Effortless Slow Cooker Eggplant Lasagna: A Delicious No-Oven Summer Meal
Discover the ultimate summer dinner solution with this incredible Slow Cooker Eggplant Lasagna recipe. It perfectly blends seasonal ingredients like ripe eggplant and fragrant fresh basil into a comforting dish that requires minimal preparation, all cooked conveniently in your slow cooker. Say goodbye to heating up your kitchen and hello to easy, flavorful meals!
This Slow Cooker Eggplant Lasagna isn’t just a meal; it’s a revelation for busy weeknights, especially during the warmer months. You might wonder, “Lasagna in summer?” Absolutely! This dish champions the very best of summer produce, featuring succulent eggplant at its peak flavor and an abundance of fresh, aromatic basil. The genius of this recipe lies in its reliance on the slow cooker, which completely eliminates the need to fire up your oven, keeping your home cool and comfortable. Plus, if you’re like me and enjoy cultivating your own herb garden, you’ll have a ready supply of vibrant basil to elevate every bite.
Why Slow Cooker Eggplant Lasagna is Your Summer Essential
Cooking during summer often means seeking ways to avoid a hot kitchen. That’s where the slow cooker truly shines. It provides the same delicious, slow-cooked results as an oven without raising the indoor temperature. Beyond the comfort factor, this Slow Cooker Eggplant Lasagna embraces seasonality. Eggplant is a summer vegetable, abundant and most flavorful when harvested during these months. Paired with garden-fresh basil, the dish bursts with a bright, herbaceous taste that feels perfectly suited for warm weather dining. It’s a hearty yet fresh meal that satisfies without feeling heavy.
Moreover, the “set it and forget it” nature of the slow cooker makes this lasagna an ideal choice for those hectic days. Imagine coming home to the savory aroma of a perfectly cooked dinner, requiring only a final touch and a few minutes of standing before serving. It’s truly a game-changer for busy families and anyone who loves homemade food but is short on time.
Essential Ingredients for a Perfect Eggplant Lasagna
This delightful dish comes together with a surprisingly simple list of ingredients, many of which you likely already have on hand or can easily find fresh at your local market. Here’s what you’ll need to create this comforting slow cooker lasagna:
- Fresh Eggplant: Opt for firm, glossy eggplants that feel heavy for their size. Salting the eggplant before assembly is a crucial step. It draws out excess moisture and bitterness, preventing a watery lasagna and ensuring a richer flavor and better texture.
- ‘No Boil’ Lasagna Noodles: These are a lifesaver for slow cooker lasagna, eliminating the need for pre-cooking and simplifying the process significantly.
- Store-Bought Marinara Sauce: Choose a high-quality marinara sauce that you love. This forms the flavorful base of your lasagna, so a good sauce makes all the difference.
- Part-Skim Ricotta Cheese: This creamy cheese is essential for that classic lasagna texture and flavor. Using part-skim helps keep the dish a little lighter without sacrificing richness.
- Shredded Cheese Blend: A blend, often mozzarella and provolone, offers excellent meltability and a satisfying cheesy layer.
- Parmesan Cheese: Grated Parmesan adds a sharp, salty depth of flavor that complements the other cheeses and sauce beautifully.
- Egg: Acts as a binder for the ricotta mixture, helping it hold its shape and adding to the creamy consistency.
- Garlic: Freshly minced garlic infuses the ricotta mixture with an irresistible aroma and savory kick.
- Basil: Fresh basil is key for that vibrant, aromatic summer flavor. Don’t skimp on this!
- Salt & Pepper: Essential for seasoning and bringing out the best in all the ingredients.
Simple Steps to Assemble Your Slow Cooker Lasagna
Prepping this lasagna is incredibly straightforward. The most important initial step involves preparing the eggplant. You’ll need to slice it thinly, then salt each side. This process, as mentioned, draws out moisture and any potential bitterness, ensuring your lasagna has the perfect consistency and flavor. After a brief wait, a quick rinse and pat dry, your eggplant is ready for layering. The detailed, step-by-step instructions with accompanying photos in the recipe card below will guide you through every layer, making assembly a breeze.
Embracing Seasonal Flavors Beyond Lasagna
Summer truly is a season of abundance, and I love to take full advantage of the vibrant produce available. While this Slow Cooker Eggplant Lasagna is a fantastic way to enjoy seasonal ingredients, there are many other ways to incorporate fresh, local bounty into your cooking. For instance, a hearty Hungarian Lescho (Tomato and Peppers Stew) is a go-to when tomatoes and peppers are at their prime, often sourced straight from the farmer’s market. Its rich, sweet-savory profile is incredibly comforting.
Another beloved dish featuring eggplant is this wonderful Turkish Inspired Eggplant with Tomatoes. Seasoned with warm cinnamon and topped with crumbled feta cheese, it offers a distinct and aromatic flavor profile that highlights the versatility of eggplant.
And as the summer progresses and garden tomatoes reach their peak ripeness and sweetness, I absolutely must make my favorite pasta dish: Penne Alla Vecchia Bettola. This Italian pasta, traditionally made with a vodka sauce, is transformed into something extraordinary when prepared with the freshest, juiciest tomatoes from my own garden. It’s a consistently popular recipe on this blog, and for good reason—it truly captures the essence of summer in a bowl. Each of these recipes offers a unique way to celebrate the delicious flavors of summer produce.
