Smoky Eggplant Kale Vegetarian Lasagna Food

EGGPLANT LASAGNA RECIPE

Steps:

• Season the eggplant slices on both sides with kosher salt and set aside for 20 to 30 minutes (if you don't have the time, this step can be optional).
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and position a rack in the middle.
• Wipe the eggplant slices very well with a paper towel (you want to dry it well and remove any excess salt), then arrange on lightly oiled baking sheet (or two if needed). Brush the top of the eggplant with extra virgin olive oil. Roast in the heated oven until the eggplant softens and becomes pliable (about 15 to 20 minutes or so).
• While the eggplant is roasting, prepare the ricotta filling. In a mixing bowl, beat the egg. Add the ricotta, 1 cup mozzarella, ¼ Parmesan, garlic, oregano, spinach and chopped herbs. Add a small pinch of kosher salt and black pepper to your liking. Mix well to combine.
• Remove the eggplant from the oven. Lower the heat to 375 degrees F.
• Prepare a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Pour a bit of the pasta sauce (about ½ cup or so) and spread it out into one layer. Lay a few eggplant slices (anywhere from 4 to 6 and it's fine if they overlap a bit). Spread 1/2 of the ricotta filling, then spread a thin layer of the sauce. Repeat the process in the same pattern. Spread the final layer of sauce and follow with the remaining ½ cup mozzarella cheese and ¼ cup of Parmesan.
• Cover the dish tightly with foil. Bake in the heated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, then carefully uncover and return to the oven. Bake for another 10 to 20 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the edges of the lasagna turn a nice golden brown.
• Let the lasagna rest for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

HEALTHY EGGPLANT AND KALE PARMESAN

Steps:

• Position 2 oven racks in the middle and upper third of the oven, and preheat to 425 degrees F. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment.
• Cook the oil, garlic and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring, until the garlic just starts to turn golden, 4 to 6 minutes. Add the tomatoes; rinse the can with about 1 1/2 cups water, and add the tomato water to the skillet. Add the kale and basil, bring to a simmer and cook until the sauce thickens, about 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine the almond flour and breadcrumbs in a medium bowl until evenly mixed. Whisk the egg whites and 3 tablespoons water in another medium bowl until frothy.
• Lay out the eggplant slices on a clean surface, and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Dip the eggplant slices in the egg whites, then press into the almond-breadcrumb mixture to coat. Place the eggplant pieces on the baking sheets. Bake until the eggplant is tender and the crust is golden brown, about 30 minutes. Rotate the baking sheets if the top one is browning too quickly.
• Turn the oven to broil. Spread a little of the sauce on the bottom of a broiler-safe 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Arrange half the eggplant in the dish in as close to an even layer as you can without overlapping too much. Spread half the remaining sauce on top, then 1/4 of the mozzarella. Top with the remaining eggplant, sauce and mozzarella and the Parmesan. Place the baking dish under the broiler until the cheese is melted and browned, about 1 minute. Serve immediately, while the cheese is still warm. Sprinkle the top with the parsley.

VEGETARIAN EGGPLANT LASAGNA

Steps:

• Slice eggplant in 1/4" slice, spray with Pam on both sides and broil both sides in batches till soft and brown, set aside.
• Put oven to bake at 350°F.
• In large lasagna pan layer as follows:.
• 1/3 spaghetti sauce.
• 1/3 lasagna sheets.
• 1/3 spaghetti sauce.
• 1/2 the eggplant.
• 1/2 the mozzarella.
• 1/3 lasagne sheets.
• remaining spaghetti sauce.
• chopped red peppers.
• remaining lasagna sheets.
• remaining eggplant.
• Spread Pesto over top layer of eggplant.
• make white sauce as follows,.
• melt butter in saucepan, add flour cook for 2 minutes. Whisk in milk and whisk until thickened. Whisk grated cheese in and stir until smooth.
• Pour white sauce over casserole and bake 30 minutes until bubbly and heated through.

VEGETARIAN LASAGNA

Steps:

