Grilled Eggplant, Mushroom, & Kale Pitas

I made dinner the other night with no intention of it being anything worth sharing. We had some eggplant from the farm market & I wanted to make sandwiches, so I started building with what we had on hand.

We ended up loving these! They were quick & easy, with lots of room for variations based on what you have on hand. Kale could easily be replaced with other hearty leafy greens (chard, collards, spinach), eggplant could be replaced with zucchini, feta replaced with gorgonzola, and so on. We loved this particular combo & would definitely make it again, but if you have similar ingredients on hand, save yourself a trip to the store.

If you're looking for a quick dinner that doesn't require the oven, this is it! Great for summer nights. Enjoy!

Grilled Eggplant, Mushroom, & Kale Pitas
Serves 2

1 medium eggplant, sliced into 1/4" rounds
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 medium yellow onion, sliced into half moons
3-4 baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced (or use 1/2 tsp. garlic powder to save chopping time)
4 large leaves of kale, stems removed & leaves chopped into small pieces
1/2 c dry white wine
2 whole wheat pita rounds, sliced in half
1/2 an avocado, thinly sliced
4 T crumbled feta cheese

Sprinkle eggplant slices evenly with garlic powder, sea salt, & red pepper flakes. On a grill (or grill pan) lightly coated with olive oil spray, cook eggplant slices over medium heat. After about 6 minutes, flip slices & cook the other side about 6 minutes. Eggplant should be soft & lightly browned.

In the meantime, use a nonstick skillet to cook onions over medium heat until they start to soften. Add mushrooms, cook for 4 minutes, then add garlic & kale. Once kale starts to soften, add white wine. Increase heat & simmer until wine evaporates.

Once eggplant is done cooking, slice rounds into strips about 1/2" wide. Open pita pockets & stuff all 4 halves with equal amounts of eggplant. Divide mushroom & kale mixture between the 4 pita halves. Then add sliced avocado to each, plus 1 T feta cheese. Serve immediately.

Note:
Both the eggplant & the mushroom/kale mixture can be made ahead of time & stored for up to 2 days in the refrigerator. Reheat both briefly before stuffing pitas and serving.

Eggplant Chickpea Dip

We have tons of eggplant! In the spring, we planted half a dozen seeds, figuring that we'd get maybe 2 plants if we were lucky. Instead, we have 4 very hearty plants, all of which are producing multiple eggplants.

They're gorgeous - shiny purple veggies hanging amidst light green leaves, mixed in with the lavender flowers.

We do like eggplant a lot & have used it for sandwiches, lasagna, cheezy layers, & chips, but never for a dip. One of my friends sent me a link for an eggplant dip she'd tried, & I was inspired to make a dip. What a great way to use up 2 eggplants at once! If you aren't swamped with eggplant, you could easily halve the recipe.

Because I used a green bell pepper & did not peel the eggplant, the dip turned out a funny shade of gray-green. Don't let that scare you off! It tastes creamy & delicious, with a hit of garlic & a kick of heat.

Eggplant Chickpea Dip

Adapted from Whole Foods

Makes about 3 cups

2 large eggplants (about 1 pound each)

1 1/2 c cooked chickpeas (or 1 can, drained and rinsed)

1/4 c dried parsley

1 small bell pepper, seeded & roasted

1 jalapeno, seeded & roasted

2 T lemon juice

3 cloves garlic

1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

2-3 T nutritional yeast

Preheat oven to 450°F. Remove stems from eggplants & slice in half lengthwise. Place halves cut-side down on a baking sheet. Bake until soft, about 40 minutes. At the same time, place bell pepper & jalapeno on a small baking sheet & roast for about 30 minutes or until soft. Once roasted, allow eggplant & peppers to cool slightly before blending.

In a Vitamix or the bowl of a food processor, place all ingredients. Process until smooth. Transfer to a serving bowl & serve warm. This dip can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about a week. It is best served warm, so if storing, it will need to be reheated.