The Magic of Slow Cooking: More Hands-Off Meal Ideas
Beyond incorporating seasonal ingredients, I’m a huge advocate for using a slow cooker, especially during the summer months. Its ability to perform the same cooking tasks as your oven, without generating excessive heat that permeates your entire home, is a significant advantage. But perhaps the most compelling benefit of the slow cooker is its unparalleled convenience. The hands-off nature of slow cooking means you can simply set it, go about your day, and return to a perfectly cooked, ready-to-serve dinner. This feature alone is a huge time-saver, freeing you from constant supervision in the kitchen.
If you’re looking to explore more effortless slow cooker meals that make life easier, especially during busy weeknights, I highly recommend checking out some other popular recipes from this blog. These dishes have become staples in my own home for their simplicity and delicious results:
For those interested in the culinary history, you can read about the origin of lasagna on Wikipedia.
Slow Cooker Eggplant Lasagna
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Ingredients
- 1 lb eggplant medium size
- 8 oz lasagna noodles – 12 noodles, no-boil preferred
- 15 oz Ricotta Cheese part-skim recommended
- 1 egg
- 4 cups Marinara Sauce store-bought or homemade
- 1 cup shredded cheese mozzarella or Italian blend
- 1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese grated
- 2 tbsp fresh basil chopped
- 3 cloves garlic small, or 2 large, minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
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Slice the eggplant into 1/4 inch thick rounds. Arrange them in a single layer on a rack and sprinkle generously with salt on one side. Let sit for 10 minutes. Turn the slices, sprinkle the other side with salt, and let sit for another 10 minutes. This process helps draw out excess moisture and bitterness. Afterwards, rinse the eggplant slices thoroughly under cold water and pat them completely dry with paper towels;
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In a large bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, minced garlic, a pinch of salt and pepper, Italian seasoning, and chopped fresh basil. Add 1/4 cup of the grated Parmesan cheese. Mix well and taste, adjusting salt and pepper as needed. Finally, crack in the egg and mix until fully incorporated;
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Lightly spray the inside of your 6 QT slow cooker with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Begin layering by spreading 3/4 cup of marinara sauce evenly at the bottom;
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Place 4 lasagna noodles over the sauce. Break them as necessary to fit the shape of your slow cooker, ensuring a single layer;
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Spoon half of the ricotta cheese mixture evenly over the noodles;
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Arrange about 8 slices of the prepared eggplant over the ricotta layer;
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Pour one cup of marinara sauce over the eggplant slices;
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Add another layer of 4 lasagna noodles, breaking them to fit as before;
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Spread the remaining half of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Then, sprinkle 1/3 cup of the shredded cheese blend on top of the ricotta;
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Layer with the remaining 8 slices of eggplant;
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Pour another cup of marinara sauce over the eggplant;
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Sprinkle with another 1/3 cup of shredded cheese and the remaining Parmesan cheese;
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Place the final 4 lasagna noodles on top;
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Pour the remaining marinara sauce over the final noodle layer and cover the slow cooker with its lid;
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Cook on high for 2 to 2.5 hours, or on low for 4-5 hours, until the noodles are tender and the lasagna is bubbly;
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Once cooked, remove the lid and sprinkle the remaining shredded cheese over the top. Replace the lid and let it sit for another 10-15 minutes, allowing the cheese to beautifully melt;
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Before serving, remove the lid and let the lasagna stand for 15 minutes. This allows the layers to set, making it easier to slice. Garnish with a sprinkle of fresh basil for extra flavor and color. Enjoy!
Notes
- I used 1 cup of shredded cheese in total, but if you prefer an extra cheesy lasagna, feel free to add more on top during step 15!
Calories from Fat 171
Nutrition
Perfect Pairings and More Slow Cooker Delights
To perfectly complement your Slow Cooker Eggplant Lasagna, especially during summer, consider serving it alongside my popular summer staple: Horiatiki Salad with Golden Greek Peperoncini. This vibrant Greek salad, bursting with seasonal tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, green peppers, red onions, tangy Kalamata olives, and creamy feta, is perfectly balanced by the mildly piquant, fruity flavor of Mezzetta Peperoncini. It’s a refreshing side that cuts through the richness of the lasagna beautifully. Plus, you can often find opportunities to win meal kits to simplify your cooking even further!
Other Amazing Slow Cooker Recipes for Your Repertoire:
If you’re now a slow cooker convert, here are a few more highly-rated recipes from the blog that will make your life easier and your meals delicious:
Slow Cooker Turkey Breast
This recipe offers an incredible alternative to roasting a whole bird, perfect for smaller gatherings or a simple weeknight meal. It’s incredibly simple, yields wonderfully tender and juicy turkey, and requires only about 5 minutes of prep time before the slow cooker takes over.
Slow Cooker Whole Roasted Chicken
Achieve a perfectly cooked, succulent whole roasted chicken without heating up your kitchen. This hands-off method ensures a moist and flavorful bird every time, making it an ideal choice for a comforting family dinner with minimal fuss.
Easy Slow Cooker Tomato Sauce
Make a big batch of rich, homemade tomato sauce with hardly any effort. This versatile sauce is perfect for pasta, as a base for other dishes, or for freezing to enjoy garden-fresh flavors all year round. It’s a fundamental recipe for any slow cooker enthusiast.
