Public service announcement: NO NEED TO BE A VEGETARIAN to totally fall in love with this eggplant lasagna! If my meat-lover husband can devour this lasagna in one sitting and not notice the meat is missing, then that tells me we’re in good shape for the blog!
My idea behind this dish is that I wanted to make it simple and healthy. So let’s start with simple…
I used raw ingredients, that only required slicing, and baked them all together in a skillet (or casserole dish). There is no need to pre-cook anything or get out a million pots and pans (which means less dishes…yay!).
For this recipe, I would highly encourage the use of a mandoline to slice your “layers”. It is one of my favorite kitchen appliances, and can cut you a whole veggie in about 30 seconds flat! (click the link below for more information on mandolines!)
I used a mandoline to thinly slice a sweet potato, and then a sharp knife to cut the eggplant approximately 1/4 in. thick width wise. Chop an onion, grab some spinach, mix spices, and layer as follows:
- sweet potato
- eggplant
- spices
- onion
- spinach
- sauce
- cheese
(repeat one more time)
Second, I didn’t want to use meat, or pasta, because I love eggplant and strongly believe it should get its time to shine every now and again! Therefore, I substituted pasta with sweet potatoes, and meat with our star of the show…eggplant!
The sweet potato acts as a low carb substitute for pasta and gives the lasagna structure, while the eggplant provides high fiber content and is rich with nutrients (such as vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants). Instead of using traditional mozzarella, a cheese derived from cow’s milk that causes inflammation, I used goat cheese crumbles which contains less lactose and is typically easier to digest.
Once all of your layers are assembled, cover in foil, bake for 50 min, then remove foil and bake for another 25 min. You can serve as a single dish, or with a side salad!
Vegetarian Eggplant Parmesan
Ingredients
- 1 medium to large eggplant skinned
- 1 large sweet potato skinned
- 1/2 yellow onion chopped
- 2 cups spinach
- 1 36 oz jar marinara sauce
- 4 oz crumbled goat cheese
- 2 tbsp oregano
- 2 tbsp parsley
- 2 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp salt and pepper each
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a large skillet or baking dish.
- In a small mixing bowl, mix all spices and set aside.
- Using a mandoline, slice sweet potato into round, thin pieces and set aside. Using a knife, cut the width of the eggplant to approximately 1/4 in. thick, set aside. Chop onion and set aside.
- Take greased baking dish, and line the bottom with half the amount of sweet potato slices. Then layer half of the eggplant pieces directly on top.
- Take spice mixture, and evenly sprinkle half the amount over eggplant.
- Take half of chopped onion, and 1 cup of spinach and sprinkle over eggplant. Spread half of marinara sauce overtop and spread using a spatula.
- Evenly sprinkle half of goat cheese over top marinara. Repeat the same process again, starting with a layer of sweet potatoes.
- Wrap tinfoil over top and bake for 50 min. remove tinfoil and bake for another 25 min. Let cool, garnish with extra herbs (if desired), and serve!
Made this the other night and it was amazing! I added a layer of zucchini since I had one around I wanted to use up and I used Pecorino Romano cheese (easier on your gut for its made from sheep’s milk, not a cow!) for I didn’t have goat cheese on hand (also easy on your gut) . I will surely make it again.