Eggplant Lasagna

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Roasted Vegetables

1. 1
   Preheat the oven to 220°C (430°F).

   ⚙ Preheating the OvenOven

   💡Put things in the oven only once it's reached temperature, after the heating light has gone off: an oven that hasn't reached temperature changes baking times, and the bake burns outside or stays underbaked.
2. 2
   Cut the vegetables lengthwise into 1 cm slices.

   KnifeCutting board
3. 3
   Brush the vegetables generously with part of the olive oil and sprinkle the salt on top.

   Pastry brush
4. 4
   Spread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper in a single layer, without crowding.

   Baking pan
5. 5
   Roast the vegetables in a hot oven (220°C / 430°F) 20–25 minutes, until the slices are completely tender and speckled brown.

   ⚙ Oven roastingOvenBaking pan

   💡Give it room in the pan: crowded vegetables steam instead of browning.

For the Tomato sauce

1. 6
   Heat the rest of the olive oil in a wide pan over medium heat.

   ⚙ Pan-fryingStoveFrying pan
2. 7
   Add the onion and fry 7 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent and starts to turn golden at the edges. If it browns too fast, lower the heat.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Add by cooking time: what needs long (onion, carrot, meat) goes in first, and what burns fast (garlic, dry spices) goes in last, only until fragrant.
3. 8
   Add the garlic and fry about 30 seconds to 1 minute, just until fragrant. Don't let the garlic brown.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Garlic burns fast and turns bitter. Add it only once the onion has softened, over medium heat, and add the next ingredient as soon as it smells.
4. 9
   Add and stir about a minute, until fragrant.

   ⚙ SimmeringStove

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
5. 10
   Add the basil leaves to the finished sauce.

To assemble

1. 11
   Lower the oven to 190°C (375°F).

   Oven
2. 12
   In a bowl, mix the cheese and eggs with half of the Parmesan.

   Bowl
3. 13
   In a separate bowl, mix the cheese.

   Bowl
4. 14
   In a baking dish, layer tomato sauce, eggplant and the cheese mixture, scattering a handful of the grated cheeses over it, and repeat the layers.

   Baking pan
5. 15
   Finish with a layer of eggplant, cover with the rest of the tomato sauce and sprinkle the rest of the grated cheeses and the rest of the Parmesan on top.
6. 16
   Bake 35–40 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and browning at the edges.

   ⚙ BakingOvenBaking pan

   💡Check by the cue (until…), not just the clock: every oven bakes a little differently.
7. 17
   Let the dish rest for 15 minutes before serving.