It’s vegetarian, low carb, keto friendly, and the perfect dish to celebrate meatless Monday! This Recipe for Eggplant Rollatini is fun to make, full of cheesy goodness, and a dish your entire family is guaranteed to love!
With sliced tender eggplant, herby ricotta cheese, and delicious Italian flavours, this family-favourite vegetarian dish is one you’ll want to make again and again. Plus, it’s just as fun to assemble as it is comforting to eat—this recipe for eggplant rollatini is always a hit with the whole crowd.
It’s hearty, satisfying, and will have everyone begging for seconds! Best of all, there’s no flour or frying in this lightened-up version, making it a great option for a variety of diets. And trust me, it’s so tasty that I promise you won’t even miss the flour at all!
I always forget how good eggplant is! And, quite honestly, how much it can do! Of course, you have your classic eggplant dishes such as eggplant parmesan or Greek eggplant moussaka that I can never pass up. But then, like these lasagna stuffed eggplant boats, I’m always impressed at how you can really just turn it into something else. And this recipe for eggplant rollatini really proves no different.
Although this classic Italian meal is deliciously satisfying all on it’s own, it’s also great served up with so many side dishes to really make it a family feast. Soups, salads, mashed potatoes, rapini, garlic bread, or even pasta are all great options. Because after one taste of this dish, you’ll quickly see that ricotta, tomato sauce, and eggplant truly go good with just about anything.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO MAKE THESE CHEESY RICOTTA EGGPLANT ROLLS
It’s like an Italian fiesta! When combined, these ingredients make up a savoury, delicious dish that is (quite literally) bursting with flavour! Let’s discuss them in a little bit more detail down below:
- Eggplant: Ah, the star of the dish. I mean, you couldn’t have eggplant rollatini without eggplant, now could you?! When lightly baked, the eggplant will become soft and tender and easy enough to stuff and roll.
- Ricotta Cheese: This makes these eggplant rolls light and airy. Plus, as an easy-to-work-with classic Italian cheese, ricotta is the perfect stuffing for these vegetarian eggplant rolls.
- Mozzarella Cheese: It’s what makes the eggplant rolls ooey, gooey, and irresistibly cheesy—just the way they should be!
- Parmesan Cheese: The more cheese the better… am I right? After all, it adds flavor and keeps up with our strong Italian theme.
- Tomato Sauce: It adds flavour and gives this dish that classic Italian vibe. Whether you use homemade tomato sauce or store-bought, it’ll still be delicious.
- Italian Seasoning: Truly the best of all worlds! This perfect dried spice blend—mainly basil, oregano, thyme, and rosemary—adds that unmistakable Italian flavour to the dish. If you’re feeling adventurous, try making your own homemade Italian seasoning from scratch!
- Parsley: Adds a nice herby freshness to the dish.
- Egg: Adds flavour, structure, and acts as a binder for the ricotta filling.
- Garlic: Cause I’m not sure we can call this an Italian dish without adding a little bit of garlic…you know what I’m saying?! Therefore, fresh is best in this recipe.
- Basil: Adds flavour and freshness. Nothing beats fresh basil…especially in Italian dishes!
- Salt/Pepper: Because IMHO, these two ingredients (if you even wanna call ’em that) are just MANDATORY…ok?!
HOW TO MAKE EGGPLANT ROLLATINI (KEY TIPS)
You can find full instructions for how to make this loq carb eggplant rollatini in the recipe card down below, but here are a few quick tips to keep in mind:
- Try your best to slice the eggplant into as even slices as you can. About 1/2-inch thick is going to give you the best results.
- Do not (and I repeat…DO NOT) skip the salting process! I know it sounds like a tedious and pointless process but it’s not. Trust me. Salting the eggplant slices on both sides then allowing them to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before proceeding with the recipe will rid the eggplant of it’s excess moisture which in turn avoids soggy eggplant! EXTRA TIP: Lay the eggplant slices out on paper towels or a clean cloth after salting. That way, they can easily absorb the moisture.
