The first recipe (fried eggplant) is one from childhood, only it’s keto-fied. You can, however, replace what I use for breadcrumbs (pork panko) and you will achieve the same thing. It was such a treat growing up and disappeared fast.

Once you have this fried eggplant down, you can make eggplant parmesan or eggplant lasagna. I added pepperoni to the eggplant parmesan, but you can make it your own.

• Keto Fried Eggplant – The staple to several great eggplant dishes, but great alone.
• Eggplant Parmesan with Pepperoni – Surprise with the addition of pepperoni.
• Sausage Stuffed Eggplant – Just dig in and enjoy the comfort.

These Italian Eggplant Recipes are fun and not hard, although they look it. My favorite is probably the eggplant lasagna, an idea I got from a local Italian restaurant. Both of these recipes use ricotta cheese, mozzarella and who doesn’t love these ingredients, which scream comfort food.

• Eggplant Rollatini
• Eggplant Lasagna

Eggplant Soups

Now that you’ve seen some sort of traditional type eggplant recipes, here are two eggplant soup recipes. Yes, this makes 8 recipes, so consider it a bonus. I have to ask myself why haven’t I made these soups more often.

• Sausage Eggplant Soup – a soup I created after a Farmer’s Market bounty.
• Creamy Roasted Eggplant Tomato Soup – made due to another accidental Farmer’s Market haul of tomatoes, eggplant and bell pepper. Heavy cream smooths it all out.

Vegetarian Options

The Italian Sausage Eggplant Soup CAN be made without sausage. It’s good on it’s own if you want a vegetarian option.

The Creamy Tomato Eggplant Soup can be made vegan if you exchange the heavy cream with coconut milk.

Helpful Kitchen Tools for these Recipes

• Dutch oven
• Great non-stick frying pan (Hex Clad)
• Pork Panko
• Baking Dish
• Soup Crocks

The post My Favorite Low Carb Italian Eggplant Recipes appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Sloppy Joe’s are really sloppy. Made with a crumbled ground beef, ketchup or tomato sauce, mustard, or barbecue sauce, they pack a lot of flavor inside a bun. I remember the grease dripping down and that wasn’t a bad thing.

It’s hard to enjoy a true sloppy Joe if you don’t have a burger bun. Keeping sloppy joe’s a little less greasy, but still sloppy, enjoy these free on your favorite bun or try these carnivore buns which are completely carb free. You’re welcome.

Sloppy Joe’s Sauce

• 1 – 1/2 cup sugar free tomato puree or sugar free tomato sauce
• 1 pound ground beef of your choice (I like 80/20 for this recipe)
• sweetener of your choice (swerve brown sugar) to your sweetness desire
• 1 finely chopped onion
• 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• salt, pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon sugar free maple syrup (optional)

NOTE: You can use half of tomato sauce and half sugar free barbecue sauce. Add sweetness to your own taste.

Keep it Sweet and Sugar Free

Make sure your tomato passata (puree) is sugar free). Add in some of their delicious barbecue sauce to make it sweet. There are quite a few sugar free barbecue sauces, which make sloppy Joe’s easy to make. G.Hughes is my favorite. These are sold at your local grocery store.

Sloppy Joes are Best on a Burger Bun

You could use traditional buns, but to keep this sugar free, grain free, I love these carnivore buns. Here are some great choices.

• Carnivore Buns
• Keto Tortillas
• Keto Cheddar Grain Free Biscuits

More of My Favorite Ground Beef Recipes

• Cuban Picadillo
• Stuffed Cabbage
• Eggroll in a Bowl

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Sugar Free Sloppy Joe Recipe

Delicious Sugar Free Sloppy Joe Recipe with Low Carb Roll Options

Course Sandwich

Cuisine American

Keyword sloppy Joe’s

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 1 onion finely chopped
• 1 pound ground beef 80/20
• 1 cup sugar free tomato sauce see notes
• 2 tablespoons yellow mustard
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce or red vinegar
• 1 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon sugar free maple syrup or sugar free brown sweetener

Instructions

• In a bowl mix ground beef with salt, pepper, mustard, worchestshire sauce. Set aside.
• Heat oil in a pan and cook onion until softened.
• Add ground beef mixture. Crumble and cook through.
• Add tomato sauce and maple syrup (and sugar free barbecue sauce) if you have it. Add a little bit of water if it seems too dry.
• Simmer on low for 30 minutes. Taste for more seasoning. Adjust sweetness to your taste with monk fruit or more sugar free maple syrup.

