HEALTHY & EASY EGGPLANT ROLLATINI

I don’t know about you, but my garden is overrun with lots of healthy summer veggies, especially EGGPLANT! Sure “Fried Eggplant” or “Eggplant Parmesan” would be tasty, but I have a healthy and easy eggplant recipe that tastes as good but is missing all the fat!

This Italian-style Healthy Eggplant Rollatini is a delicious way to use up all of those eggplants from your garden and all of that fresh basil you may have growing as well! Being 38% Italian according to my Ancestry DNA test, I can attest to this being as melt in your mouth delicious as you know most Italian eggplant dishes to be! It’s one of my favorite HEALTHY Italian dinners to whip up in the summer.

These vegetarian-friendly eggplant “roll-ups” are incredibly satisfying, thanks to both generous amounts of fiber, protein and the savory flavor that eggplant delivers. They’re also a healthier and lighter option than most heavy breaded or fried eggplant dishes that are loaded with calories.

If you’re thinking you’re not a fan of eggplant, I know this recipe will change your mind. The eggplant is sliced so thin (I used my mandolin for perfect even slices) that it literally melts in your mouth once baked. Servings are super generous and filling. The right eggplant is key for this: you want them to be at least 3 1/2-inches wide, so that after you trim them, you have enough to cut into slabs.

Now, before you freak out because it has spinach (did you freak out?),  let me tell you a little something. I’ve never been a fan of cooked spinach. Give me fresh spinach in a salad or a green smoothie any day but cooked? I’ll pass, thanks.

Except, you really can’t taste the spinach in these eggplant rollatini! Adding it in with the cheese mixture is the perfect way to sneak in some greens (don’t tell my kids!) without even realizing it. Delicious, healthy and veggie loaded:  win-win!

Ingredients

• 2 medium-size (about 1 lb. each) eggplant (about 3 1/2-in. wide)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup sliced yellow onion (from 1 medium [9 oz.] onion)
• 1 1/2 cups lower-sodium marinara sauce, divided
• 1 large egg
• 1 (15-oz.) pkg. frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed until very dry (about 1 1/4 cups)
• 1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 2 medium garlic cloves, chopped (2 tsp.)
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 6 ounces pre-shredded low-moisture part-skim mozzarella cheese (about 1 1/2 cups), divided
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

How to Make It

Yield: Serves 5 (serving size: 4 rolls, 1/3 cup sauce)

Step 1

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with 1 eggplant at a time, trim ends off eggplant; trim outside 4 edges off eggplant, creating a rectangular shape with flat sides. Chop trimmed pieces to equal 1 1/2 cups, and set aside. (Discard remaining trimmed pieces, or reserve for another use.) Using a mandoline, thinly slice eggplant “rectangles” lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slabs. (You should have about 20 eggplant slabs total.)

Step 2

Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Add onion and reserved chopped eggplant; cook, stirring often, until vegetables are tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add 1 1/4 cups of the marinara sauce; stir to combine. Remove from heat; set aside.

Step 3

Arrange eggplant slabs in a single layer on prepared baking sheets. Cover each baking sheet with aluminum foil. Bake in preheated oven until eggplant are pliable and tender but not fully cooked, about 8 minutes. Remove from oven; let cool 5 to 10 minutes.

Step 4

Meanwhile, stir together egg, spinach, ricotta, garlic, salt, and 1 cup of the mozzarella in a bowl until combined.

Step 5

Spoon remaining 1/4 cup marinara sauce over bottom of a 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Place 1 eggplant slab on a flat surface; spoon about 1 1/2 tablespoons spinach-ricotta mixture onto the widest end of the slab, then roll up toward the opposite end. Place eggplant roll, seam side down, on top of marinara in baking dish. Repeat process with remaining eggplant slabs and spinach-ricotta mixture, creating 3 rows of 6 to 7 rollatini in baking dish. Spoon onion-eggplant-marinara mixture over rollatini; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella.

Step 6

Cover baking dish with aluminum foil. Bake at 400°F until cheese and sauce are bubbly and rollatini are very tender, about 45 minutes. Remove and discard foil; continue baking 10 minutes. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. To serve, place rollatini with sauce on plate; sprinkle evenly with basil.

Recipe Options:

ADD MEAT: You can add ground beef or turkey in with your spinach-ricotta mixture for a non-vegetarian option. Just brown your meat before adding to your mixture. This option provides a one dish meal that will satisfy the whole family. In my house, we add ground venison!

FREEZE: You can freeze this prepped and ready before baking or bake it and freeze the leftover. To reheat, pop it in the oven covered with foil and bake 350°F until heated through.

Nutritional Information

Hope your family enjoys this dish as much as mine!

Buon Appetito!