Vegetarian Eggplant Lasagna with Homemade Ricotta

My husband is a meat eater. So, when I told him I was making a vegetarian lasagna, his enthusiasm was less than enthusiastic... until he tried my version of Vegetarian Eggplant Lasagna with Homemade Ricotta!

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Hey, I have an idea! Let's make cheese!

Several weeks ago, I got the urge to make homemade cheese and told my husband that we were spending the weekend making cheese. I'm not sure he was totally on board with my plan, but, being the supportive and loving husband he is, he said, "sounds good." He even proceeded to look up how to make certain cheese. Cheddar was his choice. Mozzarella or something a bit quicker and easier than cheddar was mine. The plan was set; it was a Tuesday and we were making cheese on Saturday. I did all the research and found out what I needed to order online to execute my plan, and then life happened. Work got extremely busy and I never got around to ordering the necessary supplies (I still haven't).

Saturday came and I was determined to make some kind of cheese. That was the plan and will be the plan! I started researching what I could make with simple ingredients and came across homemade ricotta. Hmmm... I never thought about making ricotta; but a plan is a plan, so I set out to make it. It's a pretty straightforward process involving just a few ingredients. Milk, cream, salt, & vinegar. That's it! Awesome! I can do this! Now, what to make with my soon-to-be-homemade ricotta? How about Vegetarian Eggplant Lasagna? Yep! It's a plan!

Homemade Ricotta

If you haven't made homemade ricotta yet, do it! It's incredibly easy and quick to make and the taste is soooo much better than store-bought! I adapted my version of homemade ricotta from an Ina Garten recipe, Homemade Ricotta. The only change I made was to use a lemon champagne vinegar instead of white wine vinegar.

Here's a video of the process:

Can you believe how easy that is? Go make it... you'll be so happy you did!

Now that the homemade ricotta is chilling in the fridge, let's talk about this Vegetarian Eggplant Lasagna with Homemade Ricotta!

I wish I could say that my first go-round of making this dish was a winner. It wasn't. It happens. Don't get me wrong, the taste was incredible. It was the texture that made us go from YAY to nay. I used Italian eggplant and they were a tad bit too tough, especially the skins. So, about a week later I made another batch of homemade ricotta and tweaked my original recipe just a bit.

What I love most about this recipe (besides the homemade ricotta) is how the mushrooms act as the savory or umami flavor that you get from meat. Then, you add in all the fresh veggies and fruits (tomatoes and eggplant) with the creaminess and slightly sour ricotta and you end up with a dish that hits all 5 of the basic tastes: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, & umami (or savory).

The second go-round turned out fantastic and here is how you make Vegetarian Eggplant Lasagna with Homemade Ricotta!

What you'll need:

• 1 batch of homemade ricotta or 1 pint of store-bought ricotta
• Eggs
• Vidalia onion
• Japanese eggplant
• Garlic bulb
• Cherry tomatoes
• Baby bella mushrooms
• Diced canned tomatoes
• Tomato paste
• Mozzarella cheese
• Parmesan cheese
• Salt & Pepper
• Sweet Basil Rub or dried basil
• Bell Pepper Herb Rub (optional)

Step One:

Preheat your oven to 350° Fahrenheit. Make your homemade ricotta! Please... do it for me. Just once. You wont' be sorry. I promise. Mix your eggs, salt & pepper with the ricotta and store in fridge until ready to use.

Step Two:

Prep your ingredients. Thinly slice your Vidalia onion. I used the Simple Slicer from Pampered Chef, but a sharp knife works too. Cut the ends off of your Japanese eggplant and peel the skin off. Slice with a very sharp knife into thin rounds. Season each side of the eggplant with PC Sweet Basil Rub or dried basil and a little salt. Peel and slice your garlic cloves. I used the Garlic Peeler & Slicer set from Pampered Chef (I love gadgets!)

Step Three:

Roughly chop your baby bella mushrooms and add to the bowl of an electric or manual food processor. Add cherry tomatoes. You may need to do this in batches depending on the size of your processor. I like using a manual food processor because I have more control over the size of my veggies. You want the pieces to be chunky, so if using an electric food processor only pulse it a few times. Place in a mixing bowl and add tomato paste. Mix well. Grate Parmesan cheese.