Note: The original recipe suggested removing the eggplant skin before processing. I kept it on for the added nutrients, however this could cause bitterness. Try a bite of the roasted eggplant to determine how it will taste before proceeding. You may also be able to leave half of the skin on & remove half for a good combination.



Zucchini & Eggplant Lasagna

We've made this twice in the last 8 days. It's that good. Both times required a trip to the grocery store for tofu. It was totally worth it.

I almost didn't share it with you because we were running super late & I didn't have much time for photos, but since we've had it twice, I had to snap a few quick ones. To note: lasagna is ugly in pictures, especially rushed ones. Don't let that put you off. It tastes 1000% better than it looks here!

Let me tell you about the second trip to the grocery store. It was on Sunday afternoon & I decided to bike. So I headed out, & started seeing some dark clouds coming in. I hurried through the store & got frustrated immediately. I thought I'd buy a couple boxes of tofu so this wouldn't happen again, only to find that they only had 3 containers & they all expired on Aug. 8. Strike 1. I paid for my items & headed out to my bike. It was really dark & blustery, but I decided to head home anyway. I took the shortest route, but it wasn't enough. As I exited the parking lot & turned at the light, it started to downpour. I was drenched within seconds, so I figured I might as well keep going...I'm pretty sure at one point it was hailing. Strike 2. I made it home safely, though. Next time I need tofu for a recipe, I'm taking the car & buying several boxes!

This recipe is perfect to make ahead of time. We assembled the lasagna on Sunday afternoon & then put it in the refrigerator, covered, overnight. When I got home from work on Monday, I took off the lid & put it in the oven while it preheated. Once the oven was at 400, I set my timer & dinner was ready 45 minutes later! It's great for nights when you have other chores to do before dinner because there's no prep involved that day. I would assume that it could be frozen & then baked in a similar fashion, though baking time would increase.

Grilling the veggies adds so much flavor to this lasagna! I do not recommend skipping that step. It also helps keep the lasagna from getting overly wet as it bakes. I hope you try this & enjoy it! It's light, yet filling - perfect for a late summer evening.

Zucchini & Eggplant Lasagna - Vegan
Filling adapted from PBS Food Fresh Tastes Blog
Serves 6

2 medium zucchinis
1 large eggplant
3 c thick tomato sauce
1 16 oz. block extra firm tofu
1 T nutritional yeast
1 T olive oil
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp oregano
2-3 cloves garlic
4 c swiss chard (or spinach), coarsely chopped
garlic powder
Italian seasoning

Cut tofu into 4 pieces & press for at least 20 minutes.

Slice zucchinis & eggplant lengthwise into long strips, about 1/4" thick. Grill slices on a well-oiled grill at med-high for about 5 minutes per side or until browned.

In a blender, combine pressed tofu, nutritional yeast, olive oil, salt, oregano, & garlic. Blend until smooth. Add swiss chard & blend until only small pieces of swiss chard remain.

Preheat oven to 400*F. Spray a 9"x13" baking pan with cooking spray. Spread about 1/2 c sauce on the bottom of the pan. Lay a single layer of zucchini (about 1 of them) on the bottom. Cover with half of the tofu filling mixture. Sprinkle with garlic powder & Italian seasoning. Cover with sauce, about 1/2 to 1 cup. Layer with the eggplant slices. Top with remaining tofu filling & 1/2 to 1 cup of sauce. Sprinkle with more garlic powder & Italian seasoning, if desired. Place the remaining zucchini on top and cover with remaining sauce. Bake for 45 minutes or until bubbly.*

*Baking time is fairly flexible. I've increased the heat to 450 & baked for 45 minutes, so if you have something else to go in the oven also, it should bake nicely at 350 also, just bake it for an hour instead. All of the ingredients are cooked already, so baking it helps meld the flavors and heat everything evenly.

