Ingredients
- 3 large eggplants
- 2 cups onion -- finely chopped
- 1 pound ground lamb
- 2/3 cup red wine
- 15 ounces can whole, peeled tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1/2 cup fresh, flat leaf parsley -- finely chopped
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon salt and pepper
- 2 cups milk
- 2 ounces unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup small-curd cottage cheese -- drained
- 1/4 cup feta cheese -- grated
- 1 cup grated graviera,swiss, or gruyere cheese
- 1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
Instructions
- Trim off the ends of the eggplants and cut into 1/4 inch slices. Put on
- paper towels to sweat for 1 hour.
- Heat some olive oil in a large skillet and saute' the onion over
- medium-low heat until soft. Raise the heat and add the meat, breaking up
- any lumps that may occur. When the meat is browned, drain the grease out
- and then add the wine; boil until the liquid is reduced by half. Add the
- tomatoes with their juices and the honey, lower the heat, and simmer 10
- minutes.
- SET ASIDE 1 TABLESPOON OF PARSLEY and stir in the remaining parsley, the
- beef broth, oregano, cinnamon, allspice, and salt and pepper.Simmer for 30
- minutes or until almost all of the liquid has evaporated. Remove from
- heat,set aside covered.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet to cook the eggplant slices. Dry on
- paper towels to absorb any excess oil. (No need to dip the eggplant in egg
- and flour).
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the flour, and stir until smooth.
- Cook until the roux turns plae golden brown. Gradually add the milk, 1/2
- cup at a time. Bring to a boil, stirring and then remove from heat.
- Combine the cottage cheese, swiss and nutmeg, and stir into the white
- sauce. With a wire whisk or electric mixer, beat the eggs until pale and
- frothy. Stir and mix in the beaten eggs to the white sauce.
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange some of the eggplant slices on the
- bottom of a casserole dish. Cover with meat mixture (pat it down) and
- then layer the rest of the eggplant. The white cheese mixture is last.
- Srrinkle with bread crumbs and parmesan cheese and bake uncovered for 1
- hour. If the top apprears to be browning to quickly, loosely cover with a
- sheet of aluminum foil.