Ingredients

1 6oz can of no added salt tomato paste
1 tablespoon of dry oregano
1 tablespoon of dry basil
1 tablespoon of parmesan cheese
1 ½ teaspoon of onion powder
1 ½ teaspoon of garlic powder
1 tablespoon of brown sugar or organic honey (use just enough to give a hint of sweetness to your sauce)
¼ cup of orange juice (gives your tomato paste a fresh tomato flavor)
3-4 medium size cloves of garlic, chopped. Peel by crushing with the blade of knife-be careful not to cut yourself
1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons of olive oil
3-4 greens onions (scallions), chopped
½ of a large red onion, chopped (adds a strong punch of flavor to the dish)
2-3 slices of Swiss cheese (cut diagonally)
3 baby eggplants, sliced (about ½ inch thickness)
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Making the sauce:
Mix together in a bowl: The tomato paste, oregano, basil, parmesan cheese, onion and garlic powder, brown sugar or honey, 1 tablespoon of olive oil and orange juice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set aside. If needed, add water to the sauce to thin the paste. Your goal is to have it not too thick but not too thin. 

For the chopped ingredients
Heat up your cooking pan on medium heat. Place a tablespoon of olive oil in the heated pan. Add the chopped ingredients and red pepper flakes. Add a dash of salt and black pepper to taste. Even thought I have already added fresh garlic and onions, I still add about ½ teaspoon of garlic and onion powder to the chopped ingredients. Sauté these ingredients until they begin to caramelize (the sugar is cooking out of them and they begin to have a rich looking gloss.) Keep in mind that you will need to adjust the portion size of your ingredients depending on how much you are making.

For the Eggplant
Preheat oven 400 degrees.
In a baking dish, spread one tablespoon of olive oil in the bottom of the dish.  Place your eggplant in the dish and season with a sprinkle of sea salt, basil, oregano and parmesan cheese.  Next place part of your sautéed vegetables, and arrange 3 slices of Swiss cheese as your next layer.  Top with your sauce. Repeat this process until you are done.  I usually end up with the tomato sauce on the last layer. This recipe yields two layers of eggplant.

Bake in a 400 degree oven about 30-40 minutes.  The sugar in the tomato sauce might brown a bit but that just adds to the richness of the dish.

Annie's Advice: 
Have fun serving this dish!  And remember portion control-all things in moderation, even when it’s healthy eating.  Pair this dish up with al dente spaghetti and you will think you were dining at a fine Italian restaurant!  This dish is so good and has lots of flavor!  It eats very well on toasted Italian bread.  I like to use 100% whole wheat Italian bread or the Ezekiel bread which is sprouted grain.  You can find low salt 100% whole wheat Italian bread at Whole Food Markets.  Some local grocery chains also carry the Ezekiel bread.  If there’s a Trader Joe's grocery store in your area, you will find Ezekiel bread there, as well.