This eggplant lasagna recipe is a tasty alternative to the original carb-filled pasta version! Lasagna with eggplant is so flavorful and uses roasted eggplant layered with italian sausage, marinara sauce, ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan. This recipe is high protein, low carb, has no added sugar and it's keto-friendly.
Why You'll Love This Recipe for Eggplant Lasagna
You can substitute cottage cheese for ricotta if you prefer one over the other.
Easy Casserole. This casserole is easy! Instead of having to dip and coat the eggplant, you only need to spray or brush on olive oil (spray is the quickest and easiest) and then roast the eggplant slices. From there, you layer the ingredients in a casserole dish and bake.
It's Delicious. Eggplant lasagna is so flavorful and full of ooey gooey melted cheese. I can promise you will not miss the pasta in this dish. Eggplant actually adds more flavor to the dish than just using pasta.
Healthy. Eggplant lasagna is high in protein, gluten free, low carb, and keto friendly. By using eggplant instead of lasagna noodles you save a lot of carbs. This dish is made keto by the addition of ketogenic approved fats from olive oil, meat, and cheeses. There are 8 servings in this dish and each serving has only 6.2 g net carbs, nice!
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you'll need to make eggplant lasagna:
- Fresh Eggplant
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Italian Sausage - using Italian sausage it adds a lot of flavor, but ground beef can be substituted.
- Ricotta Cheese - fat free or regular can be used, cottage cheese can be substituted.
- Frozen Spinach - the spinach needs to be thawed then squeeze the liquid out of it between two paper towels.
- Egg
- Fresh Grated Mozzarella - it is best to use freshly grated mozzarella in this dish.
- Parmesan Cheese
- Marinara Sauce - use sugar free if you are following a low carb or keto plan.
Subsitutions and Variations
- You can substitute ground beef for Italian sausage if you like. If you do decide to substitute, I recommend that you at least 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning to your ricotta mixture.
- You can substitute cottage cheese for ricotta if you prefer one over the other.
How To Make Eggplant Lasagna
Here's how to make this eggplant lasagna:
Roast Eggplant Slices
- Soak the eggplant slices in salted water for 30 minutes. Drain and dry with paper towels.
- Preheat the oven to broil, adjusting the top oven rack to within 6 to 8" of the heat.
- Spray eggplant slices with olive oil spray then lay on a baking sheet lined with nonstick foil. Alternatively, brush olive oil on the eggplant slices. Broil for 2 to 4 minutes until eggplant is golden brown. Turn over and repeat. Set eggplant aside.
- Turn the oven down to bake at 375º F
Brown Italian Sausage
- In a skillet over medium-high heat, brown Italian sausage. Drain fat. Set aside.
Mix Ricotta, Egg, and Spinach
- In a small bowl, combine ricotta, egg, and spinach.
Assemble Casserole
- Spray a 13" x 9" casserole dish with nonstick spray. Spread a ⅓ a cup of the marinara sauce over the bottom of the dish.
- Lay half of the eggplant slices on top of the marinara sauce. Then spread half of the remaining marinara sauce over the top of the eggplant slices. Spread ½ of the ricotta mixture, then sprinkle half the Italian sausage, half of the mozzarella cheese, and half of the parmesan cheese.
- Lay the remaining eggplant slices, and repeat with all ingredients, ending with parmesan cheese.
Bake Casserole
- Bake eggplant lasagna for 40 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.
Kori's Tips
- The eggplant will immediately soak up the olive oil. To prevent this, simultaneously drizzle and spread the oil with a brush. This will evenly coat the eggplant slices. Another option - olive oil cooking spray. Make sure to get 100% extra virgin olive oil cooking spray that doesn't use propellants. I found this method to work the best.
- To prevent the eggplant from sticking, lay the slices on nonstick foil. They come up extra easy this way!
