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Eggplant Tortino in a Kalamata Olive Marinara Sauce

[heart_this] · Oct 18, 2011 · 28 Comments

Eggplant Tortino

A rustic crustless pie with layers of eggplant, swiss chard and cheese that makes a great light meal when topped with a tasty marinara sauce and served with a salad.

With the weather cooling off a bit I do not mind having the oven on as much which opens the doors to a lot more recipes. This is good because there are a few of them that have been building up on my to try list and the first one on that list was this recipe for an eggplant tortino that I came across in a recent Food & Drink magazine. I am a big fan of eggplant but it had been a while since I last did something with it and the idea of using it in a savoury pie stacked in layers along with swiss chard and plenty of cheese sounded really good! One of the things that I like about this recipe is that the eggplant is roasted which helps to ensure that it is nice and tender in addition to bringing out its natural flavour. Another great thing about this recipe is that it uses no less than three kinds of cheese including provolone, which is melted into the creamy swiss chard layer, fresh mozzarella, which is stacked in the pie, and parmigiano reggiano (parmesan) which on sprinkled on top to melt while it bakes. I served this eggplant tortino topped with my favourite marinara sauce to which I added some chopped kalamata olives for an extra hit of flavour.

Eggplant Tortino

Eggplant Tortino in a Kalamata Olive Marinara Sauce

Eggplant Tortino in a Kalamata Olive Marinara Sauce

Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 1 hour Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes Servings: 4

A rustic crustless pie with layers of eggplant, swiss chard and cheese that makes a great light meal when topped with a tasty marinara sauce and served with a salad.

ingredients
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 pounds eggplant, sliced 1/4 inch thick
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 2 bunches swiss chard, stems removed and leaves sliced thinly
  • 1/4 cup cream or half and half
  • 1/2 cup provolone, grated
  • 3 eggs lightly beaten
  • 1 ball fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated
  • 3 cups simple marinara sauce, warmed
  • 1/3 cup kalamata olives, chopped
directions
  1. Lightly brush both sides of the eggplant with oil, place them on a baking sheet in a single layer and season with salt and pepper.
  2. Bake in a preheated 400F/200C oven unto tender and just browning on the top, about 15-20 minutes and set aside to cool.
  3. Heat the oil in a pan over medium high heat.
  4. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes and swiss chard and saute until the swiss chard has wilted, about 2 minutes.
  5. Mix in the cream, bring to a boil, remove from heat and mix in the provolone until it melts.
  6. Let the chard cool and mix in the eggs.
  7. Cover the bottom of a greased spring form pan with 1/3 of the eggplant followed by 1/2 of the swiss chard mixture, 1/2 of the mozzarella, 1/3 of the eggplant, the remaining swiss chard mixture, the remaining mozzarella, the remaining eggplant and finally the parmigiano reggiano.
  8. Bake in a preheated 400F/200C oven until the top is golden brown and the sides are bubbling, about 25-35 minutes.
  9. Serve topped with marinara sauce with kalamata olives mixed in.
Tip: Eggplant can be a bit on the bitter side and if you do not want this you can sprinkle the slices with salt and let them sit in a colander for 20-30 minutes before rinsing them, patting them dry and using them in the recipe.
Similar Recipes:
Eggplant Parmesan (Lasagna Style)
Pastitsio (Greek Lasagna) with Greens
Eggplant and Mozzarella Panini
Roasted Red Pepper and Italian Sausage Frittata topped with Marinara and Mozzarella
Eggplant Pizzas

Food, Gluten-free, Italian, Main Course, Recipe, Vegetable, Vegetarian

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sara says

    October 18, 2011 at 11:17 pm

    Ooooh, this looks so delicious! Love the flavors going on here, yum! 🙂

    Reply
  2. Danielle says

    October 18, 2011 at 11:27 pm

    Pinning this one – it looks amazing!

    Reply
  3. Poornima Nair says

    October 18, 2011 at 11:39 pm

    Love eggplants this way…looks so delicious!!

    Reply
  4. Melissa says

    October 19, 2011 at 12:36 am

    Mmmmmm

    Reply
  5. Jamie says

    October 19, 2011 at 5:40 am

    I love this! And I never cook with eggplant (but I love eggplant parmesan) because I hate frying or sautéing it so roasting is perfect. This is one fantastic, flavorful pie! Casserole? No, pie…

    Reply
  6. Rosa's Yummy Yums says

    October 19, 2011 at 6:57 am

    Extremely scrumptious looking and sounding!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

    Reply
  7. Anonymous says

    October 19, 2011 at 10:27 am

    This is so unique and yummy looking!