Cheezy Eggplant Bake

Did everyone survive the first of many holiday celebrations? I feel like Thanksgiving is always the kick off for an entire month of get-togethers & celebrating. It's a tasty step in the direction of Christmas, which is my all time favorite holiday.

Our aunt made a delicious butternut squash lasagna for Thanksgiving dinner & then sent us home with the leftovers! (Thanks! We've enjoyed every bite!)  As we were eating lunch on Saturday, the Bup had a great idea for a variation on the lasagna using eggplant & a pumpkin cheese sauce.

A few weeks ago, we discovered Angela's super delicious & creamy sauce that's cheesy in taste but very healthy & light. It's like a dream come true. We've had it on pasta twice so far, but I've never experimented further.

If you're a little iffy about eggplant, this probably isn't the recipe to kick off your love of the veggie. The flavor comes through & really compliments the cheesiness. You could substitute cooked noodles for the eggplant if that's more your style. Just try the sauce. It tasted even better after it baked & we loved this dish with all of its flavors & textures.

Spread out about 1/3 of the sauce in the bottom of the pan. Look at how creamy it is! You'd never know by looking at it that it's full of healthy nutrients. The main healthy components are pumpkin & nutritional yeast. Nutritional yeast is a relatively new ingredient in my cooking life & it's fantastic. It creates a yummy cheese flavor without all the fat, cholesterol & calories, plus it's a great vegetarian source of vitamin B12.

Lay half of the eggplant slices on top of the sauce.

Sprinkle with mushrooms & onions. (No onions are in the pictured version.) I think it would also be good to add some chopped bell pepper or broccoli to the mixture, but I haven't tried that so I can't guarantee how the flavors would meld.

Top with another layer of sauce & sprinkle with garlic powder, black pepper & Italian seasoning.

Layer with the rest of the eggplant.

Top with the remaining sauce. At this point, you can go several directions. You can leave it as is or top with Italian seasoning. If you're feeling adventurous, sprinkle 1/3 cup of panko breadcrumbs on top for an added crunch.

After a short bake & broil, the top turns golden brown.

My favorite thing about this dish is how the creaminess of the sauce combines with the chew of the eggplant. It was filling & full of flavor without weighing me down - it was the perfect combo after all the Thanksgiving eating!

Cheezy Eggplant Bake
Serves 2

1 small eggplant (or 1/2 of a large eggplant), thinly sliced into rounds
6 white mushrooms, chopped
1 small onion, sliced
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp.garlic powder
1 tsp. Italian seasoning, divided
1/3 c panko breadcrumbs, optional
Pumpkin Mac 'n Cheeze Sauce

Preheat oven to 375*F. Spray a 5"x7" pan with cooking spray & set aside. In a small skillet over medium heat, saute mushrooms and onions until they soften & begin to sweat. Spread about a third of the pumpkin sauce over the bottom of the prepared pan. Lay half of the eggplant slices in a single layer to cover sauce. Spread mushroom & onion mixture over eggplant. Pour half of remaining pumpkin sauce over the mixture. Sprinkle with black pepper, garlic powder, & 1/2 tsp. of Italian seasoning. Place remaining eggplant slices in a single layer on top of sauce & seasonings. Top with the rest of the pumpkin sauce & sprinkle with 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning & panko breadcrumbs, if desired. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove aluminum foil & bake for 20 minutes more. Place under broiler for 3-5 minutes to lightly brown the top, watching closely so that it does not burn. Let stand for 5 minutes before slicing. Serve hot.

Note: Once you assemble the dish, it can be stored in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake it. Do not place a cold glass pan into a preheated oven! If you are going straight from refrigerator to oven, place pan in oven to slowly warm while the oven is coming up to temperature. Once the oven comes to 375*F, then bake for 15 minutes before removing the foil.

Eggplant Chips with Fresh Tomato Sauce

I wanted to feed these to my nephew. He was really interested in them, & watched very carefully when we were flipping them while they baked.

