Eggplant Lasagna ☺

This Eggplant Lasagna is eggplant with a lasagna filling. This dish is better served the day after it is cooked. Warm it up, covered, in 300°F oven for 20 minutes, or until bubbly. Let it sit for five minutes before serving

Yield: 6 servings | Prep Time: 1 hrs. 00 mins. | Cook time: 0 hrs. 30 mins. | Difficulty: Medium.

Ingredients

1 medium eggplant
kosher salt
1/4 cup olive oil
pan spray
1 egg, whisked
8 oz ricotta cheese (part skim is okay)
4 oz mozzarella cheese, grated (part skim is okay)
2 oz parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp fennel seeds, ground
1/2 tsp black peppercorns, ground
4 tbsp finely chopped parsley
3 cups Happy's Tomato Sauce (or your own favorite)

Instructions

Arrange the eggplant slices on a rack. Sprinkle liberally with kosher salt. Turn the eggplant slices, and salt the other side. Set aside for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Blot both sides of the eggplant slices with a paper towel, brushing away any remaining salt. Lightly spray a large baking sheet with the pan spray. Brush one side of the slices with the olive oil. Arrange on the baking sheet, oil side down. Brush the other side of the eggplant slices. Then roast in the oven for 10 minutes. Turn the slices over and roast for another 5 minutes. Remove from the oven.

While the eggplant is roasting, thoroughly mix together the egg, cheeses, and spices (but not the parsley). Taste for salt, and add salt as necessary.

Reduce the oven heat to 350°F. Spray a large casserole or baking dish with pan spray. Spread one half of the tomato sauce in the bottom of the dish. Arrange the eggplant slices to cover completely the bottom of the baking dish. Spread one half of the cheese mixture on the eggplant. Top with the remaining tomato sauce. Stir the parsley into the remaining cheese mixture, and drop small pieces of the cheese over the tomato sauce, covering the surface as uniformly as possible.

Bake, uncovered, for 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven, cover and let sit for 10 to 15 minutes before serving. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Happy's Tomato Sauce ☺

Happy's Tomato Sauce is a thick, chunky sauce that's great for pizza and pasta. If it is too chunky for your taste, just run it through your food processor or blender for a few seconds.

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
3 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
3 celery stalks, diced
1 large green bell pepper, seeded and diced
28 oz can San Marzano whole tomatoes in juice
28 oz can puréed tomatoes
2 14-oz cans diced tomatoes
2 bay leaves, broken in half
1 tsp black pepper, ground
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, to taste
1 tbsp dried basil
1 tbsp dried oregano
1/4 cup sugar

Instructions

In a large soup pot, sauté the onions in the olive oil over medium high heat until the onions begin to brown. Add the garlic, and cook for another minute or so. Stir in the celery and green pepper, and sauté until the vegetables are limp, but brightly colored.

Drain the can of San Marzano tomatoes into the soup pot. Working quickly, crush each tomato between your fingers into the pot. Add the other cans of tomatoes (do not drain the diced tomatoes) to the soup pot. Bring the pot back to a bubbling boil.

Stir in all of the remaining ingredients. Reduce the heat so that the pot is bubbling, but not quite boiling. Leave the pot uncovered and continue cooking for 3 - 4 hours until it is as thick as you want. Stir the sauce every 15 minutes or so, more often as the sauce thickens.

Yield: 1 quart (8 servings)

Prep Time: 1 hrs. 00 mins.

Cook time: 4 hrs. 00 mins.

Total time: 5 hrs. 0 mins.