Notes

You can add in some sugar free barbecue (1/4 cup) in place of some of the tomato sauce.

A fattier ground beef works best for this kind of recipe for that old school flavor.

The post Sugar Free Sloppy Joes with Low Carb Rolls appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Our table had been host to ground beef stuffed bell peppers three times that summer, and there was a fourth time as we picked some peppers from our garden.

I made a fresh tomato sauce from garden tomatoes for this dish, but you can use canned tomatoes to make this homemade tomato sauce.

I have never been a green bell pepper fan, always choosing the red or yellow peppers, but when baked slowly in tomato, and filled with a meat filling, they are a summer food with winter comfort. Ground beef stuffed bell peppers take a little more prep than many of my dishes, because I take the time to blanch the peppers.  I use a dutch oven with the lid to bake them for about an hour, and then I take the lid off to brown them a little bit.

The Meat Recipe is Similar to Italian Meatballs

I season the meat the same way I make meatballs, using bread, Italian cheese, fresh parsley and basil. I do make a paleo option for myself, skipping the bread. The peppers continue to cook in the tomato sauce and the beef takes on the flavor of both. This is so good that even people I know who don’t like bell pepper (me included) love this dish.

This is a basic stuffed peppers recipe that offers you many options using one technique.

There are Several Options for Stuffed Peppers

Choose your grain or no grain.  While many stuffed peppers recipes add rice to the beef, I have never like that combination, as I don’t like rice with tomato sauce. You can replace the bread with rice, but I find the bread gives a much more satisfying texture. You can use bread crumbs instead of bread pieces if that’s what you have.

Paleo Option: I made some of the peppers (for me) with a paleo option, just skipping the bread and cheese altogether. Add in extra olive oil to the meat for moisture.

Sausage or Ground Pork Option: On of the three times I added in some ground sausage to the ground beef for extra flavor, or you could add in ground pork. The ratio is up to you. I recommend 1/4 pound sausage to 3/4 pound beef.

Ground Turkey Option: You can substitute ground turkey for the beef. In that case, add in some olive oil, as ground turkey does not have the flavor of ground beef or the fat. You can pump up the flavor by doubling the cheese, and adding in more aromatic herbs such as sage and rosemary.

Ground Beef option: You might be wondering what kind of ground beef to use for the ground beef stuffed bell peppers. I used grass fed beef, which is on the lean side, but your favorite ground beef will be fine.

More Ground Beef Recipes

• Ground Beef with Peas (most popular post)
• Ground Beef with Cabbage Stir Fry
• Easy Hamburger Steak Recipe
• Cuban Picadillo

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Stuffed Peppers with Ground Beef, Tomato Sauce

An Italian version of Ground Beef Stuffed Peppers with Paleo Option.

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 2 hours hours

Total Time 2 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 6 large Bell Peppers
• 2 pounds ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 4 slices bread torn or 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs(optional)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 onion diced, sauteed
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1 teaspoon salt
• generous helping black pepper
• 4 to 6 cups tomato sauce recipe using canned tomatoes here or fresh tomatoes here

Instructions

• Cut tops off bell pepper. Save to use later if you want to, cut out seeds.
• Blanch peppers in boiling water for five minutes to soften.
• Remove, put in ice bath, cool.
• Mix ground beef with eggs, bread or breadcrumbs, parsley, cheese, salt and pepper.
• Stuff peppers.
• Put tomato sauce into baking dish. I used a dutch oven. You can use either a baking dish or dutch oven. The sauce should come about half way up the peppers.
• Put in oven at 400 degrees uncovered for twenty minutes. Reduce heat to 325. Cover and bake for at least one more hour, or until peppers are softened.

The post Ground Beef Stuffed Bell Peppers appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

When talking to friends, I find most people want to enjoy spaghetti squash but are afraid to make it or actually don’t know how. I have a recipe here for making the squash, but know there are many cooking options and you can find them here.

I used this Paleo Italian Meatball recipe. You can use any meatballs you wish. This recipe doesn’t have any bread, keeping the whole dish very low-carb, healthy, and keto friendly.

The sauce is made with one can of Italian tomatoes, a little garlic and olive oil, keeping it real simple. I opted to add some mozzarella and bake it in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

Use Your Favorite Italian Meatballs

Make your own meatballs or use one of these recipes.

