Lasagna is one of those mains that can please just about any kind of crowd and won’t have you standing over the stove for hours. It makes a meal comes together with just a salad or soup and maybe some bread on the side. This eggplant beef lasagna has a savory flavor offset by the hearty combination of beef and vegetables.
We’re making the sauce on the stovetop before adding it to the pan, but after that you can just let the oven do the rest of the work.
I love that this sauce has bell peppers in it since it adds so much yumminess to the final dish. But, if peppers aren’t your thing you can add another veggie instead or simply double up on the mushrooms.
For the eggplant we’re not cooking it before adding it to the lasagna layers which is why it’s important to aim for very thin slices. They can cook all the way when sliced thin enough.
Unlike many lasagna recipes this one is lacking ricotta cheese and that’s down to the moisture content. The veggies add a lot of water to the mix and as they bake all that water gets released. So, we’re using cheeses with less moisture than ricotta (parmesan and mozzarella) to counteract that.
Likewise we’re also not using a béchamel for this lasagna either, for the same reasons of moisture.
When the cheese on top is melted and beginning to brown (or even darker depending on your preference) you can take this yummy lasagna out of the oven and cut it into squares.
It’s got just a bit of a different flavor to other lasagna recipes which makes it all the more enjoyable if you ask me!
Eggplant Ground Beef Lasagna
Ingredients
- 1 lb box lasagna noodles
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup green pepper, diced
- 1 cup sliced mushrooms
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 (14.5 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
- 1 (23 oz) jar marinara sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 eggplant, very thinly sliced
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup parmesan cheese
Preparation
- Heat stockpot over medium heat. Add beef, onion, pepper, and mushrooms. Cook for 8 minutes. Add garlic, salt, and pepper. Stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, marinara, basil, and Italian seasoning. Cook for 10 minutes or until moisture from tomatoes has cooked off.
- Boil lasagna noodles to al dente then drain and lay out on baking sheets until ready to use.
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Fill bottom 1/4” of a 9”x13” baking dish with meat sauce. Add a layer of noodles on top, followed by more sauce. Add eggplant on top followed by 1/3 of the mozzarella. Repeat until all sauce, noodles, eggplant, and mozzarella have been used up.
- Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and bake for 25-30 minutes or until eggplant is fork tender. Cover with foil halfway through baking. Slice into squares to serve.
Recipe adapted from All Recipes.