Eggplant Involtini with Lemon Thyme Ricotta
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
My eggplant involtini is baked, not fried, and rolled around a ricotta filling brightened with lemon and thyme. The tomato sauce simmers for only ten minutes yet tastes like it took an afternoon thanks to a spoonful of balsamic.
Eggplant involtini is essentially eggplant parmesan rolled into neat little bundles, minus the breading and the pan of hot oil. You also hear it called eggplant rollatini. Whatever you call it, it’s the kind of dinner that looks like you worked much harder than you did.
Nearly every version folds basil into the ricotta. I use lemon and thyme instead, and I think it makes the whole dish taste more interesting. Ricotta and eggplant are both soft and rich, and without something sharp against them, the plate gets heavy about four bites in. The juice of a whole lemon is more than most recipes call for, and that’s on purpose. Thyme is woodsy where basil is sweet, so it holds up better next to the tomato. The basil still goes in, whole leaves tucked inside each roll, so you get it in clean, bright bursts instead of blended away.
There’s balsamic in the sauce, too. It’s the reason a ten-minute simmer tastes long and slow.
What to serve with eggplant involtini
I serve this as a main, and I’ll be straight with you about what that means. It’s eggplant and cheese, so it eats on the lighter side. On its own it’s a perfect lunch. For dinner, it wants company.
A Caesar salad is my standard. The Caesar dressing has the anchovy and Parmesan savoriness to stand up to the tomato sauce, and crisp romaine is a good contrast against all that softness.
Garlic bread is the other one, and it’s doing real work. There’s a lot of good sauce left in the dish and you want something to get it off the plate. Between the two, the meal fills out properly.
If you’d rather serve the involtini as a side, it goes well next to almost any simply cooked chicken or pork.
Eggplant Involtini with Lemon Thyme Ricotta
Ingredients
- 2 large globe eggplants
- Olive oil (for drizzling)
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup grated parmesan (plus extra to serve)
- ½ cup basil (plus extra to serve)
Tomato Sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Ricotta Filling
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta
- ½ cup grated parmesan
- Juice from 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- Sea salt and pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the tops and bottoms off the eggplants and then thinly slice them lengthwise into 4-5 slices each. Drizzle them with the olive oil and sprinkle with the sea salt. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, or until soft.2 large globe eggplants, Olive oil, ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- While the eggplants are roasting, prepare the rest of the meal. Heat the olive oil in a medium-sized pot over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add all the other tomato sauce ingredients and bring the pot to a boil. Reduce the heat to a gently simmer.1 tablespoon olive oil, 3 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon sea salt, ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- In a medium-sized bowl, stir all the ricotta filling ingredients together.1 cup whole milk ricotta, ½ cup grated parmesan, Juice from 1 lemon, 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, Sea salt and pepper
To assemble the easy eggplant involtini
- When the eggplants come out of the oven, set them aside to cool for a minute. Keep the oven on. Pour the tomato sauce into a baking dish.
- Divide the ricotta filling between the eggplant slices, heaping the filling on the wide end of the eggplant, and top with the basil. Carefully roll the eggplant around the filling and place, seam-side down, in the tomato sauce in the baking dish.½ cup basil
- Sprinkle the parmesan over the top and bake in the oven until bubbly, about 15 minutes. Serve with extra parmesan and some basil sprinkled over the top.½ cup grated parmesan
Video
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
Could this be prepped the day before and then cooked in the oven for lunch the next day?
I haven’t tried it but I think that would work!
I never leave reviews but this was too good. Way easier than Eggplant Parmesan and just as tasty. Great light meal during the summer. Paired with crusty bread and a salad. My husband and 7 year old loved it.
Why do you not peel eggplant?
Because the peel is edible. And honestly without it I think the eggplant slices would likely fall apart.
Couldn’t find the recipe on the IG page I saw it first. Googled and saw yours, stopped looking! Thank you…♥️
I made this for our grown son, my husband and I. Knowing my son, if I had told him it had eggplant in it, he would not have come for dinner. We all LOVED it! He asked for the recipe.
Just a couple of minor adjustments: I doubled the garlic (we love it) than the recipe called for. I got the sauce cooking first. I forgot to pick up a fresh lemon so used 2 T of Lemon Juice from concentrate, gradually adding more until I got it to the taste I liked. I laid a full leaf of basil on top of each roll and cooked in an oval corning ware casserole pan covered for about 20 minutes.
Easy and absolutely delicious! Definitely adding this to the menu, my picky boys loved it!
I loved this recipe! I made it for my family’s dinner, and it was so good. When I wanted to make a meal for a family friend I made it again, and it was so easy to make some for myself with a separate pan for the family friend. Thanks for such a great recipe!
You’re very welcome!
This was delicious! I wasn’t sure about the thickness of the slices, and I ended up with some a bit thicker than others – half a millimetre seemed to be perfect. I added a spoonful of harissa paste in place of the chilli flakes, and also added oregano leaves to the ricotta mixture. YUM.
That’s so great to hear, Trish! Thank you for the comment!
I had to come back and review this, because I’ll be making this again and again. This was easy and delicious. I think this would be great to make as a sympathy meal or for someone who has just had a baby, as it would be easy to re-heat. Thanks for the great recipe.
So happy you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for stopping by to comment!
Loved this recipe! The only thing I did different, is I layered it instead of Rolling. Layering it saved me some time
That’s a great idea!
Can I substitute mars alone cheese rather than ricotta ?
Was that an auto correct for mascarpone? If it is, then yes you can! Mascarpone would be really nice in this recipe. 🙂
I loved this. The flavor was amazing. Such a great meal. I could eat this every day! So delicious.
I could eat it every day, too! You and I clearly have the same taste. 🙂
Made it tonight. Since my teenage boys don’t like eggplant I made chicken crepes for them. I thought hubby and I would have a nice eggplant dinner but the boys kept going after the eggplant. Lucky we got to have a couple each. Totally delish!! Great recipe.
Hahaha that is awesome! Well, maybe not so awesome that you hardly got any, but awesome that your boys loved the recipe so much!
I’m out of town but can’t wait till I get home so I can make thisure for family and friends
I can’t wait for you to get home so you can make this … you’re going to love it!
The eggplant involtini was delicious. I did add a crushed garlic clove and a dash of nutmeg to the ricotta mixture. Very tasty. Looking forward to leftovers.
So happy to hear you liked the recipe!!
This looks mouth-watering-ly good. All those delicious flavors, yum! I can’t wait to make it, probably before Valentines! I’m so glad you didn’t deep fry the eggplant in all that oil, I can just imagine the amount it would soak up, not very appealing.
I hope you like it as much as I do!!