Spaghetti with Eggplant, Tomatoes and Mozzarella

From: The "Pasta" Food and Wine Cookbook

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup olive oil
3/4 tsp salt
black pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 lbs tomatoes, about 4, peeled, seeded and chopped
3/4 lb spaghetti
3 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
1/2 lb fresh mozzarella, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Toss the eggplant with 2 Tbsp of the oil, 1/4 tsp of the salt, and a pinch of pepper. Spread the eggplant out on a baking sheet. Roast, stirring occasionally, until tender and brown, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 Tbsp oil in a large frying pan over moderate heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook 1 minute more.

Add the tomatoes, the remaining 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Increase the heat to high and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened, about 10 minutes.

In a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the spaghetti until just done, about 12 minutes. Drain. Toss the pasta with the eggplant, tomato sauce, basil and mozzarella and serve at once.

What I did differently from the recipe:
I, unfortunately, do not keep fresh mozzarella on hand (and couldn't afford to purchase it just for this one recipe), so I used shredded. Trust me - it was marvelous anyway.

What I'll do differently next time:
I halved the recipe because our whole family is not a fan of sauces on spaghetti. Next time I will not cut the recipe in half. It was so good, I wish I had leftovers!

Verdict:
Thumbs up! Great new way to use eggplant (I tend to always make eggplant parmesan or baked eggplant chips) and a great way to dress up spaghetti. Absolutely delicious and I would definitely make this again in the future!  

Eggplant Tomato Bake

From: Here

Ingredients:
1 eggplant, sliced into 1/2 inch rounds
1 tomato, sliced
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray. Arrange eggplant rounds on the cookie sheet and sprinkle Parmesan over the eggplant. Layer one slice of tomato on top of each eggplant round. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese again. Bake for 10-15 minutes.

What I did differently from this recipe:
Nothing.

What I'll do differently next time:
Nothing.

Verdict:
Thumbs up! Oh, yummy goodness. I had an eggplant that was about to go bad and I have enough in the freezer so I really wanted to try a new recipe. This was so good and simple! Only my 18-month old would eat them with me but I kind of assumed that would be the case with my picky eaters! :)  

Eggplant Parmesan

From: Taste of Home

Unfortunately, no pictures on this recipe!

Ingredients:
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup olive oil
2 cans (28 oz each), crushed tomatoes
1 cup pitted ripe olives, chopped
3 Tbsp capers, drained
1 Tbsp dried basil
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp pepper

Eggplant:
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs, beaten
3 cups dry bread crumbs
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp minced fresh oregano (1 tsp dried oregano)
4 small eggplants (about 1 lb each), peeled and cut lengthwise into slices
1 cup olive oil

Cheese:
2 eggs, beaten
2 cartons (15 oz each) ricotta cheese
1 1/4 cups shredded Parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp dried basil
1/2 tsp pepper
8 cups (32 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese

In a dutch oven over medium heat, cook garlic in oil for 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes, olives, basil, capers, pepper flakes and pepper. Simmer, uncovered, for 45-60 minutes or until thickened.

Meanwhile, for eggplant, place flour and eggs in separate shallow bowls. In another bowl, combine the bread crumbs, garlic powder and oregano. Dip eggplant in the flour, eggs, then bread crumb mixture.

In a large skillet, cook eggplant in batches in oil for 5 minutes on each side or until tender. Drain on paper towels. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, ricotta, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, basil and pepper.

In each of two greased 9x13 pans, layer 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce, eggplant slices, 1 cup ricotta mixture and 2 cups mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

What I did differently:
I left out the olives and capers because I don't particularly care for them. I would try them if someone else made this recipe but I didn't want to go buy something I'd have no need for later. I left out the pepper flakes simply because I didn't have any and didn't have time to buy them. (For sauce). I halved the recipe, although now I kind of wish I had just made two and frozen one.

What I'll do differently next time:
Probably make two at once.

Verdict:
Thumbs up! I saw these eggplants on clearance ($1.00 for approximately 3 lbs!) and just knew eggplant parmesan was in my future. It was so good. It was a bit time consuming because of frying the eggplant. You could definitely leave that out and just put the plain eggplant in (or sprinkle it with some salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder... etc) and it would still be delicious.

Eggplant Parmesan

From: Renee

Ingredients:
2 medium eggplant
12 oz cottage cheese
12 oz ricotta cheese
1 quart jar spaghetti sauce
1 egg
2 cups mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese

Slice eggplant into 1/4-inch slices and sprinkle each piece (both sides) with olive oil and garlic salt. Grill until tender and light brown. Mix ricotta cheese with egg. Cover bottom of dish with 1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce. Add layer of eggplant. Spread 1/2 cottage cheese, ricotta cheese and egg mixture on top of eggplant. Sprinkle with 1/2 the mozzarella cheese and some Parmesan. Repeat layers as needed.

Bake at 400 uncovered until hot and bubbling.

What I did differently from the recipe:
Renee recommended Tomato Basil spaghetti sauce. I used Tomato with Burgundy Wine because I had some in the pantry. I used a 9x13 pan also.

What I'll do differently next time:
I wouldn't mind having more eggplant. I used 2 medium and a small and I still think I could have used more. I also have heard of people breading the eggplant after grilling it and I wouldn't mind trying that too.

Verdict:
Thumbs up! Such an easy recipe and delicious! I had never had eggplant but had been wanting to try this recipe, and it was a winner for me. Stephen's sister Jennifer even tried it and had two servings! Oh yeah, and Brianna ate half of my first plate. So I'd say everyone would give it a thumbs up. Anything with that much pasta sauce and cheese can't be bad!!

Printable version:

Ingredients:
2 medium eggplant
12 oz cottage cheese
12 oz ricotta cheese
1 quart jar spaghetti sauce
1 egg
2 cups mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese

Slice eggplant into 1/4-inch slices and sprinkle each piece (both sides) with olive oil and garlic salt. Grill until tender and light brown. Mix ricotta cheese with egg. Cover bottom of dish with 1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce. Add layer of eggplant. Spread 1/2 cottage cheese, ricotta cheese and egg mixture on top of eggplant. Sprinkle with 1/2 the mozzarella cheese and some Parmesan. Repeat layers as needed. Bake at 400 uncovered until hot and bubbling.