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Melanzane Ripiene | Stuffed Eggplant

I love this quick, flavorful and zero-waste recipe for eggplant stuffed with ground beef, tomato sauce and finished off under the broiler with mozzarella cheese. It’s a great, healthy, diabetic friendly recipe that won’t have you missing the carbs.

Melanzane Ripiene | Stuffed Eggplant

  • Servings: 4 people
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • 2 large eggplants
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 cup tomato puree
  • 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
  • 1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley, separated
  • 1 teaspoon salt + more to for salting eggplant
  • Red Pepper flakes to taste
  • Shredded mozzarella to cover eggplant.

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Cut the ends of the eggplant and discard. Half the eggplant lengthwise, and use a spoon to remove the flesh of the eggplant, leaving about a 1/2 to 1 inch thick border. Place the eggplants on a baking sheet and salt generously to remove moisture. Cut the flesh of the eggplant into small, rough chunks (about 1/2 inch wide).
  3. In a large frying pan, heat the extra virgin olive oil over medium heat and add in red pepper flakes to taste. Heat for about a minute. Add the ground beef and cook until browned. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
  4. Add the flesh of the eggplant to the frying pan and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add one teaspoon salt and toss. Return the beef to the pan and add the tomato purée, breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese and mix together again, creating a paste. Note that the amount of sauce and breadcrumbs is relative to the size of the eggplant – if your mixture is not quite a paste, you can add additional sauce to loosen it or breadcrumbs to dry it out. Turn off the heat and add half of the parsley. Mix to combine.
  5. Pat the whole eggplants dry with a paper towel and fill the cavities with eggplant mixture. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until eggplants are soft and tender (this will depend on the size).
  6. Remove from oven and top with as much mozzarella cheese as desired. Turn on the broiler and return to the oven until cheese has melted and browned, about 3-5 minutes. Remove from oven and top with fresh parsley.

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