Eggplant Lasagna

We miss Italian food, eating Paleo all the time. But I figured out how to get around it! Eggplant makes for perfect noodle substitute, as long as you peel it.

Ingredients:

One large, fat eggplant, peeled and sliced very thinly (use a mandolin if possible)
1 pound (or a little more) ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
1 small can of tomato sauce
1 16-oz package of shredded mozzarella
2 lb tub of ricotta cheese
fresh oregano
salt and pepper

Peel and slice the eggplant while you brown the ground beef in a saucepan along with the onion and garlic. Once the meat is browned, add the sauce, dash of salt and pepper, and a small bunch of fresh oregano (or 1/2 tsp dry), and stir together well on low heat. Turn off heat, and spray olive oil into bottom of large glass baking dish. Mix the ricotta and a handful of mozzarella in a big bowl together.
Time to start layering!
Spread a layer of meat sauce on the bottom of the dish, then top with a layer of eggplant.
Spread a layer of ricotta on top of that, followed by a final layer of meat sauce and another layer of eggplant.
Spread the rest of the ricotta on top, then a final layer of eggplant, topped with the rest of the bag of mozzarella.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes, and enjoy!

**QUICK POST NOTE** After cooking this, I realized it was a bit too cheesy, so maybe next time only 1 pound of ricotta is necessary :P

Tasty Breaded and Fried Eggplant

I've gotten into the Paleo Diet lately, and although it involves not eating dairy products or wheat-based anything, I still had this big can of bread crumbs on my shelf that I was reluctant to throw out. Eggplant was on sale at the store this week, and so a delicious side dish was born! And coconut oil is my new best friend in this house. It's much easier to cook now that my daughter understands the phrase "back off" when referring to her proximity to the stove.

Ingredients:

One large eggplant, washed and cut into rounds, then halve the rounded slices
2-3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
1 Tbsp Italian spices (or a few dashes of parsley, oregano, basil, and thyme)
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup coconut oil

Beat the eggs in a large bowl and set aside. Mix the bread crumbs and spices in another large shallow bowl and set next to the egg bowl. Heat half the coconut oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat, until it just begins to steam. Dip pieces of the eggplant in the beaten egg, then drop into the bread crumbs and coat thoroughly. Drop gently into the heated oil and fry for about 1-2 minutes on each side, til the pieces are golden brown. Use the remaining coconut oil after each batch, as the breading will tend to soak it up. Continue the process until all the eggplant has been breaded and fried and set on a plate for serving purposes. Makes a great side dish, or a lunch by itself.

Spicy Crock Pot Chili

I've made this before and it turns out differently every time, depending on how many shakes of spices I decide to use. I estimated measurements on the spices for you, though, and put the baby in her high chair beside me in the kitchen to watch me prepare. She loved watching the beef brown in the frying pan!
You can turn this into a vegetarian chili quite easily by simply replacing the pound or so of ground beef with a large eggplant all chopped up. My dad always said eggplant was the meat of the vegetable world.
By the way, last night we just had a lamb steak with some packaged veggies, and I prepared the lamb the same way I prepared the rack of it in that earlier post.

Ingredients:

1-1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 small red jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 whole sweet onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
1 14-15 oz. can red kidney beans, rinsed
1 14-15 oz. can black beans, rinsed
2 14-15 oz. cans diced stewed tomatoes (I use the can with the zesty chili spices)
1 tsp. seasoned salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
dash of garlic pepper, if you have some
dash of cumin seed
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 Tbsp parsley flakes
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp Tabasco sauce

Brown the ground beef in a frying pan (at least most of the way), breaking up into small chunks as it cooks. Or alternatively, peel and chop the eggplant into 1-inch cubes and add to pot. Drain before adding it to the Crock Pot. Drain the cans of beans and put into the pot, and throw in entire contents of the two tomato cans. Chop veggies while meat is browning and throw all into the pot, followed by the spices (adding a little more cayenne pepper if you like your chili super spicy). Stir well with a long wooden spoon and then cook on low for at least 6 hours stirring once in the middle of cook time, or high for at least 4 hours.

I made mine while the baby was awake and fascinated by either me cooking or the magnets on the refrigerator around 9:30am, so it's going to cook at least until 5pm. This chili is best served with either corn bread or Pillsbury crescent rolls.

As a bonus today for missing yesterday's post, I give you a link to my eHow article on my Amazingly Tasty Hamburgers recipe.