The eggplant casserole with béchamel is a dish that at first glance may seem like a parmigiana, but it is actually a different delicacy.
The eggplants are not fried, and the béchamel sauce combined with Stracchino cheese gives the dish an extraordinary creaminess.
With béchamel, you can also prepare other delicious dishes, and I recommend a few others of mine. If you are lactose intolerant, you might prepare Béchamel with Rice Milk ⬅️
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
Let’s see what we need to prepare the casserole.
- eggplants (2.6 lbs)
- Stracchino cheese (3.5 oz)
- grated Parmesan cheese (1 oz)
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- béchamel (about 1 quart, you can find how to make my béchamel with oil on the page)
- 2 cans peeled tomatoes (17.6 oz in total)
- to taste fine salt
- 2 cloves garlic (to prepare the sauce)
- to taste basil (a few leaves to flavor the sauce)
- Half onion
- 1 pinch sugar (for the sauce)
Steps
Let’s see the steps to make the casserole
The first thing I did was prepare the sauce and the béchamel.
For the sauce, I sautéed garlic, onion, and oil in a pan. As soon as they started to sizzle, I added the peeled tomatoes, salt, a pinch of sugar, and basil leaves, then let it simmer for 15/20 minutes. Once ready, I set it aside.
For the béchamel, I used oil instead of butter and cooked it in the microwave for faster preparation. If you want, you can check out my Oil-based Béchamel recipe. Make it how you usually do, even with butter if you prefer. I made a quart of it. Once it’s ready, set it aside as well.
Now let’s take the eggplants, cut them into slices, and distribute them on parchment paper. I added salt on both sides so they wouldn’t dry out during cooking.
To save time, I cooked them on the paper directly on the oven grill. 15 minutes at 350°F, and they’re ready. Now we have all the ingredients to proceed.
I always start by putting some sauce in the baking dish before laying down the eggplants and proceeding with the layers.
After this step, I start arranging them in the pan, adding a layer of tomato, a layer of béchamel, some dollops of Stracchino, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and a sprinkle of Parmesan.
I continue like this until I’ve used up all the eggplants. This dish will be very light and delicate, avoiding fried food and too much cheese but without sacrificing flavor.
There is certainly seasoning, but the trick to healthy eating is always to balance quantities and seasonings. You can enrich it with more cheese if you like, but I leave you with my tasty and conscious recipe.
Sprinkle with Parmesan and put the dish in the oven. Bake for half an hour until you see a nice golden crust on the surface. Serve and let your taste buds explode with joy.
Tips and Curiosities
Eggplants are an excellent seasonal side dish, but they lend themselves to creating many other exquisite dishes. From first courses to main courses to unique dishes.
The eggplant casserole can be stored in the fridge to be consumed in the days following preparation. Reheat it, and it will regain its delicious consistency.
If you want, you can continue to follow my culinary adventures on my Instagram page. Just click on my name below in red. See you soon.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
What are the benefits of eggplants?
Eggplants are rich in antioxidants with beneficial effects on health and help protect against cardiovascular diseases, among other things.
