Roasted Eggplant Lasagna

It’s been a very wet, rainy weekend in San Francisco which means its the perfect time to start making some Fall appropriate dinners. With weather like this, it is particularly nice to make a recipe with plenty of leftovers that can be reheated for lunch or dinner later in the week. This recipe 100% fits the bill. I always love lasagna (see a pumpkin lasagna recipe here), but this is a nice variation with a roasted eggplant filling base. Definitely can be prepared ahead and then baked the day of serving for an awesome prep ahead meal you are sure to like.

Ingredients:

• 1 large eggplant
• 8 oz low-fat ricotta
• no boil lasagna noodles
•  1-2 C shredded mozzarella
• marinara sauce
• 1 egg
• 1/2 C basil chiffonade
• 1 T salt
• 1/2 T red peper
• 1/2 T oregano
• 3 cloves garlic
• extra virgin olive oil

Recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Split the eggplant in half, lightly brush with olive oil, and place cut side down on a baking sheet. Wrap garlic cloves in foil. Bake for 25-30 minutes until tender.

3. Allow the eggplant and garlic to cool. Scrape out the filling of the eggplant and combine with ricotta, salt, red pepper, oregano, basil, and egg.

4. In a baking dish, put a thin layer of marinara. Top with lasagna sheets, ricotta mixture and a little bit of mozzarella. Repeat starting with another layer of marinara until all the ricotta mixture is used. Top last layer with remaining marinara and mozzarella.

5. Bake uncovered at 325 degrees for 30 minutes. If preparing ahead, bring to room temperature before baking.

6. Serve hot with a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon and enjoy!!

 Note: I drew inspiration from a roasted eggplant meat dish I saw on the food network. I can’t remember who made it or what show it was on, otherwise I’d share their recipe. Sorry!!