• Veal Meatballs Stuffed with Ricotta
• Paleo Meatballs
• Keto Meatballs
• Italian Meatballs in my Spaghetti/Meatballs Recipes

You can also add in ricotta cheese in dollops for extra creaminess.

Spaghetti Squash is actually pretty versatile adapting well to Italian dishes. It will add a little bit of sweet so you will want to make sure you add enough savory flavors and something salty like pecorino Romano cheese.

It’s not hard to make and can be made a day in advance, making weeknight meal preparation easy.

More Spaghetti Squash Recipes

• Spaghetti Squash, Sausage, Mushrooms and Cream
• Three Cheese Spaghetti Squash Lasagna
• Spaghetti Squash Carbonara
• Italian Shrimp with Spaghetti Squash
• Spaghetti Squash Bolognese Ricotta
• Spaghetti Squash Hashbrowns

Kitchen Equipment

• Serving Spoons
• Casserole Dishes of various sizes
• Oxo Box Cheese Grater

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Spaghetti Squash and Meatball Casserole

Spaghetti Squash with Paleo Meatiballs, Keto Friendly, Low Carb. Paleo, Gluten free.

Course Keto Entree

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 40 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Calories 337kcal

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 2 cups quick tomato sauce recipe below
• meatballs recipe below
• 1 spaghetti squash
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese
• 3/4 cup pecorino romano or parmesan
• parsley
• red chili flakes
• salt
• pepper

Quick Tomato Sauce

• 1 can San Marzano Tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/4 onion

Easy Paleo Meatballs

• 1 pound Ground Beef (can mix with beef and pork)
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 small egg
• 1/2 cup pecorino romano or parmesan cheese grated
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1/2 cup parsley chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

Make Spaghetti Squash

• Roast spaghetti squash
• Soften spaghetti squash by microwaving for five minutes.
• Or you can just cut in half, lengthwise.
• Scrape out seeds and stringy parts.
• Put face down in pot. Add water up to about 3 inches.
• Roast for 40 minutes or until softened.

Make Meatballs

• Pour milk over ground beef.
• Season meat with parsley, 1/4 cup grated pecorino cheese, egg, garlic, salt and pepper.
• Shape into medium sized meatballs. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees F.
• Add to sauce and simmer on low, while you are preparing spaghetti squash.

Tomato Sauce

• Crush tomatoes with hand.
• Heat olive oil.
• Add onion and garlic. Add tomatoes to pot. You may need to add a little bit of water.
• You can choose to smooth out the sauce using a stick blender.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Cook uncovered for 30 to 40 minutes while squash is baking. Add meatballs as soon as they are ready.

Assemble

• Shred spaghetti squash with a fork.
• Paper towel moisture off of squash.
• Arrange in casserole dish.
• Slice meatballs and arrange in dish.
• Toss with Sauce. You may not use all of the sauce, depending as to how much you have.
• Add mozzarella cheese.
• Bake for 30 minutes at 375 degrees F. or until all cheese is melted.
• Allow to cool about ten minutes. Serve with extra Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese.

Notes

You can use ground beef, loose Italian sausage or a mix of of beef/pork.

Net cabs: 7 with Six Servings

Nutrition

Calories: 337kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Fat: 20g | Fiber: 2g

The post Spaghetti Squash with Meatballs appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Lately I’ve making keto crepe recipes, sweet, savory, layered and stuffed. This keto crepe cannelloni might be my new favorite. There are many variations for cannelloni, and this version is meat filled.

Stuffed with ground beef and ground pork, mixed with ricotta, pecorino romano and spices, topped with tomato sauce, it tastes authentically Italian.

Almond flour replaces traditional flour and there are no breadcrumbs in the recipe, making this a perfect keto friendly Italian dinner.

You will find some cannelloni recipes that are stuffed with spinach and ricotta the same way I made this spinach crepe lasagna.

Keto crepes are very versatile and once you know how to make these, you can enjoy crepes a number of ways.

The first thing you need to do is make the keto crepes. The more I make them, the better they get and the more I learn. It’s important to have the batter thin enough so you can swirl what you need in your pan and pour the excess back into the batter.

Make a Fast Tomato Sauce

Make a fast tomato sauce with a can of San Marzano Tomatoes. Heat for 20 minutes wiht olive oil, sautèed onion or garlic (to be removed), salt, pepper. Use an immersion blender to blend to a puree. You can also use any tomato sauce of your choice.

