Layered Zucchini Eggplant Bake

Throwback Thursday to this super old photo (please excuse the quality).  I made this dish again recently but completely forgot to photograph it.  This dish is basically a casserole made with zucchinis and eggplants. The mixture of flavors, especially with the feta cheese and basil, gives the dish a really Italian-like feel. Be sure to keep an eye on your oven when you first bake the veggies (especially if you haven’t cut them to the correct width) because you might end up burning them like I did in the first batch that I tried! The ingredients are really plain and simple- but trust me try this out- the combination is beautiful!

Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil, plus more for greasing/brushing
2 medium- sized zucchinis, sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 long, narrow eggplants, sliced 1/3 inch thick
Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small red onion, minced
2 large plum tomatoes, diced into ½ inch cubes
½ tsp dried chili flakes
½ tsp oregano

½ cup feta cheese, crumbled
¼ cup chopped basil (or 2 tsp dried basil)
½ cup panko bread crumbs, with some dried basil and oregano mixed into it (½ tsp each)

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350° C and grease a large baking sheet with some of the olive oil.
2. Slice the eggplants and the zucchini and spread them out (slightly layered) onto the baking sheet, then drizzle with some oil and season with salt and pepper. 
3. Bake the eggplants and zucchini for about 10 minutes, or until tender, then set aside.
4. In a large skillet, heat about 1 tbsp olive oil, then add the garlic and the onion – stirring constantly until the onions soften but don’t let them turn brown. 
5. Add the tomatoes, chili flakes, salt, and pepper and heat until the tomatoes are slightly softened, then add the basil and oregano.
6. In a large baking dish (10×15 inches) layer half of the zucchini and eggplant, then half of the tomato mixture as well as half the feta cheese followed by the remaining eggplants and zucchini, tomato mixture, and feta.
7. Spread the breadcrumb mixture over the top of the dish and bake for approximately 20 minutes until the breadcrumbs are a nice golden brown color. Once you remove it from the oven, let the dish stand for 5 minutes before serving.