Roasted Eggplant Lasagna

This recipe serves:

8

6 large eggplants, peeled and sliced into 1-inch thick rounds
salt to taste
1 pound lasagna noodles
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
3 cups basic tomato sauce, homemade, jarred or canned
freshly ground black pepper
2 cups shredded low-fat mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese



1. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Spray two baking sheets with nonstick spray and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, toss the eggplant slices with a generous sprinkling of salt and let them drain in a collander for 30 minutes. Rinse the eggplant and pat the slices dry with paper towels. Arrange the eggplant in a single layer on the prepared baking sheets. Roast the eggplant in the oven for 45 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of well salted water to a boil and prepare a large bowl of ice water. Add the lasagna noodles to the boiling water and cook until they are just al dente. Drain and plunge the noodles into the ice water to cool them quickly. Drain again and lay the noodles out on paper towels.

4. Cover the bottom of a large baking dish that is at least 2 inches deep with a thin coat of tomato sauce. Line the dish with a single layer of lasagna noodles. Spread 1/3 of the sliced eggplant over the noodles and sprinkle the eggplant with a few tablespoons of breadcrumbs. Pour 1/2 cup of sauce over the eggplant, season with pepper and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese.

5. Repeat with 2 more layers of noodles, eggplant, breadcrumbs, sauce and mozzarella cheese.

6. Finish with a final layer of noodles and the remaining sauce, then sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.

7. Lower the oven temperature to 350°F. Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake until the top of the lasagna is golden brown, about 5 minutes more. Let stand for at least 15 minutes before cutting into squares and serving.

Serving Size: 1 piece

Number of Servings: 8

Per Serving
Calories	327	Carbohydrate	49 g
Fat	8 g	Fiber	12 g
Protein	21 g	Saturated Fat	5 g
Sodium	478 mg

Valentine's Day is 2 weeks away. Some of you may say  "so?" But there are people out there who are trying to get in the best shape they can before their little love fest on the big day. Let me assure you that there are no quick fixes but I can provide some tips that will definitly help you.

First of all IF YOU STARVE YOURSELF YOU WILL ONLY GAIN WEIGHT. Do I make myself clear? If you stop eating in hopes of losing weight fast you will ruin your metabolism and have weight problems the rest of your life. You should eat within 2 hours of waking up and carry healthy snacks with you when you are hungry throughout the day.And DO NOT TAKE DIET PILLS.  If you decide to go that route to lose weight you must consult your doctor. Diet pills can be unsafe and you will not see results in the time you are looking for.

For your cardio: running, swimming and spinning (not that crappy bike in the cardio room where you can leisurely read a book while you pedal) are all great for burning a lot of calories and work your whole body. If you already do them, add 10 more minutes of time during these 2 weeks.

Add another weight training session to your workout week during these next 2 weeks. Strength training burns a lot of calories, tones your muscle and stimulates your metabolism.

Do watch what you eat. For the next 2 weeks, try to avoid over indulging in fats and sugary treats. Notice I said over indulge. Do not completely cut out all sweets , just try to have a bite or 2 here and there. More importantly replace refined sugar carbs

with unrefuned sugar carbs (whole grains). Remember carbs are the most important food  group as they provide you with energy. Do not cut them out!

Spend the next 2 weeks hitting the gym one more day than you normally go. If you usually go 3 days a week and then suddenly step it up to 6 - that is too much for your body to handle and you may injure yourself due to muscle exhaustion. Just add one day per week and an extra 10 minutes to each cardio session. Please do not over do it, just use that looming date as a little push to step it up.

I will follow up this blog with a low fat recipe. More tips tomorrow!