I absolutely love this dish and so will your eggplant challenged family as well as all of you that are wanting to lower your carb intake! Think lasagna without the noodles. Still with me?

Eggplant is absolutely delicious, but only if handled properly! If and only if, you can’t stomach it, then zucchini or yellow squash would be an excellent alternative.

As you can see by earlier posts, I am not an exact cook – I give lots of options depending on tastes. I will add to recipes or leave things out depending on either what I have on hand, what I’m trying to get rid of, or what I think would sound good. So when I give you either/ors below, don’t get frustrated, just see what option sounds the best and go with it because any combo works!

Grilled Eggplant Lasagna
1 cup or so – EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 large or 1 large and 1 small eggplant (this depends on how much eggplant you like – eggplant shrinks when you cook it)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 small onion chopped
4 garlic cloves minced
1 – 15 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1/2 jar of your favorite marinara sauce
A handful of any fresh Italian herbs minced, such as: basil, thyme, oregano – or you can use jarred – it’s up to you!
1/2 pound deli-sliced capicola hot ham or your favorite sliced deli ham or leftover chopped chicken or a combo of the two
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
6 pieces deli-sliced provolone
16 oz package shredded mozzerela
6 cups mixed greens with your favorite vinaigrette dressing or 2 tblsp. red wine vinegar

Preheat oven to 450.

Eggplant*
Lightly brush the eggplant with the EVOO on both sides and arrange on a baking sheet.

Season with salt (lightly) and pepper and place in the oven. Salting eggplant takes out the bitter taste. You may need to overlap your eggplant on the baking sheet and that is ok, or you may have to use a second baking sheet if the eggplant doesn’t fit on one sheet. Roast for 15 – 18 minutes, turning once until eggplant is lightly brown. Remove your eggplant from the oven and set your oven to 350.
*If you are using zucchini, the instructions are the same, though cooking time may be closer to 10 – 15 minutes.

Sauce
Heat 2 tbsps. EVOO in a medium sauce pan over medium to medium high heat. Add the chopped garlic and onion. Cook for 10 minutes until soft, stirring frequently. Add the marinara, crushed tomatoes, salt and pepper to taste and heat through. Simmer for 5 – 10 minutes.

Here’s the fun part!
Get out a 9×9 square pan and ladle a little of your tomato sauce in the bottom of the pan to cover. Add a layer of eggplant, capicola/ham/or chopped chicken, 6 slices of provolone or 1/2 cup of mozzarella, 1/4 cup grated Parmesan and your handful of herbs. Repeat your layer of eggplant, then cover with sauce, sprinkle with shredded mozzarella to your liking and grated Parmesan and whalla, it’s oven ready!

Bake in 350 oven for 30 minutes. While it’s baking, prepare some salad greens and right before the eggplant lasagna is heated through, drizzle your salad with your favorite dressing and serve with a slice of your delicious eggplant lasagna! Fabuloso!

This serves 4 – 6 servings (small eaters) or 4 servings for bigger appetites or for 4 – 6 meals for single people that don’t mind eating the same thing every night!