Lentil and ricotta eggplant parmigiana

Try this low calorie, vegetarian lentil and ricotta aubergine parmigiana, its a delicious meat-free meal, high in calcium and fibre, a deliciously creamy and fragrant dish that takes little effort to make!

Serves: 4
Time to make: 50 mins

Total cost: $ 29.04 / $ 7.26 per serve

(at time of publication)

Ingredients

2 large eggplantaubergineXs
oil spray
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, diced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 medium tomatoes, chopped
400g can no-added-salt lentils, rinsed and drained
cracked black pepper
1 cup ricotta
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
¼ cup finely grated parmesan
4 cups baby rocketarugulaX
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Instructions

1 Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a large baking tray with baking paper. Cut each eggplant lengthways into four flat 1cm-thick slices. Lightly spray both sides of each slice with olive oil. Place on the prepared tray and bake for 15–20 minutes, or until golden and tender.

2 Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat half of the olive oil over medium heat. Gently fry onion and celery for 5 minutes, or until softened. Add cumin and garlic and cook, stirring, for about 1 minute, or until fragrant. Add tomatoes and lentils. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, or until thick. Season with cracked black pepper.

3 In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, basil and half of the parmesan.

4 Top each eggplant slice with 1/8 of the lentil mixture, then top with the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with remaining parmesan. Return to the oven and bake for 15 minutes. In a salad bowl, toss rocket with balsamic vinegar and the remaining oil. Serve eggplant parmigiana with rocket salad.

Nutrition Info (per serve)

Kilojoules 1260kJ

Calories 302cal

Protein 15g

Total fat 16g

–Saturated fat 7g

Carbohydrates 20g

–Sugars 16g

Dietary fibre 12g

Sodium 260mg

Calcium 300mg

Iron 3mg

Note: Nutrition composition will vary depending on the exact ingredients used. For a guide to purchasing healthier packaged goods and general grocery items see here.