories per serving