Skip to main content

Roasted Eggplant Lasagna


I found an old recipe from Vegetarian Times that called for roasting eggplant and tomatoes. The cheese filling included ricotta, mozzarella, and tofu. As I was assembling the lasagna, I realized I didn't want to follow the instructions. That is a great thing about lasagna -- it's very forgiving. Use what's in the fridge for the vegetables, and use what's in the fridge for the filling, too. Very, very forgiving -- don't be scared.
In my experience, Vegetarian Times -- especially from the late 90s and early 2000s -- is extremely hit-or-miss in its recipes. And I approach their recipes with great skepticism. Indeed, I approached this recipe with great skepticism and changed much about it -- dropping the tofu (which would probably actually be quite a good part of the filling) and, most importantly, drowning the noodles in tomato sauce.

Roasted Eggplant Lasagna
 Vegetarian Times, October 2001
Original recipe:
1 1/2 lb eggplant, peeled, quartered legnthwise and cut into strips
4 medium tomatoes, halved lengthwise (2 lbs)
1/4 c basil, shredded (fresh)
9 oz spinach, or Swiss chard, stemmed
3/4 c mozzarella, shredded
3/4 c ricotta
8 oz tofu (soft), mashed with a fork
2 T Parmesan, grated (divided
1 egg white
6 no-boil lasagna noodles
1/4 c Asiago cheese, grated
Preheat to 450. Coat 2 roasting pans and one 8" square baking dish with Pam.
Place eggplant in one roasting pan and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Place tomato halves in second roasting pan, skin side up. Roast eggplant and tomatoes until tender, tossing eggplant occasionally, 30-40 minutes. Remove and discard tomato skins. Reserve 1/4 c tomatoes. Place eggplant, remaining tomatoes and their juices in large bowl. Add basil and toss, using spatula to break up tomatoes; set aside. Reduce oven to 375.
Changes I made:

  • Did not bother peeling eggplant
  • Did not add tofu, and instead used whatever mozzarella and ricotta was in the fridge
  • Because I used extra cheese (see above), it was difficult to mix. So, I used an extra egg to make it easier
  • Used as money noodles as it took to complete the lasagna (why limit to just 6 noodles?)
  • Poured globs of canned tomato sauce over the lasagna


Steam spinach or chard utnil wilted, 4-6 minutes. Set aside to cool. Chop.

In large bowl, combine mozzarella, ricotta, tofu, 1 T Parmesan and egg white; mix well.

Place 2 lasagna noodles in bottom of prepared baking dish.


Top with half of the cheese mixture, half of the eggplant strips and half of the spinach. Repeat layers and top final layer of pasta with reserved 1/4 c tomatoes.

Sprinkle with Asiago cheese and remaining 1 T Parmesan. Loosely cover lasagna with aluminum foil and bake 30 minutes, uncover and continue baking until cheese is golden, about 15 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cauliflower and Arugula Soup with Tibetan Flatbread

Because the weather is chilly, and because I had a bag of arugula from the last farm box taunting me, only to be compounded by a fresh bag of arugula from the recent farm box, I decided to try this soup I found from a blog associated with a California-based CSA, Eat Outside the Box . Cauliflower and Arugula Soup Eat Outside the Box farm blog 1 head cauliflower 1 red or white onion, peeled and chopped 3/4 lb zucchini, peeled and chopped 1/4 lb arugula 15 oz stock 15 oz water 1 T olive oil salt and pepper Parmesan cheese, grated First, let me state how important it is to wash your arugula before using it. I don't know about you, but sometimes I get lazy and rely on the "well, if it doesn't kill me, it'll just make me stronger" approach to washing my foods and vegetables. This laziness is only enhanced when the food I'm considering has come from an organic farm. But leaving aside all the various things that can get on the food
2 comments
Read more

Mayocoba Beans with Green Chiles

I love this dish so much that I can barely stand it. Delicious the night it was made, and fantastic as leftovers throughout the week. Mayocoba beans are easily replaced -- try pintos, if you can't find mayocobas. Mayocoba Beans with Green Chiles Baptism of Fire 3-4 green chiles, roasted and chopped 1 onion, chopped 1 clove garlic, minced 1 T lard or olive oil 1/2 tsp oregano 1 tsp cumin pepper 1 c mayocoba beans, dry 3 c water 1 tsp salt Cook the green chiles, onion, garlic, oregano, cumin, and black pepper in the fat until the onions begin to caramelize. Add the water and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and let the beans sit, uncovered, for an hour. You may drain the water to remove some of the slightly indigestible sugars that cause gassiness. If you decide to drain them, add enough water back into the pot to cover the beans with about 2" of water above the beans for cooking.  Bring the beans back to a boil and cook, until tender. This will take
1 comment
Read more

Chilled Soba Noodles with Cucumber, Snow Peas, and Radishes

  We destroyed these. In a good way. It's a lovely-to-look-at dish, chock full of vegetables. More so than I had anticipated, and more so than most soba noodle dishes I've made in the past. We absolutely gobbled this up! Served here with a five-spice chicken and smashed cucumbers.  The original calls for nori. We don't love nori so left it out. Maybe we are missing a part of the experience, but even without it, this was delicious.  Chilled Soba Noodles with Cucumber, Snow Peas, and Radishes Cook's Illustrated 8 oz soba noodles 3 T white miso paste 3 T mirin 2 T toasted sesame oil 1 T sesame seeds 1 tsp ginger, grated 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes 1/3 English cucumber, quartered lengthwise, seeded, sliced thin 4 oz snow peas, strings removed, cut lengthwise into matchsticks 4 radishes, trimmed, halved, sliced thin into half-moons 3 scallions, sliced thin Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Stir in noodles and cook according to package directions, stirring occasionally
Post a Comment
Read more