I’m super excited to share this recipe, my dad’s famous creation: Baked Spaghetti with Fried Eggplant and Potatoes!
The smell of each step in the recipe — frying the vegetables, cooking the spaghetti, and baking the whole thing — bring back lots of cherished memories from my childhood. It was one of the most anticipated dishes of the year, as we only made it during special occasions like birthdays or anniversaries.
& even though I wasn’t (and still am not) a huge fan of eggplant, I look forward to getting a big slice of it because it adds the perfect sharp flavor to a creamy, delicious dish.
What you will need:
1 lb of spaghetti noodles
24oz jar of marinara sauce of your choice
2-3 tablespoons ranch dressing of your choice
2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon red crushed pepper flakes
1 large Eggplant, cut into 1/4 inch rounds
2-3 red potatoes, cut into 1/4 inch rounds
4oz Mozzarella cheese, shredded
4oz Cheddar cheese, shredded
Preparing the spaghetti:
- Heat up a pot of 4 cups of a neutral oil to prepare for frying.
- Fry the eggplant and potato slices a few at a time and lay them on a paper towel to absorb any excess oil. Put aside the fried slices while preparing the noodles.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Boil the spaghetti noodles to al dente as per the instructions on the box.
- Lightly grease a 9×12″ pan with olive oil. Add 1 cup of the tomato sauce to the bottom of the pan.
- Add in the noodles, Italian seasoning, black pepper, red crushed pepper flakes, ranch dressing, and the rest of the tomato sauce to the pan.
- Mix until thoroughly combined and spread evenly in the pan.
- Lay the eggplant and potato slices on top of the noodles.
- Layer entire top with the shredded cheese and sprinkle with crushed red pepper flakes!
- Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake for 25 minutes. Once the cheese has melted, remove the foil and broil until golden brown on top.
Additional notes:
To make the recipe healthier, toss in some veggies to the pasta – this will give it extra flavor and texture.
Experiment with a variety of high-moisture cheeses to get different flavors and cheese pulls!
Highly recommend pairing this with crunchy salad to balance out the meal as the spaghetti can be quite heavy in the stomach.
