Recipe: Vegetarian Stuffed Eggplant

Oh eggplant. How did I go nearly 25 years without knowing how much I loved you?

While my obsession with brussels sprouts is still going strong, eggplant is quickly making its way into my heart. Truthfully, I barely now how to cook with eggplant, apart from 2-3 recipes. But those recipes? Delish.

Lately, I've been adventurous about trying new recipes, and have even tried creating a few myself (a definite first!) Luckily, one of my latest attempts in the kitchen turned out really, really good. I wish I would have made more than just one eggplant.

While I made the recipe without meat, you could easily stuff the eggplant with chicken, pork etc. (I'd probably use shredded chicken or pork, but I'm no expert!) But I've gotta say - the veggie version was just as good.

|| Photos are property of Twentyapolis. Must give credit. ||

Vegetarian Stuffed Eggplant

Serves two

Ingredients:

Eggplant: 1 whole

Onion: 1/2 

Tomatoes: 2 whole

Grape tomatoes: 1 cup

Garlic: 1 tablespoon

Basil:  1 cup

Spinach: 1 cup

Feta cheese: 1/2 cup

Parmesan cheese: 1/2 cup

Olive oil: 3 tablespoons

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Slice eggplant in half.

2. Using a knife or spoon, gut the eggplant, leaving about 1/2 inch border. Place the removed eggplant into a separate bowl. 

3. Place eggplant halves in a glass dish and drizzle with olive oil. Cover with tinfoil and bake for 20 minutes (eggplant should be mildly tender at this point).

4. While the eggplant shells are baking, chop excess eggplant, onion, garlic, tomatoes, basil and spinach. Sauté in a pan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Cook until tender.

5. When eggplant shells are tender, remove from oven. Stuff with sautéed vegetable mixture and drizzle with additional olive oil. Top with feta and parmesan cheese and bake for 15 minutes. 

6. Cook until the cheese is melted (20 minutes total if needed). Remove from oven, let cool and enjoy!

xo,