Pamela’s Recipe of the Week: Happy Eggplant Rollatini
- Ariston Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
- All-purpose flour
- 4 large eggs, beaten to blend
- 3 ½ cups fresh breadcrumbs made from French or Italian bread
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 3 ounces)
- 18 – 1/4 to 1/3 inch thick LENGTHWISE eggplant slices (from 2 medium unpeeled eggplants)
- Salt and Pepper (Preferably freshly ground)
- Makes approx. 6 – 9 Servings
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Brush 3 baking sheets and one 13 x 9 x 2-inch glass baking dish with olive oil.
- Place flour in 1 wide shallow bowl, eggs in a second bowl, and breadcrumbs mixed with 1 cup Parmesan cheese in another. Sprinkle each eggplant slice with salt and pepper. Completely coat each slice with flour, then beaten egg, and finally, breadcrumb mixture.
- Arrange eggplant slices in single layer on prepared sheets. Bake eggplant in batches until coating is golden, turning after 15 minutes, about 30 minutes total. Cool on sheets.
FILLING
- 3 cups (packed) coarsely grated whole-milk mozzarella cheese (about 12 ounces)
- 1 ¼ cups ricotta cheese (preferably whole-milk)
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 3 ounces)
- ¾ cup chopped fresh basil leaves
- Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper to taste
- Mix mozzarella cheese, ricotta cheese, basil and 1 cup Parmesan cheese in medium bowl. Season filling with salt and pepper. Divide filling among roasted eggplant slices (about 3 tablespoons per slice); spread evenly. Starting at one short end, roll up eggplant slices, enclosing filling.
NOTE: At this point, you can individually flash-freeze the rollatini. Place the rollatini, seam-side down, on a freezer-paper or waxed-paper-lined rimmed cookie sheet. Place in the freezer and freeze for 6 hours or overnight. Then put each rollatini in its own individual small freezer bag, close tightly, and return them to the freezer. When you want to serve them, just remove the number that you want from the freezer, unwrap, place into a prepared baking pan, and proceed with the recipe. Add 5 – 10 minutes extra baking time to the recipe when baking this frozen rollatini.
TO PROCEED WITH THE RECIPE:
- Arrange rolls, seam side down, in prepared baking dish. (Recipe can be made to this point 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
FINAL INGREDIENTS
- Marinara sauce (see recipe) 3 cups for the rollatini and the rest for the pasta
- 2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces) plus extra cheese for the pasta and serving
- Pasta of your choice prepared “al dente” according to package directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spoon marinara sauce over rolls; sprinkle with 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese. Bake uncovered until rollatini are heated through and mozzarella cheese melts, about 30 minutes (or 35 – 40 minutes if baking the frozen rollatini.)
- Serve with a side of pasta which has been tossed with marinara sauce and more grated Parmesan cheese.
Bon Appétit!
The Happy Eggplant Gourmet Food & Kitchen Shoppe 