Eggplant rolatini/Eggplant lasagna

I declared last night "Faux-pasta" night.  

Between this eggplant lasagna rolatini and the spaghetti squash with pesto, it was Italian without the gluten!  

There are two versions of this recipe using the same ingredients.  I found the rolatinis to be a bit time consuming, and honestly my eggplants weren't the right shape to make long, thin strips with.  I had one big fat eggplant so I cut that into big coins and made an eggplant lasagna stacker.  But I'll get to that in the directions portion.

INGREDIENTS

 2 medium Italian eggplants, cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch thick slices (use a mandolin slicer or vegetable peeler)

salt and fresh black pepper, to taste

 1 1/2 cups spaghetti sauce of choice 

 1 large egg

1/2 cup part skim ricotta cheese

 1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese, plus more for serving

 8 oz frozen spinach, or 1 cup fresh

1 garlic clove, minced

1 cup (4 oz) shredded part-skim mozzarella 

1 tomato, chopped

DIRECTIONS

For version A (rolatinis):

Sprinkle the eggplant with kosher salt to help remove excess moisture and bitterness from the eggplants. Set aside for about 10 to 15 minutes. Pat dry with a towel.
Preheat oven to 400°F.  Season the eggplant with a little more salt and pepper,  then arrange on two parchment-lined baking sheets.  Cover tightly with foil and bake until eggplant is tender and pliable but NOT fully cooked, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Spread 1/4 cup pasta sauce on the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish.

In a medium bowl, beat the egg then mix together with ricotta, Pecorino Romano, spinach, garlic, 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper.  If using fresh spinach, keep separate.

Pat eggplant dry with paper towels.  Dividing the ricotta-spinach mixture (about 2 generous tablespoons each) evenly and spoon onto one end of each eggplant slice, spreading to cover.  (if using fresh spinach, layer fresh leaves on top of cheese).  Add fresh chopped tomatoes on top of cheese.  Starting at the short end, roll up slices and arrange them each seam side down in the prepared dish.  Top with remaining pasta sauce and mozzarella cheese and tightly cover with foil.

Bake until the eggplant is very tender, about 60 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes before serving with additional Pecorino Romano if desired.

For version B (lasagna stackers):

Forget the peeling, salting, and pre-baking.  Cut eggplant into coins.  Start stacking, alternate between eggpant, cheese, spinach, and tomatoes (you can also cut tomatoes in slices instead of dicing here).  Top with final layer of sauce and cheese.  Bake for same amount of time.

VERDICT

Obviously the same ingredients.  But you would be surprised at the different taste in the two different preparation methods. For the stackers I used sliced tomatoes, which gave the lasagna a sweeter taste.  

But either way you choose to make these you can't miss.  You won't miss the lasagna noodles at all! 

NUTRITION

Serving Size: 2 rollatini, or one stacker (depending on size of eggplant slices)

Calories: 227 

Fat: 10 g 

Carb: 18 g 

Fiber: 5 g 

Protein: 17 g 

Credit:  Based on a recipe from Gina's Skinny Recipes