Meatless Monday: Grilled Greek Eggplant Pita

Adapted from Cooking Light

Personal Note: Have I mentioned by love of Eggplant? I think it’s the color or maybe because it has the word egg in it. Either way, it has made its way in my heart and on my plate.

Plan of Attack:

1. Prep veggies

2. Make yogurt dressing

3. Grill

Ingredients for 2:

1 medium eggplant, sliced into ½” slices

1 Tbsp kosher salt

1 Tbsp olive oil

2 slices red onion

2 whole wheat pitas

1 small tomato, sliced

Bibb lettuce

Greek Yogurt Dressing:

¼ C plain greek yogurt

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp oregano

¼ tsp dill

1 garlic clove, minced

Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. 30 minutes before cooking: place eggplant slices and 1 Tbsp of kosher salt in a colander. Toss to coat. Allow to drain for 30 minutes
2. Remove eggplant and pat dry with a paper towel
3. Heat your grillpan or Jorge (George Foreman grill) to medium-high heat. Either sprinkle or brush eggplant and red onion slices with olive oil and place on the grill; 5 minutes on each side
4. While eggplant cooks, combine in a small bowl the yogurt, lemon juice, oregano, dill, garlic, salt and pepper
5. Before eggplant is done, microwave the pitas for 20 seconds to warm
6. Spread 1 Tbsp of the greek dressing on one side of the pita, layer with eggplant, red onion, tomato and lettuce.
7. Enjoy!

Nutritional Info for 2 pita halves:

311 calories

8.2g fat (1.6g saturated fat)

12.7g protein

50.6g carbohydrates

9.2g fiber

1.7mg cholesterol

Tuesday: Eggplant Bolognese

Adapted from Cooking Light

Personal Note: I learned from Hot Fuzz that the British call our “pasta sauce” “Bolognese”. We are definitely classy that way. Then it took me looking at the recipe every 10 seconds to remember how to spell it!

Plan of Attack:

1. Prep veggies

2. Cook ground meat

3. Cook eggplant

Ingredients for 3:

1 Tbsp olive oil

½ yellow onion, diced

1 tsp salt, divided

½ tsp black pepper

½ pound ground buffalo (or ground meat of your choice)

2 small (or 1 medium) eggplant, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 Tbsp tomato paste

¼ C red cooking wine

½ tsp Italian seasoning

½ tsp oregano

1 14oz can of diced tomatoes, undrained

½ Tbsp red wine vinegar

5 oz whole-wheat penne pasta (or pasta of your choice), cooked according to your preference

Fresh basil chopped for garnish

Instructions:

1. Heat olive oil in a dutch oven or large nonstick skillet to medium-high heat.
2. Add onion, ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper and ground meat. Cook for approx. 10 minutes or until meat is thoroughly cooked
3. Add eggplant, garlic, ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper, Italian seasoning and oregano ; cook for another 20 minutes until the eggplant is tender, stirring occasionally
4. Add tomato paste; cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly
5. Add red cooking wine; cook 1 minute
6. Add can of diced tomatoes, bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer 10 minutes
7. Plate your cooked pasta and top with Bolognese then garnish with basil
8. Enjoy!