Eggplant and Pine Nut Rolled Lasagna
I tend to get my fresh vegetables on Tuesday, so by the time Sunday rolls around, I’m down a lot of produce. I wanted to make something yummy for dinner, but the only fresh veggie I had was an eggplant. My husband has undertaken a massive pantry operation (we have synched eLists and everything now), so I knew I had lasagna noodles, canned tomatoes, and pine nuts in with our non-perishables.
I’ve been wanting to play around with the idea of rolled lasagna for a while. It’s fun, easy, and not as messy to serve. I’ve found that vegan lasagna falls apart even more readily than its dairy counterpart since it doesn’t have solidifying cheese to keep it together. Rolled lasagna holds its shape marvelously and it’s attractive. It’s also a great way to make smaller portions of lasagna, if you don’t want a huge casserole dish full of it.
I baked mine in gratin dishes (you know me and individually portioned food). You can just as easily bake this in one large dish; there shouldn’t be a difference. You can also fill them with whatever you like. I think sundried tomatoes, spinach, mushrooms, roasted peppers… any of those would be a fabulous addition. I’ll add some possible variations to the recipe below.
Eggplant and Pine Nut Rolled Lasagna
Serves 4 (easily adapted)
8 Lasagna Noodles
1 Eggplant
Olive Oil
Salt
Black Pepper
2+ Cups Marinara Sauce (your favorite)
2 Slices Bread, toasted (or prepared breadcrumbs)
Pine Nut Spread
1 Cup Pine Nuts
1 Tbs Water
1/2 tsp White Wine Vinegar, or lemon juice
1 tsp Dried Italian Herbs
1/4 – 1/2 tsp Salt
Variation Ideas:
Add 1/3 Cup of Sun Dried tomatoes to pine nut spread
Add 1 Cup of sauteed spinach when filling
Add fresh baby spinach leaves when filling
Add 1 Cup of sauteed mushrooms when filling
Add strips of sauteed summer squash when filling
Boil noodles in salted water until al dente. Drain and lay out the noodles on a cookie sheet, lightly spraying with oil so that they do not stick. Set aside.
Peel eggplant. I find the easiest way to do this is to cut off both ends and use the edge provided to get your vegetable peeler started. I’ve found it difficult to get the peeler to cut the skin otherwise.
Place the eggplant upright on the cutting board. Slice the eggplant in long, thin vertical slices. Then slice each of these in half again, also vertically. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
In a large non-stick or cast-iron skillet, begin browning the eggplant strips in olive oil, 2-3 Tbs a batch (or more). When strips are very tender and nicely browned on both sides, set aside.
In the hot skillet you cooked the eggplant in, add the pine nuts. Toast the pine nuts over medium-low heat until golden brown, being careful not to burn. Add the pine nuts to the work bowl of a food processor. Grind the nuts as well as you can, then add the remaining ingredients for the pine nut spread. Process until well combined.
Toast the bread and process into breadcrumbs.
Preheat oven to 400º F.
Assembly
Spread a little pine nut spread ontp each noodle. You don’t need a lot, it’s very rich! Add eggplant strips, as well as any other filling.
Roll up each noodle and place in your baking dish(es) seam-side down. Cover generously with sauce.
Top with breadcrumbs and bake for 20-25 minutes. Since everything is already cooked, they just need to heat up and slightly brown. If you’re baking them in individual gratin dishes as shown here, place all the dishes on a baking sheet for easier removal from the oven. Serve immediately!
Making the sun dried tom version as I type!
Thanks so much for the recipe!
Scott
LOVE this dish. I look forward to every leftover piece.
Any advice on how to get the pine nut mixture to spread? The best I can do is flattened clumps dotted down the noodle.
I made this tonight and I am still very full from it. The pine nut spread wasn’t very spready but still very good. I had some leftover and I’m keeping it to sprinkle on things. I passed out for 2 hours after eating this after work!