More Low Carb Italian Recipe from Spinach Tiger

• Keto Crepe Lasagna
• Eggplant Rollatini
• Eggplant Lasagna
• Italian Meatball Soup

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Keto Crepe Cannelloni with Meat Filling

Low Carb, Keto Crepe Cannelloni with Meat Filling and Ricotta Cheese

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Keyword crepe lasagna, keto lasagna

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Crepe Making Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4 servings

Calories 540kcal

Ingredients

• 15 ounce ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 3/4 pound ground beef
• 3/4 pound ground pork
• 1/2 cup pecorino romano cheese grated
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 cup tomato sauce sugar free
• 8 keto crepes

Keto Crepe Recipe

• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 2 eggs
• baking spray
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons melted butter

Instructions

• Mix the meat together with egg, pecorino cheese, salt, pepper and parsley.
• Saute ground meat, breaking it up in pan, until all meat is cooked through.
• Mix ricotta with ground meat.
  
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Use an 9 x 9 baking dish and cut crepes to fit the dish.
• Place meat/ricotta mixture on crepe and roll up.
• Put tomato sauce on bottom of baking pan. Add each rolled stuffed crepe.
• Top with tomato sauce. You may want to add mozzarella cheese on top. That's an option. Top with foil prior to baking.
• Bake at 350 F. for 20 minutes and turn up to 400 degrees for another five minutes. You may need more time if cheese isn't melted enough if using cheese for a topping.

Keto Crepes

• Mix almond flour with salt. Set aside.
• Mix eggs with almond milk, melted butter.
• Add dry mixture. Add a few teaspoons water if you need to thin down crepes.
• Heat crepe pan. I used a 7 inch crepe pan, which made 8 crepes.
  
• Add baking spray. Hold crepe pan off the stove and add 1/4 crepe batter. Swirl around to cover pan. Put back on stove and cook for about 4 minutes on medium. Turn over for about 10 seconds.

  NOTE: Makes up to 10 crepes. If you are using a larger pan, you'll make less crepes and can cut them to fit your baking dish.
  
• Tomato sauce recipe here.

Notes

Macros are for Spinach Version. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 4 | Calories: 540kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 39g | Fiber: 2g

The post Keto Crepe Cannelloni with Meat Filling appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

The keto crepes are made with almond flour, eggs, melted butter, sour cream, and almond milk. They do take a lot of patience, but once you have a batch, you can refrigerate or freeze for later use.

Cooking tip: Pour batter onto pan that is held up off stove. Swirl around and pour excess batter back into the bowl. If your batter is not thin enough for this, add more almond milk.

This batch worked well with my plans to use them as the lasagna noodle substitute. Layering ricotta cheese, mozzarella, tomato sauce with the crepes, this keto crepe lasagna will satisfy a craving keto or low carb folks get from time to time.

I did not add meat the first time I made this recipe because I made it for Good Friday (no meat), but the second time I used crumbled Italian sausage, which was great. You could also use crumbled paleo meat balls, or bolognese for an even more of a hearty meal.

Ingredients for Low Carb Crepe Lasagna

• 6-8 Keto Crepes
• 15 ounce ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup chopped spinach or Variation: 1 cup crumbled Italian Sausage
• 1/2 cup pecorino romano, grated
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce (sugar free)

Ingredients for the Savory Keto Crepes

• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1/2 cup almond milk, more if needed
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• dash salt
• avocado spray for crepe pan

MACROS: 9 Net Carbs per serving Calories: 530 Fat: 39 grams Protein: 32 Grams

Equipment Needed for this Recipe

• Crepe Pan
• 8 x 8 Baking Dish

Similar Keto Friendly Italian Recipes

• Chicken Parm
• Eggplant Parm
• Sausage Crust Pizza
• Spaghetti Squash Lasagna
• Eggplant Rollatini
• Italian Sausage Stuffed Eggplant
• Savory Ricotta Fritters

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Keto Crepe Lasagna

Low Carb, Keto Crepe Lasagna with Ricotta Cheese, spinach or Italian sausage.

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Keyword crepe lasagna, keto lasagna

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Crepe Making Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4 servings

Calories 540kcal

Ingredients

• 15 ounce ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup chopped spinach cooked or raw
• 1/2 cup pecorino romano cheese grated
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce sugar free
• 8 keto crepes

Keto Crepe Recipe

• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 2 eggs
• baking spray
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons melted butter

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Use an 8×8 baking dish and cut crepes to fit the dish.
• Make sure to drain ricotta, by sitting on paper towel in colander. Some ricotta cheese is more moist than others.
• Mix ricotta with egg, spinach and pecorino romano. If not using spinach, add some chopped parsley or chopped basil. Season with salt and pepper.
  