Poor guy couldn't have any, though. Something about not having teeth & just starting on solid foods? I guess itsy bitsy babies aren't quite ready to eat eggplant chips. :-) When he is, I'm inviting him for dinner! I think he's going to eat like a champ.  

While he finished trick-or-treating with his mom & dad, we had deconstructed eggplant parmesan.

We still have a few lingering tomatoes from our garden, so I loosely followed my recipe for Fresh Tomato Basil Soup  to make the sauce:

Fresh Tomato Dipping Sauce

Serves 2

8 fresh tomatoes, any variety (should be 3 c once pureed)
1 T minced garlic
1 T Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp black pepper

Quarter tomatoes and remove the white stem/core. Fill VitaMix/blender with tomatoes and process until smooth. There should be no skins or seeds visible at this point - they should be blended together with the juices. Transfer to a medium pot and heat over medium heat. Once the soup comes to a low simmer, add minced garlic, Italian seasoning, onion powder, salt and pepper. Let cook on medium low for 15-20 minutes to allow flavors to develop, stirring occasionally. Ladle into bowls and serve!

The star of the dinner was the eggplant, though. It crisped up nicely in the oven, making it easy to dip into the sauce. We sprinkled vegan parmesan cheese over the top to complete the eggplant parmesan taste.

Eggplant Chips

Serves 2

1 large eggplant

sea salt

Preheat oven to 400*F. Slice eggplant as thinly as possible. Lay slices on a towel & sprinkle with sea salt. Allow to sit for 10-15 minutes to sweat out any excess liquid. Pat dry with towel. On several baking sheets sprayed with cooking spray, place slices in single layers. Bake for 8 minutes, flip, and bake another 8 minutes. Flip again and bake until crisp, checking often to prevent burning.



Dinner for One + Roasted Curried Butternut Squash

When I'm eating alone, I get creative. It's probably a good thing that I rarely eat alone.

If left to my own devices, I'd be eating a lot of popcorn, apples, bananas, & carrots, with some chocolate dipped marshmallows thrown in for balance.

Yeah...

This meal, however, was a healthy mish-mash of foods. I'm really into orange lately. Maybe my beta carotene levels are down? Or maybe it's just fall & pumpkin season.

Don't forget the wine. When you're peeling & cubing 1 mini pumpkin & 2 small butternut squashes, you get thirsty.

See how my meal progressed? Toast with Dijon mustard, carrots, roasted yellow tomatoes + eggplant, & pumpkin seeds....

...turns into toast with Dijon mustard topped with roasted yellow tomatoes + eggplant, carrots, & roasted butternut squash.

It was completely worth the effort of preparing the squash. That stuff is like candy! I just can't stop eating it. It's melt in your mouth creamy & has just the right salty/sweet ratio.

Those pumpkin seeds sure did grow fast!

Roasted Curried Butternut Squash

Serves 2-4

1 large or 2 small butternut squash

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/4 tsp cumin

Preheat oven to 400*F. Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray. Peel & remove pulp from butternut squash, saving seeds for roasting seperately. Cut squash into small cubes, about 1/2"-1" in size. Spread on prepared tray in an even layer with all cubes touching the tray. Sprinkle with sea salt, curry powder, & cumin. Bake for 15 minutes. Stir & bake another 15 minutes. Stir again, checking for burning. Squash can be eaten when it's soft (check by poking with a fork - if it goes in easily, squash is done). If you prefer your squash to be a little crispier on the outside (like I do), leave in oven for another 10-15 minutes. Serve warm. Leftovers can be refrigerated for about 4 days & reheated as needed.

Garden in the Fall

We're still gardening!

My beets (above), turnips & radishes are almost ready to harvest. We tried a few radishes over the weekend & they were ready. I just want to savor looking out the window at the greenery for a little longer.

Speaking of beets, we bought our first fresh juice at the Palmyra Real Food Emporium. It was made with raw beets, apples & carrots. We loved it! It was a pretty purple, lightly sweet & had just the right combination of flavors. I think I'm going to try to recreate it at home once I harvest our beets.

