Oven baked Eggplant Parmesan

I improvised this recipe from Martha Stewart because I wanted to put the Eggplant over pasta, not in a casserole. 

Ingredients

• Olive oil or cooking spray, for baking sheets
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup plain dry breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 large eggplants, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
• store-bought spaghetti sauce
• Fresh sliced shredded mozzarella
• angel hair pasta

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush 2 baking sheets with oil; set aside. In a wide, shallow bowl, whisk together eggs and 2 tablespoons water. 
   In another bowl, combine 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, 1/2 cup Parmesan, oregano, and basil; season with salt and pepper.
2. Dip eggplant slices in egg mixture, letting excess drip off, then dredge in breadcrumb mixture, coating well; place on baking sheets. Bake until golden brown on bottom, 20 to 25 minutes. 
   While the eggplant is in the oven, cook the pasta per box instructions. After draining pasta, add the store-bought sauce and stir to mix. 
   Turn the eggplant slices; continue baking until browned on other side, 20 to 25 minutes more. 

Butternut Squash Gnocchi

I LOVE butternut squash. It is probably my favorite of the fall squashes. So when I found a recipe for butternut squash gnocchi, I knew I needed to try it! I was a little disappointed after making it, that you loose a lot of the squash's flavor, but it was still delicious with a kale salad on the side. Next time, I may try to make butternut squash ravioli to try and maintain the sweetness. 

Ingredients:
1 large butternut squash (about 2.5-3 lbs)
3 1/4 cups flour (plus additional for rolling out gnocchi)
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, slightly beaten
Freshly grated Parmesan for serving

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Peel and slice squash and roast on a lined baking sheet for 30-40 minutes until very tender. Remove and let cool.

2. Once cool, puree squash in a blender or food processor then transfer to a large bowl and add flour, egg and salt. Mix until a dough forms then knead on a heavely floured surface until smooth.

Almost finished kneading

3. Divide gnocchi dough in half and roll each half into a large, thin rope then cut the rope into small one inch slices. At this point you can either proceed to cook the gnocchi or you can freeze the pasta until ready to cook! (I cooked half & froze half)

4. Once the water is boiling, drop the gnocchi in and boil until they float. Then drain the gnocchi, put them back into the pot, add parmesan cheese & the sauce of your choice.