• Layer the crepes with ricotta. You can cup the crepes to fit a square pan. Start with small amount of sauce, crepe, ricotta cheese, and so forth. Finish with sauce and mozzarella cheese.
  
• Bake at 350 F. for 20 minutes and turn up to 400 degrees for another five minutes. You may need more time if cheese isn't melted enough.
• If you don't want to use spinach, you can layer the very last layer with the cooked crumbled Italian Sausage.
  

Keto Crepes

• Mix almond flour with salt. Set aside.
• Mix eggs with almond milk, melted butter.
• Add dry mixture. Add a few teaspoons water if you need to thin down crepes.
• Heat crepe pan. I used a 7 inch crepe pan, which made 8 crepes. Whichever pan you use, follow the next instruction.
  
• Add baking spray. Hold crepe pan off the stove and add 1/4 crepe batter Or more if your pan is bigger. Swirl around to cover pan. Pour excess back into the batter. Put back on stove and cook for about 4 minutes on medium. Turn over for about 10 seconds.

  NOTE: Makes up to 10 crepes. If you are using a larger pan, you'll make less crepes and can cut them to fit your 8 x 8 baking dish.
  

Notes

Macros are for Spinach Version. 

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 4 | Calories: 540kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 39g | Fiber: 2g

The post Keto Crepe Lasagna appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

I have made chicken parmesan a few times on this blog, once with a gluten free breading, and once with a pork panko breading and pepperoni. This time, though, I tried a completely different technique in preparing the keto chicken parmesan.

I used egg and pecorino cheese as my breading, and I prepped the whole thing in under 30 minutes including making a fast, fresh tomato sauce.

You need five main ingredients to make keto chicken parmesan:

• boneless chicken breast
• parmesan or pecorino grated cheese
• eggs
• tomato sauce
• mozzarella cheese

How to Pound Out Chicken Cutlets

You need to pound your chicken breasts thinly.

Take precautions with raw chicken, as you don’t want to contaminate your surfaces. I never lay cutlets on a wooden cutting board. I have a special “chicken only” color coded mat that I lay over my cutting board or on the counter.

The safest thing to do is to put the chicken in plastic bag and pound it flat, so chicken pieces aren’t flying around, contaminating the kitchen. I use a heavy rolling pin, but you could use the back of a cast iron pan or a meat pounder.

Keto Italian Chicken Cutlets (no bread)

This is the best and easiest way to make keto Italian chicken cutlets with a zero carb count.

• Dry chicken cutlets
• Season with salt, pepper.
• Dip in grated cheese mixed with Italian seasoning.
• Dip in egg wash (beaten eggs with a tablespoon of water).
• Dip again in grated cheese. (This part is optional). (I didn’t find much of a difference redipping the chicken back in the cheese. )
• Fry in avocado oil or olive oil. Turn after about five minutes. The chicken cutlet will move easily when it’s ready to be turned. Cook for another three to five minutes.

Secret for Fast Tomato Sauce

You could use a pre-made tomato sauce from the grocery store, but I never do that.

I always make my own with a large can of good San Marzano tomatoes and I look for the word “certified.” Cento is a great brand and there are others.

Process: Heat some olive oil in saucepan. Squeeze the tomatoes into the pan. Discard any rough pulp that doesn’t easily squeeze. Add salt, pepper, and either a little garlic powder or onion powder. Add some fresh basil if you have it. The sauce is done when the chicken is cooked. You may not use all of the sauce, and you can freeze what remains.

When is the Chicken Done?

The Chicken is done at 165 F. I always use a meat thermometer to be sure. Some recipes return the chicken back into the sauce. I prefer to cook the chicken all the way through on top of the stove, adding fully cooked chicken to the casserole dish following by tomato sauce and cheese.