Step Four:

Assemble the lasagna. In a large, deep casserole dish, place about a ½ cup of fire roasted tomatoes. 1st Layer: cover bottom with seasoned eggplant rounds, ½ of ricotta cheese mixture, ½ of thinly sliced onions, ½ of the remaining fire roasted tomatoes, ¼ cup of sliced garlic, ⅓ of the mushroom/tomato mixture, sprinkle with salt and PC Bell Pepper Rub if using & top with about two slices (cut into ⅛ths) of the Mozzarella cheese. 2nd Layer:  Repeat first layer. 3rd Layer: cover with season eggplant rounds, remaining mushroom & tomato mixture, cover with remaining mozzarella cheese slices, shredded Parmesan, sprinkle with salt and Bell Pepper Rub if using. Instead of pictures, I did a quick video on assembly that you can watch. Just like any lasagna, the order of ingredients doesn't make a huge amount of difference, just make sure to top the lasagna with cheese for that classic brown crust of lasagna.

Step Five:

Bake Vegetarian Eggplant Lasagna at 350° Fahrenheit for an hour and 20 minutes. Turn oven off and leave lasagna in the oven for 20 more minutes. Remove from oven and let rest for 15-20 minutes.  You may have some liquid like I did, veggies put off a lot of liquid. I just scooped out a nice size hunk and let the juice run back into the pan. The liquid diminishes significantly after refrigeration and reheating. Serve & Enjoy!

Vegetarian Eggplant Lasagna with Homemade Ricotta

Recipe By: The Salted Pepper

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Prep Time 30 mins

Cook Time 1 hr 30 mins

Total Time 2 hrs

Cuisine Italian

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Ingredients

 

• 2 cups Homemade Ricotta Cheese or 1 Pint store-bought ricotta
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsps salt divided
• ½ tsp pepper
• 3-4 small Japanese eggplants
• 1 Vidalia onion
• 4-6 garlic cloves
• 8 ounce package of baby bella mushrooms
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes I used assorted colors
• ¼ cup tomato paste

Instructions

 

• Preheat your oven to 350° Fahrenheit.
• Mix your eggs, ½ tsp salt & ½ tsp pepper with the ricotta and store in fridge until ready to use.
• Thinly slice your Vidalia onion.
• Cut the ends off of your Japanese eggplant and use a vegetable peeler or knife to remove the skin.
• Slice with a very sharp knife into thin rounds.
• Season each side of the eggplant with PC Sweet Basil Rub or dried basil and a little salt.
• Peel and slice your garlic cloves.
• Roughly chop your baby bella mushrooms and add to the bowl of an electric or manual food processor. Add cherry tomatoes.
• You want the pieces to be chunky, so if using an electric food processor only pulse it a few times.
• Place in a mixing bowl and add tomato paste. Mix well.
• Grate Parmesan Cheese.
• In a large, deep casserole dish, place about a ½ cup of fire roasted tomatoes.
• st Layer: cover bottom with seasoned eggplant rounds, ½ of ricotta cheese mixture, ½ of thinly sliced onions, ½ of the remaining fire roasted tomatoes, ¼ cup of sliced garlic, ⅓ of the mushroom/tomato mixture, sprinkle with salt and PC Bell Pepper Rub if using & top with about two slices (cut into ⅛ths) of the Mozzarella cheese.
• nd Layer: Repeat first layer.
• rd Layer: cover with season eggplant rounds, remaining mushroom & tomato mixture, cover with remaining mozzarella cheese slices, shredded Parmesan, sprinkle with salt and Bell Pepper Rub if using.
• Bake Lasagna at 350° Fahrenheit for an hour and 20 minutes. Turn oven off and leave lasagna in the oven for 20 more minutes. Remove from oven and let rest for 15-20 minutes.
• Serve & Enjoy

Video

https://youtu.be/IVMU-CeZRAc

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