    Reply
  8. Joanne says

    October 19, 2011 at 10:37 am

    Given my intense love of eggplant, I can't really think of anything I want more right now!

    Reply
  9. vanillabean says

    October 19, 2011 at 11:20 am

    Sounds like a wonderful recipe!

    Reply
  10. The Café Sucré Farine says

    October 19, 2011 at 1:55 pm

    You always have something interesting and delicious! This sounds wonderful!

    Reply
  11. bellini says

    October 19, 2011 at 2:18 pm

    Very tasty Kevin!

    Reply
  12. Allison says

    October 19, 2011 at 8:01 pm

    I think this might be thing first thing I make on Friday after my new oven is installed. It will have been broken for 15 days! Not ok!

    Reply
  13. Zesty Cook says

    October 19, 2011 at 11:47 pm

    This looks delicious! I am the same way with the oven. If it's cool outside, I am happy to cook with it. If it's not, it stays off!

    Reply
  14. Kathryn says

    October 20, 2011 at 7:20 am

    This looks fabulous! My veggie-hating husband won't go for it, but I think my vegetarian sister (and for that matter, my other 2 sisters) will adore it, as would I! Thanks.

    Reply
  15. Amy says

    October 20, 2011 at 10:43 am

    I like that this has chard in it, too. I bet it's delicious. Love the olives in the sauce as well.

    Reply
  16. Cara says

    October 20, 2011 at 12:30 pm

    Kevin this sounds fantastic! definitely saving it 🙂

    Reply
  17. Ειρήνη says

    October 20, 2011 at 2:04 pm

    delicious!

    Reply
  18. Pam says

    October 21, 2011 at 6:38 pm

    Oh my goodness this looks and sounds unbeatable! I am a great fan of eggplant so I thank you!!

    Reply
  19. Gay Armstrong Moritz says

    October 23, 2011 at 8:15 pm

    Hi Kevin. This looks divine, but I've never cooked with eggplant. You said to brush each side of the sliced eggplant. Brush it with what? Help is needed for this novice. Thanks.

    Reply
  20. Kevin says

    October 25, 2011 at 11:02 am

    Gay Armstrong Moritz: You brush the eggplant with the oil. I have updated the recipe. Thanks!

    Reply
  21. Cindy says

    February 11, 2012 at 6:45 pm

    YIKES! I tried to make this today, and the chard/egg mixture was very liquid, and ran out of the springform pan. What can I do to correct this problem?

    Reply
  22. Kevin says

    February 15, 2012 at 11:02 am

    Cindy: You can put a layer of parchment paper on the inside that comes just a little bit up the sides. I also like to put a baking sheet on a rack below where I am baking anything, just in case what I am baking leaks or boils over.

    Reply
  23. Cindy says

    February 15, 2012 at 1:25 pm

    Thanks Kevin,
    I did that, and ended up with a mess of scrambled egg on the cookie sheet under the springform pan… I take it you didn't have this problem. Your tortino looks like it has height and egg in the chard layers.

    Reply
  24. Anonymous says

    March 5, 2012 at 8:16 am

    ive read alot of blogs in my time- and yours is by FAR by best!! no food politics, snobbery going on here and amazing photos and flavour combinations just right, you hit the nail on the head keep up the great work!

    Reply
  25. Anonymous says

    March 5, 2012 at 8:16 am

    ive read alot of blogs in my time- and yours is by FAR by best!! no food politics, snobbery going on here and amazing photos and flavour combinations just right, you hit the nail on the head keep up the great work!

    Reply
  26. Anonymous says

    July 23, 2013 at 12:54 am

    It's in the oven now. Lined the pan with foil but I will still need to hose out the refridgerator. It smells really good. I hope somebody invents cullinary duct tape to help with the leakage.

    Reply
  27. Maria DiCillo says

    August 26, 2019 at 5:37 pm

    What about the kalamata olives? Just add them to taste to my marinara sauce?

    Reply
    • kevin says

      August 27, 2019 at 8:20 am

      The kalamata olives are mixed into the marinara sauce. Enjoy!

      Reply

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