Apparently, I’m still stuck in Italy! Though I’ve kicked the pasta and Focaccia bread to the curb (thank goodness because I’m not ready to gain all my baby weight back), I just can’t let go of that Italian seasoning. So here’s my happy medium, an Italian-tasting dish without all the carbs.
With Halloween around the corner, I’m going to be bathing in chocolate candy—my weakness—so something’s got to give. That means I have to eat my best and put my best running foot forward. It’s all about balance. And with our enormous Friscovania Halloween event, I’m not going to be able to say no to the hordes of trick-or-treat candy, and with Italian food like this, why should I have to?
Got any healthy Italian recipes for us? We’d love to share!
Italian Stuffed Eggplant
Author: Model Behaviors
Ingredients
- 2 pounds of lean ground beef
- 8 tbsps. olive oil
- 4 large eggplants
- 3 cups marinara sauce
- 4 eggs
- 30 ounces of ricotta
- fresh oregano
- 4 cups grated mozzarella
- 1 cup grated Parmesan
- fresh rosemary
- favorite Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
- Wash eggplants, fresh oregano, and rosemary.
- Cut eggplants in half, lengthwise, and scoop out centers, setting the centers aside.
- Arrange eggplant shells on a baking sheet then drizzle with 4 tbsps. of olive oil.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Place baking sheet in oven and cook for 15 minutes (rotating sheet halfway through).
- While the eggplant shells are cooking, in a pot, cook ground beef and season with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Roughly chop or grind oregano and rosemary, and chop the scooped out eggplant.
- When beef begins to brown, add chopped eggplant and the marinara sauce.
- In a bowl, whisk together eggs, ricotta, oregano, rosemary, 3 cups of mozzarella, and salt and pepper as desired.
- Add cheese mixture to the beef and marinara then stir until cheese has melted and sauce is bubbling.
- Once eggplant shells are finished, take them out of the oven and scoop the marinara sauce into the shells.
- Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and let set for 5 minutes.
Enjoy!
