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Eggplant and tomato lasagna
My husband tells me that this is the best lasagna I’ve ever made. Need I say more?
Do you know what the secret to a good lasagna is? Actually, it’s more than one secret. I use lasagna noodles that don’t need to be precooked. I’m not lazy but I do like to take shortcuts where possible. When you put the lasagna noodles in a pan and then put a layer of the sauce on top, you have to make sure that the sauce totally covers all parts of the lasagna noodles, even at the tips and corners. This goes for all the layers.
The second secret is to make the lasagna one or even two days in advance. The lasagna only improves this way.
Another tip is that when I make lasagna I automatically make two! Right away one goes to the freezer and the other to the fridge. You won’t believe how quickly this lasagna is devoured, so best you make two.
Ingredients:
Lasagna noodles
6 medium / large tomatoes
2 medium onions
4 cloves of garlic
1 tsp sugar
1.5 / 2 cups water
1 tsp minced garlic
4 Tbsp olive oil
25 grams butter
150 grams grated cheese
(Gouda, Parmesan, Tomme, yellow cheese, Mozzarella)
2 medium sized elongated eggplants
Canola oil
Salt
Preparation:
1. Slice the eggplant into 3-4 cm slices. Heat an oven to 180°C, line a baking tray with greased parchment paper and arrange the eggplant slices on it. Drizzle with oil and bake for 30 minutes or until tender.
2. Bring a pot of water to the boil. Score the tops of the tomatoes and drop them in the boiling water. Cook for 3 minutes, drain, let cool and peel.
3. Heat a pot with olive oil and butter and mix until the butter melts. Finely dice the onion and sauté until it starts to go golden. Slice the garlic and add to the pot, sautéing until lightly golden.
4. Dice the tomatoes and add to the onion sautéing for around two minutes. Add the water, sugar, minced garlic and spices and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust seasoning.
5. Preheat an oven to 180°C.
6. Arrange the lasagna noodles to line the bottom of the pan. You don’t need to precook them. Place half of the tomato sauce over the noodles to cover them well, then arrange a layer of the eggplant slices, followed by a sprinkling of the grated cheese. Repeat with another layer of noodles, sauce, and the remaining cheese.
7. Bake uncovered for around 30 minutes.
The bottom line:
Roast the eggplants in the oven, dice the vegetables, sauté the onion and garlic, add the tomatoes, water, and spices, and cook for 20 minutes.
In a baking pan, layer the lasagna noodles followed by the sauce, the eggplant slices, the cheese, another layer of noodles, sauce, and cheese, and bake for 30 minutes.
Good to know…
You don’t need to blanch the tomatoes. You can just dice them as is. I highly recommend making this a day or two in advance and keeping it in the fridge. Don’t feel like eggplant? Leave it out. Want to take this to the next level? Add some cream to the sauce at the end. I didn’t use tomato paste, the tomatoes were red and beautiful. You can add 2 Tbsp of tomato paste during cooking.
