Low Carb Moussaka with Sundried Tomato Bechamel

This isn't exactly paleo because I used a sugar substitute, and it has dairy in it, so that is personal choice when it comes to paleo, but it was so amazing that I wanted to write it up somewhere!  The salting process with the eggplant is optional, but I really like doing it because it pulls out any bitterness, and it also can reduce reactions in sensitive individuals, at least in my personal experience.  Eggplant tends to upset my stomach, but if I do the salting process, I don't have that issue.

Low Carb Moussaka with Sundried Tomato Bechamel

1 medium eggplant, about 1.5 lbs
salt

2 ts olive oil
1 cup chopped red onion
1 lb ground beef
15 oz tomato sauce
3/4 cup dry red wine
1 TB Swerve brown sugar substitute
1 ts dried oregano
1 ts ground nutmeg
1 ts ground cinnamon

1 3/4 cup heavy cream
7 oz cream cheese
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 ts salt
1/4 ts pepper
1/4 ts ground nutmeg
3/4 cup sun dried tomato, finely chopped
1/2 cup green onions,  chopped

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise, then slice into 1/4 inch thick pieces.  Spread the pieces out and liberally salt them.  Let sit for 30 minutes, then rinse the salt off and let the pieces sit in a strainer to dry off.

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan or dutch oven over medium heat and add the onion.  Cook until transparent and add the ground beef.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Cook until the meat is no longer pink.  Drain the fat if needed, depending on the leanness of your beef.   Add the tomato sauce, red wine, Swerve, oregano, nutmeg and cinnamon.  Simmer, stirring occasionally until the mixture becomes think and almost dry, about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350.

To prepare the bechamel, add heavy cream, cream cheese, garlic, salt, pepper and nutmeg to a nonstick saucepan.  Bring ingredients to a boil while stirring.  Lower the heat and simmer for a few minutes, until it reaches desired consistency.  Stir in sun dried tomatoes and onions.  Try to time this to finish around the same time as the meat mixture or keep warm on lowest setting.

Prepare a 13x9 with cooking spray.  Layer half the eggplant in the bottom of the dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Spread the meat mixture over the eggplant evenly.  Arrange another layer of eggplant over the meat and press down so they are as flat as possible.  Pour the bechamel over the top and spread it evenly.  Sprinkle with the Parmesan.

Bake until the golden and bubbling around the edges.  Start checking at about 45 minutes.  The recipe I based this on said 1 hour, but mine looked a bit overdone at that point.  It still tasted great though!