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Similar Recipes from Spinach Tiger

• Old School Gluten Free Chicken Parmesan
• Keto Chicken Parmesan with Panko and Pepperoni
• Keto Eggplant Parmesan with Pepperoni
• Keto Eggplant Lasagna
• Eggplant Rollatini
• Keto Chicken Tenders

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Keto Chicken Parmesan

Keto Chicken Parmesan with Five Ingredients (No Bread)

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Keyword chicken parmesan

Prep Time 14 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Baking Time 15 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 2 boneless chicken breasts
• salt, pepper
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups grated cheese (pecorino, parmesan)
• 4 tablespoons avocado or olive oil
• 2 cups tomato sauce
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 2 cups whole milk mozzarella cheese grated

Easy Tomato Sauce

• 1 can San Marzano Tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt, pepper

Instructions

• Slice chicken breasts crosswise for cutlets. Pound thin. Cut into pieces.
• Beat eggs with a two tablespoons of water.
• Season chicken with salt and pepper.
• Mix italian seasoning into cheese.
• Cover chicken with cheese. Dip in egg. You might want to cover the chicken into more cheese. Either way works. You could fry after you dip in egg or add more grated cheese.
  
• Heat oil in heavy, large frying pan.
• Fry chicken cutlets about 5 minutes on each side. Don't turn over until chicken moves easily.
  
• Heat tomato sauce until warmed through.
• Place a layer of sauce in flat casserole dish. Place the chicken on sauce in one layer. Top with thin layer of more sauce. Top with mozzarella cheese.
  
• Cover with foil and bake for 10 minutes. Uncover and bake another five minutes or until the cheese is melted the way you like it.
  
• Top with parsley and serve with more parmesan or pecorino romano cheese.
  

Easy Tomato Sauce

• Heat oil in medium sized sauce pan. Add tomatoes, crushing the tomatoes with your hand. Discard any pulp that seems stringy or doesn't crush. Season with dash garlic powder or onion powder if desired.
• Cook on low (about 20-30 minutes) while you are making the chicken.

The post Keto Chicken Parmesan appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

What is Eggplant Rollatini?

The name itself gives you a big hit. It’s rolled eggplant, stuffed with ricotta cheese, covered with homemade tomato sauce and topped with mozzarella.

The good news here is that it’s naturally low carb, bas the eggplant is first sliced and baked with NO breading, just olive oil and then rolled with with the cheese.

Choose Eggplant…

Choose long slender eggplant that will yield long slices. Keep in mind they will shrink a bit when you bake them to soften them.

How to Drain and Prepare Ricotta Cheese for Eggplant Rollatini

Not all ricotta cheese is equal. I love the Polly O brand because it’s a bit firmer doesn’t require much draining. However with most brands of ricotta cheese, there is a bit of liquid that you will want to drain. Put the ricotta in a colander lined with damp paper towel or cheesecloth. I just leave it like that for an hour. You could also cover with plastic, and put a heavy bowl on top to push out that extra liquid.

Season with pecorino cheese or parmesan, parsley or basil, and add one egg per two cups.

• Ricotta Cheese
• Parmesan or Pecorino
• Egg
• Basil or Parsley
• Salt, Pepper

Quick Homemade Tomato Sauce

This is just as easy as opening a jar of sauce.

You will be baking the eggplant rollatini in tomato sauce. You can make a very clean, quick sauce with a large can of San Marzano Tomatoes.

Heat garlic just until softened in olive oil. Crush tomatoes in your hands, add to oil. Add salt, pepper and cook on low, while preparing eggplant and ricotta cheese. I like to then puree the sauce with an immersion blender.

• San Marzano Tomatoes
• Olive Oil
• Salt, Pepper
• Garlic

Slice Eggplant and Bake to Soften

Slice eggplant about 1/4 inch thick. It’s best to use a mandolin to keep slices even. I made two versions, one with skin on, one with skin off. It’s fine either way.

Sweat out the extra water content by salting for 15 minutes. Rinse off salt, dry with paper towels.

Brush with small amount olive oil. Bake until softened about 10-15 minutes. The slices need to be soft enough to roll, but not so soft, they fall apart.

Roll and Stuff Eggplant

Once baked slices are cooled place about 2 tablespoons of ricotta mixture and roll. Cover bottom of baking dish with tomato sauce (just enough to cover bottom). Place seam side down on sauce. Cover with more sauce, grated cheese and mozzarella. Pi

Bake

Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake for five more minutes. Let this cool for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy with a side salad and crusty bread.

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More Eggplant Dishes

• Italian Sausage Stuffed Eggplant
• Low Carb Eggplant Parm Pepperoni
• Ground Veal Stuffed Eggplant
• Eggplant Soup
• Eggplant Lasagna

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Eggplant Rollatini

Eggplant, baked, stuffed with ricotta, rolled, topped with sauce and mozzarella.