• For the sauce: Put the olive oil and garlic in a medium pot over low heat. Cook the garlic, stirring occasionally at first and more often as it colors, until golden brown, about 7 minutes. Raise the heat to medium-low, add the onions and a large pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the carrots, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, bay leaves, basil sprig, thyme and 1 teaspoon salt, raise the heat to medium and bring the sauce to a lively simmer. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until quite thick (if you draw a spoon through the sauce, you'll see the bottom of the pot for a few seconds before the sauce fills back in), about 30 minutes. As the sauce thickens, turn the heat down a bit so the bottom doesn't scorch. Stir in the chopped basil. Let cool to room temperature before assembling the lasagna. (Makes 1 quart.)
• To assemble: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Squeeze the spinach in your hands to remove as much liquid as possible. Put it in a large bowl, and stir in the ricotta, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan, the egg, 1 teaspoon salt and the nutmeg.
• Spread 3/4 cup of the tomato sauce on the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Lay 3 lasagna noodles across the sauce (they won't touch). Spread 3/4 cup tomato sauce on top. Dollop 1/3 of the ricotta mixture (about 1 cup) across the sauce, and use the back of a spoon to spread it (it will smush into the tomato sauce, which is fine). Scatter 1 cup of the mozzarella on top.
• Repeat the layering 2 more times. Top with the last 3 noodles, spread the last 3/4 cup tomato sauce over them and scatter the remaining 1 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan over the top. Spray a large piece of foil with cooking spray, and cover the baking dish.
• Bake until the noodles are soft and the cheese has melted, about 40 minutes. Remove the foil, and continue to bake until the cheese is bubbling and the lasagna is slightly browned around the edges, about 15 minutes more. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

ROASTED VEGETABLE AND KALE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• Toss red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, zucchini, mushrooms, and 4 tablespoons olive oil together in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer vegetables to the prepared baking sheet in a single layer.
• Roast in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes. Turn vegetables and roast 10 to 15 minutes more.
• Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in a saucepan. Add torn kale and cook until just darkened in color, about 1 minute. Drain.
• Heat remaining olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add drained kale and cook until wilted, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Remove bell peppers from the oven and adjust oven temperature to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Layer pasta sauce, lasagna noodles, roasted bell pepper mixture, and grated mozzarella cheese into a 9x13-inch baking pan. Add another layer of noodles, pasta sauce, kale, and sliced bocconcini cheese. Continue layers until ingredients are used up, being sure to place noodle layers and sauce next to each other to prevent dry noodles.
• Bake lasagna in the hot oven until bubbling and noodles are soft, about 45 minutes. Let cool 20 to 30 minutes before serving.

SMOKY EGGPLANT-KALE VEGETARIAN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet.
• Place eggplant slices evenly on the prepared baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until tender, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and onion and cook until onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, basil, and cayenne pepper. Add kale and cook until wilted, about 5 minutes more. Add tomatoes and tahini and simmer for 5 minutes. Season sauce with salt and pepper.
• Spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish. Follow by alternating layers of lasagna noodles, baked eggplant, tofu, and mozzarella cheese. Continue with remaining ingredients, finishing with a layer of noodles topped by sauce and covered in mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top. Cover with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 minutes more. Allow to cool 10 minutes before serving.

VEGAN EGGPLANT LASAGNA

Steps:

• Cashew "Cheese" Filling.
• Soak 2 cups raw cashews in 6 cups of water for at least 24 hours. Rinse and drain. Using your food processor or blender, blend the remaining cup of water with the soaked and drained cashews until you reach the consistency of ricotta cheese. Add more water if necessary. Add to the cashew mixture the 2 Tbls. of vinegar,1/2 teaspoons black pepper, 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1 Tbls. Italian seasoning. Add more seasonings to taste. Meanwhile, bring a very large stockpot full of water to boil. When water is boiling add 3 bunches of rinsed kale greens (be sure take off the twist ties!) Completely submerse the greens in the water. Blanche kale greens for 5 minutes or until bright green and soft. Drain greens and (do not burn yourself!) cut greens off tough stems and chop into small pieces. Squeeze out excess water with your hands (there will be quite a bit). Add chopped kale greens to the cashew mixture. Stir together.
• Eggplant "Noodles".
• Cut the ends off of 2 large eggplant. Slice into at least 10 slices total. If you wind up with more, that is great too! Rub the 2 Tbls. of salt onto the eggplant slices and let set in the refrigerator for at least 5 hours. (This will draw some of the moisture out of the eggplant. ) After your eggplant slices have sat for a few hours, wash off the salt and pat dry with towels. Coat eggplant slices with melted coconut oil or olive oil. Put on a baking sheet or two and bake in a 400 degree oven for 35 - 45 minutes or until fork soft.
• Assembling the lasagna.
• Heat the oven to 350 degrees. In an 8 x 10 pan, spoon out a bit of the pasta sauce into the pan. Then layer 5 eggplant slices. (You may have to cut the pieces to make them fit.) Layer half of the cashew /kale mixture over the eggplant slices. Spoon half of the remaining pasta sauce over the cashew/kale mixture. Then layer the remaining eggplant slices. Layer the remaining cashew/kale mixture. Spoon the remaining pasta sauce on top. Cover with foil or a silicone cover and bake @ 350 degrees for 35- 45 minutes or until bubbly. Enjoy!