Eggplant Bake

Submitted by ratherbeswimmin

"Another of my mom's old recipes that I loved as a teen-ager. A good meatless main dish."

 

• Ready In: 1hr
• Ingredients: 13
• Serves: 8

ingredients

• 1 1⁄2 cups cooked brown rice (well-seasoned)
• 1 large eggplant, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 1 (8 ounce) carton plain yogurt
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• 1⁄2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1⁄2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup dry whole grain breadcrumbs (homemade are best)
• 1 tablespoon butter or 1 tablespoon margarine

directions

1. Spread the seasoned rice evenly in a greased (I use non-stick cooking spray) 12x8 inch baking dish.
2. Place eggplant slices over rice.
3. In a bowl, add the tomato paste, cottage cheese, yogurt, water, basil, oregano, onion powder, and garlic salt; stir to combine well.
4. Pour and spread sauce evenly over the eggplant.
5. Sprinkle cheese and breadcrumbs over the sauce.
6. Dot with butter.
7. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until eggplant is done.

Reviews

[Annz Recipez]

This recipe is very tasty! I didn't make it exactly as written, since I had fresh tomato, garlic, onion, basil, and oregano on hand, so I used them instead of the dried/powdered spices and the tomato paste, but other than that, tried to stick with the recipe. I wasn't sure what you meant by "well seasoned" rice, so I used Red Robin seasoned salt and Italian seasoning in the rice, which gave it a nice flavor. I also drizzled with about 1 t. olive oil and sprayed with canola oil cooking spray instead of the butter on top, too. I really like the buttery eggplant taste mixed with the cheesy sauce and tomato flavors. Delicious! I'll be making this one again.

 

[sunflowerseed]

This is a very good recipe - I did make a few changes. I salted the sliced eggplant and placed it between layers of paper towels about 30 minutes before preparing. I also didn't have any yogurt or cottage cheese, so I made some thick white sauce and added all the spices and about 1/2 cup ketchup instead of tomato paste. I also drizzled the top with olive oil instead of butter before baking, otherwise I followed the recipe as written. I served it with broiled fish, but in all honesty, the eggplant would have been almost a meal in itself -just serve it with a green salad and some crusty bread. I am sure my version came out different than the original - it is somewhat rich, but very filling. A very good recipe all in all, with room for variation. I am eager to try it again with the yogurt and perhaps ricotta cheese instead of cottage cheese.