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Eggplant, eggplant rollatini

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 2 eggplants
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoon pecorino romano or parmesan
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
• 2 tablespoons chopped basil or parsley
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Tomato Sauce

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 clove garlic
• 16 ounce San Marzano Tomatoes
• salt and pepper

Instructions

Drain Ricotta

• Place ricotta on piece of cheesecloth over colander. (can use paper towels). I use Polly O brand which is more firm than most. Drain excess for up to an hour. Make sauce and sweat eggplant during this time.

Tomato Sauce

• Heat oil in sauce pan and soften garlic. Add tomatoes. Crush with your hands. Continue to cook on low, while preparing dish. Once you're ready to add sauce to dish, you can blend using an immersion blender. This is an option and something I like to do.
  

Sweat Eggplant

• Slice eggplant 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Use a mandolin if you have one for even slicing. Lay out slices and salt to sweat out moisture. This will take about 15-20 minutes. Rinse salt off and dry with paper towels.
  
• Lay eggplant on baking dish on parchment paper. Brush with olive oil and bake at 375 degrees F. for 10-15 minutes, depending on thickness of your eggplant. Test to see if eggplant easily rolls. You don't want to bake so long that you can't roll.

Prepare Ricotta Cheese

• Once drained, mix ricotta with egg, 2 tablespoons of grated pecorino romano and parmesan, 2 tablespoons mozzarella, parsley or basil. Season as needed with ground black papper and salt. If using pecorino, use just a touch salt, a this cheese is salty.
  

Roll Eggplant and Bake

• Once eggplant is baked and cooled, add approximately two tablespoons ricotta mixture to slices and roll. Place sauce on bottom of dish and place eggplant seam side down onto sauce. Top with more sauce, and sprinkle with mozzarella.
  
• Cover with foil and bake at 375 for 35-40 minutes. Uncover and continue to bake for 5 to 10 minutes more.
  

The post Eggplant Rollatini appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

This reminds me of my mother so much because she made the best ciambotta and she would pronounce it with an Italian accent, (Chumbotta) even though she was American born. I am so grateful for the simple Italian dishes I grew up on that used the fresh local vegetables of summer.

Once you eat this dish, you’ll make it again the next week. My husband ate three bowls last night, with some freshly made sourdough bread.

Ciambotta is typically made with zucchini, onions, tomatoes, and potatoes, and is similar to a French ratatouille, but is much thicker and more of a main dish than a side dish. I purchased the zucchini, peppers, potatoes and sourdough at the farmer’s market where I sell my keto bakes.

I used zucchini, green pepper, and potatoes purchased at the farmer’s market. I added onion, garlic, basil and a large can of Cento plum tomatoes. Sometimes I add in green beans, but I didn’t do that this time.

Add Left Over Meatballs or Sausage to Ciambotta if You Need Meat

If you happen to have some cooked meatballs or Italian sausage, you can always add those in, once the stew is done. However, we love this just as is.

Chop the zucchini into discs. Slice the onions and peppers into slivers. Saute onions, garlic and peppers in olive oil for about five minutes. Add zucchini. Saute another five minutes. Add in the can of tomatoes with a half can water, (more if needed). Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 15 minutes. Add diced potatoes, cook for another 45 minutes on low or until potatoes are cooked. Add in more fresh herbs when ready. Serve with crusty bread, more olive oil and pecorino or parmesan cheese.

Similar Summer Recipes from Spinach Tiger

• Stovetop Grilled Zucchini
• Italian Eggplant Stew
• Watermelon Gazpacho
• Linguini with Zucchini Sauce
• Garden Fresh Tomato Bisque
• Ribollita (Tuscan Soup)

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Ciambotta, and Italian Summer Stew

An Italian summer stew made with zucchini, tomatoes, potatoes, green pepper and onion.

Course Stew

Keyword Ciambotta, Italian Stew, Summer Stew

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic sliced
• 1 large onion
• 6 zucchini
• 1 green bell pepper
• 28 ounce Italian San Marzano Tomatoes
• 6 yukon gold potatoes peeled, quartered

Instructions

Prepare Vegetables

• Slice onion into slivers.
• Seed and slice green peppers into slivers
• Cut zucchini cross-wise into discs.
• Peel potatoes and cut into large bite-sized pieces.
• Peel and thinly slice garlic.

