I had some ricotta left over from the Mushroom and Ricotta canneloni and being a big fan of eggplant decided to try these very simple eggplant rolls that are great as a starter or just a little something to nibble on. You could quite easily serve them as a vegetable dish with a main meal like the Chicken parmagiana and drizzle over some of tomato sauce. It actually turns out a really impressive looking dish that you will be proud to serve. (about 12 rolls)
What you need
2 medium eggplants sliced along the length about 1cm thick
2 cups ricotta cheese
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil (loosely packed)
1 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
3/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese
Salt and pepper
Tomato sauce or a bought chunky tomato sauce.
The process
Place the slices of eggplant on a baking tray that has been lightly oiled with olive oil and then sprinkle a little olive oil over the top. Sprinkle salt over the top and place in a 200 Celsius oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until the eggplant is soft and beginning to go brown on the surface.
Place the ricotta cheese, parmesan(leave about 1/4 for the topping) and basil in a bowl and mix to combine, season with salt and pepper to your liking.
Once the eggplant is cool enough to handle, place a heaped tablespoon of the mixture onto the eggplant slices and roll them up.
Place all of the eggplant rolls into a baking dish packed closely together, cover with a tomato sauce and sprinkle over the rest of the parmesan cheese.
Bake for a further 10 minutes or so until the cheese has melted.
Serve straight away with a little more basil.
Really good and tasty folks, give it a try.
Hi Graham
Made these again (they are a firm favourite now) and added some pine nuts. Adds another whole dimension to the dish. Very yummy
Hi Zelda, adding pine nuts is a great idea, do you use them raw or toasted? Thanks for sharing, I am definitely going to give it a go.
Graham, these are divine!! Had friends over last night and made these. I had some mozarella so added that to the Ricotta mix. I also had some filling lefet over, so spread that over the rolls, then a tomato sauce and then the rest of the parmesan. Everyone scored them 10/10! Have my daughters coming from the weekend – the joys of living in Hermanus. They also love eggplant so will make it for them too. This one is winner.
Thats fantastic Zelda, love the idea of topping it off like that, will try it next time. Woohoo, another happy reader
Hi!
Please explain how to cut an eggplant `horizontally’. Surely it depends how it is lying as to whether it is cut `horizontally’ or `vertically’? Help!
Many thanks
Now that I read it again, it doesn’t really explain what I mean haha, sorry about that, I’ve changed it to say “along the length”. Chop off the ends and slice long slices. Cheers
HI again Graham
Can I prepare these before the time and bake them just before serving?
Hi there Zelda, you sure can, I would put them in the fridge and increase the cooking time by a few minutes. G