I made this a few days before and it was realy gooood, of course i change some things like the pinenuts (i use some nuts that i already have) bit it taste delicius. Thanks for the recepy well for all of them
This is one of the most simple recipes I’ve ever done and IT WAS AMAZING
The eggplant was SO creamy
My only changes were that I used normal peanut butter (the stuff packed with oil, sugar and salt) instead of the pine nut spread and that I used normal lasagna sheets
Will be making this again!
OH and used jarred spicy sweet red pepper marinara sauce hmmm :)
Any luck replacing the dried Italian herbs with fresh ones?
I made this last night for a non-vegan. They said: “this is so good. it tastes gourmet. this is the best meal i’ve had in a long time”.
so thank you. i looked like a chef.
I found your blog through your iPhone app and I love it! This recipe is amazing, I’ve already made it twice. :-)
I love you blog. Just had to tell you! My fiance recently got on a vegan diet.. so I have been searching the internet for things to fix him that are still interesting. Your blog has been amazing help and is now on my favorites!! Thanks!
I was thinking of substituting hummus for the pine nut spread. Do you think this woudl work?
I just made this for the first time not two hours ago and all I can say is: Delicious! I
had my very carnivore parents and grandmother over for dinner and they all loved it! My Dad was actually shocked to discover this had NO CHEESE! My Mom asked for the recipe and my Grandma just couldn’t believe I found this recipe on the computer LOL. Next time I’m going to double the pine nut spread – my favorite part.
My husband claimed to hate eggplant, loathes it’s very existence… until tonight. He stole half of it before I could even roll it into the lasagna (swiping a piece here and there, occasionally burning his mouth on the hot olive oil) . He calls friend eggplant veggie-bacon and wants to try and incorporate it into more of our meals :)
Pine nuts are definitely a hit or miss. Maybe next time I’ll try using a fake cheese spread.
I’m a new Vegan and I cannot thank you enough for such a delicious recipe. I had non-Vegetarian friends over for dinner tonight and they did not even know that it was a Vegan dish. I also made an amazing vegan coconut flan. It was all sooooo tasty! People had seconds and thirds!! Please keep posting more options like these without soy. Many thanks :-)
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This is AMAZING!!! We absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE this dish!!! My question, I don’t have much luck frying things in olive oil – it always ends up smoking! Is there a trick to it?? Or is ther a way to bake the eggplant instead of frying it altogether?? The pine nut spread gives it so much flavor I doubt we would miss the oil!!! THANKS!!
YUM! this is what I’ve decided to make with my Valentine this Sunday.
I just wanted to say, I made these for my boyfriend and his Mother last night and it was a huge success – really yummy, and thoroughly impressed 2 omnivores so big points for me. Thanks so much for this and all your other lovely recipes :)
My Wife maid some great tasting PESTO sauce form Pine Nuts from this web sight www,WholeSalePineNuts.com
Yum! For those who want vegan cheese in it, like me:) I would add Daiya., Vegan YumYum ,what do you think?!
Made this tonight. It was so easy and fun to make (as long as you’ve got the time) and really yummy! I added some of the suggested variations like pumpkin and baby spinach in the filling and sundried tomato in the pine nut paste. I would have added some minced garlic to the paste if I’d remembered as I just love garlic and felt it was missing a little something. Instead of the breadcrumbs, I sprinkled nutritional yeast over the top just before eating for a cheesy/nutty taste. I don’t usually eat pine nuts and found them a bit strong (they’re expensive where I live too), so I think next time I’ll use 1/2 pine nuts and 1/2 cashews and see how that goes.
I LOVE this recipe. It used to be on my Vegan Yum Yum iphone app but it disappeared for some reason. If the app gets revised, I think it should be included again since it’s not in the Yum Yum book. Big fan of you & your recipes. Even my non-vegan friends and family members love everything I make from your recipes.
I am not Vegan but want to cut back on my Meat intake and also want to cut on dairy. Sounds good.