Have you ever started out to make a dish you were craving . . . only to discover that one of your ingredients was bad?
That’s what happened to me this past weekend.
I had a hankering for Eggplant Parmesan – but the eggplant I had purchased a week ago was unfortunately past its prime.
The “old Nancy” would have sent my long-suffering hubby to the store to buy another eggplant. The “new Nancy” rolled with the punches and took this as an opportunity to create something new.
Before I realized that the eggplant was bad, I’d already made my sauce in the slow cooker, grated parmesan, shredded fresh mozzarella from Uno Alla Volta (U.A.V.), beaten two eggs, and made breadcrumbs in the food processor.
So, I changed my pasta from lasagna to ziti, combined the eggs with some fresh ricotta and cottage cheese that I luckily had on hand from U.A.V., added some of the fresh mozzarella and grated parmesan, along with some nutmeg and parsley. I diced one medium zucchini and chopped up two Tofurky Italian Sausages to enrich the sauce, and topped my concoction with the breadcrumbs that would have breaded my eggplant.
It was so simple to make!
First, combine your sauce, cooked ziti, sausage pieces, and diced zucchini and put half of the mixture in a greased baking dish . . .
Then spread all of your ricotta mixture on the lower layer of sauced ziti . . .
Then, layer the rest of the sauced ziti on top of the ricotta mixture . . .
Then, sprinkle on the remaining mozz and parm . . .
Finally, sprinkle your whole wheat breadcrumbs on top of the cheese . . .
The result? A hearty, stick to your ribs Sunday dinner without an extra trip to the grocery store.
Did we miss the eggplant? Not one bit!
- 1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
- 1 28-ounce can crushed organic tomatoes
- 1 15-ounce can organic diced tomatoes
- ¼ cup red wine
- 1 Bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
- 1-2 tablespoons torn fresh basil
- 1 lb box of ziti
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 2 Tofurky Italian Sausages (if you don’t have Tofurky, Field Roast and No Evil Foods also make great Italian Sausages), quartered and chopped into small pieces
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 8 ounces fresh ricotta
- 4 ounces fresh cottage cheese
- 8 ounces fresh mozzarella, shredded (divided use)
- 11/2 cups freshly grated parmesan (divided use)
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- ¾ cup fresh whole wheat breadcrumbs
- Heat a skillet, add olive oil and sauté the chopped onion for about 5-6 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté about 30-60 seconds more (don’t let the garlic brown).
- Transfer the onion and garlic to a slow cooker (or do step 1 in your slow cooker if it has a sauté function), and add the crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, red wine, Bay leaf, sea salt, black pepper, and parsley. Cook on low for 4 hours. Taste the sauce, and add some additional salt and pepper if necessary, along with your fresh basil.
- About 30 minutes before your sauce is done, boil a large pot of water and preheat the oven to 400 degrees. When the water is at a rolling boil, add 1 tablespoon salt and then the ziti. Cook for about 11 minutes (or according to package directions) until just al dente. Reserve 1 cup of pasta cooking water and drain the ziti into a colander. Put the drained ziti in the sauce, add the diced raw zucchini and the chopped Italian sausage. Depending on how thick your sauce is, you may want to thin it a bit with the reserved pasta water.
- While the water is boiling and the oven is heating, put the eggs in a medium mixing bowl, and add the ricotta, the cottage cheese, about a third of the mozzarella, ½ cup of the parmesan, nutmeg, parsley, sea salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Spray a large deep baking dish (at least 9” x 13”) with cooking spray or use some olive oil on a paper towel.
- Put half of the sauced ziti in the bottom of the baking dish.
- Spread all of the ricotta mixture on top of the zucchini – just like you would with a layer of lasagna!
- Cover the ricotta mixture with the rest of the sauced ziti.
- Sprinkle on the remaining mozzarella and parmesan. Top with the breadcrumbs.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is nicely browned. Let the baking dish cool on a wire rack for at least 10-15 minutes before serving, so that it will hold together well when you cut it into portions.
All Rights Reserved.
You must be logged in to post a comment.