Preheat oven to 425°F. Place eggplant in a colander and salt generously. Let sit for at least 1 hour. (This is to reduce any bitterness and make the eggplant less spongy which reduces the amount of oil that it will absorb). Wipe off salt and pat eggplant dry. Lightly brush eggplant with oil and pepper to taste. Place on baking sheet and put in oven. Cook for 25 minutes until soft while turning half way. Remove from oven and set aside.

Toss sliced potatoes in oil and salt and pepper to taste. Place on baking sheet and put in 425°F oven. Cook for 25 minutes until soft while turning half way. Remove from oven and set aside.

Make meat sauce: To a large skillet or Dutch oven, add 1 Tbsp oil and heat on medium high heat. Add meat, cinnamon, ginger, allspice and cayenne pepper to the pan. Cook meat while constantly stirring and breaking up the meat. When cooked through remove meat and strain to remove any liquid. Discard any liquid from pan.

Add Tbsp of oil to pan and heat on medium heat. Add onion, jalapeño, and bell pepper to pan and cook until softened. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.

Return the meat to the pan along with the red wine. Bring to a boil and cook until wine is almost gone. Add diced tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes to thicken. Stir in parsley and oregano. Remove from heat and set aside.

Make béchamel sauce while meat sauce is simmering: Melt butter in a sauce pan on low-medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth and pale colored, about 2 minutes. Whisk in milk, nutmeg and bay leaf. Thicken to a cream consistency, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes. Discard the bay leaf.

In a small bowl beat egg yolks. Then whisk the egg yolks into the sauce. Next whisk in the Romano cheese.

Assemble the dish: Butter a 9”x13” pan. Layer bottom of pan with the potato slices. Next layer using 1/2 the eggplant followed by 1/2 the meat sauce.

Then layer the remaining eggplant and the remaining meat sauce.

Pour béchamel sauce over the meat sauce and spread out.

Place pan in a 400°F oven and cook until browned and bubbly, about 45 minutes. When done remove from oven and let cool for 20-30 minutes.

Serve and enjoy!