Roasted Eggplant and Cherry Tomato Stacks
Servings: 6
Equipment
- large shallow baking dish
Ingredients
- 1 large globe eggplant
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
- 3 tbsp olive oil, divided
- 3.5 ounces pesto sauce divided
- ¾ cup mozzarella or Trader Joe's Quattro Fromaggi
- ½ tsp salt, divided
- fresh chopped parsley or sprigs of basil as garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400° and line two sheet pans (use small sheet pan for cherry tomatoes) with parchment paper.
- Slice the eggplant into ½-inch rounds. You’ll need 12 slices total and arrange them in a single layer on the larger baking sheet. Place the halved cherry tomatoes on the smaller baking sheet.
- Drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the eggplant slices and 1 tablespoon over the cherry tomatoes. Roast tomatoes for 15-20 minutes and eggplant slices for 25–30 minutes, flipping the eggplant slices halfway through.
- Once eggplant and tomatoes are tender, take out of the oven and keep the oven on.
- To assemble: place 6 eggplant slices in the baking dish. Sprinkle with ¼ tsp salt then spread 1-2 teaspoon of pesto on each slice. Add 3–4 roasted cherry tomato halves on top and sprinkle with cheese. Repeat this layering process to build the stacks.
- Return the assembled stacks to the oven and bake for 5–7 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
- Let the stacks cool for 5–10 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped parsley or fresh basil.