Nourishing Eggplant Parmesan

Vegetarian | Gluten-Free | Comfort Food

This dish just screams rainy days to me. A day in the summer when eggplant is in the season but it’s cook enough to turn the oven on. This is absolutely a crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly meal. Vegetarian and high in protein but as rich and delicious as mom’s lasagna (ok maybe not quite but close). Bake some up and enjoy!

Total Time: 60 minutes (Prep: 15 Cook: 30-40 )

Servings: About 6

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 1 large eggplant

• 1 cup quinoa cooked to package instructions

• 1 jar organic, no sugar added tomato basil sauce

• ½ tsp salt

• ½ cup fresh basil (optional but worth it)

• 3 ounces of crumbled raw goat’s milk cheese

• 2 ounces of shredded raw parmesan cheese

Directions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees

• Prepare 1 cup dry quinoa according to package instructions and set aside

• Meanwhile, thinly slice eggplant (½ inch thick) and place it on a large baking rack, spray lightly with olive oil

• Cook slices eggplant for about 10-15 mins at 400 until slightly golden

• Place about ½ of the tomato sauce on the bottom of a large baking dish

• In this order layer the following ingredients one at a time – eggplant slices, quinoa, rest of sauce and top with cheese and basil

• Bake covered with foil at 350 degrees for 30-40 mins

• Serve and enjoy!

How This Nourishes You:

Basil-To list a few, basil is an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cancer-fighter, pain-reducer, diabetes-preventer, detoxifier, stress-hormone reducer, and immune-booster.

Cooked Tomatoes-Tomatoes contain a healthy dose of VitaminC. Just one cup supplies your body with about 20% of your necessary daily value. Tomatoes also contain lycopene, which is an antioxidant that has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer and macular degeneration. The cooking makes even lycopene available for your body to absorb than just eating raw tomatoes making cooked tomatoes a significant source of antioxidants. In addition to lycopene, tomatoes also contain beta-carotene which helps with eyesight and helps fight cell damage.

Eggplant-These beauties get a bad rap for being a poor substitute for meat. But don’t miss out on this delicious and nourishing veggie just because it’s gotten pigeonholed. Eggplants are rich in fiber and antioxidants. A serving of eggplant can provide at least 5% of a person's daily requirement of fiber, copper, manganese, B-6, and thiamine. Vitamin B1, or thiamin, helps prevent complications in the nervous system, brain, muscles, heart, stomach, and intestines. It is also involved in the flow of electrolytes into and out of muscle and nerve cells. In addition, eggplants are a source of phenolic compounds that act as antioxidants. Antioxidants are molecules that help your body eliminate free radicals — molecules that damage cells if they accumulate in large amounts. Foods that contain antioxidants help prevent a range of diseases and may help slow the aging process.

Goat Cheese-A serving of goat cheese delivers 6 grams of protein along with a powerful combination of calcium, phosphorus and copper — nutrients that are essential for healthy bones. Plus, goat cheese provides healthy fats, including medium-chain fatty acids, that can improve satiety and benefit weight loss. Goat dairy has less lactose and significantly less A1 casein than cow’s milk. Its structure is more similar to human milk than cow’s milk so it is not only more easily digestible by our bodies but it also has healing properties our bodies recognize and can utilize.

Parmesan Cheese--First off, it’s important to specify we are talking about good quality, hard, aged, authentic Parmigiano-Reggiano (not the kind that comes in the plastic shaker). One ounce of parmesan packs about 10 grams of protein and although it is a dairy product, the aging process means it is lactose-free. The aging process also means it is high in probiotic bacteria and actually has a healing effect on our guts. It is lower in fat than most cheese and is rich in vitamins and minerals like calcium, vitamin A, vitamins B6 and B12, phosphorus, zinc, and copper. Make sure to buy organic and enjoy it with crackers, on veggies, top your salads etc… It’s delicious and nourishing for your body and soul.