Italian Rollatini

Ingredients

2 medium eggplants, each sliced lengthwise into 6 slices about 1/4-inch thick
3 tablespoons, EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
Salt and ground black pepper
3/4 pound sweet Italian chicken, turkey or tofu sausage, casings removed
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus additional for sprinkling
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce or tomato purée
1/4 cup basil leaves, torn

Yields: 4-6 servings

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Lay eggplant slices out on a baking sheet, drizzle with EVOO on both sides and season with salt and ground black pepper. Roast in oven about 15 minutes, flipping halfway through, until the eggplant is tender and golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool.

While the eggplant is roasting, in a medium skillet with 1 turn of the pan of EVOO, brown the sausage, about 5 minutes, breaking it up with a wooden spoon or potato masher as it cooks. Remove from skillet with a slotted spoon to a medium bowl. Let cool then mix in the mozzarella cheese and Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Spread a little tomato sauce down on the bottom of a baking dish and sprinkle with torn basil. Lay 2 pieces of roasted eggplant out lengthwise on a cutting board, overlapping about an inch. Mound some sausage-cheese mixture at the short end of the eggplant slices. Roll it up then lay it seam-side down on top of the sauce in the baking dish. Repeat with the rest of the eggplant until the baking dish is full – you should have 6 of them.

Spoon more sauce over the eggplant rolls then sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano. Bake 15 minutes, until eggplant is warmed through and cheese is bubbling.