Eggplant rolls with some shit!

I was clanging around the kitchen today after work, long workout, grocery store hit & run. My brother asked me what I was making and I answered, “Eggplant rolls with some shit!”  So..that is the name of this recipe!

I was reading recipes and saw some eggplant rolls with cheese, but I wanted a healthier, but meatier version. I really liked the results and hope you will too. This is a flavorful dish packed with all sorts of good things for you!

Ingredients:

• 1 medium sized eggplant
• 1/2 lb ground lean turkey
• handful (5-6) baby bella mushrooms
• 1/2 apple
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 1/4 cup almonds
• 2 cups spinach
• 1 roasted red pepper
• 1 c diced tomatoes
• 2 c pasta sauce of your choice (this is my lazy, what is in the pantry option. feel free to use your own homemade goodness)
• chives
• 1/2 TB liquid smoke
• 1 TB garlic salt
• 1 TB black pepper
• 1/2 TB Worchester
• 1/2 TB balsamic vinegar
• 3 TB sugar
• 1 TB dried sweet basil
• 2 TB dried chopped onions

1. Heat oven to 350
2. slice the eggplant vertically into long ovals about 1/4 inch thick
4. Spray a foil lined pan, salt, pepper, & olive oil both sides of each eggplant slice and place on pan. Bake at 350 about 15 min til you see the slices getting slightly brown on edges. Then remove from oven.
5. While those are baking, wilt the spinach in a pan with just a dash of olive oil. Stir til evenly wilted and remove from heat.
6. Dice mushrooms, apple, red pepper. Chop almonds. Set all aside.
7. In a bowl, combine turkey, dried chopped onions, dried sweet basil, liquid smoke, garlic salt, pepper, worchestire, balsamic vinegar.
8. Heat 1 swirl olive oil in a sauce pan. Add mushrooms, pine nuts, almonds and cook about 3 min til mushrooms start shrinking. Add apple and cook another minute.
9. Add meat to pan and stir, cooking til all pink is gone. Add more olive oil as needed.
10. Once meat is browned, add roasted red peppers, diced tomatoes, pasta sauce, sugar and heat to cook another 7-10 min. Turn off heat
12. Assemble the rolls. Lay down 1 chive, 1 eggplant slice. Top with some wilted spinach, about 1/4 cup meat sauce mixture. Roll up edges of eggplant to form a roll. Tie with the chive and place in a baking dish. Repeat til finished. Cover all rolls with remaining meat sauce
14. Pop it in the oven at 350 still for about 15 min to finish. Let sit about 10 min before serving so it doesn’t fall all over the place.

Love the slight smoky flavor in this dish. Remember, it is easy to overdo the liquid smoke, so be careful! Lots of textures to tickle your palate. Love how “meaty” the eggplant is, roasted like this.

Cheese would most definitely be a delish addition, but is not necessary, and omitting it keeps it super healthy!

Enjoy!

Approx Nutrition per serving:

Calories: 280
Fat: 10
Sat Fat: 2 g
Cholesterol: 23 mg
Carbs: 31
Protein: 19
Fiber: 8 g