Beefy Eggplant Casserole

By carvalhohm

Ingredients

• 3 Medium Eggplants, sliced into 1/4” slices
• Salt
• 1/4 cup Olive Oil
• 1/2 cup Onion, chopped
• 1 lb Ground Beef
• 1 clove Garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp Oregano
• 1 tsp Basil
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Salt
• dash Ground Pepper
• 8 oz can Tomato Sauce
• 1/2 cup Toasted Pine Nuts
• 10 slices Mozzarella
• 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese

Details

Servings 10
Adapted from beef.betterrecipes.com

Preparation

Step 1

1. Place sliced eggplants into colander. Sprinkle with salt and set aside for at least 30 minutes to allow salt to draw out excess liquid from eggplant. Pat slices dry on paper towels. Place on greased or nonstick baking sheet and brush with oil using pastry brush. Broil for approximately 4 minutes, or until slices are just browned. Turn slices over and repeat process for the other side. Layer slices in 9×13 dish and set aside.

2. Preheat broiler.

3. In sauté pan over medium-high heat, combine onion and ground beef and sauté until meat is browned. Stir in garlic, oregano, basil, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Add tomato sauce. Remove from heat and stir in pine nuts. Cool.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

5. Place large Tablespoonfuls of beef mixture on top of eggplant slices in baking dish. Places slices of mozzarella cheese over top to completely cover the beef layer. Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

6. Sprinkle with additional Parmesan and serve while hot.