Growing at the Speed of Life - A Year in the Life of My First Kitchen Garden

3 cups peeled, seeded, and diced fresh
tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
¼ cup chopped fresh basil

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Place the eggplant cubes in a baking dish,
spray lightly with olive oil cooking spray and
bake 20 minutes or until tender. Set aside.
Heat 1 teaspoon of the oil in a high-sided
skillet over medium-high. Sauté the onions
2  minutes, add the garlic, and cook 1 minute
more. Stir in the bell peppers and zucchini, and
cook about 10 minutes until wilted. Add the
tomatoes, oregano, salt, and black pepper, and
cook 10 minutes.
Stir in the eggplant and simmer 10 minutes
more or until everything is tender. Add the
remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil, parsley, and
basil, and stir.
Serve hot or at room temperature as a side
dish. For a main dish, spoon over toasted Ital­
ian bread, polenta, pasta, or rice.

Per serving : 127 calories, 3 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 24 g
carbohydrate, 1 g protein, 3 g dietary fi ber, 332  mg
sodium. Exchanges: 5 Vegetable

ROASTED EGGPLANT AND



RED PEPPER SANDWICH

This is my all-time-favorite sandwich, but Treena
truly hates it, so I indulge only occasionally and

to compensate for her absence in my life when

she is away with friends.

If you have a hinged compression (panini)

grill, then please use it to toast the fi lling and

the bread.

SERVES 4

8 small slices French or Italian bread, toasted

Extra-virgin olive oil cooking spray

2 garlic cloves, cut in half

1 medium eggplant, cut into ½-inch slices

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup sliced roasted red peppers

Preheat the broiler. Lay the bread on the broiler

pan, coat lightly with extra-virgin olive oil cook­

ing spray, and toast lightly on both sides. Rub

the top of each with the garlic and set aside.

Set the oven to 450°F. Grease a baking sheet.

Arrange the eggplant slices in the prepared

sheet and coat lightly with the cooking spray.

Season with salt and black pepper. Roast 20

minutes or until tender and caramelized.

Cover each slice of bread with the roasted

eggplant and lay the roasted red pepper strips

over the top. Give each one a quick spritz of the

cooking spray and serve.

Per serving : 250 calories, 2 g fat, 0 g saturated fat,

49 g carbohydrate, 10 g protein, 8 g dietary fi ber, 779

mg sodium. Exchanges: 2 Starch, 1 Vegetable

EGGPLANT • 143