| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 2 hr 20 min |
| Prep: | 35 min |
| Cook: | 1 hr 45 min |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 2 hr 20 min |
| Prep: | 35 min |
| Cook: | 1 hr 45 min |
| Yield: | 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 3 medium-sized eggplants (about 4 pounds total)
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Can vegetable spray
- 32 ounces ricotta cheese
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
- 8 tablespoons grated Parmesan
- 3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
- 20 basil leaves, chiffonaded
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
- 2 cups fresh tomato sauce, recipe follows
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 stalk celery, chopped
- 1 carrot, chopped
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 (32-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the grill pan and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Place a rack over a large baking sheet. Cut the 2 ends off the eggplant. Cut the eggplants lengthwise, into 1/2-inch thick slices. Arrange eggplant slices onto rack. Sprinkle with sea salt to help remove excess moisture and any bitterness from the eggplants. Set aside for about 10 to 15 minutes. Rinse off the salt from the eggplants and pat dry with a towel. Spray hot grill pan liberally with vegetable spray and then place eggplant slices on the grill until lightly browned on each side and tender, about 4 minutes per side. Remove slices from the grill pan and allow to cool.
- In a large bowl, beat eggs until lightly scrambled. Mix the ricotta in with the egg. Add mozzarella, 3 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese and toasted pine nuts and gently combine. Fold in basil just to combine. Do not overmix.
- Place a tablespoon of the cheese mixture on 1 end of the eggplant and roll up tightly. Place the eggplant rollatini into a greased (with olive oil) 13 by 9-inch baking dish, seam side down. Continue with remaining eggplant. Evenly distribute the tomato sauce on top of the eggplant rollatini. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with remaining 5 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese and bake for 15 minutes. When cooked, drizzle the top with extra-virgin olive oil.
- In a large casserole pot, heat oil over medium high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add celery and carrots and season with salt and pepper. Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and bay leaves and simmer uncovered on low heat for 1 hour or until thick. Remove bay leaves and check for seasoning. If sauce still tastes acidic, add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time to round out the flavors.
- Add 1/2 the tomato sauce into the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Continue with remaining tomato sauce.
- If not using all the sauce, allow it to cool completely and pour 1 to 2 cup portions into freezer plastic bags. This will freeze up to 6 months.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 6 servings |
| Calories | 904 |
| Total Fat | 64 g |
| Saturated Fat | 23 g |
| Carbohydrates | 61 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 18 g |
| Sugar | 26 g |
| Protein | 31 g |
| Cholesterol | 172 mg |
| Sodium | 2086 mg |
| Serving Size | 1 of 6 servings |
| Calories | 904 |
| Total Fat | 64 g |
| Saturated Fat | 23 g |
| Carbohydrates | 61 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 18 g |
| Sugar | 26 g |
| Protein | 31 g |
| Cholesterol | 172 mg |
| Sodium | 2086 mg |
Reviews
Great flavor simple to make and great to eat!!!
Z. I xxxx
There is no instructions to complete cooking the dish. It stopped at leftover tomato sauce in freezer.
My husband and I loved it!
This was delicious. I thinly sliced the eggplant and made 1/2 the ricotta cheese mixture based on reviews. Added some chopped Swiss chard & oregano from the garden along with freshly ground black pepper to the cheese mix. We couldn’t stop eating it!
32 oz ricotta?? What am I supposed to do with the remaining filling.?? There’s easily enough left for two more batches, do the math… one tablespoon =1/2 oz, so not counting additional ingredients,this filling recipe does 64 pieces. And four medium eggplants cut to 1/2” slices yields less than half of that.
Sliced the eggplant thinner than 1/2″, no need to peel them. I didn’t add the pine nuts and used jarred sauce due to time constrictions, but the result was delicious and fit the bill for a gluten free guest. Served with a tomato and onion salad. This recipe is a keeper for sure!
In addition to taking the advice of others to cut the eggplant thickness in half and oral it, I would add crushed garlic or some other herb to bring out the otherwise very mellow flavor. I will definitely try this again.
Based on making this a few times I had to make some adjustments based on comments I got. I know slice the eggplant 1/4 inch thick instead of 1/2 inch and peel the eggplant as well. Everyone found the skin overwhelming even thinner. The sauce was very bitter so I use other ones. I also top with mozzarella and parmesan as the filling is a small amount. I also leave it in the oven a good 40-45 minutes so the eggplant really softens.
I love Giada’s sauce and her cheese filling was awesome. I did have a lott of cheese left over which I plan on putting over some pasta with the left over sauce and just baking. To get the eggplant pliable, I added a tiny bit of water and covered the eggplant. with a lid…it worked out fine.