- Pat the excess water/moisture off of the eggplant slices with paper towel or a clean cloth. There will be quite a bit of it and absorbing as much as you can before proceeding will give you the best results.
- Pre-bake the eggplant slices for 15 minutes (after the salting process is complete) before attempting to roll and stuff. This makes them tender and soft enough to work with. Aka WAY easier to roll and stuff!
- Don’t overstuff! Yes, use all the filling but be careful not to overstuff the eggplant slices or the filling will just fall out as you roll it. EXTRA TIP: Don’t roll the eggplant slices tooooo tight. Again, going back to the filling…we want it inside the eggplant, not outside!
- Spread a spoonful of tomato sauce at the bottom of the baking dish to prevent sticking.
- Don’t skimp out on the cheese! We want it to be cheesy, oeey, gooey and bubbling!
- To prevent the cheese from burning, start by baking the eggplant rollatini covered with aluminum foil for the first 15 minutes. Then, to get that cheese perfectly golden and bubbly, remove the foil for the final 10 minutes of baking.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
While both are incredibly delicious Italian dishes, the main difference is that eggplant parm is normally sliced into rounds then layered while eggplant rollatini is cut into long slices then stuffed. Both are loaded with cheese and tomato sauce and sometimes are breaded and fried first and then baked.
Any leftover eggplant rolls should be stored in an airtight container and kept in the fridge. They’ll be good for up to 5 days. Although keep in mind that they will lose some of their freshness and become more soft as they sit. When ready to eat again, simply reheat in a hot oven or airfryer. Alternatively, you can use a microwave.
Yes! That’s the beauty of this eggplant rollatini recipe. Simply follow the recipe directions in the card down below up until step number 11. Then, arrange them in a freezer/oven safe container. They’ll be good frozen for up to 3 months.
No need to thaw before cooking. However, they will take about an hour to cook from frozen (possibly even a little bit more) as opposed to the normal 40 minutes.
MORE GREAT ITALIAN FOOD
CHICKEN AND BOCCONCINI SKILLET
ITALIAN STUFFED ARTICHOKES (AKA CARCIOFOLI)
CHEESY ITALIAN RICE BALLS (ARANCINI)
CHEESE STUFFED ITALIAN SAUSAGE
ITALIAN WEDDING SOUP (CROCKPOT RECIPE)
LOVE THIS RECIPE? PIN IT FOR LATER!
EGGPLANT ROLLATINI
Ingredients
- 2 Eggplants
- 1 (454g) tub Ricotta Cheese
- 2 cups Mozzarella Cheese grated
- 1 cup Tomato Sauce*
- ½ cup Parmesan Cheese grated
- ¼ cup Fresh Parsley chopped
- 2 Cloves Garlic minced
- 1 Egg
- 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Chili Flakes to taste, optional
- Chopped Fresh Basil or Parsley for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Slice the eggplant, lengthwise, into 1/2-inch thick slices.
- Do you best to get them as even size to each other as possible.
- Generously salt the eggplant slices on both sides. Lay them out on a single layer on a paper towel lined baking sheet or on clean dish cloths. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, you'll see the eggplant slices have "sweat" and released a bunch of water and moisture. Dab it away with clean paper towel or a dish cloth.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Pepper the eggplant slices and lay them out on a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 15 minutes and allow to cool slightly before handling.
- Meanwhile, make the ricotta filling. In a bowl, add the ricotta, garlic, italian seasoning, parsley, the egg, parmesan cheese and salt and pepper, to taste.
- Stir to combine.
- Spoon enough tomato sauce to cover the bottom of a glass baking dish.
- Spoon some of the ricotta mixture on each eggplant slice, leaving a little room around the edges so too much of the filling doesn't fall out as you roll them.
- Carefully roll each eggplant slice one by one until they're all rolled.
- Place them in the baking dish with the tomato sauce, seam side down.
- Top with more tomato sauce.
- Sprinkle the grated mozzarella cheese evenly on top.
- Cover with foil and return to the oven. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 10 until the cheese is nice and bubbly. Garnish with fresh chopped basil or parsley, if desired.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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