Deliciously cheesy and filling no-noodle eggplant lasagna done in under an hour...um, heck yes! This showstopper of a recipe stars tender roasted eggplant (no peeling or salting!), high protein cottage cheese instead of ricotta mushrooms, melty mozzarella, and lean chicken sausage. Bake for 30 minutes at 400F until bubbly and serve!
Be honest...do you love eggplant or loathe it? Perhaps this insane eggplant lasagna will make it love at first bite?! My fam could not stop chowing down on this and it felt like a restaurant experience right at home (minus the dishes...).
It's elevated but approachable. Nothing too technical here, just layers on layers of rich, must-have-another-bite flavor that's stellar for serving company. Or yourself.
While most recipes for homemade eggplant lasagna use ricotta, I took a different approach and used amazingly creamy, higher protein cottage cheese--just like my zucchini lasagna!
Behind the scenes of recipe testing (expert tips!)
- Operation tender and flavorful eggplant: Since eggplant holds a lot of moisture, you have to cook it first to 1) get that soft vs chewy texture and b) avoid the dreaded watery lasagna. It's an extra step but don't skip it! During recipe testing, it was clear that roasting it with olive oil (plus salt for critical flavor) at 425°F for about 20 minutes yielded the perfect tender texture and delish, not bitter flavor. I tried grilling it for my second test and that works, too!
- Why cottage cheese? I developed this recipe with cottage cheese because I find it just as satisfying as ricotta but a more nourishing, filling option...so why not?! I've made this with ricotta and it's delish as well so if you loathe cottage cheese, don't fret.
- Sauce makes or breaks it: Trust me, this lasagna won't be delicious with a bargain sauce made with a bunch of added sugar to mask sad, flavorless tomatoes. Go for a high-quality marinara sauce like Rao's with ingredients like tomatoes, onions, EVOO, and salt.
- Cheese matters: It took a bit of trial and error to find the perfect cheese situation but this recipe nails it! Fresh mozzarella is too mild and more watery so that was a pass. The solution? Shredded mozz + parmesan is the perfect balance of sharp cheesiness. Shredding it yourself will lend even better meltability.
- To sausage or not to sausage: Most popular eggplant lasagnas go entirely veggie, but I added chicken sausage to make it even more satisfying and flavorful. It's so much less greasy than pork, winning. You can also leave it out if sausage isn't your jam.
- Let it rest! I know—you just spent your free time making this masterpiece and want to dig in. But when I cut into the lasagna straight out of the oven it was not pretty (ahem, layers sliding everywhere). I tested slicing at 10 minutes, and 20 minutes post-bake, and the difference was wild. At 10-15 minutes, everything set like a dream.
Let's make it!
Storing leftovers
Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months!
I hope you're as obsessed with this recipe as I am!
I'd be super grateful if you'd take a moment to leave a quick star rating and review below. Comments mean the world to me and your honest feedback helps me to continue to share recipes you'll crave!
CHEESE TIME.
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Eggplant Lasagna (with cottage cheese!)
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 9 servings 1x
- Category: Main Dishes
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Deliciously cheesy and filling no-noodle eggplant lasagna done in under an hour...um, heck yes! This showstopper of a recipe stars tender roasted eggplant (no peeling or salting!), high protein cottage cheese instead of ricotta mushrooms, melty mozzarella, and lean chicken sausage. Bake for 30 minutes at 400F until bubbly and serve!
Ingredients
- 2 large eggplant, sliced into ¼ inch slices (about 10 slices)
- 2 ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ¼ tsp kosher salt, divided
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 8oz sliced mushrooms
- 12oz mild Italian chicken sausage, removed from casing (can sub plant-based sausage, or you can omit!)
- 1 large egg
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 16oz container whole milk cottage cheese
- ½ cup + 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese, divided
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 24 oz jar high quality marinara sauce, like Rao's
- 1 ¾ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F. Have 2 sheet pans ready (I use 1 extra large sheet pan and 1 standard one). Place eggplant on pans in an even layer.
- Place olive oil in a small bowl. Use a silicone brush to brush eggplant with oil. Sprinkle evenly with ½ tsp kosher salt. Bake for 20-25 min, flipping pans halfway through. Once done, remove from oven and lower heat to 400F.
- Meanwhile, warm a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Once hot, add mushrooms, sausage, and ½ tsp kosher salt. Cook, stirring often, for 10 minutes, or until sausage is no longer pink. Drain any fat then stir in jar of sauce.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add cottage cheese, egg, garlic ½ cup parmesan, parsley, ¼ tsp kosher salt, and a pinch of pepper. Stir to combine.
- Place 1 ¼ cups meat sauce on bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish and tilt to spread. Top with about 6 eggplant slices (they can overlap). Cover with half of the cottage cheese mixture (1 heaping cup) and sprinkle with ½ cup mozzarella cheese.
- Top evenly with another 1 ¼ cups sauce, remaining eggplant slices, remaining cottage cheese mixture, and ½ cup mozzarella.
- For the final layer, top with remaining sauce, ¾ cup mozzarella, and remaining 2 tbsp parmesan. Bake for 30 minutes. (For a more golden top, you can broil for a couple minutes at the end.) Let lasagna rest for 10-15 minutes to set before devouring, which is critical to help it set!
Notes
Make ahead: Roast the eggplant up to 2 days in advance and store in the refrigerator until ready to assemble. You can also assemble the entire thing up to 2 days in advance!
Rae says
Delicious!! My boyfriend went back for a 3rd serving (LOL)! I ran out of sauce so I’d say just do 1 cup for each layer. Also, I almost forgot the meat/mushrooms when assembling the layers because it wasn’t in the instructions. Might be good to add as a reminder. Will definitely be making again!
Alexis Joseph, MS, RD says
Hey! Yayyy I’m so thrilled it was a winner at your house 🙂 Ahh yes I caught that mistake about the sauce this am—-I’m so sorry about that! Good to know leas sauce per layer. Thanks for your feedback!
Dylan says
Yum! I made this for supper today and it was fab! Such good flavour! I used spicy fennel pork sausage from a local butcher.
Alexis Joseph, MS, RD says
Yayyy so glad to hear, Dylan!!
Dylan says
Yum! I made this for supper today and it was fab! Such good flavour! I used spicy fennel pork sausage from a local butcher.