Pasta-less Eggplant Lasagna

From Ruth Daniels

I'm going to try and make this one tonight for dinner!

For those of you dieting, or allergic to most pasta, this dish is for you…there are no pasta noodles, just layers of eggplant, sauce and cheese.

Prep time: 20 minutes
Broil time: 5 minutes
Bake time: 40 minutes
Serves 4 -6 (with a salad)

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant, very thinly sliced – think Paper!
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1- 1½ cups cremini mushrooms, coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 package Italian Veggie Ground Round (I'm going to use ground beef)
3 cups Tomato sauce
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
3/4 cup fresh basil, coarsely chopped
2-2½ cups low fat Mozzarella cheese, grated
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Directions:
In a large skillet over medium high heat, brown the onions, garlic and Italian ground round. Sauté until the onions are translucent and the ground round is cooked through (about 5 minutes or so).

In the meantime, baste the eggplant slices with olive oil and broil until they are brown around the edges and soft in the center (about 2-3 minutes per side). Remove from oven. Lower the heat to 350°F/180°C

Layer the “lasagna” in an ovenproof dish as follows:
• Thin layer of tomato sauce
• Layer of eggplant slices
• Thin layer of grated mozzarella
• All the ground round mixture
• Thin layer of sauce
• All the ricotta, evenly spread over the sauce
• Layer of fresh basil
• Rest of the eggplant (I saved a few pieces for garnish)
• More sauce
• Lots of mozzarella
• Sprinkle some parmesan cheese

Bake for 30-40 minutes. The top will be golden and it will be bubbling around the edges. Serve with salad.