An easy recipe for keto eggplant Parmesan made with almond flour. No need for frying! This flavorful dish is baked in your oven.
If you like eggplant, I am certain that you will consider this recipe a delicacy.
Tender, flavorful eggplant slices coated in a crunchy coating, smothered in marinara sauce and cheese and baked until the cheese is melted. What’s not to like?
My mother in law’s recipe
I love eggplant. The fact that it’s good for you is just a nice bonus as far as I’m concerned. My mother in law used to make eggplants in tomato sauce. She would coat the eggplant slices in batter, fry them, then simmer in tomato sauce.
It was an exquisite dish, but it required a lot of work, especially the frying part.
Why I prefer to bake this keto eggplant parmesan
Frying eggplants is a challenge because they tend to absorb ridiculous amounts of oil.
One trick my mother in law used was to salt the eggplant rounds prior to frying them. This removes moisture and allows for crispier eggplants while using less oil. Another step in this complex recipe!
I am a lazy cook. There’s no way I am going to fry eggplants. So in this recipe, I bake them instead.
High-heat baking achieves similar results to salting and frying, with much less effort.
The ingredients you’ll need
You’ll only need a few simple ingredients to make this flavorful dish (exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below):
Cooking spray: I use avocado oil. This oil has a neutral flavor and a high smoke point, making it an ideal cooking oil.
Eggplant: You can leave it unpeeled.
To season the eggplant: Salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
For the coating: Egg and almond meal.
To top the dish: Marinara sauce, shredded mozzarella, and grated parmesan.
Chopped parsley: Used mostly for garnish.
How to make keto eggplant parmesan
Using the oven makes it very easy. The detailed instructions are in the recipe card below. Here are the basic steps:
1. You start by seasoning eggplant slices.
2. Next, dip them in egg and dredge in almond meal.
3. Spray with oil and bake for about 20 minutes at 425°F.
4. Top with marinara sauce and cheese, and bake a few more minutes to heat through and melt the cheese.
5. Garnish with parsley and serve.
Almond meal replaces the breadcrumbs
As you can see, I use almond meal in this keto eggplant parmesan recipe. This is a nutritious ingredient that keeps this dish keto and gluten-free. It’s best to use a coarse almond meal (product link in the recipe card below) rather than fine almond flour. But if all you have is almond flour, it will work too.
Should I peel the eggplant?
I don’t. Some people worry that the eggplant skin will give this dish a bitter taste, but I don’t detect any bitter aftertaste.
And the dish looks so much prettier with the dark-colored eggplant skin! However, if you worry about it, there’s no harm in peeling the eggplant.
What kind of cheese to use?
Since it’s an Italian dish, it makes sense to use Italian cheese that melts easily when baked. I like to use a combination of mozzarella and Parmesan. Another good cheese that can replace the mozzarella is provolone.
What to serve with keto eggplant parmesan?
It depends. If you consider it a side dish, you can serve it with any meat or poultry, such as baked skin-on chicken breast or baked meatballs.
But this dish can easily serve as a substantial and filling main course. In which case you might want to serve it with a simple salad of tossed greens, or perhaps with some steamed broccoli.
What about leftovers?
You can keep leftovers in the fridge, in a sealed container, for up to 3 days. They actually taste good cold!
But you can also reheat them very gently in the microwave on 50% power, or in a 350F oven for 10 minutes.
Check out these other eggplant recipes!
I really like eggplants and so does my husband (the kids are less enthusiastic). So in addition to this keto eggplant parmesan recipe, I have several more excellent eggplant recipes on this blog. A few of my favorites are:
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Keto Eggplant Parmesan
INGREDIENTS
- Cooking spray (I use avocado oil)
- 1 large eggplant (1 lb.)
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 cups almond meal
- 1/2 cup marinara sauce
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and spray it with cooking spray.
- Slice the unpeeled eggplant into 1/2-inch rounds, discarding the ends. Season the eggplant slices with salt, pepper and garlic powder.
- In a small baking dish, whisk the egg with a tablespoon of water. In another baking dish (I used a 8X11-inch dish), add the almond meal.
- Dip each eggplant round in the egg, then dredge in the almond meal. Arrange the coated eggplant slices on the prepared baking sheet. Spray with cooking spray.
- Bake the eggplant until tender, about 20 minutes per side.
- Remove the eggplants from the oven, but keep the oven on. Top each eggplant with marinara sauce, then top with mozzarella and finally with Parmesan.
- Return the baking sheet to the oven. Bake the eggplant until cheese is melted, about 5 more minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve.
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Vered DeLeeuw, LL.M., CNC, has been following a low-carb real-food diet and blogging about it since 2011. She's a Certified Nutrition Coach (NASM-CNC), has taken courses at the Harvard School of Public Health, and has earned a Nutrition and Healthy Living Certificate from Cornell University. Her work has appeared in several major media outlets, including Healthline, HuffPost, Today, Women's Health, Shape, Reader's Digest, and Better Homes and Gardens.