Eggplant Casserole (and babies!)

Our church is fairly small, so you can imagine our excitement when THREE families in our church announced they were expecting babies in the same month! We filled the time with baby showers and supporting the new moms and dads...

...but none of us expected that two of the babies would be born on the same day!

Palm Sunday was quite exciting. We stayed glued to our emails to hear the big news. And we welcomed Ezra in the afternoon, and Mari a few hours later.

What can be better than babies????

No, that isn't one of the new church babies - that's my dad with his proud daddy back in 1929. I love this picture :)

One thing we always do, and I'm sure you've done this, too, is to take meals to families in the church who need them. And who needs a meal more than new parents?

This casserole has gotten rave reviews among the new moms and dads.

It's low carb, gluten free (or close to it), and can be made either with meat or without.

Eggplant Casserole
serves 8

Ingredients:

1 egg

1 tablespoon water

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided

1 cup almond meal

salt and ground black pepper to taste

2 large eggplants, peeled and sliced into 1/2-inch rounds

1 pound ground beef, browned

2 - 15 oz cans diced tomatoes

1 - 4 oz can tomato paste
Basil, oregano and garlic to taste.

4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Whisk the egg and water together in a shallow dish.

Combine 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, almond meal, salt, and ground black pepper in a separate shallow dish.

Dip eggplant slices in egg mixture.

Press slices into the crumbs and tap off excess. Arrange slices on the prepared baking sheet.

Bake eggplant slices in the preheated oven until tops are golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Flip eggplant and bake an additional 20 to 25 minutes. Remove eggplant from the oven and increase temperature to 400°.

Combine the browned ground beef, tomatoes, and tomato paste in a medium sized pan. Bring 

        to a boil, and then simmer for several minutes. Add the basil, oregano and garlic, then salt and pepper to taste.

When the sauce is ready, it's time to start assembling the casserole.

You want to layer this casserole like a lasagna. First, grease your pans - I used two 8"x8" disposable pans for this meal-to-go. If you're fixing this to have at home, use a 9"x13" pan.

Place 1/2 of the eggplant slices on the bottom of the pan. Ladle 1/2 of the tomato sauce over them, then sprinkle 1/2 of the mozzarella and remaining Parmesan cheese on to the tomato sauce.

Repeat all three layers, finishing with a layer of mozzarella/Parmesan cheese.

        At this point you can freeze the casserole, or bake it, uncovered, at 400° for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for about 5 minutes.

All wrapped up and ready to cover with foil (double layer
protection) and freeze.

     I like to take two of these casseroles to our new moms - one for supper that night, and one to stick in the freezer for a couple weeks later. You know, for one of those days when the baby hasn't slept, you're coming down with a cold, and you've just begun to discover the joys of diaper rash. :)

   Speaking of new moms, this is the time of year to look for new wildlife babies. The first bison calf of the season has been spotted...but not by us. We only saw a couple bulls on our last trip to Custer State Park. The cows and calves stay hidden away from the roads this time of year.

But we did see these beauties! It's hard to find the elk in the park. They're very shy, and stay away from the roads. The fence in the picture is around the small airstrip in the park, so I think they were feeling safe. I'm glad my new camera is powerful enough to get a shot from this distance....

      This looked liked a herd of cows and yearlings. No calves, yet.

And still wearing their winter coats, but we still expect snow. It's only April, after all.

      How is spring springing in your part of the world?