Eggplant Beef Pasta Bake Recipes

EGGPLANT, TOMATO AND MOZZARELLA PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season aggressively with salt. Add the rigatoni and cook 3 minutes less than the package directions. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water and drain.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Toss the eggplant and tomatoes with 3 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread on the baking sheet and roast until the eggplant is golden brown and tomatoes are tender, 25 to 30 minutes. (Leave the oven on.)
• Toss the rigatoni with the eggplant, tomatoes, about 1/4 cup pasta water and the marinara sauce in a large bowl. If it looks dry, add the remaining pasta water. Stir in 1 cup mozzarella.
• Spray a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray. Transfer the pasta to the baking dish and top with the remaining cup mozzarella and the Parmesan and drizzle with the remaining tablespoon olive oil. Bake until the cheese is melted and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. (Turn the broiler on at the end if you want the cheese to brown more.) Garnish with additional Parmesan and the chopped basil and serve.

CHEESY EGGPLANT AND RIGATONI BAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Cook rigatoni according to package instructions but keep it slightly more al dente. Reserve 1 1/2 cups pasta cooking water, then drain and rinse pasta under cold water, and transfer to a large bowl while you cook the eggplant.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large, oven-proof skillet over medium. Add half the eggplant, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until golden brown on all sides, 9 to 10 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the rigatoni. Repeat with 2 tablespoons olive oil and remaining eggplant and transfer to the bowl.
• Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in the skillet over medium. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in red-pepper flakes and season with salt and pepper. Add tomatoes and their juices, crushing the tomatoes with your hands as you add them. Cook until the tomatoes are very soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the reserved pasta cooking water, adding up to 1 1/2 cups as needed to create a silky sauce.
• If the skillet is large enough, add the rigatoni and eggplant mixture, Parmesan, 1 cup mozzarella and 1 cup basil and toss to coat. Otherwise, add the tomato sauce, Parmesan, 1 cup mozzarella and 1 cup basil to the large bowl with the rigatoni and eggplant, toss to coat and then return to the skillet or transfer to a greased baking dish.
• Top with remaining 3 cups mozzarella and bake until the sauce is bubbling on the sides and the cheese is melted, about 25 minutes. Top with grated ricotta salata and torn fresh basil to serve.

BEEF AND EGGPLANT CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray an 8-inch square glass pan with cooking spray.
• Place eggplant slices on paper towels and sprinkle with salt. Top slices with additional paper towels; allow salt to draw off some of the moisture, 30 to 45 minutes. Press down on paper towels to get as much moisture out as you can.
• Combine cornmeal, flour, paprika, cinnamon, and ginger in a bowl. Dredge eggplant slices in mixture.
• Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Place floured eggplant slices in pan and cook until edges start to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Flip; cook until crisp on edges but still soft in centers, 3 to 4 minutes more. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir ground beef in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic, onion, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Cook and stir until onions are softened and translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Layer eggplant slices to cover bottom of the prepared pan; follow with ground beef, 1/2 can diced tomatoes, 1/2 the Cheddar cheese and 1/2 the Monterey Jack cheese. Repeat layers, starting with eggplant slices. Dredge any remaining eggplant slices in Parmesan cheese and place on top of casserole.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is melted and bubbling and top is golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes.

EGGPLANT PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly oil a large, deep casserole dish. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
• Arrange the sliced eggplant on a greased cookie sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
• In a food processor, puree the onion, bell pepper, garlic and optional ancho chile pepper. If the mixture is too thick add a tablespoon of water. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Pour the onion mixture into the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until the liquid has evaporated and the mixture has thickened. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Stir in flour until smooth. Add milk, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat.
• Arrange half of the baked eggplant in the greased casserole dish. Spoon in half of the white sauce, covering the eggplant. Spread the veggie crumbles over the white sauce, followed by the pasta, and a layer of the bell pepper puree. Cover the the onion and pepper mixture with remaining eggplant and spoon the remaining white sauce over the eggplant. Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the casserole.
• Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for 35 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.