The purple peppers are doing well. The Bup had to prop up one of the plants with a stick because the peppers are so heavy!

We would like to save the seeds from one or two of the peppers because they're really nice. They're super crunchy & thick walled, which is great for eating & storing in the fridge.

Mom said that to save the seeds, we should let one of them turn red before we pick it so that they are fully mature. Once we pick the pepper, we'll lay out the seeds on paper & let them dry. Then we can put them in an envelope & try planting them next year. I'm excited to try this!

Can you guess what this is?

Mini eggplants!

I thought the plants were going to die because they got severly eaten by bugs during July & August. They must like the cooler weather, though, because now they're thriving. I can't wait to taste one once they ripen.

The kale just won't stop growing. It's a mini forest in our garden! I love the homegrown variety versus the store bought because it's a lot heartier and sturdy, making it perfect for kale chips. We started using Old Bay on the kale instead of sea salt - try it! It adds a little kick.

My lettuce is loving the fall weather, too. I planted 1.5 rows each of mixed greens & spinach. Both are thriving, and the Bup is going to put out our lettuce greenhouse soon so that it survives the first frost.

A sneaky tomato plant somehow made it's way into the lettuce patch. They're poking up everywhere! Meanwhile, all the mature tomato plants are dying.

And then there's the swiss chard. This stuff is out of control! I haven't picked any lately because it looks so pretty popping up among all the strawberry plants.

The first frost will be coming soon, so I better get picking!

Grilled Eggplant Sandwiches

If you ever want to eat a sandwich the size of your head, come on over. We'll dive right in and let the juices run down our arms. If you can open your mouth wide enough to bite into it, that is!

First you prep everything. Once the food gets on the grill, you want to be able to stay there. Or if you're lucky enough to have 2 people cooking, that works even better. The Bup does the grilling in our house, so I'm usually running in and out making sure he has everything.

See the small cuts all around the eggplant slices? They're very important. It'll taste the same whether you cut the skin or not, but it's a lot easier to eat if you take the time to cut it. 

Sprinkle the seasonings over the slices and get ready to grill. 

If you have seasonings left after you sprinkle one side, you can add them after you flip the slices on the grill.

Now for the toppings.

Crisp up the bread a little bit and then add eggplant. Next comes Mmmm Sauce (from Mama Pea), swiss chard, and sliced tomatoes.

You can vary your toppings. If you're a cheese lover, use that in place of the sauce. If you don't have swiss chard, use spinach. Some other great additions are mustard and/or half of a grilled bell pepper. We like the flavor combo here, but have had this sandwich with many variations and it's always delicious!

Add more eggplant and another slice of bread to complete the sandwich.

Stare it down. Don't be intimidated. Attack it with confidence and with a napkin at the ready.

Then sit back, sigh a little, and enjoy the meal!

Grilled Eggplant Sandwiches

Serves 2

1 medium eggplant

1 tsp Italian seasoning

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp salt

1 medium tomato, sliced

1 cup swiss chard, chopped (any green - spinach, lettuce, etc. - would work here)

4 T Mmmm Sauce (or mustard or sliced cheese, if preferred)

4 thick slices sourdough bread

cooking spray

Score the skin of the eggplant by using just the tip of the knife and dragging it from the stem to bottom of the eggplant. Make a cut about every 1/2" all the way around. Slice into 1/2" thick rounds and lay on a tray in a single layer. Mix Italian seasoning, garlic powder, black pepper and salt in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over the eggplant slices. Lightly spray grill rack with cooking spray and cook eggplant slices for about 5 minutes per side, or until grill marks appear. Meanwhile, toast bread on the top rack of the grill. Assemble sandwiches, layering 1 slice of bread, 2-3 eggplant slices, Mmmm Sauce, swiss chard, tomato, another 2-3 eggplant slices, and 1 slice of bread. There may be a few eggplant slices remaining, depending on the size of the eggplant. If so, serve on the side or reserve for future use.