Have you noticed the numerous eggplant recipes on this blog? It’s fair to say that eggplant is one of my favorite things to cook. I love the silky texture it takes on after being properly prepared, the melt-in-your-mouth goodness. Of course, if you don’t prepare eggplant properly, it tends to be tough and bitter. Ugh. That’s why it’s essential you take the time to follow the preparation steps. They’re very easy, and only require you to work about 5 minutes of the time. For the rest of the 30 minutes, the eggplant just hangs out, doing its thing.

Most of the time, Eggplant Parmesan is fried. Yuck. I’m probably one of the few Americans who really cannot stand deep fried food, and I’ll probably take some slack for it, but I truly find it mostly disgusting. In my version of Eggplant Parmesan, I use a method I learned in The Sunday’s Moosewood Restaurant Cookbook. They have this phenomenal recipe for Baked Eggplant Sandwiches, and boy oh boy are they tasty! I prepare the Baked Eggplant Sandwiches, then make a more traditional Eggplant Parmesan out of them, using Parmesan cheese and tomato sauce. For this recipe, I also added spinach. If you’re not a fan of spinach, by all means, leave it out.

Ingredients:
1 medium to large eggplant
2 cups loosely packed spinach
12 oz mozzarella cheese, sliced
½ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 jar marinara sauce, or your own homemade recipe
½ cup whole wheat flour
1 cup bread crumbs
2 eggs, well-beaten

Guidelines:

Slice your eggplant into slices about ¼-3/8 inch thick. Working in batches, lay the slices in a colander, lightly salting each layer. Once all the layers have been laid and salted, place a heavy object, such as bowl, on top of the eggplant. Let rest for 30 minutes. Salting and pressing helps break down the cell walls and release bitterness. Once the 30 minutes has elapsed, remove the bowl and gently pat dry the layers of eggplant, removing what salt you can.

In three pie pans or something similar, place the flour in one, the bread crumbs in another, and the eggs in yet another.

Take two eggplant slices, and sandwich a slice of mozzarella and a bunch of spinach in between them. Dredge the sandwich first in flour, then in egg, then in the bread crumbs. (Note: You will probably have leftover spinach; that’s fine, you’ll use it below.) Place the sandwiches on a non-stick baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the tops are golden and the cheese is melted.

Once the sandwiches come out of the oven, place them in a casserole dish, top with the marinara sauce, the remaining spinach, and the Parmesan cheese. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or just long enough that the sauce heats through and the Parmesan cheese melts.

This veggie Italian sandwich is perfect for a quick, delicious meal anytime, but especially after a workout or a hot day in the sun. The sea salt on the roll, combined with the tapenade, provide a nice briny tang which will quickly replenish your sodium loss. The field greens are refreshing, and the fresh mozzarella is chewy and delicate in flavor. The roasted red peppers give the sandwich a warm, hearty taste. And if you buy the tapenade and the roasted red peppers instead of making them, you’ll be eating this sandwich in no time.

Note: Tapenade is a mixture made principally with olives, garlic, and vinegar.

Ingredients:

sourdough or French bread sandwich rolls
balsamic vinegar based salad dressing
olive oil
sea salt
rosemary
fresh mozzarella
roasted red peppers
mixed baby field greens
tapenade

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the sandwich roll in half. Brush the top of the sandwich roll with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and rosemary.

Slice the fresh mozzarella and lay several slices on the bottom of the roll. Lay strips of roasted red pepper on top of the mozzarella.

Place both halves of the sandwich roll on a small cookie sheet and place in the oven. Bake until the cheese is melted and the top of the roll is toasty.

Remove from oven. Let cool briefly. While cooling, toss the field greens with a balsamic vinegar based salad dressing. Place a handful or two of the dressed greens on top of the mozzarella and roasted red peppers. Top the greens with several spoonfuls of tapenade. Put the top on and eat up!