Eggplant Lasagna

Vegetable lasagna is one of my favorite things to make and to eat. I have made many versions of it and I will make boatloads more in the future.

Notes: It's that glorious time of year again when summer vegetables start to come in season. The co-op got its first round of eggplant in, so I decided it belonged in my lasagna. Eggplant can sometimes taste bitter. Salting it before you use it will help draw out some of the liquid that contributes to the bitter flavor (I've included that step in the directions).

Lasagna is labor intensive, but not difficult. The hardest part it getting everything ready to assemble.

Here's a good tip: take your ricotta out of the fridge a few minutes before you need it. If it's closer to room temperature, it will spread more evenly.

When it comes to no-boil noodles, remember you need liquid at the edges or else they will stay crunchy. Just be sure to give them a nice coating of sauce before you put everything in the oven.


Ingredients:
1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce (no less than 26 oz., but more is better)
1 eggplant
1 box no-boil lasagna noodles
2 cups of washed baby spinach
12-15 oz. of ricotta cheese
1 large or 2 small fresh mozzarella balls
1 tablespoon herbs de provence
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt
Pepper

Directions: Heat oven to 375.

Slice your eggplant into rounds and lay them on a cooling rack. Sprinkle them with salt and let them sit while you assemble the rest of your ingredients.

Chop the spinach and add it to a bowl with the ricotta cheese. Season well with salt, pepper, red pepper, and herbs de provence. Stir to combine and set aside.

Slice the mozzarella balls into small, thin rounds and set aside.

Take a paper towel and pat dry the eggplant rounds.

Add 1 cup of sauce to the bottom of a 9 x 13 dish. Then, layer everything as follows:
4 noodles
1/3 ricotta mixture
Eggplant rounds
1 cup sauce

Repeat the layers until you use up the ricotta mixture. On the last layer, add the remaining noodles and sauce. Lay the mozzarella rounds on top. Cover with foil and bake for 40-45 minutes until bubbly and hot. Take the foil off and bake for another 5-7 minutes until the cheese on top starts to bubble.

Let stand for 5-10 minutes, serve and enjoy!