How to Serve It
Serve keto eggplant lasagna with a fresh green salad and a favorite salad dressing such as this zesty Italian. It also pairs well with these easy air fryer green beans or broccoli.
How to Store It
Store leftover eggplant lasagna in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Because the eggplant turns mushy, it does not freeze well.
Can I freeze eggplant lasagna?
The best way to do this is to assemble the casserole in a freezer and oven safe 13 x 9" pan that has a lid. Proceed with all steps, cover with lid, and freeze. Alternatively, you can bake, cool, then freeze.
Thaw the casserole 36 - 48 hours in advance of when you want to eat it. Bake until the eggplant lasagna is heated through and the cheese is bubbly.
How long will eggplant lasagna keep in the refrigerator?
Eggplant lasagna will keep for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator after it has been baked. By the way, it makes the BEST leftover lunches!
FAQs
You can reduce the fat of eggplant lasagna, by using low-fat or fat-free ricotta or cottage cheese. You can also use a part-skim mozzarella. In addition, you can spray your eggplant slices lightly with olive oil spray and place them on a nonstick baking sheet. This will reduce the amount of olive oil needed.
The eggplant can be very watery as well as some tomato sauces. Eggplant should be thoroughly dried with paper towels.
It is best to slice it lengthwise as it helps the layering process.
This will depend upon the recipe, but typically there are 3 layers, sometimes just 2.
If you have a very mature or older eggplant the skin may be tough, and you should peel the eggplant. If you have a young eggplant the skin will be tender when cooked so there is no need to peel.
Can I ask you a favor?
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📖 The recipe.
Eggplant Sausage Lasagna
Ingredients
- 2 large eggplant (peeled then sliced into ⅓" slices)
- Extra virgin olive oil cooking spray or ½ cup of olive oil
- 1 pound Italian sausage
- 15 ounce container ricotta cheese
- 8 ounce package frozen chopped spinach (thawed and water squeezed out of it)
- 1 egg
- 2 cups mozzarella (grated)
- ½ cup parmesan cheese (grated)
- 24 ounces marinara sauce (keto: use sugar free)
Instructions
- Soak the eggplant slices in salted water for 30 minutes. Drain and dry with paper towels.
- Preheat oven to broil, adjusting top oven rack to within 6 to 8" of the heat.
- Spray eggplant slices with olive oil spray then lay on a baking sheet lined with nonstick foil. Alternatively, brush olive oil on the eggplant slices. Broil for 2 to 4 minutes until eggplant are golden brown. Turn over and repeat. Set eggplant aside.
- Turn oven down to bake at 375º F
- In a skillet over medium high heat, brown Italian sausage. Drain fat. Set aside.
- In a medium sized bowl, combine ricotta, egg, and spinach.
- Spray a 13" x 9" casserole dish with nonstick spray. Spread ⅓ cup of the marinara sauce over the bottom of the dish.
- Lay half of the eggplant slices on top of marinara sauce. Then spread half of the remaining marinara sauce over the top of the eggplant slices. Spread ½ of the ricotta mixture, then sprinkle half the Italian sausage, half of the mozzarella cheese, and half of the parmesan cheese.
- Lay the remaining eggplant slices, and repeat with all ingredients, ending with parmesan cheese.
- Bake eggplant lasagna 40 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.
Video
Kori's Tips
- The eggplant will immediately soak up the olive oil. To prevent his, simultaneously drizzle and spread the oil with a brush. This will evenly coat the eggplant slices. Another option - olive oil cooking spray. Make sure to use 100% extra virgin olive oil cooking spray that doesn't use propellants. I found this method to work the best.
- To prevent the eggplant from sticking, lay the slices on nonstick foil. They come up extra easy this way!
Nutrition
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If you're an eggplant lover I know you'll want to try Low Carb Eggplant Parmesan, Grilled Eggplant Caprese Salad, and this Healthy Tomato and Eggplant Salad - all three are delicious ways to use up all that eggplant coming out of your garden!
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