Roasted Eggplant Lasagna

I discovered eggplant last year, became obsessed with it for two months and then totally forgot about it.

Eggplant

The purple vegetable started callin’ my name again at the grocery store on Sunday, so I nabbed one to use in tonight’s roasted eggplant lasagna. (The recipe I followed calls this dish roasted eggplant Parmesan, but Ryan and I agreed that it tastes much more like lasagna.)

Fortunately a good portion of this recipe can be prepared ahead of time, so I prepped the majority of this dinner before I left for work this morning.

Prepped Dinner

The extra effort in the a.m. made dinner tonight super easy. While the roasted eggplant Parmesan baked, Ryan and I met with our future landlord down the street to officially sign our new lease!

We came home to an apartment that smelled delicious. 

Ready for Eatin'

Hot and Yummy

 When I followed the recipe (which you can find at the end of this post), I cut everything in half since Ryan and I were the only ones eating it. We split it right down the middle!

My Plate

 For dessert I enjoyed two fudgesicles.

Fudgesicle

 As I was snapping a photo, Sadie jumped in to try to get a lick.

Gimme, Gimme

 Instead she got a scolding. Dogs + Chocolate = BAD.

 

Roasted Eggplant Parmesan

Ingredients:

2 medium eggplants (about 2 pounds)
1 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup ricotta cheese
¾ cup mozzarella (divided)
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped basil
1½ cups marinara sauce (divided)
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese

Directions:

Heat oven to 450°F. Trim stems and ends from eggplant and peel, leaving several 1-inch wide strips of peel intact. Cut the eggplant lengthwise into ½-inch thick slices and place in a colander. Sprinkle with salt and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Rinse the eggplant under cool water, drain thoroughly and pat dry. Toss the slices in the olive oil and place on 2 baking sheets. Bake 20 minutes until golden brown. Let cool. Reduce oven heat to 350°F.

In a small bowl, combine ricotta cheese, ½ cup mozzarella cheese, parsley and basil. In an 8 x 8 baking dish, spread ½ cup of marinara sauce on the bottom of the pan. Place a layer of eggplant slices in the dish and spread ½ cup of the cheese mixture on top; repeat, layering 2 more times. Top with remaining (1 cup) marinara sauce and sprinkle the remaining (¼ cup) mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese on top. Cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes; remove aluminum foil and bake another 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and slightly golden brown. Cool slightly and serve.

Here’s the part you can do ahead:

Cover the unbaked roasted eggplant Parmesan with aluminum foil and refrigerate up to 24 hours. You may need to bake covered 10-15 minutes longer or until bubbly. Uncover and bake another 10 minutes or until slightly golden brown.

Gouda ‘Dilla

I am convinced that cheese can make any dish taste even better. Spaghetti = better with cheese. Tacos = better with cheese. Ice cream = better with cheese. 😉

Okay, maybe cheese doesn’t enhance every dish, but it is gosh darn delicious!

On Sunday I bought a pack of Gouda cheese to broaden my cheesy horizons. I love the intense flavor of this cheese. It really does add a lot to a sandwich, or in the case of my lunch, a quesadilla.

Quesadilla

I made a microwavable quesadilla with the following items:

• Whole wheat tortilla
• Gouda cheese
• Kidney beans
• Broccoli

Pre-Folded 'Dilla

I meant to pack salsa, but I forgot. Boo! Even salsa-less, it was quite yummy.

For dessert I enjoyed a small box of the traditional Valentine’s Day candy, Sweethearts!

Sweethearts

What’s your favorite color Sweetheart candy?

My favorite hearts have always been the pink and the white hearts. They’re the best! (Oranges are pretty good, too.)

Snack in a Snap

Today’s mid-morning snack came together in a (ginger)snap!

Gingersnap Yogurt

I topped a cup of Fage Greek yogurt with four small gingersnap cookies and added a little sweetener before digging in. So delish!

Time to pack up my work station… We’re moving floors today! So long window view… 😦

Barley Breakfast Bowl

Please excuse my cheesy post title. I’m a sucker for alliteration. 🙂

I make breakfast bowls a lot, often using Greek yogurt as my base before throwing in yummy add-ins like fruit, nuts, chocolate chips or cereal.

Today’s breakfast bowl was one of the best breakfast bowls I’ve ever made.

I owe it all to barley.

Pearled Barley

Last night I cooked some pearled barley on the stove top before putting it in the fridge to save for this morning.

I topped the cold barley with a cup of Fage Greek yogurt and thawed sliced strawberries.

Barley, Strawberries & Yogurt

I added a little sweetener and stirred up the mixture before digging in.

Barley Breakfast Bowl

The barley was a fantastic additional and really appealed to my texture-loving side. It was chewy and almost nutty tasting and complimented the sweetness of the strawberries perfectly. Success!

I also sipped on a hot mug of The Mighty Leaf chocolate mint truffle tea.

Workout

A fellow gym-goer asked me a funny question today: “Is there a method to your madness?”

He said he always notices me hopping from machine to machine. I explained that machine hopping is something I do when I am trying to fight boredom and keep myself entertained throughout my workout.

When using cardio machines at the gym, do you do your entire workout on one machine or do you hop around?

Today’s machine maddness cardio workout looked like this:

• 15 min. stair master
• 15 min. adaptive motion trainer
• 5 min. stair master
• 15 min. elliptical

I really wanted to run today, but I have a blister that’s bothering me from my five mile run on Sunday and I didn’t want to irritate it further. Oh well. I still left the gym nice and sweaty!

After my walk with Sadie and a hot shower, I prepped tonight’s dinner. I’m excited because I think it’s going to be a good one. 😀