Eggplant Parmesan Lasagna
This has been on my list of recipes to make for a while. A couple of months ago my husband and I attended restaurant week in Washington, D.C. and we were blown away by Il Piatto, a new Italian restaurant in the city. One of our favorite dishes was the eggplant parmesan. I knew I wanted to make a lasagna version to reheat throughout the week! (Also, if you love eggplant dishes and you are in the the D.C. area you must try the crispy eggplant at Sisters Thai). Okay okay, back to the recipe.
A lot of eggplant lasagna recipes leave out the bread crumbs on the eggplant. I think taking this extra step makes the dish a thousand times better! You simply mix some Italian seasonings with bread crumbs, dip the sliced eggplant in an egg wash, dredge it through the crumbs, and then bake it before layering it with all the goodness!
Eggplant - Eggplant really is the star of the recipe and honestly can’t think of a single substitute that would get the job done.
Bread crumbs, parsley, basil, oregano - Like I mentioned above, taking the extra step to add the bread crumbs to the eggplant before baking it really does make this recipe so much better!
Ground turkey - You could definitely leave out the ground turkey if you want a vegetarian recipe, but I wanted to add a little more protein for some substance!
Yellow onion and garlic - Doesn’t garlic and onion make every recipe better?! If you decide to skip the meat, you still need to saute the onion and garlic. It adds extra flavor to the marinara sauce!
Marinara sauce - Use a jar of high quality marinara sauce to get a really good flavor! You could also make your own if you’d like, but I kept this step simple.
Ricotta, parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese - That’s right there’s not one, not two, but THREE different cheeses in this lasagna making it so flavorful and delicious.
Fresh basil - Nothing beats the smell of fresh basil, and any recipe it’s added to immediately gets a flavor boost.
Eggplant Parmesan Lasagna
Ingredients
- 1 eggplant
- Salt
- 1 cup bread crumbs
- 1/2 tsp parsley
- 1/2 tsp basil
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 2 eggs
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1/2 yellow onion chopped fine
- 3 cloves minced garlic
- 1 jar (24 oz) marinara sauce
- 1 (16 oz) container ricotta cheese
- 1 cup fresh shaved parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
- ~4 large fresh basil leaves chopped fine
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (for topping of lasagna)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Cut eggplant lengthwise into ~1/8" pieces. Lay out eggplant and generously sprinkle with salt. Let sit for 10 minutes and then use a paper towel to dab off the salt and moisture. (Don't skip this step, it removes excess moisture from the eggplant).
- Whisk together 2 eggs in a bowl. In a separate bowl add bread crumbs, dried basil, parsley, and oregano. Individually place the eggplant in the egg bowl and make sure it's coated, dredge through the crumb mixture and place on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 15 minutes, flip, and bake for 10 more minutes.
- Remove eggplant from oven and decrease temperature to 350°F.
- Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add ground turkey, onion, and garlic to skillet. Let cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until turkey is cooked through. Stir in jar of marinara sauce and let simmer ~2 more minutes.
- Mix together ricotta, parmesan, egg, and chopped basil.
- Start to assemble lasagna in a casserole dish. Place half of the meat sauce in the bottom of the dish, layer with half of the eggplant, and finally half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Layer again with the meat sauce, eggplant, and cheese mixture.
- Finally, top with shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes, and then broil for 2 minutes to lightly brown the mozzarella cheese. Watch carefully so it does not burn.