Vegan Eggplant Casserole (Parmigiana di melanzane)

Oh, povera melanzana, purtroppo conosco troppe persone che non la sopportano. Oh, sorry, I got a little too lost in the dolce vita after a bite of Italian eggplant casserole. Even if you don't like eggplants (as some people unfortunately do), I promise this summery take on a lasagne will win you over. At the very least, it will make you forget that any eggplants are involved.

In addition to eggplants, the casserole dish today contains tomato sauce, several types of vegan cheese, and everything baked at the end. You're probably wondering why you should do all of this in the middle of summer. Still, the Italians' trick is quite simple: parmigiana di melanzane is eaten lukewarm at most, preferably even completely chilled. Nevertheless, we don't want to spend a long time in the kitchen in summer. That's why I've simplified the recipe in a few places, and there are even more shortcuts. Siete pronti? Are you ready?

Number 1: The eggplant slices. You can salt slices of eggplant, leave them to stand for an hour, bread them and then fry them until they are crispy. And it tastes fabulous, oh, what am I saying, it even tastes favoloso! You can also fry the eggplant directly in a pan or on the grill. I tested both and didn't notice much difference in the casserole itself later on. Therefore, the fried version is sufficient for this recipe and saves you a lot of time.

Number 2:The tomato sauce. Of course, you can also use cold seasoned tomatoes or chunky canned tomatoes and add them to the casserole dish. You can even use a ready-made sauce. We won't tell you, but with our preparation, we have found a middle ground between convenience and tomato sauce perfection. The sauce doesn't simmer for hours, but at least we sweat a little onion and garlic and leave the sauce on the stove for a few minutes.

Number 3: The vegan cheese. Again, we've splurged a little to show you that we go the extra mile for this delicious vegetable casserole. We didn't buy the vegan mozzarella; we made it ourselves. It simply tastes better to us than the versions you can buy, but of course, you can do the same and save yourself some work. We bought the vegan Parmesan, but you could also make it yourself. If you don't like either or can't find it in your local store, you can also make a small vegan béchamel or use vegan sprinkled cheese or even vegan feta. Or go wild and add a little vegan yogurt or sour cream for creaminess. No, of course, this is no longer the southern Italian summer classic, but it's still a delicious meal - and that's all that matters. Buon appetito!