Ciambotta

• Saute onion and green pepper in olive oil for five minutes. Add in garlic and keep stirring for a minute, careful not to burn garlic.
• Add in zucchini. Sauté for five minutes, continuing to stir.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Add can of tomatoes, squeezing with hand. Fill the can halfway with water and add.
• Add in potatoes. Simmer for the next 50-60 minutes on low until potatoes are cooked through.
• Add in stems of thyme and basil.
• When done add in more torn basil. Serve with grated pecorino or parmesan.
• Serve with more olive to drizzle if desired.

The post Ciambotta, an Italian Summer Vegetable Stew appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Unlike his recipe, I skipped the flour, and added mozzarella cheese. Trying both ricotta fritters with and without the mozzarella, the added cheese won out, and serves as an extra binder, adding to the texture, and making this truly low-carb.

The tomato sauce is made quickly with one large can of Marzano Plum Tomatoes, which is ready when the fritters are done. This dish takes about 30 minutes active time, but does require a lot of patience, as the fritters are fried on the lowest setting.

What are Ricotta Fritters?

Savory ricotta fritters are fried dollops of ricotta cheese, mixed with egg, nutmeg, mozzarella and fried slowly on the stove. They can be eaten as is, or placed in a bed of fresh tomato sauce. They can be a main dish, a side dish or a starter.

Tips For Ricotta Fritters

• Remove the moisture from the ricotta. This will truly make all the difference in the world. Place your ricotta in a strainer lined with cheesecloth or paper towels. Place over a bowl. Cover with paper towel or cheesecloth and press out the extra liquid using a bowl on top. It is recommended to do this for 8 hours, but I only had one hour and used paper towels and was able to make these with no problem.
• Fry on very low. I used the lowest setting on my gas stove. Each fritter took about 8 minutes on one side and six minutes on the other side. It could even take longer, so be patient.
• While the fritters are frying, make the tomato sauce.
• Put tomato sauce in a baking dish. Place ricotta cheese on top of the sauce and keep warm in the oven until serving. You want the sauce to be hot. Sprinkle parmesan or pecorino romano on top right before serving.

Variations on Ricotta Fritters

• Top with Pepperoni
• Serve with Pesto
• Add Veggies, such shredded zucchini
• Go sweet, adding finely chopped apples with cinnamon and sweetener such as Swerve.

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More Keto Italian from Spinach Tiger

• Keto Eggplant Lasagna
• Eggs in Purgatory (Italian Shashuka)
• Italian Sausage Balls
• Keto Sausage Crusted Three Cheese Pizza
• Ricotta Stuffed Meatballs
• Chicken Parmesan with Pepperoni

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Savory Ricotta Fritters with Quick Tomato Sauce

Savory Ricotta Fritters (No flour) with Easy Tomato Sauce

Course Appetizer and Main

Cuisine Italian

Keyword ricotta cheese, ricotta fritters

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 8 fritters

Ingredients

Ricotta Fritters

• 330 grams ricotta cheese 1 1/4 cup
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
• 1/4 cup pecorino romano or parmesan grated
• 1 small egg
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• salt and pepper

Fast Tomato Sauce

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 28 ounce can San Marzano Peeled Tomatoes
• 1/4 cup white wine optional
• salt and pepper

Instructions

Getting Liquid out of Ricotta (one hour to overnight)

• Use either cheesecloth or paper towels. I used paper towels and placed under and over the ricotta cheese in mesh strainer over a bowl. I placed another bowl over the ricotta to press out liquid. I only did this for one hour, but you can do this overnight also.

Tomato Sauce

• Heat oil in medium sauce pan that will fit the tomato sauce. Add garlic cloves and cook for a minute. If garlic burns, start over.
• Crush the tomatoes with your hand, retaining the pulp and allowing all the juice and puree to go into the pan. You CAN add in some of the pulp if desired.
• Add in white wine. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer on low for 30 minutes, while making the fritters.

Ricotta Fritters

• Mix ricotta, pecorino romano, parsley, mozzarella, nutmeg, egg, salt and pepper together.
• Heat a flat frying pan (I used a griddle) with a small amount of oil. Using a spoon, place each fritter in frying pan, keeping enough space between to be able to turn them easily. Cook each side 8 minutes and six minutes after flipping. BE PATIENT. They will brown, but this takes time. Keep the heat at its lowest setting.
• Once tomato sauce is done, place both sauce and then fritters in baking pan and warm up in oven if necessary. Serve when hot.

The post Savory Ricotta Fritters with Quick Tomato Sauce appeared first on Spinach Tiger.